From: muen@quads.uchicago.edu (john emil muenning)
Subject: Re: LIFE GOES ON (12/20)
Reply-To: muen@midway.uchicago.edu
Organization: University of Chicago Computing Organizations
Date: Tue, 22 Dec 1992 21:36:00 GMT

In message <18779@mindlink.bc.ca>, Gordon_Wong@mindlink.bc.ca (Gordon Wong)
wrote:

>* Why did Michael stake Paige out when she was working on the project? Why
>  was Michael lurking around in the middle of the night at the Thatcher
>  household? He could have contacted Paige at so many other opportunities.

I'm not sure exactly why he was staking her out while she was working, but I
don't think there was anything sinister about it.  He was most likely just
trying to see what she was up to, what kind of state of mind she was in,
before he tried to see her again to patch things up.  To say the least, he was
in a difficult position.  After all, she left him in Europe after only a few
months of marriage and he didn't go running after her right away--even though
it was always clear to them both that they still loved one another.
     As far as his lurking around the house, I assumed that he was trying to
see Paige alone in the loft above the garage (where he would certainly expect
to find her) without waking up the entire family and possibly causing a scene. 
What bothered me about the scene that did occur is the insensitivity of the
family at this extremely delicate reunion of two people who are, after all,
_married_.  They all should have backed off immediately, on their own, without
comments like Becka's "He got what was coming to him" or Amanda's "Stay away,
Charles!  He might be armed!"  (or words to that effect).  I mean, Paige never
implied that she ever felt physically threatened by her husband, did she?  Of
course the family's behavior was consistent with the show's theme of married
couples' having to deal with familial interference.

>* Michael gets a job offer at the Art Institute for $30,000 per annum. What
>  kind of art institute would offer a "nobody" that much money? And does
>  Michael have a teaching certificate? One more thing, he never mentioned
>  where the art institute was ... was it in Spain or was it in the U.S.?

The Art Institute is shorthand for the Art Institute of Chicago, which
comprises a world-class art museum and a very-well-respected school.  (The
show takes place in a fictional Chicago suburb.)  As far as I know, he
wouldn't need a teaching certificate to teach there: (1) It's private.  (2)
It's not a high school; it's a college.  Still, you're right:  the salary does
sound very high for any starting position teaching the arts.
     (Are we sure Michael's a "nobody"?  He hasn't had trouble finding work
making art since his first appearance on the show (though some of his
commissions took him to Europe--how tragic), which is more than I can say for
most of the artists I know.  He must make _some_ money at it or he wouldn't
have been able to travel, buy a truck, or buy Paige a $2,000 music box.)

>* I think Corky should have spent dinner at home and Amanda should have spent
>  dinner at her parents'.

Why?  I think the ending was completely appropriate.  It didn't matter where
he or she spent dinner.  What mattered (to their marriage and his maturity) is
that they spent it together.

>* Amanda is a real nag ... that is until she realized that she was a spitting
>  image of her parents. I think Amanda will always try to express her
>  superiority over Corky. I found the "You're still in high school" comment
>  quite demeaning and insulting.

Yeah, you're right--she did act superior and that was a low blow, but it was
delivered in the context of a fight.  I'm not excusing it, but I think that it
was exactly the kind of thing that couples sometimes say to one another in the
heat of the moment (hitting where the other is most vulnerable) and regret
later.  I think she's doing her best (she's trying to overcome her parents'
overnurturing influence, just as Corky is.


John