Here’s the thing about the truth. Even though it is something you think that you want to know, sometimes it’s painful, as we learn in Ginny & Georgia 1×07 “Happy Sweet Sixteen, Jerk.” Sometimes the pain is important to feel and sometimes it’s the best thing to avoid.
But we sometimes don’t know that until it’s too late. We can’t take back the truth once it is out there. We can’t hide from it. We just have to accept it.
But we have to remember to be careful what we wish for.
DID SOMEONE SAY BIRTHDAY?
Personally, I hate birthdays. I feel like they are a reminder that you’re one year closer to dying, but then again – isn’t that the wrong way to look at it?
Ginny is turning 16. It’s supposed to be a big deal, but she’s still mad at her mother, upset over the lies, and thinking about all the things she doesn’t know. But Georgia, she doesn’t care that she’s upset. Because it’s her birthday. And Georgia always goes all out for birthdays.
Ginny’s hair is straight and Georgia loves her natural hair, so of course she’s going to make a remark. The two of them know how to dig at each other. But Georgia is trying not to fight and turns to singing Happy Birthday to change the mood. Nothing can change the mood though, Ginny is still pissy and it doesn’t matter what Georgia wants.
Ginny wants to be treated like an adult, but she doesn’t get that really isn’t want she wants. Sure, I get it is what she thinks she wants, but we all want what we don’t understand. It’s like a broken record – her being pissed about Georgia’s lies and Georgia not willing to budge and tell her anything.
But for Ginny, she knows how to hurt her Mom. Shut her out. Make her feel like she’s the worst. Smile at everyone else. Make it known that the person that she’s mad it is Georgia.
Doorbell rings and it is for Ginny. Her Dad sent her a keyboard. I mean, I get that she’s super excited, I woulda been too. My Dad forgot my sixteenth. Georgia, not to be outdone by anyone else says if you think this is good wait til tomorrow. Ginny isn’t hearing her Mom. What she’s hearing is blah blah. But she gets a text from Max that says her parents will be out of town that weekend and she will be throwing a party. Ginny starts smiling and won’t tell Georgia why.
As I’ve said, she knows how to stick it to her Mom.
She gets to school and everyone is excited that it’s her birthday. Well, everyone but Abby. She’s jealous that Ginny is getting attention. She makes it know that she’s over Ginny, that she gets it – that Ginny is so special and blah blah. It’s obvious that something is going on with Abby and her friends – well they just think she’s being mean.
But we know that Abby’s got some issues that she’s not dealing with.
But what happens next – I personally would have cringed at and ran from. But that’s just me. Nora’s man runs up and tells them all to look that way.
I’m not an asshole, I do love a romantic gesture, but in high school, my boyfriend tap dancing down the hallway and basically a flashmob of people tapping down the hallway – ya, no. I would have ran the other way. I get that Ginny loves all of the attention that she’s getting, so am I shocked that she is standing there with her hands over her face, smiling and giddy? No. But do I want to run for her? Yes, I want to run away.
I think it’s great that Ginny’s friends are there for her. I love that they are there for her. But I also guess, I just don’t understand kids, cause tap dancing down the hallway wouldn’t be it for me.
Ginny’s dad texts. She’s happy. As long as life has nothing to do with Georgia, she’s happy. The girls are talking and enjoying themselves, gossiping like teenagers do. Max says that she’s gonna have sex with Sophie on Saturday. Ginny says shes ready to have sex with Hunter. Neither one of them are ready, but Max is excited thinking that they are going to loose their virginity on the same night.
The fact that Ginny slept with Marcus will always be a secret that she has to keep from her friends. And secrets are lonely.
WHAT DO YOU THINK, GEORGIA?
Am I the only one remembering that Austin didn’t like Paul? But here we are, new day, shit I don’t get. Austin and Paul playing soccer, which is kinda nice because I think that Austin really wants a male figure in his life. Paul says Austin is good and he should join the team, but Austin says it makes him nervous.
