Press Release

46: Go to Press

Daytime television is ridiculous. That's what Minnie thinks as she watches it anyway. It's the first time she's really observed these daytime talk shows as a viewer instead of a participant. Two of her former clients are on shows: one on Ellen and one on The Talk. Minnie's heart swells as she watches the actors in their polished forms, recalling when each of them was a known Hollywood hellion. In fact, Ellen even asks the one actor about the shift, and Minnie is embarrassed when he says he had an amazing publicist who helped him. Her name is never mentioned in interviews, as every client has signed strict agreements not to put her into the spotlight. Still it's lovely to hear her support acknowledged.

Bored, she wanders into the studio, watching from a corner as Harry and Mitch, alongside Tom and Tyler, work through a chord progression, then sing lyrics in multiple ways. It's the same melody, but there's a slight shift each time, and Minnie is intrigued by the process. "Her body barrels me over. She howls in the night. But she's my bitch, and that makes her just right." It's only on the seventh or eighth time through that Minnie figures out the song is about Daisy when they transition into the chorus after approving the current arrangement.

It's all Minnie can do to stifle her laughter, wrapping her knees close to her chest inside Harry's t-shirt and rocking back and forth. The creative process makes little sense to her, and she's not really sure Daisy would appreciate having a song written about her, but it's quite the honor in Minnie's mind.

After breaking for lunch, the boys return to the studio, working on a slower song this time, and Minnie is once again lost. Returning to the living room, she watches several cooking shows, finally getting inspired by Giada De Laurentiis.

Scouring the kitchen, she turns on some music as she dances around the room pulling together the ingredients for this super-simple recipe. Finding whole wheat penne pasta in the pantry, she throws it in some boiling water, knowing it takes about 12 minutes for whole wheat pasta to cook to al dente. Rummaging through the cabinets, Minnie digs up a food processor. Tossing some garlic in, she pulses it so the garlic is in tiny bits. Then, from the fridge, she adds a little goat cheese and some cream cheese, pulsing it some more in the food processor. Finding fresh baby spinach leaves, she adds that to the mix, making a creamy smooth green sauce.

She chops the extra spinach leaves that didn't fit into the sauce, adding them into a large bowl before pouring the al dente penne pasta over the top, wilting the fresh leaves. Grating some fresh parmesan over the top after she's mixed in the sauce, she declares the dish done. Too bad Harry is still in the studio writing. But at least he'll have a healthy meal when he is ready to eat.

In the meantime, Minnie pulls all of his appliances out of the cabinets, organizing them so she can find what she needs more easily in the future. Finishing that task, she decides to tackle the spice rack, tossing out spices with dates of five years or longer, making a list of the spices that are missing. Daisy tags along, sniffing everything that gets tossed near her.

=============

Meg is running late. She'd gotten a run in her stockings, and then had decided the outfit didn't match the image she wanted to portray, so she changed three more times. Which is why she greets Xavier at the door to his house, tossing him the duffel bag and passing Titus' hand over to X with a swift kiss for each of them.

"Be back soon!" she calls as she gets into the car.

Titus waves, opening and closing his hand, "Bye, bye mama."

"Good luck!" Xavier yells after her.

As soon as the car leaves and the gates close behind it, Titus starts crying. "Want mama."

"But I've got a new sandbox in the back that hasn't been played in at all. I hear there's buried treasure in it," Xavier entices.

"Tweshure?" the boy asks, his sobs halting as his interest is peaked.