Original subtitles

[Janet Jackson] ♪ This is a story about control ♪

♪ 'Cause it's all about control ♪

♪ And I've got lots of it ♪

When people try to tell me this is just about bikini bodies,

I tell them what I hear from you,

women franchise owners from all over the country.

[Sheila] Congratulations, Tuscaloosa!

About how you're not afraid to walk to your car at night anymore.

- [Sheila] You don't need Mace... - About how you don't need to carry Mace

because you carry yourself with confidence.

Nobody is gonna mess with you. Am I right?

- [students cheering] - [Sheila] Strength in Numbers.

About how you stopped abusing your bodies

- with pills and restrictive dieting... - [Sheila] Let's do this thing! [cheers]

and started caring for them with movement and intuitive eating.

[Sheila] Congratulations, Tampa!

- About how owning your own business... - [Sheila] Trenton!

Gave you the economic freedom to leave an abusive relationship.

[Sheila] Tulsa!

The principle behind every Strength in Numbers franchise is female ownership.

[aerobics students cheering]

Financial independence.

Strength.

[aerobics student cheering] Yeah! Strength in Numbers!

[Sheila] It's not just about building muscles.

It's about building community, going from following along to leading the charge,

teaching, sharing, growing, confidence,

courage, commitment,

becoming your own boss, taking charge of your own destiny.

Control.

[driver] Ma'am.

["Control" playing on car radio]

- [sighing] Thank you. - [driver] You're welcome.

[sighs]

Would you mind turning that down, please?

[driver] Of course.

- [song continues at a lower volume] - [sighing]

Nothing.

It doesn't have to be big. Just one thing. Anything. As long as it's new.

Nope.

Okay. I'll go first then.

Um, today I learned that you can heal a cut with breast milk.

- I know, it's weird, right? - [chuckles]

But think about it, that your body can make something that's medicine and food.

[sighs] Mm-mmm.

No? Okay, sweetie. Good night.

- Good night. - Love you.

- Love you. Good night. - Have a good sleep.

[classical music playing]

Mmm.

That smells great.

I'm a little rusty on the grill these days.

- But let's see what we have here. - Mmm.

Oh, not to toot my own horn, but that is perfectly cooked.

- [chuckles] Oh, delicious. Thank you. - Mm-hmm.

Welcome home.

It's nice to be here with you.

- Mmm. - Mmm.

- That is good. I like that. - Mmm. [sniffs]

It was a gift from someone. [clicks tongue] Business acquaintance.

- Mmm. - [chuckles]

It's good to see you enjoying it.

One of the many pleasures you have brought into my life.

- Hmm. - [sips, swallows]

I'm sure Maya is happy to have you back.

Never quite as much as I imagine

when I'm sitting there at the Cincinnati Airport. [chuckles]

But I can't complain.

You know, she's gotten so close to Monica. Which is a good thing.

- You were missed. Believe me. - Mmm. Mmm.

- So, you were in Cincinnati this time? - Mmm.

Maybe Tulsa? [scoffs]

They all start to blend together.

It's a satisfying grind, but...

- It is a grind. - Mmm.

[clicks tongue, sighs]

I wanna talk to the team about... [swallows] ...changing things up,

starting to delegate some of the travel.

You don't wanna slow down now, do you?

When you're so close to the top of the mountain?

Maybe I have other mountains, you know?

[chuckles] Other priorities. Maya.

My work with the foundation. That's just getting started.

This is your peak earning time.

Just imagine all the good you can do later if you add to the coffers now.

I have to think of my health, my own ongoing recovery.

Mentally. Physically.

Of course.

You have to take care of yourself.

But... [sighs]

don't you use the foundation in part to help support your ex-husband?

[scoffs]

Yes. Danny received one of our grants for his environmental work.

Which is part of our mission.

Of course, it's not the only thing we do.

[scoffs] I'm sorry.

The whole premise of ecology is flawed.

Stop man from destroying nature

- when nature itself... - But...

- is violent and destructive. - [object clatters]

What was that?

To think that some human can put a stop to that, is just...

You didn't hear that? It sounds like somebody's out there.

It's probably just the ocean breeze. I could have a look.

No, it's okay. I'm perfectly capable of taking a look myself.

