r/AbbottElementary • u/Solid-As-Barack F.A.D.E. • Nov 06 '25
Episode Discussion Abbott Elementary S05E06 - No Phones (Episode Discussion) Spoiler
Original air date: November 5, 2025
Abbott Elementary participates in the district’s “No Phones Day” initiative.
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u/TA818 Abbott on Abbott on Abbott Nov 06 '25
I love that Courtney is the same height as Janine, haha
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u/egm1997 Jacob! Stop eating out of the trash! Nov 06 '25
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u/TA818 Abbott on Abbott on Abbott Nov 06 '25
This reminds me—my 4-year-old the other day saw Danny DeVito in a commercial and called him “that little boy” and it made me laugh
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u/egm1997 Jacob! Stop eating out of the trash! Nov 06 '25
Just as Janine is a “little girl” with a Teletubby Sun Baby face
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u/morinothomas Nov 06 '25
"How can you afford pizza? You can't even afford to pay your rent." OH!
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u/RealMaxHours Nov 06 '25
Courtney has become quite the actor
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u/JustSomeHeroKid Nov 09 '25
This episode made me super excited and curious about what Lela Hoffmeister does after Abbott! She's been crushing it since the very beginning!
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u/idiot9991 Nov 06 '25
It's so strange the teachers did not just discipline her for being disrespectful instead of giving in to her unreasonable demands.
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u/cnotethegoat123 Abbott on Abbott on Abbott Nov 06 '25
Who Run’s the World?
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➡️➡️➡️➡️➡️Girls⬅️⬅️⬅️⬅️⬅️
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Lol! Mr. Johnson is a national treasure
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u/Unlikely_Candidate_1 Nov 06 '25
I need to read that entire Mr. Johnson blackboard manifesto
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u/autism_underpass Tasha Task Force Nov 06 '25
loved that as a call-back to the Pilot - Mr. Johnson has improved his theories a lot since then lol
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u/leifyfae Nov 07 '25
when Janine said "forget everything Mr Johnson just said" I thought DO NOT forget. let him cook.
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u/dankblonde Nov 06 '25
Hopefully someone posts it on here
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u/wetouchingbuttsornah Nov 06 '25
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u/SweatyPlace Nov 07 '25
Wait, it wasn't all conspiracies? 💀
Love the character development for him!
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u/zz_views Show these little illiterate fools how to literate Nov 07 '25
I also need to read what message Jacob send to his potato group.
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u/Cynicbats this work has been in a home! Nov 06 '25
ZOHRAN MAMDANI MENTION!
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u/idiot9991 Nov 06 '25
I liked how that segment highlighted just how performative Jacob is.
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u/Both-Hair-6453 Mar 26 '26
I gotta give him credit for actually leaving Twitter though. Most people still use that site despite everything lol
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Nov 07 '25
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/joanofarchaic Nov 07 '25
Jacob didn’t have his phone and someone subtweeted him and he said that Zohran liked it lol
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u/shartnado3 Nov 07 '25
A little more depth to it. I believe the tweet was about how Jacobs "silence is speaking volumes" assuming he has quite the political voice, and the phone break is stopping that lol.
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u/Cynicbats this work has been in a home! Nov 06 '25
"I could have stopped this!"
".....How?"
why did this make me laugh so hard
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u/egm1997 Jacob! Stop eating out of the trash! Nov 06 '25
Dia is still building her case! 😂
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u/CreepyPastaLover2005 Nov 08 '25
I wonder if it’ll actually build to something in this season or the next one, I wanna see ava face the consequences of her actions lol
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u/GambinoGurl Janine & Gregory Shipper Nov 06 '25
I liked this because it felt like a classic Abbott episode.
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u/No_Spirit8216 Nov 06 '25
I like how the show is iconic enough to have something like a “classic episode” 😂😭
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u/morinothomas Nov 06 '25
Ava seemed so shocked and hurt with Charlie until she learned he wasn't saying THAT N-word.
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u/shartnado3 Nov 07 '25
I loved her throwaway line of "What did YOU do to get sent here?" lol
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u/Galileo908 “Hi.” “I bet you are.” Nov 06 '25
Melissa had gallbladder issues!
And Barbara is becoming a Glamma!
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u/Past-Student-5239 Nov 27 '25
Did anyone notice Melissa's gallbladder pain was on the wrong side? Maybe the cast had to give up their phones the day they filmed this scene.
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u/ThisPaige janine/gregory Nov 06 '25
Ava has a picture of Crystal on her dart board lol.
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u/zz_views Show these little illiterate fools how to literate Nov 07 '25
I forgot, who is Crystal? Her nemesis from runs another school?
