Strike while the irony is hot

Hilary was hot on the heels of her baby-swapping story while she expected her gofer to continue to dig up the dirt. Should Mariah go on strike due to unfair labor practices, harassment, and low pay at GC Buzz? And we were seeing double, as Faith filmed Nick in a special Thanksgiving video.

I find it ironic that Mariah, a lady who chooses to keep those closest to her at arm's length, would wish to work at GC Buzz in a job where her main task was digging up and revealing the secrets of others. To accomplish the task, Mariah would need to work with others to gain their confidence in order to win their trust. That's funny because trust has never been a strong point with Mariah, so it's just bizarre that she believes her future career lay within the walls of the gossipy tabloid. If Mariah does not see her success as an investigative reporter, willing to go the extra mile to get the next story, exactly what is her goal at GC Buzz? To work forever as Hilary's gofer? It seems to me that she started at the bottom and was, somehow, working her way down.

There's also a bit of irony that Hilary's main goal at the online newscast was to air people's dirty laundry to make her stories fresh and new. And what's even crazier was that Hilary needed Mariah to sink into the sludge right along with her to help her boss spread the filth about Sharon's deceit regarding Christian. As Hilary's gofer, Mariah was at her beck and call, even if that meant she was expected to dig up the dirt to bury her own mother. However, since she was on the inside, Mariah hoped to keep the grimy details of the scandal covered. Oh well, I guess being a gofer was better than being a mole acting on Victor's behalf. After all, Victor's tunneling creature was forced to scurry into the bilge so he could create trash about Newman Enterprises. And Mariah will probably be just as rewarded for her troubles as Victor's burrowing little critter was for his.

If Mariah thinks she can protect Sharon by stopping Hilary from further tarnishing her mother's reputation, I fear she is sadly mistaken. Even if the feisty female was once a con artist, Mariah is more like Little Red Riding Hood now to Hilary's big, bad wolf. Once Hilary sniffs out a tasty morsel of some scrumptious muck, she rips the hide from the bleeding carcass to leave nothing but bones and flesh. Yikes! That sounds gruesome, but seriously, that's just the way Hilary works. She has no empathy for anyone's trauma, and she doesn't care one lick about feelings. That's just not the way to grab the ratings.

Mariah seems to only be putting herself right into the path of Hilary's destruction, and for what? So, Mrs. Devon Hamilton can embarrass Sharon even more by using her daughter as another tool against her? And you can bet that Mariah is making diddly-squat at CG Buzz as Hilary's assistant. Mariah more than likely makes bupkis working for the scandal sheet, and I am sure she has no additional benefits in her employee package. Shoot, Mariah should go on strike for increased wages. However, she might get a little lonely in her picket line -- plus, I believe you need to be part of a union to do that anyway. My guess is that there are no unions at GC Buzz.

Oh well, it's just as well, since Hilary would never be ready for any kind of labor negotiations. But if Hilary wants Mariah's assistance in helping her to strike while the iron is hot on Sharon's baby-switching story, she should play nice with Sharon's redheaded daughter. One of Hilary's major faults is that she has no interest in greasing any wheel to get what she wants. It's always full steam ahead for her, and to heck with the consequences.

Just look at the way Hilary treats Mariah at work. If this kind of behavior took place in a normal office atmosphere, a harassment case would be filed -- pronto! No employee should have to tolerate the nasty garbage Hilary constantly slings at Mariah. When she first came to town, Mariah showed she was bright and clever and could pretty much hold her own against the big boys, like Victor. Has she been hanging around Jack without anyone knowing it? When she's around Hilary, Mariah is, more and more, resembling a defeated Jack at Victor's hands. It's just so sad to watch. We need the spunky girl who first arrived in town to return to give Hilary a run for her money -- which would be speaking Hilary's language. Forget fighting fair. It's time to get smart, Mariah!

Thanks to Devon, and no thanks to Hilary, Mariah found a terrific story for GC Buzz that was not based on scandal and that could capture the viewers' hearts. Mariah interviewed "J. J.," who had a down-and-out tale about how she had once been successful and had volunteered in the kitchen in the past. But her life took a swan dive once she became an addict. J. J.'s main desire was to see her family and children again. Hey, Mariah may be a people person, after all. Ironically, even though Hilary had no interest in "the poor and unfortunate," she was surprisingly moved by J. J.'s story.

