90 Day Fiance: B90 S8E13 Losing Altitude & Single Life S5E5 The Art of Microcheating

On Before the 90 Days:

Birkan sinks to a new low, but Laura is really starting to bug me.

Josh toasts his best friend Chris before his girlfriend who just flew 40 hours to be with him.

Lisa finally drops the bomb and tells Daniel she's been married to a woman this whole time. But the real crime is they are spider killers.

Jovan shows his ass in the toilet, on the floor and to the pedicurist. Dude, use the bidet, pick up your undies, and please, you had better have tipped that TIRED nail tech for grinding down those hooves. Annalyn is concerned that Jovan has not yet applied for the spousal VISA.

Emma gets a phone call from Mohammed and why is she still on my screen?

Rick yells at Trisha for having the audacity to mention liking a place that her ex took her to, because Rick is a giant whiny man baby with rage issues.  RUN, TRISHA!

On the Single Life:

Kim goes on a date with Joe, a refreshingly normal person, but seems way more into her son's bestie Josh.

Jamal tries on a dress and I don't hate it.

Sophie and Julia are terrible and Liz opens up to Villa about her health.

Courtney catches Colt brazenly cheating and helps him out one last time by putting all his shit on the curb. 

Book Club corner: 

For my next readalong, I've chosen Rock Hard by Nalini Singh. What, you thought I was going to pick something with no spice on the page? 

Here's the link to the author's website so you can choose your store: https://nalinisingh.com/books/rock-kiss-series/rock-hard/

Also: I have a new novella out! Check out Unfinished: How to Fail at Avoiding Your Ex: https://books2read.com/u/38aNAL

For more happily ever afters, join me on Storygraph!

https://app.thestorygraph.com/profile/90daybookclub

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Transcript

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The 90-day book club is meant for entertainment purposes only and contains adult language. Hello and welcome to the 90-day book club. I'm your host, Jen. I also write under the romance pen name Abby Knox. I write happily of our afters because life is a train wreck and I talk about reality TV because if I don't have an outlet to talk about the Michael and the beer con of it all, I'll end up talking to the person next to me on the elliptical at the gym, and I don't want to be the chatty weirdo at the gym. This week I'm doing a combination episode of Before the 90 Days episode 13, Losing Altitude, and the Single Life episode 5 of The Art of Microcheating. I decided to combine everything this week into one podcast, at least until I'm able to do more. But at the moment, that's the level of hosting I can manage. If you would like these episodes to be broken up separately, let me know. Maybe leave me a comment, leave me a tip in my coffee account. Um, I'll have the links to all of that in the show notes. At the end of the show, I'll talk about what I'm currently writing, what I'm currently reading, and leave links for you to learn more about all of that. Let's start out hot right out the gate with Laura and Beer Khan. So these two are on their way to Ephesus, and she is showing him pictures from her hometown. She's showing him pictures of the state of Washington from Mount St. Helens, and his comment is I can see nothing but boobs. It's a volcano. I remember that pretty vividly from my childhood. I don't know about you. I'm old. I'm old, but Birkan is apparently 11. In her talking head, Laura says, Something happened this morning I need to tell Birkan about, and he's not going to be happy. Um, so they arrive at Ephesus. Um, it's one of the ancient wonders of the world. It's really amazing. It is huge, and of course, I'm also having flashbacks to my evangelical upbringing because obviously this is the city of the people that Paul wrote to in the book of Ephesians in the Bible. Um, at one time I had all of the books memorized. I no longer do. I mean, the list of all the names of the books, not the actual books memorized. I'm an idiot with my syntax sometimes. Anyway, moving on. The aerial view of this place looks amazing. And the more and more things I'm seeing in their segments on the show, the more and more I want to go visit Turkey. Am I crazy? But did I even see a Medusa carving on there? Hell yeah. So they take a tour of the place and then they sit down at one point. And Laura says, I hope you know I really do want this relationship to work. Birkan says, That makes two of us. Laura says, I have way more concerns about it than you do. So she tells him she called Michael because she wants to get his opinion. Birkan says, I have concerns because you're still talking to Michael. Laura says, She wants Michael to come here. She wants his opinion. Bjirkhand says, perfect. Sarcastically, there is no point. And Laura says, Well, he already bought a ticket. And Birkan says, What? Yikes. Just his tone is very scary to me. He says, without asking, without telling me, this is ridiculous. Laura says, the other night, uh, Michael offered to come and I planned to talk to Birkan about it, but then Michael booked a flight before she had a chance to talk to Birkan. She says she woke up with a bunch of text messages from Michael. She says, I'm concerned this will compliment complicate the progress we've made. Michael's always a person I turn to for advice. Birkan says, This is not normal. Is he out of his mind? Laura says, Well, he just wants to give his opinion. Birkan says, or to blow up our relationship so he can have his. Laura says, your friends scoped me out, so why not Michael? Bjirkhan says, my friends don't want to fuck me. As much as I don't like this guy, he's right. It is very strange to have the guy who you know has a major crush on you, but can't really figure out how to express his feelings to come over across the world to give his opinion about your current boyfriend. But Laura says she would never let a third party come between them.

