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Watch What Crappens

2 Nov 2026 · 1h 13m · 22 chapters

Episode artwork

#3600 Real Housewives of Potomac S11E04 - It’s Not Over ‘Til It’s Comb Over

In short

The episode centers on “tough love” moments across Potomac—Karen and Ashley’s lingerie shopping and relationship talk, Courtney’s controversial “prophecies” (especially a coming nationwide power outage), Tia’s reaction to Rob’s infidelity and comb-over, Giselle’s DC political advocacy for brain tumor/cancer funding, Ashley hosting family members, Wendy managing Eddie’s relationship issues, and Stacey/Timo’s tea-bus family scene.

Guests (podcast hosts)

Ben Mandelker (host) and Ronnie Karam (co-host). Backgrounds: Mandelker and Karam are comedians/podcast hosts who cover Bravo shows; they discuss Real Housewives episodes with recurring commentary and jokes.

Key claims

Courtney claims she has long-standing spiritual gifts (visions/angels/dead people) and insists her extreme prophecy is real; Ashley argues it’s fear-mongering. Tia frames her calmness as an English-culture “bottle feelings” approach and tells her mother not to panic. Giselle’s advocacy is tied to her father’s memory and brain tumor/cancer funding. Wendy emphasizes creating a safe normalcy for the kids while addressing adult intimacy issues.

Notable examples

Courtney’s car-wash prophecy about a nationwide blackout; Rob’s “comb-over” being called out; Giselle praying with Angel before meeting Congress; Ashley’s family “Full House” living arrangement; Wendy and Eddie discussing lack of sex/intimacy and possible double dates; Stacey/Timo bringing Arabella to a moving “tea around town” bus.

Written by AI. May contain mistakes.

Chapters

2:15

Upcoming Live Shows and Halloween

Hosts discuss their upcoming live shows and Halloween experiences.

“Iraskable is what I meant to say, not harassable, but you are harassable.”
3:42

Karen and Ashley's Lingerie Shopping

Karen and Ashley explore a lingerie shop and discuss their lives.

6:14

Courtney's Prophetic Warning

The group discusses Courtney's alarming video about a nationwide blackout.

“Cause there were like so many scenes where they're just like changed the scene and be like, boom.”
13:12

Thoughts on Nationwide Blackouts

Hosts share humorous insights about blackouts and living in small countries.

“And they have, you know, sometimes they're right.”
14:00

Discussion on Blackouts in Small Countries

Exploring the implications of living in a small country during emergencies like blackouts.

“It's like, okay, it's like the town, it's like a normal blackout, but it's just like it's the nation because it's so small.”
21:44

Discussion on Prophecies and Reality TV

Analyzing the role of prophecies and how they affect the cast of Real Housewives.

“Having a religious scammer, I don't know about.”
28:00

Celebrity Visits and Prophecies

Discussion about visiting celebrities and humorous prophecies regarding the show.

“I'm going to a celebrity first and foremost.”
30:00

Rob's Infidelity and Mother-Daughter Dynamics

Tia and her mother discuss Rob's infidelity and their emotional challenges.

“He just has those strands that are going over.”
34:00

Giselle's Political Advocacy

Giselle's activities in Congress to advocate for brain cancer funding.

“And then interestingly, she meets up with David Cook from American Idol, which was the twist I was not expecting.”
36:20

Ashley Opens Her Home

Ashley hosts family members and reflects on her role as matriarch.

“I think that was a thing that happened about 10 years ago or so.”
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38:10

Wendy's Family Life and Cooking Scenes

Wendy discusses her family life and interactions during cooking scenes.

“uh to fill the time and so now when i see one i'm like oh no it's all going to shit but everything's fine everything's fine but so we say that it's a few whenever i see one i worry for you.”
42:03

Wendy and Eddie's Relationship Talk

Wendy discusses her relationship struggles with Eddie, exploring intimacy and connections.

“She basically said, okay, I'll give you a break.”
46:11

Giselle's Congressional Speech

The hosts express their disappointment at not seeing Giselle's speech to Congress and discuss the implications.

“has just spoken to Congress, and I feel robbed that we didn't get that.”
49:04

Stacey and Timo's Proposal to Arabella

Stacey and Timo try to share their engagement news with Arabella during a tea party.

“Stacey and Timo are talking about if they want to talk to Arabella about getting back together.”
54:32

Ashley and Her New Puppy

Ashley introduces her new puppy, Aurora, and discusses plans for her beach house.

“Cause you know, Timo's like, yeah, with the time when you're quiet and you receive news about engagement.”
56:00

Ashley and Karen's Beach Plans

Discussion about Ashley's real estate plans and Karen's reactions.

“You probably know how much do you want your uncle to pay for?”
58:00

Karen's Basement Life and Ray's Comments

Karen talks about her choice to sleep separately from Ray and their awkward exchange.

“And Courtney is shopping, and she's in a bad mood.”
1:02:50

The Impact of Sobriety on Relationships

Exploration of the challenges sobriety brings to Karen and Ray's marriage.

“It sounds like you missed the one that was sleeping.”
1:06:30

Karen's Character Beyond Alcohol

Discussion on Karen's persona on the show and the perception of her sobriety.

“You are more fun when you're drunk and why aren't I getting late after you came back from prison?”
1:08:30

Tia and Rob's Awkward Dinner Date

Tia and Rob's dinner with friends takes a tense turn.

“So then we go to a Greek restaurant with Tia and Rob.”
1:10:06

Navigating Emotional Challenges in Relationships

The hosts discuss the complexities of emotions during tough times in relationships, especially around infidelity.

“things just happen so you know what are you guys going through right now like is this the darkest moment for you guys?”
1:14:48

Addressing Family Dynamics and Responsibilities

The conversation shifts to how couples manage discussions about their children amidst relationship issues.

“uh you know just want to make sure they're okay the beautiful beautiful babies are okay with the dad may be cheating.”
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Transcript

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1:57Ben Mandelker: What happens when there's so much that happens? Well, hello, and welcome to Watch Real Crappins, a podcast about all that crap on Bravo that we just love to talk about. I'm Ben Mandelker, and joining me today is the wonderful and irascible Ronnie Karam. Hi, Ronnie. How are you? Well, hello. I am harassable. Iraskable is what I meant to say, not harassable, but you are harassable. Ronnie! Oh, harassable. Ronnie! Ronnie, why aren't you hearing me right? it's like just after me ben um we hi today is potomac day which is so appropriate because we will be heading to the dmv later this week we're going to washington dc on saturday to do our big dc show fun fact our dc show is usually our second biggest show of the tour um after the golden crappies it's always a fun time so come join us for that that's at watch for crappens dot com and actually two days before that we'll be in philadelphia philadelphia freedom um and we're in philadelphia we're talking roni and in dc we're talking salt lake city also please participate in a very important poll that's going on on social media about whether i should wear a brown shirt or a plaid shirt to philadelphia um so that's gonna be really really fun and then later this later this month like basically was it next week when are we going to debt yeah i guess it's oh god i gotta get my plane tickets um we're going we're going to dallas and austin and houston uh so that's gonna be great that's basically next week and then um in december we have nashville clearwater and fort lauderdale and then next year there's a whole bunch of other shows but right now we'll just focus on these so go get your tickets at watch what happens dot com and tonight is crappy hour we have a lot of a lot of headlines to catch up on um so come join us that's at 5 30 on west coast time or 8 30 on east coast time um you know on either our youtube or ig but you know check it out have fun with us come on join join the conversation yeah what are you with you ronnie well did you have a good halloween weekend i sure did i got a big bowl of candy and no kids came over so i made a big bowl of candy so that's perfect yeah i don't know what the kids in my neighborhood do i hope they're having fun somewhere doing something but i can't imagine growing up and not having that one day of the year where you go knock on some old man's door and demand i mean the hell yeah what's happened to freedom maybe they're afraid because of all the politician signs and stuff that are going around because those are really terrifying they're getting more and more terrifying as you go they're really bad it's like talariko wants to dismember your children and use their arms as pencils in his big fancy office like jeez it's really god crazy i know yeah i can't wait for this election to be over i really cannot it's too much and the thing is this i already voted i voted by mail and so like i'm still getting all these text messages and i'm just like i want to tell them like stop it i've already it's too late you're wasting your energy on me i just can't stand it when people incessantly just try to push their shit on you and they never ever stop by the way again crappens tickets are on sale at watch what crappens.com sign up we'll give you alerts if you don't come rich tallarico will start your city on fire um yeah it's actually really crazy that we're going to dc right after these midterm elections i wonder what the mood is going to be like um whatever it is it'll be interesting um yeah but i probably just don't need a cigarette jeez it's been a long season good lord let's just all relax by the reflecting pool shall we and breathe in some algae and just i don't know how like we are to have bravo i'm gonna bring like a casting that you know and try to get like a scrap of the bottom that will that's come floating up to the surface and try to like bring one home for a souvenir be like look look everyone i found my own little piece of the plastic pool that was floating in the water probably actually thrown in jail if i did something like that don't worry everyone it's just a joke it's not real vandalism but anyway um you know i watched obsession this weekend i finally manned up and i watched about that for a long time watching the obsession i was proud of you that you did thank you and you were kind of a wuss as you did it you watched it in a special way to where you could you weren't you watching it on your laptop so you could look away i i watched it on my laptop quietly during the day so i wouldn't be startled as much and quite frankly that's like really that movie really just relies on jump scares i was like if i've been watching this in the theater, I would have been like, like hanging from the ceiling.