Thank you. You sit. Enjoy. [kisses]

[chuckles]

You were right. There was nobody there. [chuckles]

[Danny] Good morning, friends, enemies and everyone in between.

If you are up and alive and listening to the sound of my voice,

I bid you welcome.

We are FreeWaves,

San Diego's last bastion of radical progressive talk radio here at KSAY,

K-S-A-Y. I am Danny Rubin, your host.

And with me, as always, in our veritable Versailles of a studio,

my one and only, my friend, my comrade-in-arms,

uh, in many ways, the love of my life...

Jesus Christ, this gets longer every week.

Well, you get longer every week and...

Impossible. I've been 6'4" since the fifth grade.

- That cannot be the truth. - No. I couldn't fit on the school bus.

They had to saw off the whole front row for me. Yeah.

I bet they did. Everybody, that is Jerry Goldman.

Jerry, should we go ahead and, uh, give folks the, uh...

The dish on what we have for them in this week's show?

Per usual, I have no idea what we're doing.

Perfect. Even better.

So, away we go.

Today, we're gonna be getting into the sick,

- twisted origins of America's love affair... - Yeah.

With fossil fuels and how it is poisoning our planet.

And we're also gonna be discussing some radical,

new ideas for renewable alternative fuels.

Cooking oil!

I mean, who would have thought cooking oil would save our asses.

We are gonna get there. We're gonna get there, Jer. Just gimme... gimme a second.

We're, uh... We're gonna play... [smacks lips]

an interview that we did with a...

A young woman who I've gotten to know very well

- over the past couple of years. - Yeah. Yeah.

And, uh, she's got me hooked on a, uh...

A new and forward-thinking way of how to power our cars and our lives.

We make fried chicken with it.

I mean... Tater Tots, french fries...

- I mean, how wild is that? - Jerry! Jerry!

It's just, I'm excited to be here, man. To do this with you.

Yeah. And we're gonna get into all that and more

after we take a minute to acknowledge our supporters.

- [muttering] No. - Uh, the work that we do here at FreeWaves

is made possible by the generous support of The Strength...

The Strength... The Strength in Numbers... [sighs]...Foundation.

Uh, it is a non-profit group dedicated to supporting eff...

Uh, supporting efforts to make the world healthier,

kinder and more just.

The whole team here at FreeWaves is grateful for their visionary support.

- What the fuck, man? - What the fuck with you?

- What is wrong with you? - We do it every week.

- We've got your ex-wife... - I'm introducing the show.

- Like a fucking devil over our heads. - I'm introducing the show.

- Do you have any idea... - [Greta] Five, six, seven, eight!

[upbeat music playing]

All right, get ready to roll it out.

And, uh, one. All the way.

Hit the walls. Hit the walls. Yeah! Six, seven, and... To your left.

Ooh! [chuckles] Sorry! [laughs]

You having a little trouble back there?

[laughs] I'll get it.

[Greta] Well, it helps if you show up to class on time.

- [Sheila] Yes. - [laughs]

Seven, eight. And, uh, one, two. [grunting]

[inhales sharply] Give me a shimmy.

And shimmy. Here we go.

Let's take it from the top. One.

Do better. Push yourself harder. Yeah!

[aerobics class cheering]

Look at you, showing up to my class without even a heads-up.

I had a light morning.

Hey, uh, you don't wanna go grab a coffee before we get the day going, do you?

Oh, my God. I wish. But I have... What do I have?

Oh, I have the lawyers at 10:00. The tax people at 11:00.

Oh, I was hoping we could find some... It doesn't matter.

It was silly. Just some time to talk without the whole team.

I would love nothing more. Let's schedule a meal.

We have a big milestone moment to celebrate.

As of this week,

Strength in Numbers officially has penetration in all 50 states.

And I just said penetration without cracking a smile.

- So, look, we're all growing. - [chuckles]

We thought we were earlier, but there were some copycat franchises

and trademark violators, but we handled those.

- So, okay, let's see. Dinner this week... - How did we handle them?

- What? - The copycat franchises?

Oh, the lawyers do it.

It's best not to get into the details.

Those guys can be effective.

Okay, so this dinner, is this just us or,

- like, a couples thing, or... - Oh, um...

