Episode 2:
Bath Time
Kris is chasing Tracy around the house.
"Tracy Kristine Nelson, I'm not gonna tell you again.", she snaps. The novelty of their cat and mouse game was wearing thin. "It's bath time. Get in the tub."
"No!", her daughter fires back forcefully. Her hands are balled into tiny fists, eyes a flame with determination.
"But, I got your little toy boat right here," Kris says as she puts it in the water.
Tracy takes the boat out of the water and says, "You got'a 'thow' it in like 'dis'."
Tracy throws the boat in the tub hard, which causes water to splash on Kris' shirt.
"Tracy, you got Mommy all wet now."
"Sorry.", the kid replies.
"Are you sorry enough to take a bath?"
"No!"
So much for using guilt to her advantage. Tracy takes off running again, making Kris chase after her.
Rick walks in the front door. "I'm home."
"Pop!", Tracy exclaims as she runs to him excitedly.
"What are you doing, huh?", he asks as he picks her up.
"Tell Pop that you're not obeying.", Kris says. Her eyes shifted from daughter to husband.
"What's going on?", Rick asks.
"No bath!", declares Tracy. She says this, then puts her head on his shoulder.
"Does that answer your question?" The irritation in Kris' voice was becoming fairly noticeable by this point.
Ozzie comes home, calling for Harriet.
"In here.", she says from the other room. Her voice carries easily through the otherwise quiet house.
Ozzie comes in to find Harriet in their room. "Where'd you get that?", he asks, referring to the bed spread that Harriet's putting on the bed.
A green and orange plaid bed spread, with pink and red roses in between. It had placed a death grip on Ozzie's attention before he'd even crossed the threshold.
"Clara gave it to me.", she answers. "Wasn't that nice of her?"
"Sure was.", Ozzie replies sheepishly. "It'll certainly keep us warm when we're cold, that's for sure."
"She gave me some pillow cases too."
"Why?"
"What was that?"
"I mean, why... don't you show them to me." It was a quick save, but luckily for Ozzie, it seemed to have worked.
"Here they are."
"Those are nice", he says, relieved that they were just plain pale yellow pillow cases.
"Yeah, there were some things that Joe and her didn't want anymore, so she gave them to us."
"The water's probably cold by now.", Kris says to Tracy in the bathroom.
"Water bye-bye", she says as she pulls the plug. The bathtub begins to empty, its contents swirling gradually down the drain.
"Why is she acting like this?", Kris asks, rubbing her eyes in frustration. "She didn't do this the last time you gave her a bath."
"That's because I told her I'd sing for her.", Rick replies.
"Sing now, Pop?", comes the little voice a few feet below them.
"Well, I don't know if I should. You're not being a very good girl for Mommy."
" 'Pease'?"
"OK.", he eventually agrees. Saying no to his daughter had never been an easy thing for him. "But you have to be a good girl and take a bath. Promise?"
"I pomise."
"OK."
"I get your 'tar'.", Tracy tells him excitedly.
"No, don't get my guitar. I'll get it."
Tracy runs to get the guitar, and tries to pick it up.
"Pop, it's too 'heady'.", she tells him, looking over her shoulder at him.
"Yes, I know it's too heavy. That's why I said, 'I'll get it'. You promised Pop you'd be a good girl, remember?"
"I be a good girl now.", Tracy agrees.
"That's good. How many songs do you want me to sing?"
"Um... fifty."
"Fifty? I'm not singing that many. How about two?"
Not much of a compromise in the child's eyes. Tracy stomps her foot in anger. "Fifty!"
"Come on now, you heard Pop. I'm not singing that many."
"Fine!", Tracy shouts in anger. "Then I won't be a good girl 'eber' again!"
"Then Pop's not gonna sing at all for you.", her mom tells her with authority in her voice. "And bath time and bed time will be earlier next time."
Even at such a young age, Tracy could see she wasn't winning this. Best to stop while still ahead.
"OK, you can sing two.", the girl agrees.
Rick plays his guitar while singing, Never Be Anyone Else but You and It's Up to You.
In the market, Dave and June are putting oranges in a bag, when they hear a cart coming up behind them. Its wheels squeak as they move across the floor.
"Dave?", a man asks.
Dave turns around toward the familiar voice. "Mark, how are you?"
"Just fine. Yourself?"
"I'm good. This is my wife, June.", he says, gesturing to the woman at his side. "June, this is Mark Andrews. He and I were best friends in junior high."
"Nice to meet you.", she says, as she shakes his hand.
"Likewise."
"So, what's going on with you now?", Dave inquires.
"I'm married and have two little girls." He takes a family picture out of his wallet and shows it to Dave and June. "That's my wife Karen and our two little girls.", he tells them, pointing to the picture. "Michelle - she's three, and Lisa - she's 18 months."
Dave takes a picture out of his wallet and shows it to Mark. "This is our three-year-old son, Danny."