6:58Ben Mandelker: Cause there were like so many scenes where they're just like changed the scene and be like, boom. I'm like, that's like the nothing scary happened. You just startled. Like you would have startled me. I was so mad about it, but I watched it. You would have startled me. You would have startled me and I didn't appreciate that. So anyway, maybe we'll talk about that in the bonus episode. We can talk about that silly movie. But today it's Potomac time. So it's called tough love. I mean, talk about a thematic through line with obsession. Tough love. So we just open up in a place called Bell Mode, spelled B-E-L-L-E mode, not bell like a ringing bell, but that would have been funny.

7:39Ben Mandelker: It's like, time to get into Bell Mode. Time to ring. Bell Mode! So Ashley's meeting up with Karen. Bell Mode, and Ashley is coming to meet Karen to buy some lingerie. Oh, she's like, oh, whips and chains, wow. So Karen's like, oh, I see you're getting IV treatments to keep up with that young buck. Well, Josh is very thankful. Let me tell you. Well, it works, doesn't it? Yeah. So Karen says, after all that I've gone through, which could happen to any of us, by the way, I'm just trying to have fun with everything that I do. and I like seeing Ashley go get butterball naked and walk around the lingerie shop.

8:26Oh, Karen, you got in trouble because you were having fun with everything you do. Why is Karen acting like she's just starting to have fun now? I mean, I guess it's been a while, so she's allowed.

8:36Ben Mandelker: Mm-hmm. Yeah. So this is, you know, we see a little montage of Karen watching Ashley go try on lingerie, and Karen says, oh, cheeks are going to be showing. I'll help out pick a conservative pair of panties. Ha! So they're shopping and everything, and we find out that Karen, that Ray asked Karen out to dinner. They're going on a little date tonight, which we never see, actually. Yeah, listen. It's probably going to be a Luby's at 4 p.m., but dinner's dinner. You know, she's going to take it. So she picks out an outfit, and she's like, well, I'm going to put on some pearls, and hopefully, you know, You know, Ray.

9:20A sex tiger, Ray. So she's just happy to have anything going on with Ray at this point. And she hopes it's going to give them hope.

9:30Ben Mandelker: Hope for hope, guys. Hope for hope. Just wait until your next scene and maybe you might rethink all that hope talk. So Ashley is like, yeah, you're going to get some booty tonight. Like, is he going to see that newly lasered booty crack you got? We're working on this marriage, on this institution. I'm not just trying to throw it out the window, but I can't win by myself. So Ashley is like, so then Courtney joins. And Ashley's like, so since you're like a minister, are you okay being in this lingerie store? And Ashley's like, oh yeah, no problem. First rule is up. I'm a minister, but I'm still a woman.

10:17Yes. Yeah. You know, religious people have sex too. That's why there are religious children everywhere. You know? They actually have the most sex, it seems like. Yeah. So Courtney's like, you know, it's just so much being a mom and a wife and now a pastor in the past two weeks. Thanks online. Thanks internet. Because I grew up in a very prominent family and all eyes were on us. We always looked hot everywhere we went. And there's so much pressure to maintain that standard. So she's picking out the, I guess, the most upstanding, no hair out of place lingerie today. Yeah. Good for her. Good for her.

11:01It's just weird when you're going to look for lingerie to be like, God, I hope I make mom and dad proud with this choice.

11:07Ben Mandelker: When all eyes are on you, you really have to make the right choice for the parts that they can't see. So then Ashley, she shows, she gets into like a beige wonder bra with, with maroon lace, which is funny because I actually, I swear to God, I read it as moron lace at first. I was like, but that would still work. She's wearing moron lace. Like, oh, you know, Ashley moron lace is a really beautiful color on you. It's just really compliments you. Well, it started as marine lace and then it got on Ashley and it was like, I am dumber for having been here. You know, when people say that. I love that.

11:41Oh, well, this is going to be good for Josh. Ashley came with an onhole. Look at that. Look at that. She got something without a hole in it. So they're showing off their lingerie and all that stuff. And then now they're doing this for a long time, actually. And Karen's complimenting Ashley's butt. And we find out that Courtney is trying to make a baby. And Karen's like, well, I'm going to go ahead and pray for y 'all while y 'all talk about these babies i'm just hoping to feed most up food to my husband for the rest of our marriage so i hope that works out so then ashley's like um so i've been wanting to

12:21Ben Mandelker: ask you what was that video you took talking in your car or something and as she says that there was this video that made her think that courtney might be a little cuckoo for coco puffs and we You see this amazing video from Courtney in her car. It's an urgent prophetic warning that came during the car wash, maybe. And she's like, guys, God has shown me that we are all about to experience a nationwide power outage. Machines will not work. Your cars will not work. You will not be able to access your money. The lights are going out. A good old-fashioned religious fear-mongering. It's also so specific.

13:02It is, yeah.

13:04Ben Mandelker: There's going to be a blackout. Yeah, that's a pretty specific one to be wrong, you know. But they always say that people don't really remember the wrong ones. They only remember when you're right. And they have, you know, sometimes they're right. Like all those people, they were like, oh, they guessed COVID. They guessed the pandemic. And you look back at the videos and they're like, God is mad and pestilence will come. And maybe they said it 10 years ago, but it worked at some point. You should just say things like, guys, the weather is going to change. I just got a prophecy. And when you go, next time you go to buy bread, it is going to be more expensive than it was today.

13:44Because you're pretty much going to be right.

13:46Ben Mandelker: You know, start small. Yeah. Yeah. Here's my prophecy. Prices are never going back down again. Thanks a lot. That's my prophecy. By the end of the weekend, my butt will be flabbier. People on Monday are going to be like, oh, my God. he's been touched by Jesus. I kind of think that like, if you live in a tiny country, like, you know what the, I think one of the, one of the benefits, one of the fringe benefits of living in a tiny country like Luxembourg or like Andorra or Malta is that if someone is like, guys, there's going to be a nationwide blackout, it's like much less scary. It's like, okay, it's like the town, it's like a normal blackout, but it's just like it's the nation because it's so small.

14:28Ben Mandelker: Like in Monaco, there's like a blackout in Monaco. it's like fine it's like a nationwide blackout but like it's not like a nationwide blackout in the united states is terrifying it's like the entire country that like a grid so big there's like a devastating national emergency but like if you're in a tiny country that's just like one less thing you have to worry about a nationwide blackout it's just like a regular it's just like a run-of-the-mill blackout for you right because it's like the same size as it's like you know like If there's a storm and there's a county-sized portion, if there's a county that's been a blackout, you're always like, oh, that sucks.

