Into this ever-spinning whirligig of madness wades Todd Oldham, with a few reassuring words for our two contestants. First it's a visit to Matt's loft, since it's only up three floors. Matt's water lilies won't open up; Todd suggests he try some hot water. Then, after stopping to heal some sick children with a soothing glance -- well, not really, but you wouldn't be surprised, would you? -- he heads up to the sixth floor to deliver some news to Carl and Carisa. Probably a good thing, too, as the curtain pole Carl is handling just snapped. "The good part is it's not the seam, just the wooden dowel," Todd observes. "So we can get that replaced." It's not as handy as the hot-water-on-water-lilies tip, but it'll have to do. Anyhow, to business: Todd tells Carl that this is a competition for him as much as it is for Carisa -- the carpenter for the winning designer will get $10,000. We then get to watch Todd tell Ed and Matt the exact same thing. That seems redundant; I feel like those 15 repetitive seconds are depriving me of valuable montage time. Anyhow, Ed and Carl are understandably excited about the prospect of winning $10,000; it would certainly take the sting out of having Carisa bellow your name, wouldn't it, Carl? Carl? CARL?

And that triggers this interview from Carisa, which I can only hope was motivated largely by fatigue, instead of some attempt at Earth logic: "Carl's got these two baby girls," Carisa begins. "I'm much more motivated by the possibility that Carl will be able to pay for his children's education than I am by having $100,000 to start my own firm. I don't know, I'm just built that way." Uh huh. Well, I'm sure Carl's daughters will appreciate the semester or two of college they'll be able to afford on the post-taxes remainder of that $10,000, but unless Carisa is factoring compound interest into her calculations, this isn't exactly life-changing money we're talking about here. It beats a poke in the eye with a sharp stick, and it probably takes the sting away from being shrieked at for weeks on end, but let's not confuse 10,000 pre-tax dollars with "so long, working stiffs" money. For the record, Matt also thinks Ed is deserving of $10,000, though he spares us the treacle on how he hopes that money can help Ed fulfill his dream of building a dream home on the Moon.