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Mm-hmm.

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Sure. But she tells him, maybe calm down and just meet him. So they go to this wine tasting in Ephesus, and Birkan is miserable, and he is just shooting the wine that they're pouring for the tasting and sulking like a little boy. She's like, What's your problem? Do you want to talk about this? He says, I am miserable. I am waiting for my best friend Michael. And she's like, Fine, do you want to talk about this? And he's like, I got no heads up. You declined my existence in the relationship. You are not respecting, and now I have doubts. When we get married, it'll only get worse. This could be my worst mistake. Laura's like, what mistake? And Birkan says, This, us, basically, our relationship. The next day, they are back at their hotel in Ismir, and Laura's getting a call from Michael saying, My hotel's not going to be ready until two, so is it okay if I stop by? Birkon is extremely annoyed. And I really feel like they should have met in a neutral place instead of him coming to the Airbnb. But in her talking head, Laura says, it feels good that someone cares enough to get on a plane for me. I remember at the beginning of this season when I really liked Laura and I thought she would be somebody I could hang with. And but right now I feel like she needs a girlfriend in her life. I mean, there's nothing wrong with being friends with a man, but this man obviously has a big crush on you, and I really feel like she needs some female friends in her life to explain to her what she is doing. She is very obviously to me pitting these two men against each other. And while I'm no fan of Beercon, I am questioning Michael right now. He seems to be playing into her romance fantasy of will they, won't they? Also the white knight fantasy, in which he's flying across the world to rescue her from herself. So Michael's on his way over and she's talking to Birkon about his concerns. And she says, Look, Michael's concerned about me. And she says, it's normal for friends to be concerned. Birkan is being super sarcastic, saying, He has such a good heart. Listen, I'm not five years old. I don't need that shit. Your friend, your friend is trying to cause a disconnection, and you're all, yay, I don't get it. I mean, he's not wrong. In his talking head, Birkan says he's gonna mix up Laura's mind talking shit about me. If our relationship is gonna end because of Michael, I don't blame Michael, I blame Laura. So Michael shows up at the Airbnb and he and Laura hug for a really uncomfortably long time. And you can't tell me that Michael is not looking at Bierkant while he's hugging Laura pointedly. Michael says to Laura, it's the most spontaneous thing I've ever done in my life. Boy, you plan that since the moment she got on that plane. You have been waiting for your moment. He probably bought a ticket with flexible dates around it. Anyway, he comes inside the Airbnb and he and Birkon shake hands and then Birkon immediately goes and sits back down on the couch. Michael, Laura asks Michael if he wants some tea, and he's like, sure, do the women make the tea or the girls make the tea or the boys make the tea? And while this is very awkward verbiage he's using, I think I know what he's saying. He's talking about how he's seen, maybe he's even seen it on the show, of the men making and pouring the tea for the women. I don't know. But of course, Bircon takes this as an opportunity to jab him a little and says, they are called men if they are grown up. So Laura runs off to make the tea, and Michael goes over and sits on the couch, catty corner from Beercon. Beercon's watching the TV, and Michael says, So, buddy, whatcha watching? And Birkon says, Scarface. He looks Michael in the eye and says, Scarface. And I do believe Laura is less than six feet away, and she has nothing to say about this. Now it's pretty well established that Birkon is an unrepentant lowlife at this point, but I don't know, that's a bridge too far for me. I mean, she's gonna let him say this pointedly insulting things because as we know, it's been discussed on this show that Michael has an obvious birth defect that is visible on his nose and affects the way that he talks. So saying that you're watching Scarface is a very obvious dig. And it's so gross and inappropriate, and I am kind of pissed at Laura at this point for just not saying anything. But Michael, you see, you see it register on his face, but then he sort of swallows it and sets it aside. Michael just moves on and says, Do you like American classic movies? Biercon says, No, I like mob stuff. I enjoy violence. Do you like violence? Michael's like, So you like this movie, or and Biercon says, Violence. Michael's just looking around, like, where is Laura with that T? Uh Michael's talking head, he says, he's talking to me about violence on the couch. I can't imagine that's healthy for Laura. My first impression is that Laura and I are more compatible than Biercon, and I want her to make the right choice. This is what you came here for. You didn't come here to rescue her from herself. You came here to win Laura. Let's move on to Elise and Josh. At the airport, they are at the car loading her luggage, and I notice all these little things that Elise notices Josh not doing for her. She comments, maybe open the door for me because I'm freezing. And I like this because she's telling him how she wants to be treated. And I almost said telling them because it really feels like she's in a relationship with Chris and Josh because Chris is just there and continues to be there. So they're driving to the bar because they don't want to miss the Melbourne Cup or whatever. And Chris is spending a thousand dollars on a