15:04Ben Mandelker: But it's fine because then usually in a day or two, the worst-case scenario, three or four days, it gets back. But you're like, oh, God, that really sucked for you. But what I'm trying to say is if your country is the size of a county, you don't have to worry about a nationwide blackout as much because it's not as scary. Do you see what I'm saying? Blackout's a blackout. Yeah, but a blackout's a blackout. I mean, I don't care. The power went out on my block one time, and I didn't know what to do. I couldn't text anybody about it. I couldn't see what people were saying about it on Instagram. I couldn't walk because, of course, I don't have candles anywhere, and then I'll have any matches to light them even if I did.

15:41I'm like fumbling with the gas, but then I couldn't find the thing to light the gas. So I was just smelling gas, and I was like, oh, God, now I'm going to just suffocate myself in my house because I can't find a match. I mean, the whole thing, I'm just not built for that, and I don't like it. And I don't like when people come at me saying, oh, there's going to be a blackout. We're all going to, if it happens, it happens. Okay. But how about we get a prophetess who can just come out and be like, hey guys, guess what? I talked to God. It's going to be a pretty mediocre week. You know, it's going to be pretty good.

16:11Ben Mandelker: Why do the prophecies all have to be about blackouts and things like that? And by the way, I don't want to minimize blackouts. They suck. We all agree that they suck. And there are definitely times when people get stuck in like a six day or seven day blackout and that's not cool. but like all i'm trying to say is if you find out that the united states of america is in a nationwide blackout that's terrifying because it means that something fundamental that sweeps this enormous geographical area has gone wrong and it's like that's like oh no it's terrible but like if something the size of andorra is like it's a and the blackout it's like oh that's just like the size of a of a normal like bad blackout that's what i'm trying to say there's nothing I get it.

16:50You're minimizing some blackouts and saying that American blackouts are more important.

16:55Ben Mandelker: I'm saying it's positive. It's one less thing that that country has to worry about, right? Well, I mean, I guess. I would like to think so. I don't know. I don't think Andorran people would like that. Well, look, you're in Texas. If all the state of Texas were in a blackout, and then I said, by the way, did you hear that Rhode Island is in a blackout? How would you feel? Would you be like, Well, it's not like I wouldn't care because I wouldn't know about it because I would be in a blackout. That's the thing. I'll tell you what would happen in a blackout. First of all, I would take off my clothes.

17:30I'd finally be comfortable walking around the house naked. And second, nobody would be able to listen to watch what crap happens and we'd be fucked. OK, we'd be out there. I was thinking about that the other I guess because I was watching this show. Like, what would we do if there was some kind of horrible disaster and all the electricity went out? I'd be going door to door, like, give me$5 and I'll tell you what happened on Real Housewives. I'll just make it up. Like when we made up the Real Housewives of New Reunion for New York when they didn't have one, we just improvised one. I'll just go do that from house to house.

18:01Okay. I know you're really lonely over here. This is what would have happened on Real Housewives of Orange County.

18:08Ben Mandelker: We would be like Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. We'll be just going door to door. Like, hello. Hello, sir. For five pence, we'll tell you what happened on Real Housewives last night. and then we'll like perform it. Like, thank you, sir. We'll go on to the next one. It's time for a commercial. It's time for a Crappens commercial. The best pieces in your closet are the ones you can count on, whether you're heading to work, going out, or keeping things casual. And this time of year, Quince makes finding something great for everyone just as easy. This holiday season, it's where I'm shopping for myself and everyone on my list.

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20:07Ben Mandelker: It's a great way to shift your mood. Yeah, but everyone's always like recommending a million shows. Like you gotta watch this, you gotta watch that. I'm at a point where I don't say what do I have to watch. Now I'm all about how do I want to feel? Yeah, the feeling I chase is dark and moody. That's why I go towards crime shows. Oh, I'm a comedy girly. I will rewatch the same comedy over and over again because it's so comforting to me. Or actually, sometimes it's actually sports. There are times where I don't even care about the teams. I just like being part of a live event, especially with some snacks.

20:35Snacks are a part of the feeling. I love a cracker.

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21:44All right. So anyway, Courtney is prophetic. Listen, I like having a kook. Having a religious scammer, I don't know about. I'm just going to say that right now. I've said it before. I can't get behind her. I see enough of it around here with everybody trying to scare each other with this nonsense. And so far, I say no to her. So she's telling them, well, a lot of things I've prophesied have happened. And Ashley's like, yeah, but I mean, you were going a little extreme, you know? Maybe that was a little fear-mongering for me. I like Ashley criticizing people's prophetessing. You know, that one, I'm going to go ahead and give that one a six.

22:26That was a little fear mongery for me. Maybe we could go a little Sylvia. What's that lady's name? Sylvia. He used to be on Montel and Maury. She's like, your mom's here. Oh yeah. Your mom's here. She's still mad at you. Yeah.

22:42Ben Mandelker: Miss, or maybe Miss Cleo. Yeah. But Courtney is like, yeah. Well, I mean, Ashley is upset. Sylvia Brown. Of course, Ashley is upset because a nationwide blackout means that Potomac won't be able to air. That's a problem. So it's only going to live on the imagination of the two of us going door to door, trying to tell people what happened on an imaginary Potomac episode. Exactly. And don't think I won't do it. Ash is going to get a bad edit with us. Ashley can't win with us, no matter if we're making it up or if it's real. So Courtney is like, well, I mean, it wasn't meant to be fear mongering.

23:19The thing is, I've been prophetic my whole life. Okay. Like even when I was younger, I would see angels. I would see spirits. I would see dead people. I do. I was aware of my gifts when I was four. Get medicated.

23:31Ben Mandelker: That's why I got into event planning. What did you say? Get medicated. If your child is talking to people when they're, well, I guess that's kind of normal. Your kids have imaginary friends. But if it lasts, at some point, you need to go to the doctor. I see dead people. I see visions. I contact other realms. I can see God, I can see the angels, and they all told me, arrange some weddings. Seriously. They tell me what sort of stemware to use. If you were Cynthia Bailey and the lady who arranged your wedding ended up telling you later she was a prophetess, you would be pissed because you could have warned me.

24:16Ben Mandelker: Yeah. Yeah, exactly. That's the thing. like a nationwide blackout coming up quite frankly that's not a crazy prophecy we figured that will happen someday i imagine you know like we watch 24 we know these things will happen at some point in our lives what i want is like a practical prophecy like is jahill gonna make it you know that's that's gonna be that's gonna actually affect my pocketbook right like do i need to be spending this money on this wedding right now do i need to be moving in with this guy right now Although we were all prophetic on that one. We all were like, he's going to cheat.

24:52You can't marry a man who is writing a book while he's with you about all the times he cheated. He's shirtless on the cover, right? Yeah. What was it?

25:03Ben Mandelker: Wasn't he shirtless on the cover or is that just my imagination? I don't know, but I just remember he was writing that book to all the women I've cheated with before. Yeah, he was. It's called Open Mike and he was shirtless. he's like shirtless and like covered in like cables yeah that man's gonna cheat on his mic okay i'm a prophet i'm a prophet so uh she's very confident about her guests and karen's just shaking her head and you know going well you know a lot of things i prophesied have happened and actually it's like yeah but you don't need to go that extreme but you know i see angels and I see angels pass over sometimes and I've seen demons manifest in people.

25:47Ben Mandelker: Well, you're in the wrong group then because let me tell you something. There's a lot of demons going to town on this cast. I want to get out. I don't know if a child can see some dead people or not, but let me know if it's near me because then I will put my sneakers on. So Courtney says, people are so mean to dead people and ghosts anyway. no one has a positive thing to say everyone's like oh get me away from the ghosts we're all gonna be ghosts you dumb dumbs we're all gonna be dead soon there's more ghosts than there are people there's zillions of dead people around us all the time if ghosts are real you know and what do they do nothing they chill they watch us type or you know watch tv or whatever cook our dinner whatever they're not doing anything but every time somebody talks about a ghost.