Nervous isn’t a bad thing, I guess. We all get nervous and it propels us. For Austin, it’s an opening to talk about school. He tells Paul he doesn’t want to go back to school cause everyone thinks he’s weird. Paul tries to act weird and he looks like an idiot, but it’s a great moment because it’s like you can see that Paul could be a Dad. Sure, I don’t like him, but he is a part of the story.
Austin and Paul act weird together and tries to tell Austin that getting weird is fun. Austin says Zak doesn’t think so and he wants to kick the ball in Zaks face. I can’t blame him – Zak’s a little shit. Paul says he gets angry too but then he remembers he can’t control other people but can control himself. Paul asks if he’d feel better if he apologized.
Sure, Austin probably would feel better, but Zak’s an asshole.
Georgia meanwhile is out with Ellen and I love their relationship. Their friendship challenges them both. I love Ellen and her ability to call out a situation. When Joe and Georgia are talking, she notices the tension.
Someone tell me what we can do to get Georgia to notice the tension.
Max walks up and interrupts them, and if I didn’t know better, I would say she drank like 10 cups of coffee. She basically ignores her Mom and asks Georgia all the questions. How do you know if it’s love?
Well Max, love is an illusion, but that’s just my take. Ellen’s not getting a take either, cause Max only cares what Georgia has to say. It’s nothing personal, Ellen, we all look for advice from anyone who is not our parent.
The conversation changes, and they are talking about Ginny’s surprise party. Max is so excited – until Georgia informs her that it’s a sleepover. That’s definitely going to put a crimp in Max’s plans. Ellen says she asked Georgia to make it a sleepover since they’d be in Maine and then Max wouldn’t be alone. Max is panicking and trying not to show it. Georgia keeps saying it will be fun, but it doesn’t matter if it could be fun. What matters is there is a party that this is infringing on.
BOYS ARE TROUBLE
Teenagers are complicated. Kids are complicated. Hormones are complicated.
Birthday dinner and the kids are barely eating. The kids say they aren’t hungry, but Georgia is trying to make small talk. It’s just that neither one of them are biting. So Georgia gives up for a second and takes a bite of food. Austin freaks out and says Mom i hate it when you chew loudly, and then storms off. Georgia says Austin is nervous for school and then asks Ginny if she’s excited for her birthday surprise.
No shocker, Ginny storms off too.
Paul shows up with desert, to find Georgia standing there in the kitchen cleaning up. Georgia is like when did I stop being cool? Well, let me tell you Georgia, that would be when you kid become a teenager. Paul says she’s cool, but we all know better than to listen to him cause he’s trying to bang her.
Georgia says Ginny is thriving. Georgia says all she wants her kids to be happy. She doesn’t want Ginny to not need her. It’s one of the most relatable moments that Georgia has.
Meanwhile, upstairs, there is the saga of Marcus and Ginny. I am so heavily invested in these two – even though I didn’t want to be. I wanted to hate Marcus and did. But hey, feelings change.
Ginny plays the piano and she’s singing, when Marcus comes through the window. He starts playing the piano along with her. She’s smiling and what I love about the smile is that it’s not the same kind of smile that she has with Hunter. It’s one that is pure joy at the simplest of things.
He came over to give her a gift. It’s a painting of her that he painted. It’s beautiful. He’s talented. Yes, I am swooning. She stands up and hugs him and you can tell he wants to kiss her. Hell she wants to kiss him, but quickly makes an excuse and say she says she has a boyfriend.
She’s like on the edge. You can feel it. She is like we’re just friends right, and then to prove that Ginny starts telling him that he needs to treat girls better. Marcus doesn’t want to hear it though. He says Hunter isn’t right for her. Does Hunter even know her? I mean I don’t think he does. He’s all about these big gestures, but I feel like the big gestures are to distract.
You can’t help but laugh when Marcus says that Hunter has a ponytail versus a personality. She says he has a personality, because obviously she’s gonna defend her man. But she’s wrong and Marcus is definitely right. Ginny and Marcus are complicated, but I stan them. I don’t like the way that they are always trying to hurt each other but I think they’ll figure it out.