horse, and he's listing off the names and asking Elise to pick one. And she says, Oh, I like buckaroo. And he's like, Well, I haven't listed them all yet. Kind of seems like this is serious business and not fun for him. Also seems like we got another guy with a gambling problem on our hands. We get a funny moment where Elise thinks Josh is driving on the wrong side of the road. Chris says, Elise, about 20 minut 20 meters to our right is our apartment. And she says, What are meters? So they arrive late at the bar where they were gonna watch the Melbourne Cup, and Chris is upset. He's down a thousand dollars. He says, Well, I'm gonna get drunk. Once again, as I said last week, I do think when we see Josh and Elise kissing in the car, they might be slightly blurring out a nipple because that dress is crazy. Very pretty, but wow. So at the bar, Josh proposes a toast and says, I'm glad you came. You're one of my best friends to Chris. He says, This. And I wanted you, Elise, to meet him. So cheers to you getting here. It's the weirdest toast I've ever heard. And Elise says, I feel like that cheer, cheers is about Chris. And Chris says, It was. Thanks for coming. She says, I'm lost. Who does that? So finally, Josh says, I know it took you to get here, Elise. So this cheers is for you. A little bit later, they're talking about how much they all go out and party. Oh, Elise says, Normally I go out five nights a week, but lately I've been showing, slowing down and chilling out a little bit. So she asks Josh, Do you go out a lot? Josh says, We party a bit. Yeah, it's part of my life. Chris says, his job is to drive boats, and there's usually parties associated with that. Wait a minute. Yacht brokers drive boats? Is he a yacht captain or is he a yacht broker? Elise says, I like going out, but I also want a partner who wants to stay home and snuggle with the cat. She says she's also concerned about his financial problems. Um, did I see in her hero shot that she's wearing glasses on a chain? Elise, that's your first step toward being a homebody, crazy cat lady, and I love that for you. Back at the apartment, Elise is looking a little bit bedraggled. In her talking head, she says she's been awake for 40 hours. She is delirious, but she put on a game face and went to the motherfucking bar. And she says, now I'm beyond thankful we are at the rental. I'm gonna get some rest soon. She's immediately giving them shit. Uh, who didn't make their bed? This bathroom is too small. There's not enough towels. We have to get a closet organizer. She says in her talking head, I'm not a big complainer and she's super appreciative. But she said she would have settled for a smaller space without a roommate. And oh, she is not amused at the stupid poster that Chris put above their bed. It is pretty juvenile. She says, So when we have sex, we have to look at that. Josh says, When we have sex, that's pretty assumptuous of you. Josh making up words. Elise says you could have put up a picture of me. And Chris says, Well, we didn't have one. She looks at him like so. All of my social media, you couldn't pick one. So Elise is getting in the bed in a really cute little PJ or maybe underwear outfit. That's really cute. And then Josh is sleeping on the couch because she says he doesn't want to lead with sex. In his talking head, the producer asks Josh about this. And he says, I think it's good to connect on an emotional level first. The producer asks, but would you have sex with her? And he says, Well, yeah, I would. Right on the airport floor, I would have. Yeah, Chris needs to go because these two hot people are gonna need some major aloe time soon and often. Moving on to Lisa and Daniel. It's the morning after Lisa has told Daniel that she's actually still married and has, in fact, been married five times and that he would be spouse number six. She's in her separate room at the hotel, hung over, putting on her makeup. She and Daniel texted last night, but she says she had he didn't say any replies about loving her, hasn't said he still wants to be with her. But she's getting ready, putting on a full face of makeup, getting ready to talk to him because she has a romantic getaway plan that was already scheduled and paid for with Juna's money, but he doesn't know about it. And she says, I know it's really bad timing on my part. Daniel is in his room by himself after not having slept all night. Lisa says she thinks Daniel's strong reaction to her revelation about her marital status means he's desperately in love with her. Okay. She says, I'm not gonna give up like I have with every other relationship. This one is good, and I'm gonna fight for what's good. So they meet on the veranda and she apologizes again about not telling him everything. Daniel says he cried all night and didn't sleep until five. She asks Daniel not to forgive her completely, but just work with her. Daniel says once again, they have to meet with Uncle Modestus because we broke the rules. Lisa says, I don't understand why everyone has to be involved in everything. I'm asking you. In her talking head, she says, It's like he wants to put a scarlet letter on me. Daniel says, if we don't talk to my uncle, the ancestors might come after me. Lisa asks him to wait to talk to the uncle because she's planned a trip, a romantic getaway. And he says, Is this a trap? Yeah, it is, because she wants to get you alone to confess everything. Lisa says, I don't have much more money left, Daniel. You don't have much of Juno's money left, you mean? In Daniel's talking head, he says he's upset about the lies, but because she's been separated from her ex for nine years, she's he's going to try to forgive her. And he understands her not having much money left. In Lisa's talking head, she says she wants him to wait