26:34They're like, oh my God, get me away from the ghost. What's so scary? They have to sit around and watch you. I feel for the ghosts.

26:42Ben Mandelker: I know. Quite frankly, I really don't know why ghosts, their main activity is moving things around. Isn't there something better for the ghosts to be doing? Can't they gossip with each other? It's always like, hey, so this is a really great chat with you, Abraham Lincoln, but I got to go to the living room and I've got to move that box around a little bit. Because ghosts ultimately are bored, and that's what we do when we're bored. We go move stuff around. I changed the big forks and the little forks the other day in my silverware drawer. I don't know why. I just did. And I stacked them really prettily.

27:18Ben Mandelker: You know what, Maya Angelou, it has been a total honor meeting you in this ghostly realm, but unfortunately, I have to go and slam a door somewhere. So I'll talk to you later. I need to blow someone's candle out. Okay. I know. Like, what are the ghosts doing? Like, come on.

27:40Okay. So Courtney says that people's dead relatives come visit her. And Karen's like, are they here right now? Are they here right now? Are they thanking us for Wi-Fi? If you're a ghost, okay, here's what I think.

27:55Ben Mandelker: If I'm a ghost, I'm not visiting Courtney. Not yet. Maybe if she becomes more famous, I will visit her. But I'm not visiting Courtney. I'm visiting. I'm going to a celebrity first and foremost. And I don't know. I just feel like I'm going somewhere. I'm probably doing the vacation. I'm visiting Bette Midler. I want to see if she's really that moody in real life or what. What does she do all day? I'm getting all the details. I'm getting all the details. I'm traveling. I'm going to the countries I haven't been to yet. I'm literally doing so many things other than visiting random Courtney. Okay? I'm just going to say that right now.

28:29Visiting a lady sitting in her car and making up tragedies to profit off of.

28:34Ben Mandelker: Well, maybe I would visit her just to give her false prophecies. So this is new. Kit Kats are, they're changing their formula. They're putting the wafer on the outside and the chocolate on the inside. I have a prophecy about Kit Kats. And I'll just be like laughing. Just been ghost pumped.

28:55Gina will get another season on Real Half-Sides of Orange Camp. I have a prophecy. Wait a minute, go back to the blackouts. We'd rather the blackouts.

29:04Ben Mandelker: I know. I would rather have the nationwide blackout. So now we go to a place called June, which is actually a Peruvian restaurant. I would have thought it would be Persian. And Tia and her mother... Or sort of like handmaid's tail-styled food. June, June, Hannah. Tia and her mother are discussing Rob and his infidelity. I think they should also discuss his comb-over, but okay, we can move that down the agenda. So, uh, yeah, you know, I, I really don't like getting on people about being bald because I am bald and have been for a very, very long time, but shave your head. You know what I mean? Like do yourself a state.

29:42You're not doing any, you're not doing yourself any favors like this. Just no one's buying it. Okay. No one looks at you and says, well, there's a guy still with some hair to shave your head. What's so hard.

29:51Ben Mandelker: Yeah. We're just like, it's just a style. Like he's a handsome guy. He's like really handsome, but he just like the styling needs some work. It's very Homer Simpson. He just has those strands that are going over. And again, I am balding actively, and so I get it. But yeah, just change the style up and you'll be fine. But that little comb over, the little guitar strings up top, you can do that. It's really bad. It's like a ukulele string. It's not even a guitar. It's less string, it's fewer strings. It's probably a ukulele from a thrift shop. it's like not even yeah i don't have all its strings what we're saying is cheat better you know what i mean you're if you're gonna cheat like like at least make some kind of effort you're really ruining someone's life here so at least let's make it let's make it worth it okay so her mom is like oh blah blah blah welcome at 3am you know jet lag etc so um tia's like well we've definitely worked through some challenges and I had to learn over the years to reduce your expectations of your mother and just learn to feel blessed for what you're receiving as opposed to what you want.

31:03And then you can enjoy the person much better.

31:07Ben Mandelker: Lower your expectations of your mother. I love that Tia and Heather Dubrow are on the same journey this week. Also, I have to say, I love this little flashback of her mom with the kids and Tia says, Mommy, did you say that you're okay with them getting the belly button's pierced." And the mom goes, never. Just love the authority, the British authority, in the rejection of that. Never. Well, so while you've been here, have you had any chance to have one-on-one conversations with Rob? And she's like, not yet. We're still catching up, you know. He's just such a handsome I just want to meet throughout our conversation so I can enjoy his handsomeness as he talks about it.

31:55Ben Mandelker: I will play the role of mother. Yes, but like, it's also important that I'm able to come to you as my mother as well. Never! Mother! Oh, sorry. But where the good book says, love conquers a multitude of sins, even come-overs. Well, yes, but like, Chanel and Hermes also do a really good job of offering apologies, mother. Did the Bible have a section where the husbands were cheating on the wives via public apps, dating apps? Please, don't spin the Bible at me. They weren't swiping left and right in the Bible. Did Moses' girlfriend ever find him on another tablet by any chance, or was it just the ones he brought down from the mountaintop?

32:45Don't look behind you or you'll turn to salt Mother! So She's basically saying You know Love conquers a multitude of sins So ignore it and just stay married And Tia's like Well Chanel and Hime also do a really good job Of offering apologies She's like well I experienced that too Fur coats, diamonds, rubies Really? Yes do i look like i'm much happier because of it because my mom has been through greater i almost

33:19Ben Mandelker: feel like she thinks this is just like a little scratch on the knee because my dad had a whole other family let's show my my sister from from from last year so we see a flashback of that again and she says so you can't really put that on the same level as rob having his ugly pictures on a dating app like yeah but like that's the first step towards the other stuff to you so i know she's trying to i think she's trying to kind of minimize it a little bit but it's not great i think it's kind of coming from her mom's you know thinking of just like what can you do you know at this point she just has probably a very low opinion of men which who can blame her and she's just like this is what they do isn't it you know my dad had another family now this guy's on a fucking dating app like what am i supposed to do just upend everything because he's cheating you know and it sucks because you want to see tia with some i don't know some more like i wouldn't call it confidence but yeah i'd like to see tia be like wow you humiliated me get the fuck out of the house and we're gonna figure this out and if you think you're getting out of carpool just because you're not living in this house you've got another thing coming motherfucker get your ass over here and pick up these kids too yeah during this nationwide blackout no less yes so yeah basically um tia is saying how uh like you know the producer's like wow tia you're really calm she goes well you know i don't feel like i am but in english culture you don't really allow yourself to sleep on things just bottle your feelings have a cup of tea and keep it moving and in the case of my son kiss a mirror so um yeah her mom is kind of like she literally says don't panic don't ever think anything and let's just put it on the side let's just keep on moving she's like like step up her lip yeah um i hate this for tia so i hope she does not follow this advice so then we go to uh dc it's giselle's big political day and um she's going to talk to congress and she is wearing blue so she's a very trustworthy person that's right blue is a liar i'll tell you that in this case blue lied that day because that's not a very trustworthy person colors can lie well either way giselle uh she's doing this for her dad's uh dad's memory and she's advocating for more funding for brain tumors and cancer which of course is fabulous and uh she's gonna go and make her rounds you go in the capitol she's gonna talk to congressman talk to senators and everything.

36:06Ben Mandelker: She calls up Angel. They pray together. It's very lovely. And then interestingly, she meets up with David Cook from American Idol, which was the twist I was not expecting. But I think he lost his brother. Was I really? Yeah. But I think he lost his brother to brain cancer. I think that was a thing that happened about 10 years ago or so. I won't look it up, but yeah, he was there. Or he's just a big Housewives fan. What if it was that? What if he's just a big Giselle head? Put a light on for Potomac. Put a light on for Puerto Rico. Every Sunday I watch Giselle and all of her friends. Let's go to Ashley's house.