Are you gonna tell me who you've been seeing?

You've been very elusive. Which you have every right to be.

It's nothing serious.

Oh, a little no-strings fun. [chuckles] Don't say with Danny.

- Don't say with Danny. - It's not with Danny.

Then I'm very happy for you.

- [chuckles] Oh. - [receptionist] Greta?

[Sheila] I don't like the idea of lawyers handling things.

I don't like how it feels.

What's the alternative?

I don't know. Letting them be.

They're stealing from you.

I stole too, early on.

I talk about discovering aerobics... [scoffs]

like Columbus "discovered" America.

Now Columbus didn't discover America?

It was already there.

He just claimed it, exploited it.

[slow song playing on stereo]

He conquered it.

We don't apologize for our success. We celebrate it.

But at what cost to others?

The success of this enterprise, that's you.

The idea to make it national: you.

The story of transformation: yours.

I did make it mine.

But...

But I don't wanna see anyone get conquered, vanquished.

Look at me.

You don't owe anyone anything.

You're right.

- I built this. - You built this.

You built all of this.

This beautiful home. It's all because of you.

But does that mean...

that I have to be alone?

You're not alone. [chews]

But I'm talking to no one.

I'm filling my home with the ghost of a failed relationship.

No, somebody is out there.

- [thudding] - Hello!

Hello!

Is anybody out here?

Is someone here?

[Harriet] I don't like it.

No, I don't like this one fucking bit.

How about if I come over with my Louisville Slugger?

It creates a perimeter. Like... [imitates bat swinging]

[chuckles] I... I have an alarm system.

I'm not afraid. I'm more curious.

I mean, who breaks something and then comes back to replace it?

[scoffing]

A lot of loonies out there, now that you're rich and famous.

[stammers] Look, I can be there right after my shift.

Thank you. Thank you. I can take care of myself. Really.

I just... I mean, I moved down to the beach for privacy, you know?

So that I could look at the ocean and know that nobody was looking back at me.

But it hasn't really worked out like that.

Even when I am alone, I...

You're still there.

And the ocean, it's like the world's biggest mirror.

So, who's sharing today? [sighs]

[click tongue, inhales deeply]

My least favorite person in the group. Me.

I just made a year.

Harriet, that is wonderful news.

[groans] Big deal. [chuckles]

I wasted about 30 years of my life bingeing.

I'm supposed to celebrate one year without it?

Yes! And we're all gonna celebrate right there with you.

I'm really proud of you.

Proud of you too.

For giving us a... a space to meet out in the real world.

- And decent fucking chairs for once! - Oh, please. This is nothing.

These were a tax write-off.

Oh, come on. If I have to deal with getting celebrated, so do you.

- Create a perimeter. Yeah. Yeah. - I could probably break...

- Breach that perimeter, if I had to. - Yeah, I know.

[both chuckling]

[waves crashing]

- [bushes rustling] - Hello?

Hey, I know somebody is here.

So, just... You may as well come out,

because I'm gonna stay out here until you do.

Tyler?

Sup, Sheila?

[inhales sharply] I'm bad at stalking.

Well, you scared me at first.

- Seriously? - Yeah.

I'm sorry.

Do you wanna tell me what you're doing here?

[inhales deeply] I do. [sighs]

But the thing is, I'm not super sure.

I know I'm very angry at you, which I'm also not very good at,

because what happened with me and Bun was largely, if not fully, your fault.

You're gonna have to explain that to me.

Well, we were doing good.

We came back to the States.

She was teaching again.

She loves teaching. She comes to life up there.

And then you sicced your lawyers on us.

[stammers] I know nothing about that.

That's funny, 'cause they said it came directly from Sheila D. Rubin Enterprises.

Cease and desist.

Bunny wanted to fight it, but I was like, "What's the point?"

And that's when she really went off.

She hurt my fucking feelings, like, so bad.

And then she went to Mexico. I think it was to get you back.

Not "get you back," but, like, get you back.

Like, revenge.

How does going to Mexico get me back?

I don't know. Guess you're gonna have to ask the mall man.

I mean, it's one thing to leave me, but... [sighs]

it's just not fair to Gidget.

- Oh. - We were like a little family.

