MONDO EXTRAS

Back at the school, selfless Maggie is apologizing to her son's teacher for the fact that her bad ticker will prevent her from volunteering as much as she used to. Maggie needs a heart transplant and may have to scurry off to Boston at a moment's notice -- "We can't go anywhere without this beeper," Maggie says. "Jack has one, too." To illustrate this point, Jack half-heartedly waves his beeper with a look of pure disgust on his face -- damn beeper made by damn cappuccino-drinking fancy-pantses! It sickens me to even hold you. Fortunately for Maggie, her son's teacher is an equally selfless sort -- if she has to go to Boston, "Nathan can stay with me 'til you get back... I've got a wonderful neighbor who'd love to have a little boy drop by and have hot chocolate. And he's a congressman, too, so there's nothing to worry about." No, no -- the teacher's neighbor is actually Rob Lowe's scold of a mother. But my line sounded kind of plausible, didn't it?

Later at choir practice, a clearly deteriorating Maggie is trying to bring order to a classroom full of kids who are brazenly talking quietly amongst themselves. When calling for their attention doesn't work, Maggie breaks into a breathy, halting version of "Silent Night" -- instead of regarding her with marked disinterest and then going back to what they were doing before, the kids quiet down and give Maggie their undivided attention, giving further credence to the idea that she possess magical powers. But not too many powers, because it turns out she's too weak to continue with the rehearsal. Ah, but you know who isn't physically weakened from congestive heart failure? Mrs. Rob Lowe, who just happens dropping by the classroom to drop off a book her daughter forgot. Maggie suggests that Mrs. Rob Lowe take over preparations for the big Christmas concert. You used to be a music major! It's a heck of a lot more fun than interviewing for a job with a pharmaceutical concern. And Mrs. Rob Lowe is about to turn the gig down when the off-key sounds of her daughter singing "Noel" with some of her school chums convinces her that she must carry on Maggie's legacy. Ah, but what will Rob Lowe think of this sudden decision to blow off the job interview?