because she doesn't want him to tell his uncle a thing about her still being married, and then having to go back and tell him again about the lesbianism, which she had already lied to about to the uncle. Um, so Daniel agrees to go to the resort, but he says, no sex, no kissing, no sleeping together. Um this resort at Bottery, Botagree. Um, what can I say? It's not Nosy Bay. And immediately the camera, when they walk into the room, the camera focuses on the spider on the floor. And I have never seen anyone freak out this bad about a spider. I understand a phobia, but this is not a phobia. She's just acting like a child. And after, and she is just screaming her full head off as he is stepping on the spider and sort of kicking it toward her. And later she's yelling at him, it was tarantula size. It was an ordinary spider, like about the size of a quarter or less. Here's my thing: don't kill spiders. Spiders are beneficial. Spiders kill pests. The next morning we find out that Daniel had held Lisa all night because she was crying. He couldn't sleep because she was just crying and wailing because she's a manipulative baby. I I cannot, I don't care if I'm crying. I want to hug, but I don't want anyone to hold me all night long. Mm-mm. That's just is too much. I don't know who likes to be held all night long. That's a thing in romance, but in real life, no thanks. So they get up and walk around the resort, and there are zero other people. Um, she says, it's not like the pictures, it's pretty desolate and run down, but maybe that is desolate would make it more intimate for the two of us. They do manage to find the one person uh at the coconut stand working, the only guy at the resort. So they get some coconut to drink, and then they go on these little pedal bikes, and she's not helping at all with the side-by-side pedal pedal bike things. So later that night they have a bonfire. I really hate it when she asks, Do you feel like you're reconnecting with me a little bit? If you have to ask, Daniel says, I'm trying to respect our tradition. I will beg on our behalf to to my uncle. He says he wants to learn how to love her, but she needs to stop hiding secrets. And she says, I understand. So I have more to tell you then. So, like in Nigeria, it's not legal for men to marry men or for women to marry women. He says, Yes. She says, in the US it is. He says, I've heard of that. So she says, My last marriage was not with a man. I'm divorcing a woman, Daniel. And I've been with more than one woman. You're the first man I've been with in 21 years. And he's sitting there with his hands on his face, going, please, um, he's shaking his head. He can't process all this information all at once. And then this bombastic music plays as he stands up slowly, and they make it look like he's standing up threateningly, especially with the way the music is going. Although I will say this, I don't think Daniel would ever physically threaten her. But he backs away and she's trying to talk to him. It's not as bad as and he's shouting and pointing, don't come close to me. It is wild that Lisa has put herself in this situation at all. Moving on to Jovan and Annalyn. Uh, so last night the two of them came back to Cavite and her cat Mito got sick and they had to run him to the vet. Did they go to Sheena? Wouldn't that be wild? I really kind of want that. The poor cat in his little cone. Anilyn has to explain to Joe Von about the toilets because apparently he left a big, big old loaf in that thing. It's not flushing. Um, and she says, we don't put toilet paper in the toilet because it doesn't dissolve. He says, I don't remember doing that. Yeah, you do, you know. But she explains this is why we use a bidet first. The Americans not understanding bidets also gave us the classic moment from Jihun. My whole family anal so clean. So they sit down to breakfast with mom, and she has cooked for an army. There's tilapia, egg rolls, chicken adobo, boiled eggs, and rice. It looks amazing. It's making me very hungry. If you can hear my stomach growling, I have not eaten breakfast yet. Mom is being real sweet, asking how he slept. So apparently, there was the cat was making noise. There's roosters outside and the karaoke. It's a busy neighborhood. Um, the mom seems so happy that he's here, but she wants to know when he's leaving and is he going to take Annalyn with him. And he says he's leaving in two weeks. And mom says, Can it be a year? And mom's talking head, she says, I worry because it took so long to arrive. I worry what will happen to my daughter. Yeah, the mom really breaks my heart in this scene. Javon says, I'm gonna make it up and come back very soon. In Anilyn's talking head, we find out that Javon has not even applied for the spousal visa yet. She says, Right now I don't feel secure about the future. Later, we get this moment that I feel is a little bit staged, but also an accurate representation. He's sitting on his ass in front of the fan on the bed, scrolling on his phone, and she is sighing heavily and stomping around the room and picking up his underwear with her feet. As she complains about him not picking up after himself in her talking head, she says, uh, living together, I get to see how he is. He's messy. He puts clothes and towels everywhere. I feel like I have a toddler, and I always have to pick up stuff. He tries to correct her and says, her tone should be different. She should say, Boo, if you don't mind, could you just pick up after yourself? Yeah, how about you just not throw your stuff on the floor? But anyway, Javon says, Annalyn is always accusing me of not being romantic enough. So he asks if she'd like to go get pedicures. Uh, 30 minutes later, they're at the R Chal Beauty Lounge, which is completely covered in pink, pink