You don't have any baby carrots, do you?

She loves those things. [sighs]

- You okay to get your bag? - Got it.

Hey, sweetie.

Aah. Oh.

Interesting meeting spot.

Yeah. Well, you know, this is where we get our recycled fuel oil

so we can make the big trip to pick up a certain special girl.

Did you grow in the past two weeks?

No. Mom got me new high-tops with wedges in 'em.

They give me, like, two inches.

They have ankle support.

- Good. - Okay, sweetie. I love you.

- Love you, Mom. - I'll miss you.

And, um, have fun at Dad's.

- Okay, bye. - Okay.

Oh, um, I need to tell you I'm making a trip out of the country.

So, um, I need to ask you, actually.

Oh, do you have to tell me where you're going?

Not necessarily but, um, Mexico.

Oh, okay. You're coming back though, right?

- Yeah, of course. [chuckles] - Great. Right.

It's a girls' trip. I'm going to a resort. I'm just...

I'm just exhausted from the traveling.

Well, yeah, I mean, approved. [chuckles]

How's she feeling?

Hey.

- [sighs] - Oh, uh, yeah, she's... she's feeling good.

Kind of going through a thing now with smells and textures.

Terry cloth somehow makes her pretty angry.

Did you do anything like that? You remember anything like that?

I mean, honestly, it just all feels like so long ago.

Yeah, I know.

- I'm sure it'll pass. - I hope.

Please tell her that though, 'cause she thinks it is forever.

- But she's young. Younger, you know? - [chuckles]

She doesn't have the perspective like... [clicks tongue]

you and I... um, we have. [clicks tongue] Did you remember to bring...

- Oh, yes. Yeah, yeah, of course. - Yes. Okay, yeah. Great.

- Yeah. Oh. - Oh, gosh. Yeah.

And she's been, um, lying about flossing.

- [chuckles] - Oh.

So, I don't want to shame her about it, but, um, you know,

just don't take her word for it.

Right. Well, flossing is important.

- She's got those big-girl teeth now, so... - Yeah.

- Um, well, great. - Okay. Mm-hmm.

- Well, enjoy Mexico. - Mm-hmm.

- And, uh, try to relax. - Yeah.

You know, you deserve it.

[groans] This.

This is what I needed. [sighs]

Are you happy?

I'm a fresh drink away from ecstatic.

[stammers] In your life, I mean.

Would you say that you're happy?

Uh... [sighs] I mean, not every second of every day.

But I have something better now.

Satisfaction.

Yeah, like, deep... [chuckles] satisfaction with my life.

- Accomplishments I can really be proud of. - [sniffling, sobbing]

A husband who I can honestly say is finally coming around t... Oh, no!

- Am I... Am I upsetting you? - No, no, no. No, no.

I didn't mean to brag. You just asked, and I... I wanted to be honest.

- Please don't cry. - No, no, no.

I... I am so happy for you. I... [sniffles] I really am, truly.

I just... [inhales deeply, sniffs] I... It... This is fun.

Maybe I should just take a little walk.

Sheila! [stammers] No, absolutely not. You're not walking away.

You're... You're gonna stay here and tell me what's going on.

I can't. I can't. You'll think less of me. I...

It is impossible for me to think less of you.

That's not what I meant.

Nothing you could say would ever change the way I feel about you. Ever.

I... [sighs]

I may have brought you here under false pretenses.

Okay. How false?

I do wanna celebrate our milestone and... and spend time with you.

But, um, I also came here to see him.

John.

Does he know this?

No, and I know it sounds crazy, but it's even crazier than it sounds.

Tyler came to see me.

Tyler is involved in this?

All right. Okay. Um, I think we... Maybe we both need to take a walk.

Let's take a walk.

Whew.

So, Bunny came down here to seduce him to get back at you?

That's what Tyler said. And I have no reason to doubt it.

Uh, yeah. But would John actually fall for that?

Well, he fell for me, didn't he? I mean, I know it's out-there,

but I just... I just at least have to see for myself, you know. To know for sure.

And how far down the road are we on this mission?

Well, we have an address,

- not far from here, of his church. - His church?

Well, I can't very well march into his house, can I?

No, you can't. But God's house?

