Modern Commentary
What was the goal here? Establish that Ms. Taylor cares about her daughter - they don't have a great relationship and Ms. Taylor can be bossy, judgmental, and controlling, but they do care about each other.
Also, Brisbane isn't sure how much he should tell Ms. Taylor about the situation. He's willing to talk about it to his friend Robert and even those weirdos in the lounge, but telling it to Ms. Taylor is a step too far. It's not discussing his own business (that Kimberly is involved in) any more. It's flat-out discussing Kimberly's business.

But yeah, if you ask me how I'm doing I'll tell you I'm doing ok. This is entirely regardless of how I'm doing at the time.- Terrence