Hilary was so captivated by the hapless and homeless woman, she sent J. J. an envelope with tons of money and a message telling her to rebuild her life. What? Is Hilary crazy?! The lady whose pseudonym was J. J. admitted to being a drug addict, for heaven's sake. Who's to say she won't take that money and dash to her nearest dealer? Hilary didn't put her faith in a lot of people, so she sure picked a fine time to start. As for Mariah, Hilary only asked that for her next interview, the redhead should make sure the interviewee responded with complete sentences, so that Mariah could be completely edited out. Hilary just had to give her that last parting shot. She couldn't let Mariah get a swelled head.

If Kevin weren't so overwhelmed by everything Chloe, he probably could have helped Mariah get ahead by using his computer savvy and know-how. But as much as Hilary pounces on Mariah's insight, Chloe trounces on Kevin's love and goodwill. As long as Kevin is useful to Chloe, she lets him hang around, hoping and dreaming. But if he dares to step just a teensy-weensy bit across the line, Chloe cries out that it's "my life, my choice," especially in regard to Bella. "My kid, my call, my life." My, my, my. Me, me, me. Yep, that's our Chloe for you. Selfish to the end. It doesn't appear Kevin will ever see her true colors, though, since he hasn't after all this time.

But even Chloe could see she had gone too far after rejecting Kevin's offer to spend Thanksgiving together, and she instantly changed her tune. She spun the dial so fast on her behavior, I almost felt we had switched the station over from country to rock and roll. You know, Chloe and Hilary are a lot alike, except that every once in a blue moon, Chloe will realize she can catch more flies with honey, while Hilary will always throw her very own special brand of vinegar. Chloe made sure to accidentally run into Kevin at the park to give him a sugary sweet offer of eating turkey with him during the holiday. It was truly sickening!

And almost as fast as a lightning strike, Travis was on bended knee, proposing to Victoria, while Billy watched from afar. What was the rush? Did Travis really think that marrying Victoria would stop the truth about his fling with Michelle from coming out in the open? Travis told Victoria that he wanted them to be forever, but how permanent could they be as a couple when more than one person knew of his drunken romp in the sack with his ex? I still can't believe that at the very first sign of trouble -- a sign which in no way resembled a bright, flashing neon light at his former bar -- Travis dashed out and did the hootchy-kootchy with Michelle. I mean, Victoria and Travis had a skirmish due to the fact he arrived home drunk when her kids were in the house. It wasn't even a major blowout. Victoria should be cautious and a little suspicious, just because Travis was in such a hurry to marry her.

Why on earth is Billy keeping his lips sealed? As he told Ashley, Billy was well aware that the guy Victoria considered marrying was as big of a jerk as the one she was previously wed to. Billy was right -- Victoria did deserve someone better, but it's possible he knew he wasn't that guy, so he kept quiet. It appears, at times, that Billy wishes he were, even as his eyes still wander over to his brother's wife. So, which lovely lass would Billy prefer to pursue: Victoria or Phyllis? You have to wonder if Phyllis has been Billy's consolation prize all along.

In this holiday season of caring and giving, Jill had to practically drag Billy to help out in the Crimson Lights kitchen, but as soon as he saw Phyllis, he suddenly had an interest in aiding those less fortunate than him. Even so, Phyllis told him, once again, that she still loved Jack and only wanted him back. How many times does Phyllis have to pound that into Billy's hard head before he gets that? And Jill seemed to suffer from the same affliction, because she also warned Phyllis, again, to stay away from her son. Jill had better watch it, or her resolve in keeping the two of them apart could end up backfiring and make Phyllis want to be with Billy.

We already know that Billy wants what he can't have, but Phyllis may be another one suffering from that same curse, since she stubbornly wants Jack, who has made it crystal clear he will never reunite with her. If Phyllis only knew about the unsigned divorce papers, she would have even more incentive to stick to her guns about getting her husband back. Yes, her husband, not her ex-husband. For whatever reason, Jack has been unable to pull the trigger to end their marriage. Could that reason be love? Jack is still very obviously gaga over Phyllis.