All right. Sheila, I love you. I support you.

But... [stammers, sighs] this is really starting to scare me.

You've moved beyond John. You've evolved.

Heck, you've helped me evolve and thousands of other women too.

I know. I know. But there... There's what I say and then how I feel.

And the truth is, I think about him so much.

He's in my head.

Like, I'm... I'm not even seeing anyone, Greta.

I'm just talking to him alone in my house.

Like I used to with myself, with Kelly.

I just... I need to see what is happening with my own eyes, so I know.

And then I can move on. Or maybe...

Okay, well, if you're doing this, I'm coming with you.

Clearly.

[breathing deeply]

Hello, Sheila.

You weren't... Were you expecting me? [exhales sharply]

- Not quite so soon, but yes. - [chuckles]

Why?

[sighs] On Wednesdays and Saturdays, it's my job to look after the children.

- [contents of tube rattle] - [both chuckle]

I know it must seem surprising to you to see me like this.

No, it's... it's... it's... it's perfectly...

I mean, it's lovely to see you like this.

- It's surprising to me too. - [chuckles]

Believe me.

I don't think I knew how much pressure I felt

until I wasn't feeling it anymore after we left.

Not immediately, of course, but with time.

I make it sound like, um...

- I just do this a couple of hours a week... - [chuckles]

while the ladies have their class.

I'd be happy to show you around afterward.

What we've built...

it's humble, but it's special.

I'm sorry, what... what class?

[upbeat workout music]

[Bunny] Whoo!

And five, six... five, six, seven, eight! And one, two, three.

[grunts] One, two, three. [grunts]

One, two, three. You gotta move it if you wanna groove it!

And pull it in, and in, and in, and in.

Five, six... Five, six, seven, eight, and twist.

And twi...

And into the cooldown.

If you came to shut me down again, you can fucking forget it.

It's a community class. We're not even charging any money, honey.

I mean, I get paid by her.

Oh, don't look so surprised.

You're the one who preached the gospel of exercise to me,

its empowering benefits.

We needed a teacher, and Bunny was available. [chuckles]

[inhales sharply] So what do you want now? Blood?

Me and Tyler got Hep B from those stupid engagement piercings,

so mine's no good anyway.

I'm... I'm not here to shut you down.

Then why the hell are you here?

Tyler came to see me.

And what'd he have to say for himself?

Mostly that he misses you and that he was angry with me. For good reason.

How'd he look?

Miserable.

Good.

So, you came all the way to Mexico to tell me how Tyler feels?

We came to offer you a grant from the Strength in Numbers Foundation

for the work you've been doing in the community.

You mean a tax write-off to advertise your brand?

- Fuck you very much, but no. - No, no. [stammers] Gr... Greta's just...

I know you're trying to help. But that's... that's not why we came here.

We came here... I came here because...

[clicks tongue] I suspected that you were trying to punish me

by taking something away from me that, uh...

That was never really mine in the first place.

Which I deserve, by the way,

because I, uh...

I took credit for what you taught me.

You introduced me to aerobics when I was at my lowest,

and it saved me.

You saved me, and then I turned around and...

Made a fucking fortune off it.

- Yes. And... And that was wrong of me. - I don't want to forgive you.

And I'm not asking you to.

I just want to give you credit for being the first and for teaching me.

I wasn't the first.

[stammers] Somebody taught it to me.

[chuckles]

So, maybe it belongs to all of us.

Would it be okay if I... If I joined your class?

I really need to clear my head.

[inhales sharply] Make some room in the back, ladies.

[upbeat aerobics music playing]

[Sheila] I am not making this up. This is a fact proven by scientists.

When human beings engage in synchronous physical activity,

when we move together, especially to music,

our brains release a chemical... Stay with me...

That makes us feel connected to the strangers around us.

And we've all felt this intuitively,

whether singing in a choir or cheering at a football game

or taking an aerobics class.

But here's the coolest part.

That same chemical, it also makes us feel connected

to something bigger than ourselves.

You could call it a higher power or God or just the infinite.

But I think that's kind of miraculous, don't you?

[wind rushing]

To think I started this whole thing looking for control

when all I had to do to touch the infinite was let go of it.

[upbeat pop song playing]

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