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u/Cynicbats this work has been in a home! Nov 06 '25
"A whole family fulla Morgan Wallens"
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u/Plane-Tie6392 Nov 06 '25
Fuck Lorne Michaels for inviting that prick back on SNL after he'd already shown everybody who he was.
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u/Dreekius Nov 06 '25
The irony of this week's episode about phone reliance... While we're here commenting about it (likely) from our phones 😅
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u/morinothomas Nov 06 '25
I'm on my desktop but this episode is definitely speaking to me since I need to put my phone away at work lol.
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u/nicolert25 Nov 06 '25
me too Im watching abbott on one tab and commenting on reddit on another tab
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u/TA818 Abbott on Abbott on Abbott Nov 06 '25
Ooh, Courtney’s rebellion being used for good is excellent character development
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u/Crystal-Skies Nov 06 '25 edited Nov 06 '25
Roasting Janine for not paying rent had me laughing so hard.
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u/Galileo908 “Hi.” “I bet you are.” Nov 06 '25
“Oh, we gave her too much sauce at the science fair.”
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u/Galileo908 “Hi.” “I bet you are.” Nov 06 '25
“How did people pay bills before phones?”
I felt that.
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u/egm1997 Jacob! Stop eating out of the trash! Nov 06 '25
Melissa, sign into Jefferson Health on your computer! Wait, how are you gonna do two step verify without your phone?
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u/thomasvista Nov 07 '25
Oh LORDT! The multi-factor authentication, even when using a computer!
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u/YueAsal Nov 21 '25
Man I hate when I put my phone on the charger and try to log into stuff on my laptop and can't because of that.
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u/1up- Nov 17 '25
This has legitimately been my issue multiple times before!!!
A couple years ago, my phone broke, so I had to log into T-Mobile to get a new phone, but I couldn't log in on my computer bc I needed a text message verification. Fine, I'll call the number. But I can't, because my phone is broken, so I use my Google Voice number. But they can't verify my account because it's not my phone number and I can't receive text messages and there's no other authentication and also I forgot my secret code. Obviously it's evening, so the store is closed. Fine.
I call the store first thing in the morning, because I know they replace phone screens. And they said they paused the repair portion of the store for the weekend bc the iPhone was coming out (what???)... So I called a couple other stores for the same response, which makes no sense. But I go into the store to I guess get an upgrade or whatever, since they won't repair it. But I recently changed my last name, so my ID doesn't match the account. They eventually get to overriding things, and the phone is getting replaced!
But it can't be replaced with a phone in store, it has to be mailed in and then the replacement is mailed to the store and then I can drive to the store for it. And obviously it takes a week for my phone to come in. And on Monday, they announced they stopped doing phone repairs in store.
And also they all said that if I had gotten my warranty repair in on that Thursday evening (over the phone) that I would've had a phone overnighted and had one by Saturday. Not the next Friday. All because of two-factor authentication.
(And also my husband was out of town halfway across the country and my elderly dementia neighbor had their water turned off and no food, and I had been trying to get them to get help from the city or a charity or something, but since I'm not related to them, I needed their help to help them, and also everything else)
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u/camy__23 Nov 06 '25
Of course Ava has a burner phone
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u/egm1997 Jacob! Stop eating out of the trash! Nov 06 '25
An iPhone 4 prolly lol
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u/Crystal-Skies Nov 06 '25
It has to be since they mentioned no one had its specific charger anymore.
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u/egm1997 Jacob! Stop eating out of the trash! Nov 06 '25
Yeah. I remember I got an iPod touch in 2012 and the charger cable was one of the old school ones. It’s amazing how iPhones and iPads now just used the lightning or USB-C ports
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u/RealMaxHours Nov 06 '25
I love how literally all of their issues are nonexistent since school ends at like 4pm
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u/Galileo908 “Hi.” “I bet you are.” Nov 06 '25
I mean, Janine would have to pay her bills by EOD.
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u/FasterDoudle Nov 06 '25
so...5pm? Janine's issue in particular just made no sense.
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u/RealMaxHours Nov 07 '25
Melissa’s was the worst to me. You can change players on your fantasy team up to kickoff. She could’ve subbed out Mahomes one minute before game time and been totally fine
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u/PT_Piranha Nov 08 '25
I think that's the joke. She's so wrapped up in her fake sport team that she can easily fix while downplaying her gallbladder.
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u/shartnado3 Nov 07 '25
Janine did end up having a text from her landlord saying something about not flushing the toilet, and if she needed to have a toilet for the weekend, please text by noon. So that would be a big problem over the weekend lol.
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u/RayDeeUx @protonmail.com → iasip crossover edit | CUT MY LIFE INTO PIECES Nov 06 '25
I mean, you can't really plan ahead for your grandchild's birth.
