Caray, Caray!

I am posting a header for Sylvia tonight so all y’all can comment, but don’t have time to do a full recap. However, here’s a scene-by-scene quick and dirty summary for your reading pleasure. I hope.

We open to revisit scenes from last night:

• Nidia in her robe, hair in a towel, and Yadi in a way too short skirt dive for the ringing phone. Nidia refuses to answer it or let Yadi do it. Nidia is sure it’s Alirio and doesn’t want her plans for the evening spoiled. They fuss about the phone and Nidia rips it out of the wall. Yadi has a tantrum. At the other end of the line, Alirio stands at a pay phone fussing about Nidia not answering. Only Nidia is happy with all of this.

• CL screeches at Monica with a rapidly rising decibel level to just above the high water mark. He’s muy put out with her presence in the office and she wants to know why. She asks him in roughly a thousand different ways (okay, he’s the one who always tells her he’s told her something a thousand times. Now it’s her turn.) He can’t give her a response that rings true from her viewpoint. Or ours. The entire staff of Farell Industries is treated to the show through the open blinds; it must be a slow day otherwise. Monica swoons and CL gets concerned about her for a refreshing change. He grabs her and lowers her to a chair.

Then we are entertained by tonight’s happenings:

• Monica’s new best fiend [there’s no typo here], Ivonne, solicitously brings Monica a glass of water and asks how she can help. Monica assures them both she’s going to be okay and Ivonne leaves. CL walks Monica out to make sure she doesn’t try to drive herself home, telling her the whole time that she can’t, while Paula peers through her blinds--which were open anyway so she’s just being a drama queen here. CL looks back at Paula and she glares at him before the elevator comes and closes on him and Monica. Dramatic pounding piano music tells us she’s muy put out.

• In the basement, the boys are playing bumper cars without bumping. They’re talking between the cars while they roll back and forth. CL approaches and Fern snaps to. Nice save, Fern. CL opens the door and puts Monica in with directions to Fern. Fern goes with Monica, and CL watches Juan. Nah, CL glares at Juan. With his jaw twitching and locking. Juan hasn’t even said a word. He’s just standing here at attention, respectfully, minding his own business.

• CL strides into Paula’s office and she reams him. He goes on the offensive, as usual. Paula ain’t buyin’ it. She saw the ring. She knows something is fishy. She busts him about preventing her mother from working with Monica, just one piece of the intelligence she gathered in her morning with Moni. CL is impactado.

• Julia comes to get the scoop on all the chisme from Ivonne. What’s up with CL and his wife? Ivonne, always the model of discretion, spills her guts. Workers gather in for more amusement. Marely glares at Ivonne, whose triumph is complete today.

• CL is still impactado but makes a quick recovery to go back on the offensive. Paula’s still not buyin’ it, and wants to know why he’s so scared. CL is the answer man, but the answers don’t ring true from her viewpoint. He says they have nothing more to discuss and she says in this, we agree. She kicks him out of her office. He’s two for two today. He’s out a comfy place to stay tonight, too.

• CL leaves the office to find the audience waiting for an encore. He yells at them to go to work. Too bad it couldn’t come at some appropriate time, like when they’re milling around hour by hour, day after day in the lobby. Marely looks upset at her desk; Paula is inside falling apart now that the main feature has played out.

• Pastor is being kept amused by Juan’s latest plan/scheme to invite Pastor to Nidia’s bachelorette party. Pastor plies Juan for details. He sees an opportunity. He agrees to go. Juan is muy pleased.

• Marely thoughtfully brings Paula a cup of tea; Paula needs it. She gently asks Paula what’s up. Paula tells her a little about busting CL about the incident with her mother and Monica’s job offer. They do some lovely sisterly bonding. Marely tells her to quickly clean her desk and go home to rest.

• The boys are in the basement, discussing plans for the evening’s diversion. Kike has joined them and by some miracle, neither he nor Fern has a black eye. Alirio shows up and wants to party later in the evening. He wants the boys to help with a surprise for Nidia.

• Nidia gets her hair done by our friendly neighborhood stylist who cuts Juan’s hair and Pastor’s. She wants a nifty ‘do for the big night out.