thrones to sit in, pink everything. The workers are wearing pink. I love it. But of course, Jovon cannot stop complaining and says, It's like Barbie threw up in here. I want all good things for that pedicurist working on Jovon's hoofs, shaving them down, who says, I'm so tired. I love her and I want to know everything about her because the looks that she has on her face while Annalyn and Jovan have this conversation. She knows everything they are talking about. She knows what a masculinity podcast did. But anyway, Jovan turns to Annalyn and says, Will you be nice to me when we're talking about me picking up after myself? And Anilyn says, No, you can be nice by not dropping your stuff on the floor. He says to her, You used to be softer and sweeter and more patient. He says, I think you knew I wasn't going anywhere and you got comfortable. I don't have to try anymore. He says, Don't ever get too comfortable. Ever. You guys, I just wanted to throw up when I heard that. Annalyn says, Did you get the did you get this from those videos you've been watching about masculinity? And Javon says, No, it was my idea. No, I think you told us that you heard it on a podcast at a previous episode. She says, Why did you bring me here? Do I look like I'm having a good time? Javon says, You set me up. Have you ever heard the phrase, if you don't want to hear the answers, then cease from asking dumbass questions? Jovon, I think the phrase you're looking for is don't ask questions you don't want the answers to. But anyway, Annalyn says, if you don't want a bitchy wife, don't be a fucking asshole. And she throws a towel at him and says, You can stay here. Don't come home ever, jerk. So, not a lot of meat on that bone because it was just the same arguments over and over, but we did learn a few things, like the fact that he did not apply for the spouse Lavisa yet. Let's move on to Emma. Just Emma, no Ziad this time. Um, she is back in Marrakesh, she's in a Riyadh by herself. They give a little flashback of her at the resort. She said, luckily, the front desk person at the resort helped her make some calls, and she says to the person on the phone, I just got dumped. I says, sorry to hear that. So at the new Riyadh, she calls her friend Maddie. Um, so Emma gives her the breakdown of what happened, and Maddie says, That is crazy behavior. So Maddie's basically gonna be gonna be the yes person to Emma's story about being a victim. Emma says, Zia's been sending her rage texts saying, I hate myself because I was with a girl like you. You're a liar, it's bad because your name is Emma Angelina, because you're a demon. She just says, it's so annoying. Her friend Emma, her friend says, You're a cat. Why does he think he's the Ryan Gosling of Morocco? No, I am old, so I might bring up Ryan Gosling, but I feel like people this age would bring up, I don't know, some other younger actor that I've never heard of. But Emma says, Don't be mad. And I really hate it when people say that. But she tells Emma that she may have been texting Mohammed. Maddie is clearly shocked by this. And I kind of have the feeling that she's been texting Mohammed the whole time, but I have no confirmation on that. And Emma tells her friend, last time I was here, it was such a happy time, and it made me miss him. Her friend Maddie says, This happens to you all the time. It makes me so sad. I just want you to come home. Later that day, as production is getting ready for a talking head, Mohammed calls her in the middle of it. We don't hear his voice. We don't see his face. His face is all blurred out in the photo package of him, which means he's either not gonna show up or he did not sign a release. I don't think he's gonna show up. But she seemed very pleased that he calls and says they agreed to meet up for lunch. And she tells production, oh my god, hearing his voice gave me anxiety. They asked how he sounded. She said, cute. Okay, so we end this episode with Rick and Trisha. Um, they're packing up to leave Nosy Bay. Trisha says, Are you sure you want to go? Because they're on their way to meet her family. And Rick says, I want to make sure I'm the one you want to introduce to your family. And this man is obviously an endless pit of need for her to reassure him all the time because she seems very impatient. She says, I told you yes. What else do you want? You're hesitating. Make things clear. Rick says, you keep talking about your ex. You keep bringing him up. So we get the explanation that as they are walking around after that boxing match, she pointed out a place that her ex took her to. I don't know if it was a restaurant, museum, who knows what it was. Rick says, that upset me. Rick says, and makes him think that she wants to get back at him. Okay, first of all, you are an insecure little baby. Second of all, if she does want to give you little jabs to get back at you back at you for what you did, um roll with the punches, buddy. Rick says to Trisha, I think you're trying to make me jealous. And she tells him to shut up. I want more of Trisha telling him to shut up. She says, I liked the place. I loved it. I enjoyed it. And Rick, the way he yells at her is really disturbing. He says, Do you think I want to hear that? She's like, What is the problem? And he says, It means you appreciate what he has done more than what I have done for you. And she says, I would rather stay single than go back to my ex. Rick says, I don't believe that would happen. And she says, Because that's what you would do. Rick says, I'm trying to work on us. That's the goal. You're getting far away from the finish line. You're running backwards, and we should be running forwards. Okay, enough with the sports analogies in her talking heads. She says he's being ridiculous. She's trying to tell him she