36:53Ashley opens her home to her family. We find out that Ashley's cousin Josiah is there with his wife or his girlfriend, Josiah and Jaden. And they are taking some time off before going back to New York to do their grad program. And so now they're living with Ashley. And she's paying it back because she has always gotten help from her family. So now she's going to open her doors to her family, which is nice. It is nice. Not me. Get the hell out of my house. Okay, here's what's open to you. My backyard. Okay? If you can put a tent in there, but you better dig a hole to go poop. Yeah. Thank you. This has been your Uncle Ronnie.

37:36Love you.

37:37Ben Mandelker: It's good preparation. And until your Christmas gifts start getting bigger, that's all you're getting from me. Give me a$20 gift certificate to Chili's and then expect to come stay at my house. We then get a goofy full house opening, but it's called Full House Worms. get it it's cute i always get like a little scared because i'm still like living through the trauma of that one potomac season and i'll say there was like one or two vanderpump rule seasons where they had nothing so they just kept on throwing these cutesy montages at us uh to fill the time and so now when i see one i'm like oh no it's all going to shit but everything's fine everything's fine but so we say that it's a few whenever i see one i worry for you.

38:22I'm like, oh, Ben's not going to like this. We really have been together for a long time because I do think of you in every moment. I'm like, Ben's not going to like this. Stop upsetting Ben.

38:32Ben Mandelker: No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. Sorry, guys. Still working through obsession. Stay!

38:46Ben Mandelker: So, Uncle Lump shows up. I love Uncle Lump. i love what i love when uncle lump shows up because he's like one he's like one of the few voices of reason in all of bravo i feel like he shows up and he's always just like shaking his head like what is my idiot and he's getting into now what am i always got that smile on his face like oh gosh what am i gonna have to fix now good old uncle lump so uh so they're talking about um You know, now she's got a full house. And then we hear about Uncle Lump. That's Josiah's father. And they were, when she was younger, her aunt and uncle were very intentional.

39:30Intentional. Intentional. Fucking, fucking fuck.

39:34Ben Mandelker: Intentionable. All right, I quit. It's a blackout, Ronnie. It's okay. It's a stressful time. It is. She prophesized it. She prophesized this. it happened in my very intentional about making sure that she had a place that she could call home so she's paying him back etc so they're all sitting around this table and what i thought was funny is uh baby dean i think it was baby dean what's the other one's name dean and um baby dean and what's the younger one either way this was baby dean who's now six years old and i don't know if you noticed they're all eating dinner and baby dean has taken his body and he's flopped it on top on the table like he's he's like it's from his like hips forward are flat on the table and he was like writhing around on the table and i was like this this child if as as long as there's a kitchen island or something island-esque he is gonna be on top of it no matter what even now at age six he is throwing himself on top of this table while everyone's eating you know as his His right, you know?

40:38A house is a man's castle, as they say. So good for him. Ashley is talking about how it's her time to be the matriarch of the family. So now she's going to get a vacation home. Well, she's kind of asking Uncle Lump to come in on it with her. but she wants to get a vacation home in bethany beach which is where she traumatized the first season cast on their first vacation because she took them to her and michael's cheapo little beach house that had like a bed and a couch and they all had to share they were not happy

41:12Ben Mandelker: yeah it was it's amazing when she said bethany beach how like i was like oh i had like an instant reaction like bethany beach i was like why am i having a reaction it's like oh because we've been there before and it was terrible for this cast um so she's yeah basically trying she's saying that she wants to make a beach house part of the family legacy uh she basically wants a beach house and she wants uncle um to help so then we go to wendy's and they're talking about the relationship after the west and cam is there and she's gonna help mama cook and uh she's like cam's like great a mommy daughter cooking scene this is great i wonder if cam and annabelle from um real housewives of orange county see each other and they're like oh my god what what did your mom make you do this season i had to cook i did too i had to go to a build a bear oh my god oh yeah these these kids getting dragged into scenes their their parents have to do stuff they definitely do not want to do it's tough yeah so um cam helps her and pour some spaghetti noodles into a pan then eddie comes in and um wendy's like what's going on between eddie and i only exists outside as it pertains to the children nobody knows these children have no idea what was going your kids know wendy i'm sorry she says that one kid knows but your your kids know they have the internet yeah they they're on it definitely they definitely know um everything that's going on with you has happened on tiktok i've seen it okay the youth knows if it's on tiktok they know yeah so she's like my home is a safe space and just to have a sense of normalcy for the kids i love it and so far so good so she says um she's telling eddie like i got to talk to you you've got a lot to talk to you about because when i talked to tia the other day tia said that her and rob really haven't you know like they're just like coexisting and they're like not intimate and they're not like you know she said they don't have sex like they don't even hug okay and uh eddie's like yeah well i know how that goes she's like she's like i wasn't okay she's like do you know how that is i was trying to talk other people now you're saying this on tv he's like well he goes you know we should go on a double date with them like we did before i'd like for your um i'd like for your accusation skills to go further than just this household so can we can we go can we go out with another couple please can we turn this on someone else's husband for just a day and she's like romantic yeah and wendy's like yeah i'm just looking you know look at her just waiting for uh you know for something to drop like so recently i had lunch with Giselle, she understands that we may be going through a difficult time, but she wants us no matter what to stick together.

44:06Ben Mandelker: She basically said, okay, I'll give you a break. She said she won't call me the S word anymore. And I hear what she's saying, but I do feel like people should stay together because that's what they want to do. Not because they fight, but because they have to. You want people to stay together because they actually like each other. He's like, so are you compelled to stay with me or do you still love me? He's like, listen, this is going to be rough because if you leave me, most of our outfits are matching. And how do I know that I'm not going to put on my pink suit the same day that you go out in your pink suit and then we see each other and then we're both in the same outfit?

44:42You can't divorce. I mean, forget the kids. You've had kids together and built a lot together, but you can't get divorced once you've built a closet like that together. You have to stay together. That's it. You can't break up. You have matching clothes. it's like if you have two twins one of them can't just suddenly live somewhere else they've got all the same clothes as the other one what are they going

45:05Ben Mandelker: to do you're stuck i think it's really it's really the matching clothes that that really keeps them together because if they didn't have the matching clothes like you know what maybe we should go our separate ways find our own happiness but there's something about like just sets upon sets upon sets of these these matching ensembles you're like yeah i know it's some call fallacy like like you know you're not getting any more value out of them than the one time you wore them but gosh it just feels like such a waste to buy all those matching ensembles and not be able to seriously it's true love and then you know if you both go to prison you'll still be in matching ensembles it's going to be so romantic so uh uh eddie's like well i still love you and she's like oh you do and he's like yeah but i've never lost sight of the fact that i'm in love with you or i love you just because stuff's going on and she's like hmm i would leave that i would leave that he's like we're a work in progress yep okay eddie so now we go to back to the capital and giselle has just spoken to Congress, and I feel robbed that we didn't get that.

46:15Why do we see all these other people speaking to Congress nonstop? I wanted to see the House of speech. I know.

46:23Ben Mandelker: In what world does a politician not invite the cameras to come in so we can see? I mean, we've been in the Capitol before on this very show. I don't know why we didn't see it. It must not have been very interesting. But anyway, it went well, and they take a group photo. So that's - Most speeches at Congress are not, but still, I wanted to see it. I wanted to be like, one time we delivered a pizza to Karen's house to make sure that she lived there, and she didn't. You know, because you know it was petty. Yeah. Well, guess what? We don't get to see it. We just see a big group photo, and everyone's faces are blurred out.

46:58Ben Mandelker: So, this show did not want to get involved in this. Well, we're talking about brain tumors. Are there any IRS people here? Are there any IRS people here who could go stop by Karen's house?

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49:03Ben Mandelker: Now we see all sorts of stuff happening around town. Stacey and Timo are talking about if they want to talk to Arabella about getting back together. And so now Stacey and Arabella and Timo, they, oh, sorry, the tea around town I thought was like lots of things happening. But actually it's this bus that they get on called tea around town where I guess it's like a tea party on a bus, but it's also moving. because when you're having your afternoon tea, who else doesn't want to see a Target drive, you know, floating by in the window? Or, oh, look! There's a Jamba Juice. Oh, is that a Staples? Wow, I feel like I'm in England itself.