• Everyone declines Alirio and tells him to stay home for sure tonight. Alirio is not thrilled that the boys won’t help him surprise Nidia tonight. [It’s not Nidia who will be surprised if you go to surprise her, Alirio]. Paula is headed out, so Juan can bail on Alirio right now. Kike bails as fast as his little legs can carry him. Fern bails because CL wants to go home. Fern asks which home, and CL gets snide. Fern recovers nervously. Alirio is left in the garage (maybe not exactly in this order). Suddenly, Alirio has a storm in his brain that they are going to surprise him with a bachelor party. He’s touched. [I mean that. He’s definitely touched. In the head.]

• Juan is concerned about Paula, and watches her in the mirror on the way to her apartment. He hates to see her so sad. He tries to talk her into going to the party for Nidia tonight, and she isn’t biting.

• CL strides into the house and Chelo is thrilled to see him. He cuts her off and strides up to the office where Monica is working. CL goes quickly into the offensive mode (literally) with Monica.

• Paula paces her apartment, frowning and not even caring about the wrinkles. She picks up the phone to call Ivonne. Ivonne helpfully informs her that CL has left. If she needs him urgently, she can call him at home. Paula quickly gets off the phone.

• Monica isn’t budging. She is calm; he’s having histrionics. She tells CL she needs time away from him at home. He angles his way into the house overnight, but she goes to tell Chelo to make up the guest room.

• Kike and Juan are chatting about things in the basement. Pastor comes to announce he’s ready. Fern comes back from taking CL home; the traffic was awful! Juan divvies up the jobs; Fern and Kike go get Nidia, he and Pastor get Ana. Fern and Kike groan.

• Paula paces. Her floor has a new trench.

• Kike and Fern toss for who has to go to the door for Nidia. Fern wins. He goes to the door, which Yadi answers, arms crossed in full b**** mode. Fern suffers in silence. Nidia comes down in her fetching hot orange bolero jacket, mini-falda, orange patent 60s cap, etc. Yadi is not impressed. Nor is she a happy camper. Why the heck didn’t Kike come himself?

• Juan listens to Pastor and Ana in the back seat while he drives. Juan had no idea that Pastor liked music and art. Juan’s never heard of artists like Monet and Renoir, but he’s sure glad Pastor has because Ana is so impressed and pleased. This could turn out okay after all.

• The disco is dark and lively. Nidia beams from ear to ear; life is good. At least tonight. The viejas are greatly amused. The boys are greatly reluctant. Pastor and Ana are bonding famously.

• Paula is not pacing. She’s dialing a couple of numbers and laying the phone back down. Repeatedly.

• [Fast forward recaps have some interesting moments. This scene was stuck at the beginning with Yadi’s face all screwed up like a raisin in a grimace/frown.] Yadi and Marely have a sisterly bonding moment in the bedroom with junk food. They decide that love is a lot of trouble. Maybe more trouble than it’s worth.

• The viejas are bonding and boozing. Not necessarily in that order. Juan’s pretty satisfied about the way life is going tonight. He might even be a little smug. He gives Kike and Fern a pep talk; Pastor doesn’t need one. Juan gets the boys out dancing with the viejas and joins them. Fern and Nidia might even be having a good time?

• Marely and Yadi are still bonding. For all we know, it might be the most they’ve talked to each other since Yadi found out that the baby was taking her thunder two decades ago. Yadi is trying to analyze what’s up with Juan, since Marely clearly is enamored of him. Yadi wants to know if Marely and Juan have……Marely is incensed. But she admits if given the opportunity….She philosophizes about making love without really being in love. It’s like dancing without music. Yadi adds food examples—tacos without salsa. She tells Marely to fight for her man. Déjà vu. Haven’t we heard this sometime recently? The doorbell rings. They roll their eyes at each other. Alirio.

• At the disco…..the beat goes on……AH! It’s cachi cachi bombon! The viejas and three of the boys admire Juan’s joie de vivre out on the floor. They toast it. We get a really good listen to cachi, cachi bombon. Feel free to dance, everyone. Juan is in his element! But, remember, any similarity to real life is purely coincidental.

Coming attractions: Problems! Where are Nidia and Fern? Holy moley!!!!! And where is Juan? Home in his bedroom, being accosted by the sisters Cachón. Will he do a striptease to try and get them to flee his bedroom?

Jeanne

Labels: Juan