enjoyed this place that she went to. I really want to know what the place is. And also he says the place looked cheap, so he's trying to put it down as well to make himself feel better. He's so gross. And the look he's giving her is so awful. He's looking like a parent trying to correct a toddler who's having a tantrum. And that's not as always happening here. He's like giving her that warning face. This is emotional abuse, just straight up. She says, if you want to go, let's go. If you want to stay, say here. Rick says, I want to go if you're committed. So finally she relents, is like, okay. I think she just she's she she wants to get away from him, but I think she also just doesn't want to abandon him because she's a good person on this island. I don't know. I'm really looking forward to his family, to Trisha's family yelling at him next week. Moving on to 90 Day the Single Life, season five, episode five, The Art of Micro Cheating. TLC is just out here making up words, making up phrases, micro. I I think it's a comment on the size of Quilt's pee-pee. I haven't seen the pee-pee, but I've heard from other people who have seen the pee-pee because you know his pee-pee is everywhere on the internet, and I've heard that it's a micro pee-pee. I don't have the facts. This is just what I've heard. So anyway, we open with Kim, who is going dress shopping for a date, and she meets up with Josh and Jamal at a dress store in San Diego. Jamal, her son, and Josh is someone we've met before. He briefly dated uh Natalie from Russia, and he's also a regular in the 90-day bad boys videos with Rob and Jamal, Rob of Rob and Sophie. Anyway, so the guys inform Kim that they're actually there to shop for a dress for Jamal for the next bad boys video. In her talking head, Kim says she hopes that the fact that Jamal invited her to shop with them was a way of Jamal forgiving her after the last conversation they had. And she hopes they can start healing. Well, while Jamal's trying on the dress, Josh is being super flirty and cute with her and tells her she's looking really good. And she says, Yeah, I lost 50 pounds. Josh is super charming. And um, in her talking head, Kim says she's had a major crush on Josh, and she loves it that it drives Jamal crazy. Jamal comes out of the dressing room in this really pretty blue dress with like the side cut out and a slit, and you know what? It fits him really good. I guess I don't think he's gonna be doing drag. I think it's just like doing a jokey thing of him dressed as a woman in a video. I don't know. I guess we'll find out. Josh, okay, he has this energy that reminds me of both Tom Haverford and John Raphael from Parks and Wreck. If you've seen that, you know what I mean. But at the same time, I can't help but kind of like him. Well, Kim is trying on dresses. Jamal is giving Josh shit about flirting with his mom. Um, and Jamal's talking ahead. He says he's had dreams of Josh being at his mom's house, and it's gross, he says. But he says it with like a smile on his face. I think it's all funny and lighthearted. And so I'm just kind of loving all their interactions around this. Um, Kim comes out of the dressing room in a white outfit and it's really cute, maybe too much white for me. I don't know. I like the cut of it. I like monochrome look, but I just maybe think a different color for her. And then she comes out in another outfit with this very deep um plunging neckline, shows off um her jungajungas as Jamal says he's uncomfortable with her wearing this on her first date, but it does look great on her, I think. After the whole discussion about the adoptions and things that she covered up in the past, Jamal does seem a lot more relaxed and being funny with his mom again. And I like this for them. In Kim's talking heads, she says she's looking forward to her date with Joe because it seems like a genuine gentleman. Well, in the past, um, dates have been about what men can get from her from her, what she can do for them. She says, they throw me crumbs and I'm okay with that. It's been so one-sided, and you don't realize it until you're out of it. She says, I'd it's really sad to be 55 years old and never have someone like Kim for Kim. Oh, that makes me sad for Kim. So on Kim's date with Joe, I like the fact that they're hanging out at a park, riding around in one of those side-by-side bicycles. Um, it looks fun. Um, but they pedal down to the beach and he says he has something special for her. He brings her a camera. This is weird. Um, in his talking head, Joe says he likes to do unique activities on dates, and he really hopes it makes him stick out in her mind and lead to a second date. I mean, but they do have a nice conversation. So I mean, I don't know, just to go for a walk, ride the bike, stick with that. I I don't think they needed this camera thing. I think it was nice that he tried to come up with an idea to be different, but he says he feels a spark with Kim. He calls her sweet, nice, beautiful person. In Kim's talking head, though, she says it's just friend vibes. She's not gonna waste time with someone if she's not feeling it. I don't know. On one hand, I feel like Kim is more familiar with drama. On the other hand, if you're not feeling it, you're not feeling it. What are you gonna do? But I am sad that that's the end for Joe because I really like Joe and I kind of want him to come back on the show. Moving on to Sophie and Pedro. This nuttiness. I could not possibly care less if these two get together. Um, so Liz and Sophie are having this argument at the bar. Liz is saying she's sorry, like one, two, three times in this conversation. She's owning up to what apparently she said while she was drunk, even though we all saw it and she didn't say she wasn't warning Pedro. She was telling