It isn’t often that I watch “The Real Housewives of Orange County” and think, hmm, that’s a conundrum. Most of the time, it’s pretty clear what the right decision would be for these women as they just do the exact opposite. Heard an ugly rumor? Blast it from the rooftops! Wish you hadn’t invited someone to your party? Uninvite them or embarrass them publicly! Having an argument? Throw wine at the other person! Your kid doesn’t want you to date the jerk you’ve been seeing? Do it anyway and whine about how much you sacrifice! Part of the fun, when and if there is fun, is watching these women run higgleldy-piggledy into the car wreck.
But this week did present a dilemma for one of the housewives which, while not on the level of “Sophie’s Choice,” did give me pause. As we know, Lauri has been blabbing about the time she found Vicki with a man and another woman in a hotel room together. She has no idea if sex was involved (though her wink-wink-nudge-nudge attitude suggests it was possible), but Gretchen has decided that there probably was. Thus, Lauri’s vague, winking recollection has transformed into a tale of Vicki swinging naked from a chandelier and tossing herself head-first into an orgy. When Gretchen tells Tamra about the so-called threesome is when things get interesting.
As Tamra tries to explain (somewhat incoherently) to Heather, she feels torn. Lauri is coming on the ski trip to Whistler, so there’s a better-than-average chance that this story won’t just stay between Lauri and Gretchen. If Vicki finds out Tamra knew about this and didn’t tell Vicki, Vicki will feel betrayed. But if she tells Vicki what she’s heard, Gretchen will feel betrayed. What’s a blonde to do!
Because this is a part of “The Real Housewives” franchise, the go-to position is always going to be “tell that secret,” as that results in the most screaming. This is how we find the ladies shrieking at one another on a mountain while wearing skis and parkas. Poor Lydia doesn’t know how this has come to pass, or why it needs to take place on a ski slope when it could be shuttered away in a hotel room with a roaring fire and hot chocolate. But then, she’s new. There’s never a bad time or place for a fight! These gals could be plummeting to their deaths off a cliff face and they’d be barking at one another until the point of impact.
Of course, Gretchen feels betrayed by Tamra and Vicki doesn’t seem all that grateful for Tamra’s confession. I would have suggested a third option between “keep it to yourself” and “blab,” and that would be to tell Gretchen she needs to talk to Vicki, then tell Vicki she needs to talk to Gretchen — and thus stay the hell out of the whole mess. But that wouldn’t be very “RHoOC,” would it?
Do you think Tamra should have talked to Vicki or not?