In one week, Karen Carmody, thirty, manages to lose both her job and sublet.

She is unemployed, broke, and homeless. As with every era, heartless landlords and high rents rule in 1980s Manhattan, landing Karen in the Arcadia, a “Home for Young Ladies”—never mind that most of its occupants are in their second or third youth.

Among its many eccentricities, the Arcadia is run by the Army of Light and thus off limits to males—so why has Karen’s secretive roommate, Martha, crammed a teenage boy into their tiny room? And speaking of males, there’s stockbroker and sexy jury-duty pal, Mark Pitofsky, to consider. Now that she’s hit rock bottom, things can only go up for Karen. Right?