Pedro that Sophie is still healing and that she he should be aware of that. I don't think he was trying to warn him against going out with Sophie, but Liz is apologizing anyway. And Sophie says in her talking head, she went behind my back to warn a guy not to take a chance on me. This is so inaccurate and it makes me crazy. Julia is trying to defuse the situation and says to Sophie, you want to go to doctor? Meaning the Gustavo guy she was talking to a minute ago. So Sophie gets up and walks away with Gustavo. Liz is visibly upset and she says to Julia that drama is not good for her in her current health situation. And Julia's reaction is, let me go check on her. So she gets up and leaves Liz alone at the table. This is so rude. So Liz walks off and calls Via. In her talking head, Liz says, I know I'm not the reason that Sophie and Pedro aren't talking. Neither of them are being honest with each other. Ding ding. But she goes outside and Sophie is there just being drunk and horrible and shouting, bye Liz, go home. This this was really hard to watch. Sophie is so wrong for this. But Liz goes outside and talks to Via and sort of explains what's going on. Meanwhile, Sophie is stomping around. Why is she crying? Because I called her out? Thanks, Liz. I thought you were my friend. Ugh. In the car, Julie's trying to calm down, trying to calm Sophie down. Sophie is still ranting in the car and saying really mean shit. Like, that's why she dates people like Ed, because she's a horrible person. Sophie, nobody thinks Liz is a horrible person. You are getting such a Bad edit here. Oh, I can't wait for the tell-all when the truth comes out about how she twisted everything Liz said, and even things that Pedro said. This woman has no idea what she's talking about and it's driving me crazy. In her talking head, she says, This whole trip has been rubbish. Pedro won't talk to me, and my friend is a backstabber. Whatever, Sophie. The next morning, uh, Julia and Sophie are playing tennis. Julia arranges a conversation between Pedro and Sophie by texting Pedro to come to the hotel. Um, and then Julia gives Sophie a new water bottle and says, be sure you read the instructions. And it's um sonogram photos. It's not instructions for a water bottle. It's a very weird but cute way to tell your friend you're pregnant. Um, is very sweet because she and Brandon were having a hard time getting pregnant. Oh, so moving on to Liz, they just sort of run together. Um, so later that night, Liz is on a date with Via. Um, they're holding hands. He gives her a really nice kiss when she was she shows up and he brought her a necklace. He's very sweet. He's very put together, and he's very attentive. I really like this guy for her. Um so she sort of rehashes the whole night before, explains everything. On the date with Via, she tells him she's here to work on her mental health. She doesn't tell a lot of people that she's sick right now. A year ago, she says, I found out I had ovarian cancer when I miscarried a baby. This is a lot to be telling somebody on a third date. Um, but to his credit, Via is not freaking out. He's just listening. He has his hand on her leg the whole time. He says he's glad she brought it up. And she's worried that this information will push people away. But he's very calm. And Via's talking head, he says, I'm very open-minded. Her being vulnerable makes me feel like we have a strong connection. And then boy, does he know how to lighten the moment by telling her she looks cute when she cries? But he's holding her hand and being so sweet through the whole thing. She says in her talking head, I feel like I'm winning. Sorry I fucked up y'all's relationship, meaning Sophie and Pedro, but thank you for mine. Moving on to Courtney and Colt. Oh boy. This is such drama. Um, Courtney is getting ready in the bathroom mirror. Um, and she's like talking to the camera through the mirror. Um, because she's getting ready to go meet with Colt. So apparently she says Colt has been distant and hiding things. She says, a dog will always bite. I learned my lesson. Um, and then in her talking head, she says her friends told her to go through Colt's phone. So when he was asleep, she unlocked his phone. She had to do several tries, but she finally figured out the passcode. And she says, This is clearly a gift from God. But she found messages to and from lots of women. One in particular, Diana. They exchanged, I love you. He said, I want you. They were planning to meet each other. She says, the audacity. Colt says in his talking head, um, at some point I noticed my phone wasn't there. So I went to her room and Courtney said, get out. And then she put all his shit on the curb, including his walker, his wheelchair. Courtney says, Colt is exactly how everybody says he is. She says he was sending videos of himself jerking off at Courtney's house, sending those to Diana. And he sent me the same video, she says. This is how we know him. Colt does confirm it was Diana. The producer asks him in his confessional, so you were lying when you said it was just platonic. And he says, Yeah. He pulls up a photo of Diana on his phone and shows it to the camera, and he's holding it up. And behind the camera, you can see that Colt smirk. He doesn't give a shit about anything or anybody. He has zero guilt, zero shame about this. I am convinced. In Courtney's confessional, she says, Was his plan to be with me, was his plan all along to be with this other woman and feeling feeding me bullshit and acting like we're a couple? Colt says he feels like a piece of shit and it's been eating him up inside. I don't think it has. Um, they show Colt getting himself dressed, um, like doing all the things that Courtney had done for him before um at his hotel. He says, I don't feel