49:49Ben Mandelker: I feel like a tea time is supposed to feel like you're in a beautiful English garden, not like trundling down the main thoroughfare in suburbia. yeah you can tell this is a place for kids i mean it's very brightly colored is all pink but also because of how the lady talks when she welcomes you she's like hello little princess are we ready for some tea i remember being a kid and thinking why are you talking to me like this you know adults go from being like oh hello hello rhonda hello eddie hello ronnie why are you talking about five why there's there's certain things i just really don't understand that like one thing that i think about a lot is when did we as a society start saying the phrase excuse me like excuse me like why do we all do that that's the most annoying thing and we all do it you're just trying to get by someone you go excuse me and someone did it to me the other day i was like oh sure but it's like excuse me can we just start can we go back to a time where we just say, oh, excuse me.

50:54Ben Mandelker: We don't need to be like foppish butlers, but excuse me. We can say normally. When I pass people, I say, pardon me, pardon me, pardon me, excuse me. That's nice. I think it's nice, but people look at me like I'm a freak. I did that. I was passing a lady at a hostess stand yesterday. She had to make way for us to come through. And I said, pardon me. And she She went, oh, well, have a good night. I felt like I was out of ye olde England. I was like, wow, am I speaking the king's English today? Because I really impressed her. Pardon me. Pardon me. Excuse me. Pardon me. Excuse me. Well, God forbid people have manners.

51:39Even if they're saying it in a big, stupid, fakie voice, I say it's better than, hey, ow, ow.

51:47Ben Mandelker: just pushing you out of the way like normal. I do like also an excuse me, where you're technically being polite, but you're saying in the biggest asshole way. Not that I've ever done that. So Stacey, they're settling in, and Stacey's like, this is so cute. And Timo says, now you know why you had to get dressed up, Arabella. He's like, yes, now you know why. Thanks for coming, Arabella. Thanks for coming, Stacey. She's like, it's mama. It's mama. And if we weren't trying to break great news to you, I would shove you into the closet and not let you come out for the entire weekend for talking to me like that.

52:24Ben Mandelker: Okay. Yeah, she is being a little toot that one. Saying, Sting thing. Nuh-nah. She's being that way the whole time. Full tweener. And they're trying to have this very important scene where she's like, Arbella, me and your dad have big news. We want to get married again. She's like, mm-hmm. She's like, shoving a little cream-filled thing down her mouth. It's like, whatever. Are you into that? Yeah, but you better choose the color my friends look good in. Mother! OK, Arabella. Well, this is going to be a core memory, and I'm just so excited that she's going to have this core memory on a bus. Mom, we just passed the Michaels.

53:09Ben Mandelker: It was a core memory. No, no, wrong core memory. no use up the slot oh my god i know the perfect song you guys should play there's a song from k-pop demon hunters we're not playing soda pop okay let's just have a nice scene let's just have a nice scene so anyway they tell they tell arabella um that they're getting back together and arabella arabella spends the entire scene sort of like snacking or whatever i think she was like nervous or something she's like snacking on everything and like she's like not very focused etc they're like trying really have this like beautiful special scene with like hugs and tears and smiles but arabella is just like she just doesn't it's not that she doesn't care but she's just not focused on it at the moment um yeah it's like the oc i'm bringing up the oc again because it was an emily scene this week it was the season finale so they're like laying it on thick like let's have these family scenes and emily's like look at me having an emotional scene with my daughter daughter let's have an emotional scene she's like oh my god it's like you never talk like this in real life why do we have to do it because there's cameras here this is bullshit just and you've got me trapped where i'm getting my nails done and i can't just run away you know so they're yeah so basically arabella's being being goofy and but timo and stacy are just smiling through it.

54:32Ben Mandelker: Cause you know, Timo's like, yeah, with the time when you're quiet and you receive news about engagement. But you know, they can't because this is supposed to be like, we're breaking the news to Arabella. So you can't scold this poor girl to be like, be quiet so we can tell you news and have a nice scene. You know, because it's supposed to be a nice, you can't scold during what's supposed to be a core moment where you're bringing her to it. We will not scold our daughters here, Rampine. Tia Pater. Tia Pater is over. Tia Pater is over. Time for fighting is over. like marriage is back but anyway we go to ashley's and um ashley has a new puppy new puppy alert super cute really cute yeah so she uh went to the shelter with stacy and just fell in love with aurora um she's hoping that aurora is going to help her out with this vacation home in bethany beach yeah aurora's already got a part-time job i know aurora can you help out a little bit with this new house um aurora's been there one day she's already pulling sleds for extra money to pay for the beach house aurora is like got the weight of the world to be an entertaining dog because the moment that aurora is not entertaining we start calling her aurora bore all of us get it get it um so karen calls ashley and ashley is talking about how she wants to go to bethany beach and karen's like oh no not revenue no come on ashley oh wait hold on i just want to interrupt this so you know if you're going to talk about me then i'm going to talk back okay i just i just i say okay i don't have a beach okay i don't have a beach i don't do beaches okay you know what i do i've got a condo because i know real estate okay and i don't care what you say like i'm not gonna do my beach it's gonna road it's gonna it's gonna go away it's like it's stupid it's dumb okay so while you're living your golden life on the beach okay i'm living my even more golden life more like you're living a stainless steel life god i'm so mad right now what are you in a golden life i live a platinum life platinum life i'll go off with the golden life because cheap

56:50Ben Mandelker: anyway um bethany beach so ashley is um yeah she's telling karen and uh she's saying that tia's her realtor and she's helped and tia's helping her find some properties and we see last week that ashley was sitting with tia and saying the things that she wants and uh she's open to a condo uh it doesn't have to be a single family home and she wants to be able to rent and And she's like, got it, got it. So you want a condo? You probably know how much do you want your uncle to pay for? 99 % of it. Got it. But he'll have 0 % say, yes, thank you. I like Karen's reaction. Hey, Karen, do you want to go on a trip?

57:32Yes, my freedom was taken away from me. Of course I will. I'll go anywhere. Is she on parole or anything like that?

57:41Ben Mandelker: Is she restricted into where she can travel? Do we know? I don't know. As a representative of her legal team running. I don't know. I don't know how that works. So Robin's like, Bethany Beach, okay, I guess I'll come. I'm really struggling to keep this job this year. I'll come. So now we go to Ara Clothing Store. And Courtney is shopping, and she's in a bad mood. and it turns out it's because she's having trouble conceiving a baby girl and they really want a girl and he hugs her and he's like babe it's gonna work out and then they start about the they start talking about the trip yeah she she had an issue 10 years ago where her fallopian tube and an ovary had to be removed so she already has the odds against her and now her ovary her her egg count or is is low so they just got some just bad news about their journey for their fertility journey and so they're they're crying and then we go to karen's house and karen's on her bed she's ray ray ray ray ray and it turns out that karen has been sleeping in the basement that she's doing the uh she's doing the uh ralph ralph thing she's in the basement uh but this is voluntarily a voluntary basement adjustment that they're sleeping in different rooms these days because she wants to have she says she's like i decided that once i got sober that i would love on karen that requires us spend time with myself, not away from our marriage or our home, but within the home.

59:32I need to be separated from you, but in the same home, so I can still do things like say, Really? So he comes down, trudging down the stairs, and he's like, Yes, Karen. He's like, You didn't bring me tea. It's not tea time. Oh, so I got to wait till tea time to have tea? You can have some tea at tea time. Okay, well, this is a great conversation. What have you been up to today? He's like, well, I've walked from one end of the house to the other, and then I stood and stared at a deer outside and wondered if it could hear me thinking, God, I wish I was in Florida.