THERE’S A NAKED MAN IN THE BATHROOM
Ginny knocking on the bathroom door the next morning, telling Austin to hurry up. Little brothers man. That and sharing a bathroom sucks. But it wasn’t Austin and moments later Paul comes walking out of the bathroom in a towel.
Oh Georgia is never going to live this one down. And at the first moment she can, Ginny takes aim. She tells her mom that she had such a fun first surprise with Paul naked in her bathroom. Ginny is uncomfy and starts talking about all of Georgia’s old boyfriends to prove a point. I guess it’s if you’re gonna strike, why not strike hard.
But she has to get over that quickly, because the girls show up for the surprise day with Ginny. Georgia is trying to make it a great day for her daughter and she knows that her daughter has never had friends, and this is a right of passage. Say what you want about Georgia, but at the end of the day, she just wants to give her kids a better life.
Ginny’s mad she wasn’t warned, but her friends aren’t understanding why they should have warned her.
Ginny asks how long this is supposed to last as she wants to go to Max’s house. This is definitely putting a cramp in her day. But Abby says that this is kinda nice, Georgia put in a lot of effort. And this is one time that I will agree with Abby, even though she’s a selfish shit and is saying that because she doesn’t want to be the odd person out without a man. But Ginny isn’t having it. Ginny tells them her Mom is trying to make up for them pointing guns at each other and then ends up telling her friends about the gun in the houses. Ginny thinks Georgia is trying to show off, but she’s not seeing that she’s just trying to be a good Mom.
WELL PLAYED, MANG
Georgia comes in and says it’s time for karaoke. She’s so desperate for Ginny to not be mad and Ginny knows that. So she plays her Mom like a fiddle and says that it’s cool, this whole thing. She acts thankful and then she asks for a champagne toast. They tell her not to mom right now – and Georgia gives in.
And so as Ginny goes out of the room to help her Mom pour champagne, the rest of the girls raid the alcohol for the party. And they are so quick and are back in their seats before Georgia returns.
The girls settle in for karaoke and have a great time. Nick shows up with the private investigator, as Nick wanted to make sure to say happy birthday. Georgia is nervous, but takes this as an opportunity to put him on notice. Georgia calls him Gabriel and he says that his name is Jesse, which is the name that he gave Nick. But it’s all a lie.
The night is almost over and Georgia leaves girls in Ginny’s room for bed. She puts on CLUE, which is a movie that I have never seen, don’t want to, and I am like well… it is what it is. The girls are ready to stage their break and they set up the room to look like they are there, sleeping.
YOU CAN’T PULL ONE OVER ON GEORGIA
The girls have snuck out and are at Max’s. Ginny’s kicking ass at drinking games. Brody tells Ginny she looks good with her hair straight and if only she had an ass she would be perfect. What an asshole. Hunter tries to shut him up and follows Ginny as she walks off.
Hunter and her are in a bedroom and start talking about the stupid shit Brody says. Like I am glad that they can talk and be there for each other, but I do not want these two together. But hey, the subject switches Hunter tells her that she’s beautiful and they start making out. She blurts out she’s on the pill. He stops and she asks why he would stop. She says he has consent. I’m cringing, cause sleeping with him would be so wrong.
But the don’t have sex. He goes down on her.
Sophie and Max messing around. Max is super nervous. She is finding every excuse to keep stalling. She’s kinda overdoing it. Sophie catches on and stops her, telling her that they can just chill. Max says that she’s freaking out. Sophie says don’t worry – she’s not going anywhere.
The snuggle up for a second and the slow music is playing. Sophie asks Max if she made a sex playlist. Max is like it has 86 songs on it and I am like how long do you think this shit lasts?
Remember how the girls snuck out? Well, they should realize that they are going to get caught. They will always get caught. And they do, because Georgia is trying to make this the best night and is making an ice cream sundae tray for the girls.
Georgia goes upstairs and finds girls gone. The girls thought that they had everything planned out but they didn’t. Ginny left the computer open and that gives Georgia access to her text messages. She finds that girls are at Max’s having a party. Rather than going over there and stopping it, Georgia calls in a noise complaint.