secure with Courtney. I feel like she feels sorry for me. With Diana, she allows me to feel like a man. Maybe that's not reality, but for me, it's better than reality. She says, How did we end up here after everything we went through in Mexico? I showed him unconditional love, and he showed me I'm naive. This just breaks my heart. So she's on the Lanai with her parents, Fred and Jane, and they're giving her this really nice little pep talk before she goes to meet with Colt. Jane says, He overstayed his welcome. Fred, her dad says, He played a he played you and he played us. So later she meets him at the hotel with a box of his crap. She's at the pool. She's not going up to the lobby, she's not going up to his room, she's at the pool. In her talking head, she says, I just want to meet with him to get an explanation. She says, I was reading, scrolling through the conversation. It was dry as hell, super boring. Like, what is she doing that I'm not doing for you? Colt in his talking head says, I'd give anything for a second chance, but I know I don't deserve it. I don't believe this at all. I think he would like a second chance at staying at their house. But anyway, he rolls up and he looks so nervous. And you guys, I've never seen Colt look this nervous. We have been watching this weirdo for years and years and years, and never has the mask fallen like this. This just a very microsecond. He looks terrified because he knows she has the upper hand. She's not gonna give him one iota of mercy about this, she's not gonna baby him. Even when Jess was throwing her kalanches at him, he still had that smirk on his face or that weird thing he does with his eyebrows. Colt opens with, You look great, you look really pretty, what's new? Courtney says, Are you fucking kidding me? Colt says he's sorry, and he tries to explain himself about how quickly everything happened in Mexico. Suddenly we're dating, it's like we're married all of a sudden. Courtney says, Why didn't you communicate that? She says, How would you feel if I was sending masturbation videos to guys? Colt says he'd be heartbroken. She says, why? And then he just sort of shrugs. She says, You didn't love or care about me. You only care about yourself and your dick. You have erectile dysfunction, you can't walk, you're homeless, you're jobless, and you're still cheating on me in my fucking house. The level of disrespect is insane. Cold has just like nothing to say to this. Courtney finally is breaks down a little bit and is crying and says, I thought you were my best friend, it was all a lie. He's just shaking his head. And in the preview for next week, I am really worried that she's going to give him another chance, but I think it's just the way they filmed it. They're trying to fraud us. I think it's a TLC fraud. It better be a TLC fraud. She better not take him back. There's no way Fred and Jane are letting him back in, right? Moving on to Book Club Corner. As you know from last week, I've been working hard on a new series of romances. I released the third book in a new series last week called Unfinished: How to Fail at Avoiding Your Ex. It's a um second chance romance, a sick bed trope, um, and it's a lot of fun. I think you'll like it. If you're into romance, it's you're into instant love, quick reads, it's a really quick little escape. So let me just read the summary for you, and I will have links in the show notes if you're interested in reading it. So the series is set in a fictional town called Songbird Ridge, and it's all about these uh quirky small town characters that live in sort of this arts colony. Um, it's very cozy and fun. Um, this main character is Maddie, who is a town matchmaker. Here is a summary. My life in Songbird Ridge is finally taking shape. I just opened my own business, I see my best friends every week, and I still make time for my hobbies. If my ex, Iwin, ever crosses my mind, it's only a passing thought that maybe I should get around to filing in the divorce paperwork. Okay, I admit it, I did think about him for half a second on Valentine's Day, and when I thought I saw him in the crowd, it wrecked me. But I'm better now, better than ever, thriving, and far too busy to be bothered by the memories of our secret, passionate nuptials all those years ago. The demands on my time are too great to pause and address the prickling suc and address the prickling sensation on the back of my neck, the one that tells me he's back in Song Red Ridge and that he's here because he wants a second chance. So that is what I'm writing, and moving on to what I am reading. It's called Rock Hard by Lanini by Nalini Singh. Um, it's Contemporary Romance, Slow Burn, and I believe I read the summary last week, but I will put the links in the show notes if you want to read the summary before you decide if you want to read it. I'm gonna read some of the reviews for you now. Um I did not write these reviews. These are reviews that were posted on StoryGraph. Um, this is from Anna Jolene. Singh captures humor and heart with rock hard, making this my favorite in the series so far. Um, Court 5433 said, Aline Sing truly knows how to write in this genre. She gave it all to me in a beautifully written book. Who am I kidding this whole series kicks ass? Don't be put off by the fact that it's a series. This is a series of standalones. You can read them all separately or one after the other. So come find me on Story Graph, 90 Day Book Club. Send me a friend request on there, and I will accept you and I'll follow you back. In the show notes, I will also have links to my um Abby Knox Instagram and Facebook. I'll have a link to my coffee account if you want to leave me a tip. And that's the show for today. Thanks so much for listening, and please take care of yourselves.com.