1:00:10Ben Mandelker: Oh, well, do you ever get tired of that walking around and talking to deer thing? He's like, I'm a little tired. It's like, how long do you think before you'll retire? He's like, well, it's kind of funny if you think about it. the retire thing because i'm already tired if you're already tired why do you have to be retired you know what i'm saying karen just answer the question it's like probably a year or two something like that are you just working to avoid me avoid the tea in the basements and it's like well with your schedule i'm it's all it's hard to determine what you'll be available for and i'm just trying to you know spend time trying to become whoever you're going to be after going through that process oh who are you even it's like well i'm just going to be me he's like but who i mean you're going to be a different karen than a year and a half ago so that karen didn't want tea before tea time so what am i supposed to do you've said that before and he says, yeah, but like, I expected that, I expected that you would be different.

1:01:17Ben Mandelker: She's like, so you don't like sober Karen? He's like, well, you have to admit, non-sober Karen might have been more fun. She's like, wrong answer. That's require some extra lip puckering.

1:01:36Well, I think I'm the most powerfully sexy woman I've ever been in the basement. And he's like, well, you can be more aggressive and things like ray ray ray me going to jail did not stop our intimacy and he's like well it didn't help it and you know i thought you'd come back ready to go i mean geez we should

1:01:57Ben Mandelker: also mention that ray also said you you didn't you didn't see you being more fun maybe even more sexy if you will oh god so it's not only that she's more fun she was sexier when she was non-sober great ray great great feedback for giving this person who's on this yeah ray ray is really striking out on this one my god you come back and just want to just blow me for hours on ends she's like no she's like nobody's thinking about after being locked up for six months he's like but on television they do this is probably one of the worst interactions we've ever seen him at like this is just beyond terrible this is i mean this is i didn't think it'd get worse for when than years ago when he said i think i love you it's like oh gosh yeah this is not a good episode for ray for sure and she keeps giving him the opportunity to say the right thing and he just chooses not to every single time um so she's like well that's not the reality you know and it's an image or a statement and there's no so much there's so much more to deal with than fucking ray but he's you know he's heard and i know that you know he has adjusting to do but i like so but karen i like so but karen very very much you know you gotta you You've got a sober, woke wife now.

1:03:28Ben Mandelker: It sounds like you missed the one that was sleeping. It's like, well, I do because when the one that was sleeping, it meant that I could go out and golf early in the morning. But you get what you get. And it's like a secret Santa. Sometimes you get something cool. Sometimes you don't. In this case, I just got something that's kind of lame. That's okay. That's just what it is. This conversation is really interesting because I would imagine a lot of people go through it when one person gets sober and the other person doesn't because you do become a different person and you know she's saying here like listen ray before there was you there was sober karen he's like i don't know about that because i remember before we got married i was terrified to marry you because you were drinking and getting too drunk and um it was not good but then I realized, well, she, she's hornier when she's drunk.

1:04:21So I guess it'll work out for me too. I mean, what the hell? Yeah. But beyond the stupid things he's actually saying, it is an adjustment for both people when one person is sober and the other, like when I stopped going so crazy with my intake and my addictions and stuff, and I'm not sober, I don't want to say I'm sober, but I went through a big change for sure. And I was out with my friends one night because I wanted to keep up and just say well i can still go out to bars even even if i'm not drinking and stuff i don't want to lose my friends and my friends were giving me shit you know they were like this you're not the same and you're more boring and i was like well you're right i am more boring and you guys seem like a bunch of drunks like it's like you do your mind does change you want to do different things and you want to kind of you you're you're going to be different and that's okay you know but ray's like Like, who are you even?

1:05:14And I don't know, Ray's just, Ray's failing every sensitivity level here. It's hard enough being sober without hearing this from your partner, you know what I mean? Like, well, wouldn't it be more fun if you were still drunk fun, Karen? I could have sex more. It's like, ugh, Ray. Yeah, it's not good.

1:05:34Ben Mandelker: So then she says, you don't really know me. You don't know me at all. I don't know what's in the future for you and I, and I'm not gonna go back. I'm a different woman even though I just said I'm the same woman but either way I'm a different and the same I'm same and different I'm two sides of the same coin but there's a third side and a fourth side but only one side and I have to fall in love with you as you are and you're to fall in love with me as I am if that's possible it's not possible you're not supposed to answer that so quickly it's like well but he's like I don't want to do it without you she goes well I'm just here for the fight and I'm not willing to placate I'm just not so anyway the point is they're in a bad place but I'm sure by the end of the season then they will realize that they love each other still, but still, uh, really shitty, um, shitty things that Ray was saying.

1:06:19Ben Mandelker: Do not approve. You do not treat our queen, the grand Dom Karen Ugar that way. It's like that grumpy old guy energy. It's just like, no, I don't even care if this is problematic or not. You are more fun when you're drunk and why aren't I getting late after you came back from prison? It's like, Oh no. and like look we've we've watched a lot of these shows where someone becomes sober and they're not as fun on tv and i think it's okay when we sort of politely say it like you know i hate to say it but they were more fun when they were drunk but like we're not in a in an emotional relationship like a life partnership with those people and i think you don't say that to the person that you're like in love with and that you're trying to help them be their best selves so no ray no it's also kind of a surprise that this is his thinking because karen was i mean that was her fourth dui and karen would get sloppy you know all the stories that people were telling of her going and drinking at the local restaurant all day and just getting shit-faced and yeah yeah and you would think that it would be like oh my god thank god you're not drinking or thank god you're doing something and he's like no that was more fun oh my god what it's just kind of surprising to hear it what's sort of interesting with karen is also that like so far karen has been the same karen to us like i have not detected any difference and you know she was a drunk but that was actually really not her character on bravo you know like there's some people like sonia morgan she is like a drunk like dorinda she she will like have like drunk enraged kind of like when candace the wands up drinking it was like oh what do we do with candace the land like Like Carl was, well, actually Carl's character wasn't even that he was like, like a druggie or anything like that.

1:08:06Ben Mandelker: It just, that sort of came out after the fact. But like the point is that like, we're not looking at Karen Huger and saying, wow, what's Karen going to be like on this show now that she's not drinking? It never was like central to like her reality show persona. So it's, I don't know. It's kind of interesting. It's like an interesting debate because for us, we're like, it's like, Karen's great for us. She's still the great Karen that we know and love. You have to get with the party, Ray. Yeah, she's still the same to us. Yeah, I think that's true. So then we go to a Greek restaurant with Tia and Rob.

1:08:42Oh, gosh, this is so awkward. So they're just sitting there. They have nothing to say to each other. And she just stares around the restaurant, and he just stares at the menu. And the camera really just holds there for a very long time. Yeah.

1:08:59Ben Mandelker: She says, it feels like there's a costly cloud hanging over it, but this dinner is the first time that he and I are stepping out together without my mom or the children. So it feels really good. So Wendy and Eddie join and they make some small talk about traffic and stuff and how it took Tia two hours to come to this place. And so Wendy's asking, how's everything? Have you been? And she's like, we've been good. And Rob's like, yeah, we're busy, but good. Everything's good. It's like, oh, okay. Because Wendy says it like, I mean, Wendy comes with a mission. She sits down and makes some small talk and then she's like, so are you guys good?

1:09:40Are you guys good? Let's talk about you as a couple and she's like well we've been good well because i feel like you know a lot of us are in interesting places in our relationship but you guys i'm just like well if you're married

1:09:55Ben Mandelker: long enough you know if something's gonna happen what are you gonna do yeah that's what eddie said so you know you know sometimes it's you know infidelity sometimes it's insurance fraud these things just happen so you know what are you guys going through right now like is this the darkest moment for you guys? Like, oh, the appetizers haven't even been placed yet. I guess I'm getting right into it. And Rob's like, well, I wouldn't say it's the darkest. Yeah, this is the darkest. She goes, no, actually, I don't think so. Do you think so, Rob? And he's like, are you asking how tough does marriage get?