So, Jack went to the cabin, of all places, to spend the Thanksgiving holiday with his family, although only Abby and an unexpected Summer could make it, and to try to forget Phyllis for a while. Yes, that was the perfect place to go -- where Billy and Phyllis had their trysts together. Oh, well, at least Jack had the charcoal turkey to keep him company once his niece and stepdaughter left. Man, that was one black bird! Maybe deep-frying a frozen turkey wasn't such a hot idea. It's a wonder the fire department wasn't called with all the smoke flowing out from the kitchen. Jack and the burnt bird weren't alone for too long, though, when Billy arrived to keep his brother company.

Surrounded by the crispy critter gobbler and Billy's artistic finger painting, it wasn't exactly a festive affair for the Abbott brothers. Oops, maybe "affair" wasn't the right word to use. Jack even quipped, after he heard about Travis' proposal to Victoria, that Billy had no qualms in stealing another man's wife. Billy has become somewhat of a puzzle, though, since he appeared to be matchmaking between Jack and Phyllis. And he wasn't doing everything in his power to stop Victoria from marrying Travis. Maybe Billy really did have some regrets about what he had done to his brother and to his ex-wife. Could he sincerely want them both to be happy?

Strangely enough, Jack ended up spending the holiday with the woman he loved. Phyllis and Jack worked together at Crimson Lights, feeding the homeless. It truly was sweet. Even the hard-hearted Jill smiled. I hope this puts a stop to Jill's endless tirades for Phyllis to keep her distance from Billy. Jack and Phyllis still have a long way to go, but at least it's a start. A charitable act is a great way for two people to bond.

Nick certainly won't win any acting awards -- Oscar, Emmy, or Tony -- for his performances as a pilgrim and as a Native American in Faith's school video. Actually, Nick's pilgrim looked and acted just like his Native American. Maybe he was afraid of being politically incorrect in his portrayal. Still, Nick could have chosen a little makeup to help differentiate between his two characters. Good heavens, his sister is part of the team in charge of Brash & Sassy. I'm sure she would have been more than willing to help the guy out.

Well, Nick's acting also didn't stretch to hide his awkwardness when Dylan and Sharon arrived at Chloe's Thanksgiving dinner before Nick, Chelsea, and the kids had a chance to escape. Sharon most certainly does herself no favors, does she? First, she called Christian "Sully." Then she questioned Michael, behind her husband's back, about suing Nick for visitation. That sure livened up the party. Actually, the celebration came to a screeching halt. What did Sharon think was going to happen? She wants to save her marriage, but she continues to act without Dylan's knowledge. If Sharon keeps it up, she will end up losing everything. It's amazing she hasn't already.

I loved how Sharon asked her one and only friend, Chloe, to talk to Chelsea on her behalf -- about Christian, not Faith. Apparently, Sharon wasn't too concerned about her daughter, even though Faith was worried that her mother might think she didn't love her. That was the least of Sharon's fears. Poor Faith. I would have thought having Faith's love would have brought some comfort to Sharon. It seems Faith was in the proper home after all.

Victoria chose the craziest time to accept Travis' proposal, didn't she? I guess she had to do something to bring joy to the Turkey Day dinner. For the most part, holiday episodes tend to be a little dull. Actually, I am surprised Travis didn't wait and propose at the dinner table. He could have hidden the ring in a turkey leg or the cranberry sauce. Even if Victoria was cheery and bright, you couldn't say the same thing about Victor after Travis shot down the Mustache's suggestion that the intended groom ask the father for her hand. You have to wonder what Victor's answer would have been. Travis will pay the price for disrespecting Victoria's daddy.

I was surprised Dylan actually listened to Sharon, and he thought announcing to Nick that he was suing for visitation on Thanksgiving was somehow appropriate. This is not going to turn out well. Nick, Dylan, and Sharon all adore the little boy, but they will just tear each other apart, all in the name of love. How incredibly sad for the child who was once known as Sully.

Other notable (or humorous) items that happened during the week:

I found it funny that Chloe and Sharon bonded together. But why not? They have been the two major town pariahs for several years now. It's no surprise that Chloe wasn't eager to throw rocks at a glass house, since hers should have been shattered years ago.

Since Devon and Hilary didn't attend, we could take comfort in knowing that the Winters family get-together could go back to being the boring snoozefest we all know and love. Okay, maybe not love. Hilary seems to be the only one who can put any life at all into their celebrations, whether it be done intentionally or unintentionally.

Until next time, please stay tuned.Teddi

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