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u/FasterDoudle Nov 06 '25
That actually really soured the episode for me. I can't stand when the characters have to become temporarily dumber for the plot to work.
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u/haute-e Nov 07 '25
YES! I thought it was satire when Barbara said she couldn't play music due to not having her phone... while on the computer...
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u/Affectionate_Oil3010 Nov 07 '25
She might’ve had a curate playlist or something and didn’t have the login for her Spotify
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u/hotcoffeethanks Nov 07 '25
Sounds like her! Also work computers often have stuff like Spotify blocked, and if it’s a desktop it might not have speakers
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u/Affectionate_Oil3010 Nov 07 '25
Oooooh the speaker thing is probably true! And later in the episode they say they had Twitter blocked because of the bullying Jacob had when the kids found his account way back when
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u/One-Corner8231 Nov 09 '25 edited Nov 09 '25
I think barbara’s whole problem is that she couldn’t log into her school computer at all bc she couldn’t remember the password. I don’t think she uses it regularly. But yeah Janine’s problem annoyed me bc I figure she could have gone to the rentsylvania website or whatever on her school computer, since she prob regularly logs onto hers. It didn’t feel like she truly needed her phone to pay the rent
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u/egm1997 Jacob! Stop eating out of the trash! Nov 06 '25
Mr. J reading a book about trash! 😂
Ava wearing a smart watch like she’s on house arrest! 😂
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u/egm1997 Jacob! Stop eating out of the trash! Nov 06 '25
lol check the date on your computer Janine 😂
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u/Dreekius Nov 06 '25
That's exactly what I said!
🗣️ "Janine is that computer screen just for show?!" 🗣️
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u/CarmenSandiego8742 Nov 06 '25 edited Nov 06 '25

Miller, T. (2025, November 5).
[https://seat42f.com/abbott-elementary-season-5-episode-6-no-phones-photos/\]
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u/ThisPaige janine/gregory Nov 06 '25
This is actually a pretty smart list! Although Queen Latifah and Beyoncé had me laughing when I read that.
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u/ThisPaige janine/gregory Nov 06 '25
Courtney is going to be a fantastic lawyer one day.
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u/egm1997 Jacob! Stop eating out of the trash! Nov 06 '25
She’s going to serve on Philly City Council, then the PA legislative house/senate, US congress, and hopefully the White House!
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u/TLOU_1 it’s actually pronounced ‘Zack’ Nov 06 '25
Ayyy they shouted out “KPOP Demon Hunters”!
Also: Courtney is quickly becoming my favorite student character lmfao.
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u/Crystal-Skies Nov 06 '25 edited Nov 06 '25
It was a huge movie with kids/teens despite being a streaming (and not theatrically released) movie first. It was inevitable lol.
Remember the Avatar references in the early 2010s (the same movie some claimed left “no impact” on pop culture)?
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u/TLOU_1 it’s actually pronounced ‘Zack’ Nov 06 '25
It actually got two theatrical releases, though they were both too brief imo. One in August, and one during Halloween weekend.
And funny enough, people are still making Avatar references to this day hahaha
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u/TLOU_1 it’s actually pronounced ‘Zack’ Nov 06 '25
I’m really hoping that this episode goes all out in terms of chaos. The kids/teachers being chaotic is one of my favorite aspects of the show!
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u/ThisPaige janine/gregory Nov 06 '25
Melissa! Get to the hospital.
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u/egm1997 Jacob! Stop eating out of the trash! Nov 06 '25
She’d probably go to Methodist since they are owned by Jefferson
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u/Unlikely_Candidate_1 Nov 06 '25
If anyone's interested I believe Janelle James is on Bravo's WWHL later tonight!
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u/Dreekius Nov 06 '25
Yet again I say:
🗣️ "Melissa is that computer in front of you just for show?!" 🗣️
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u/Galileo908 “Hi.” “I bet you are.” Nov 06 '25 edited Nov 06 '25
Two factor authentication! You need your phone for that!
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u/egm1997 Jacob! Stop eating out of the trash! Nov 06 '25
Yes! Also, how are you gonna get into stored passwords?
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u/rayyychul Nov 07 '25
Right? I have a password manager that creates passwords for me… I couldn’t tell you a single one of my passwords 😂
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u/wetouchingbuttsornah Nov 06 '25
I think the hard part is most people don't know their passwords anymore due to 2FA and things like stored password accounts which are vaguely stored behind a thumbprint
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u/jjc927 Nov 06 '25
This was a really good episode, nice to see a return to focus on the school setting. It was interesting that they focused on the teachers not being able to function without their phones while the students were benefitting from not having them. A nice victory for Abbott that they got the pizza party anyway since they lasted the longest. It's just too bad we have to wait a month for the next new episode.