1:10:28I mean, listen, there's a lot of pieces why being together can be difficult. No, sir. No, sir. You just got caught on apps, and we're not going to start this. Well, there are a lot of you know it's not just the person who got caught doing something there are other there are reasons why he did them i'm not gonna hear it from you rob so don't even try it

1:10:50Ben Mandelker: i also just don't think that it's his place to declare whether it's the darkest moment when tia is the one who is for the brunt of being betrayed yeah or the brunt of being betrayed and uh like i think it's up to her to declare the darkness not rob so yeah she's the butt Brerner. She's very Brunt forward at this moment, and she needs to be the one. Everything is the cake. Brunt seriously, guys. Maybe she should go back and read a novel by the Bronte sisters. So you don't think that you guys? And he's like, no. Wendy's like, am I missing something? I mean, this isn't the darkest time of their life.

1:11:35Then what the hell is? And she's like, Oh, good. Pictures on the internet are going to be the darkest time of my life. I'd be lying if I said yes. Whatever, it's a fart in the wind, really.

1:11:47Ben Mandelker: But it's all in how you see life, right? Now just go through things. Sometimes it's infidelity. Was there infidelity? Well, from what she says, no. And from what I was told, it was like I was feeling lonely, but nothing came of it. Like, Tia, why are you... Don't answer this. This is not for you to answer. It's for Rob to answer. yeah and Wendy's like okay well can I ask a question because I noticed you travel a lot and you travel a lot without Rob but that's not true well but you just said your birthday you were in London but I was in London with my mom and before that Nigeria did Rob go to Nigeria no but I was going to there for 10 days my kids were in school okay so do you think that you traveling was part of this and Rob feels lonely no no no no no no no no I know she's trying to just like get some answers out but don't lay groundwork for excuses for this man also like 10 days in nigeria a week or two in london that's not enough to make someone be like i'm lonely and i'm gonna cheat like that's that's like nothing so tia's like tia says oh in this group we love to ask questions more than we love to give answers instead of its affection i'm gonna ask all of this about you let's forget what's going on with me here it's very much a like a checkmate game which is tia's way of saying like we're gonna get to you next don't don't don't if you if you really push it with me i'm not afraid to push it with you yeah and she's like well you know i have to say i have to travel to see my family but you don't go together we can't go together who's gonna watch our children okay well but if he's saying he did this because he's lonely and then you to travel without him, does that add to the loneliness?

1:13:31It's like, well, you know, you're acting like I'm gone every week. And she's like, Rob, do you feel lonely?

1:13:39Ben Mandelker: You don't need to answer this. He goes, no, no, I got it. I got it, I got it. It's like, but I don't feel like we need to explain how we've been living this family. And so Wendy says, the real reason why she's asking these questions is because Tia has been avoiding asking him the questions. And so now Wendy's thinking like, she's gonna ask the questions because, because Rob hasn't had to ask answer these questions so Rob is like so I'm not proud about doing it it wasn't a great decision right but I'm very embarrassed for my wife and and she's like yeah you're embarrassed for yourself right too don't you say that yeah yes I am embarrassed for myself and I'm saying like you know to deal with this but like at the end of the day um you get nothing for nothing and you know we'll work through that so that's the best answer I can of you right now on that topic thank you for thank you for coming yeah what is like well you don't even owe me an answer we're really rooting for you both she's like well we're rooting for you guys too i'm sorry did that sound like police sirens sorry couldn't have myself it's just how i speak right and i just want to make sure that y 'all are good because those beautiful babies are uh you know just want to make sure they're okay the beautiful beautiful babies are okay with the dad may be cheating.

1:14:55And so Eddie's like, have you talked to your kids? And she's like, no, not yet. We're going to have a conversation. And they're like, oh, that's going to be so difficult. And she's like, well, I have to ask you some questions now. Now, how much of what you guys are going through do your children know? And Wendy says that Carter knows because he Googled and she chose not to lie to him. And so he cried and she said, I don't want this for you guys. and i don't want somebody to be evil spirited and put it on a blog so you know i'll tell you as we're talking right now you know look to you i see like you're how you're taking the lead in this conversation rob's like yeah she's well i'm not taking the lead no no no i'm not taking lead in any conversation and she's like well is rob going to take the lead in the conversation with the kids okay well

1:15:45Ben Mandelker: I mean, Wendy's around. Yeah. But Wendy's also, I think kind of trying to help Tia a little bit. I think Wendy's kind of like, it is, she's throwing it back. She does not want to talk about the fraud and all that stuff, but she also is like, Tia's not going to ask this man, the questions that need to be asked like her, like the Britishness of it all of like, you know, just whatever, like keep strong and carry on. Like that's, that's like that instinct is, is kicking in and like, it's kind of letting Rob have a pass. And when he's like, no, so she's like, like when, like, you shouldn't have to be the one to have to explain Rob's bad behavior.

1:16:24Ben Mandelker: Rob should have to sit in it and like feel the consequences, like feel what it's like when the, how he's disappointed as kids. I, I kind of feel like that's what Wendy's trying to do here. But I also like how Wendy's asking if Rob is gonna take the lead in the conversation. And then Tia goes, is Rob gonna take the lead in that conversation, Rob? Will he be doing that? I'm like, don't take the lead in asking Rob how he's gonna answer. Well, Wendy's been taking the lead in the conversation this whole time. But I do think you're right. She's trying to just get Rob to answer for himself. And so he's like, listen, I've given you my answers.

1:16:58And Tia's like, well, are you going to take the lead in the conversation, Rob? And he's like, of course, of course. Of course. I'm going to tell the kids, listen, there's something called the internet. And when you're feeling lonely, it's like a friend. It's like a good friend.

1:17:13Ben Mandelker: Okay. Listen, if we call you in the middle of the night and I'm like, listen, I just spilled hot grits on him. Then you know why. And Wendy's like, well, if you spill hot grits on him, I'll be your alibi. We're lucky for him. That window is fast. I've given up grits. And Eddie's like, you made it to the other side. Well, he made it. I was already on the other side. well look he made it to the other side too he doesn't have quit burns so that's good so um eddie's like well you know uh i made it to the other side too she's like why did she nearly spill hot grits on you she's like well it was yeah we're still going with quits we love quits and eddie's like well you know it's one of those things i mean like where you're charged with i I don't know.

1:18:00Like if I'm in charge of paying the mortgage every month and then someone comes after us saying, you haven't paid the mortgage. You're going to be like, wait, you were supposed to pay the mortgage every month. So that's kind of where Wendy was. You know, she didn't know anything going on. She had no idea what was going on. Nothing. No clue. So of course she's going to be upset with me because I'm the only person that knew anything that was going on.

1:18:23Ben Mandelker: So there not that there was anything going on, but if there had been something going on, I would have been the only one to know about it. She knew nothing of the nothing that was happening. Wendy's like, yeah. Because even if you have your role, you still have to know everything. Everything that's going on in your house. Like, yeah. Yeah, I guess we saw this coming. That they were going to pin all of it on Eddie. But, you know, you've got kids to take care of, too. So, I guess one of you is going to go. They've decided it's going to be Eddie. She's the more public-facing one. So, he's going to take the fall.

1:18:56Ben Mandelker: We'll see what happens on that end, on that front. We shall see. But anyway, thank you all for being here. We will see you in Philadelphia and in D.C. Maybe both. Go to WatchWhatCrapins.com to get your tickets. And we'll catch you on the next episode of Watch What Crapins. Crappy hour tonight, don't forget. Bye, everyone. Bye. Watch What Crapins would like to thank its premium sponsors. Ain't no thing like Alison King. Hi, it's Danny Pellegrino from Everything Iconic. 12 celebrities, one Don, and cold hard cash. From the producers of The Traitors comes The Mob, a new Hulu original series. The iconic Parker Posey hosts this unique reality competition show where 12 celebrity contestants shake down an Italian villa to win a share of up to$250 ,000.

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From the publisher

Wendy and Tia go on a double date of awkwardness where they trade notes on dueling miseries on The Real Housewives of Potomac. Also, Gizelle goes to the Capitol, and Ray says the most charming things to Karen. We’re back on tour! Get our In the Mix tickets for your city at watchwhatcrappens.com. To watch this recap on video, listen to our bonus episodes, sign up for our free weekly newsletter and get ad free listening, go to Patreon.com/watchwhatcrappens.

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