"Who I just remembered asked for popsicles, so I better go get those." June says and walks off.
"So what have you been up to lately?", Dave asks following June's departure.
"We're planning to move. It's Karen's and my anniversary next week and this is the house she wants." He takes the page with the house on it out of his wallet. "Karen tore this out of a magazine and gave it to me. She was thrilled when she read about how it was for sale."
He hands it to Dave and Dave looks it over. Noticing the street it's located on and the address, Dave says, "This is just a few doors down from where we live. June and I would like to help you move, if it's OK."
June comes around with the cart of groceries. "What's this about moving?"
"Oh, I was just telling Mark that we'd be glad to help him move. He and his family are buying a house just a few doors down from us."
"Sure, we'd love to help you.", June agrees. "I'll bet Danny will be happy that he'll have somebody his age in the neighborhood." She pauses briefly. "Of course the fact that it's a girl might be another story. But, his only cousin on his Dad's side is a girl and he loves playing with her."
"OK, well, thanks for offering to help us move.", Mark says. "It's alright with me. I'll check with Karen, but I'm sure she'll say the same thing. It was nice seeing you again, Dave, and June, it was nice meeting you."
"Same to you.", June follows up with a smile.
Wally knocks on the back door and Rick lets him in.
"Rick, look at this.", Wally grumbles with anger in her tone. "The Library sent me another notice saying that my book was overdue." He hands the notice to Rick, who looks it over. "I don't have the money to pay for the book right now."
"And who's fault is that?", Rick asks rhetorically.
"Oh, whose side are you on anyway? Rick, would you do me a favor?"
"OK, how much is the book?", he wonders in a sigh.
"$5.00 to buy it."
Rick takes $5.00 out of his wallet and gives it to Wally.
"Thanks, Rick. I'll pay you back.", Wally assures.
"I hope so."
"What, you don't believe me?"
"I'm still waiting to be paid back from when I paid for you at the movies, when the Dean took us on Good Friday."
"OK, OK, it hasn't been that long."
"It's been over a year."
"At least it hasn't been over a hundred years.", he says and heads for the door.
"Don't argue with me. You have to take a bath.", Tracy says to her doll.
The two of them are in her room, engaging in a game of make-believe.
"I sing for you.", the girl continues.
Tracy gets her little toy guitar and sings, You are the only One, the best she can. When the song concludes, she takes her doll in the bathroom and runs the water in the bath tub.
Hearing this from the other room, Kris comes in the bathroom. "Tracy, you know you're not supposed to run water by yourself."
"Dolly's gonna take a bath.", Tracy informs her mom.
"No. Dollies don't take baths.", she says, as she takes the doll away from her.
Tracy starts crying and says, "Yes they do."
Kris picks her up and asks her, "Are you ready to go to bed?"
"I want Pop.", her daughter tells her, sobbing.
"Do you want Pop to put you to bed?"
Tracy nods.
"OK, go ask him.", she says as she puts her down.
Tracy comes back with a tear stained face, but a big smile on it as well. "Him say yes."
"Good, it was his night for a bedtime story anyway."
The phone rings and Dave answers it. "Hello?"
"Dave?", comes Mark's voice on the other line.
"Hi Mark, what's up?"
"I talked to Karen and she said she'd be glad to have you help us move. Can you come this Saturday at three?"
"Two!", Karen corrects from the other room.
"Oh, two. Sorry.", Mark tells Dave on the phone.
"Michelle, Daddy found your magnetic number 3 in the couch.", he calls to her in the other room.
Mark and Dave say good-bye to each other and hang up the phone.
Ozzie and Harriet have just finished watching the late night movie on TV.
"Dave was right.", notes Ozzie. "That was a good movie. I didn't get a chance to see it last time, but he told me about it." He leans over, placing the remote onto the coffee table. "Well, I'm gonna go to bed now.", he says to Harriet.
"OK, I'll come pretty soon.", she replies.
Ozzie goes in his room, which still has the bed spread from Clara on the bed. He takes it off, but Harriet catches him. "What are you doing?", she wonders, the sudden sound of her voices causing him to spin quickly around.
"Well, uh..."
"Ozzie?"
He'd been caught off guard. No time to consider how to play this off.
"OK, I confess.", he eventually says. "I hate that bed spread, so I was gonna take it off and take a bed spread off of Dave or Rick's old bed."
"You want to know something? I hate the bed spread too. I only took it because I didn't want to hurt Clara's feelings."
"Why'd you put it on the bed?", Ozzie wonders.
"At the time, I was washing our original bed spread and wanted to cover the bed with something in the meantime. I just kept it on for so long because I forgot to take our original one out of the dryer. But, I can do it now."
"Please do.", Ozzie says, taking another look at the hideous gift bed spread.
Harriet goes to take their original bed spread out of the dryer and puts it back on the bed. She and Ozzie say goodnight to each other.