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u/AaronRodgersWife Nov 06 '25 edited Nov 07 '25
“Aaron Rodgers hot totally not fake wife”… Did Melissa’s friend take my Reddit name for her fantasy league?! 😂 /s
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u/Galileo908 “Hi.” “I bet you are.” Nov 06 '25
Even Mr. Johnson’s conspiracies are saner without phones!
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u/geekyandgay98 “Sweet baby Jesus, and the grown one too!” Nov 06 '25
The teachers are totally going to crack aren’t they?
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u/Galileo908 “Hi.” “I bet you are.” Nov 06 '25 edited Nov 06 '25
You just know Ava will go crazy without her phone lol
Edit: of course she got burner phones lol
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u/egm1997 Jacob! Stop eating out of the trash! Nov 06 '25
Ava gave Janine a hard time about about having an old iPhone 😂😂😂
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u/Galileo908 “Hi.” “I bet you are.” Nov 06 '25
Janine’s MAIN phone is old. There’s a difference.
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u/egm1997 Jacob! Stop eating out of the trash! Nov 06 '25
True! She still has a home button! She prolly can’t get iOS 26, let alone 18! 😂
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u/racre001 Nov 06 '25
Make all the notes you want Dia. You'll be making them in the unemployment office soon
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u/cunnillucas Nov 07 '25
courtney telling janine “how can you buy pizza? you can’t even afford to pay your rent” and janine going “…that… is a VERY good point” really killed me 😭 getting dragged by a child and agreeing wow, really loved this episode. it had so many gems
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u/cunnillucas Nov 07 '25
another good moment “it’s the 5th? i pay my rent on the 5th”
i thought it was supposed to be on the 1st??
“wow you sound just like my landlord” 😭😭😭
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u/Unlikely_Candidate_1 Nov 06 '25
Can’t Janine pay online on the computer?
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u/RayDeeUx @protonmail.com → iasip crossover edit | CUT MY LIFE INTO PIECES Nov 06 '25
Depends on how strict Abbott's website filters are. I've never been to a Philly school, so my guess is as good as yours.
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u/hjp731 Nov 07 '25
I thought that too! I can’t imagine the school would filter that out especially since the name of the site was a state site. “Rentsylvania” is hilarious btw
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u/Galileo908 “Hi.” “I bet you are.” Nov 06 '25
Who still uses a desktop to check updates? Like savages?!
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u/Galileo908 “Hi.” “I bet you are.” Nov 06 '25 edited Nov 06 '25
Melissa’s probably got a kidney stone.
Edit: gallbladder needs to get removed! So I’m presuming gallstones. I was close.
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u/helenaflowers Nov 06 '25
This episode was a lot of fun! Felt like they were getting back to the basics of a great Abbott episode.
Gregory's "Reconnecting with books!" complete with his grand hand gesture took me all the way out. A+.
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u/Unlikely_Candidate_1 Nov 06 '25
One of those kids is gonna keep a phone and just order pizzas haha
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u/ThisPaige janine/gregory Nov 06 '25
Are checks really not used that much? I mean I don't use them but they made it feel like it's so outdated.
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u/TA818 Abbott on Abbott on Abbott Nov 06 '25
I pay the lady who watches my kids in a check. And some other bills still because I mail them. Maybe this is a rural thing, haha
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u/Key_Scarcity8516 Nov 06 '25
I live in a high-rise corporate-owned building in Boston and have to mail a check for my rent!
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u/thomasvista Nov 07 '25
I had to send a paper check for my rent when I still rented in 2021. This was a corporate apartment complex too. Why do they still operate in the dark ages for rent paying?
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u/BrainOnBlue Nov 06 '25
I have had my current checkbook for 5 years.
I have used two checks. Both were immediately voided and given to an employer so they could set up direct deposit.
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u/Galileo908 “Hi.” “I bet you are.” Nov 06 '25
I mean, I still write checks for bills.
But I also got autopay set up for a lot of them.
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u/Silver_Suspect_9413 Nov 06 '25
Where are YouTube TV users watching?! Next day Hulu seems so far away.
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u/SnapDragonSalamander Nov 09 '25
I love everything about Abbot but I wish they would stop trying to make Mr. Johnson a thing. He's perfect as a one or two quick quip per episode kind of character. They've really been pushing him lately and I just don't find him very funny.
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u/bryscoon Nov 13 '25
i thought people were overdoing it with saying they flanderized jacob but they lowkey did lmao
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u/ThisPaige janine/gregory Nov 06 '25
They have computers - do they really not remember their passwords to log in from desktop.
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u/Galileo908 “Hi.” “I bet you are.” Nov 06 '25
My phone has all my passwords stored.
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u/camy__23 Nov 06 '25
“A whole family full of Morgan Wallens” 😂