She’s savage. I love it.
YOU GET WHAT YOU ASK FOR
Georgia is so mad at the girls, she’s sitting at the table, as Paul is watching out the window. Kids are going to cop cars down to the station. Paul says they need to get Ginny, that he knows she’s mad but they can’t leave her. Georgia says she’s wiped, she’s going to bed.
Georgia is hurt and so she yells in a pillow.
Georgia remembers being caught running an underground gambling ring. Ginny is going to foster care. Georgia says she can’t loose her daughter. Georgia says she’s engaged, he owns property, etc and the lawyer thinking that may help.
Now, I am even more curious about what has happened to Georgia.
Georgia may not want to get Ginny, but Paul goes to get her. He’s honest when Ginny asks him if her Mom didn’t want to get her.
Paul tells her he’s not going to lecture her. He says he’s not even sure he should be there, but she’s a good kid and a good sister. Ginny asks Paul if he loves Georgia, and he says ya he does, but he hasn’t told her that. So he asks Ginny not to tell her either.
Ginny tells Paul that she’s never seen her mom this happy, which was something that I never thought I would see – Ginny being kind and calm with Paul.
When they get home Georgia is waiting in Ginny’s room. She is upset and as any parent would, she flips out a bit. Georgia says she’s responsible for everyone under her roof and she can’t lie to her. I wish that she would learn that saying the word LIE around Ginny is not a good idea. Ginny say Georgia is the grand puba of lies and starts to go on a tirade.
Georgia flips out and is like you wanna know everything, here’s the skinny. She tells Ginny that she was molested by her stepdad, and that is why she ran away at 14, She admits to Ginny that she has been homeless and in jail.
She asks Ginny if shes happy? Ginny says she doesn’t feel good. They run to toilet.
Next day. Georgia comes to check on her and asks how she’s feeling. Ginny is full of apologies and sorry for sneaking out. She’s sorry for asking about lies. She is sorry that she was abused and asks if that’s why she’s strong. Georgia says no, she’s not a Game of Thrones character. Ginny just wants to know if she’s okay now.
Georgia gives ginny a pic of Georgia and Ginny’s Dad, which is absolutely adorable. Ginny says her head is pounding. In their new found openness and love for each other Ginny decides to tell her Mom that Hunter went down on her. I guess they’re doing this now – this whole back to being BFF’s thing.
I personally would never tell my parents about having sex.
Georgia asks Ginny if she feels like an adult now and like an idiot Ginny says yes. Georgia tells Ginny they are broke, that Kenny’s wife protested the will. You can tell that there is this satisfaction Georgia has over being able to put Ginny in her place.
I loved it.
Georgia always pushes them to be strong, but Ginny gets it now – she was protecting them.
OTHER THOUGHTS
- The mayor debate. Cynthia is talking over Paul and saying what ppl want to be. Paul and her keep talking over each other trying to outdo each other. Paul puts Cynthia in her place and talks to her about the shit she doesn’t know. She’s annoyed. I am loving seeing Cynthia mad as fuck.
- Georgia is writing an invoice check out for 10K. She makes a call – she needs a favor and asks Marty to do for her what he did in New Orleans with the PI. SHe says she will make it worth his while and I cringe. Georgia, you are doing so good – there has to be another way. Right?
- The manager of the yoga place calling the PI and saying that the tests didn’t show that Kenny had any heart issues – like know when to speak dude. Shut the fuck up.
- Nora telling her boyfriend about Georgia having guns – what a narc. Know when to keep your mouth shut Nora. Also if you feel uncomfortable, go home.
- Georgia telling Nick to watch out and be careful, I love her that she’s trying to protect her friend. But I hate that he’s in this position.
- I actually felt bad for Marcus when he overheard that Hunter went down on Ginny
- I’m excited we’re hearing more about Ginny’s Dad, cause that means he’s showing up soon.
- Austin puking on Zak – like I feel bad for Austin, but Zak – I dislike, so whatever.
