Lindsay Lohan Calls Upcoming Rehab Stint 'A Blessing'

Though she smiled throughout the interview, Tuesday night's appearance by Lindsay Lohan on "The Late Show With David Letterman" was awkward, to say the least.

Seemingly caught off-guard by a line of questioning from the talk show legend about her upcoming stint in court-ordered rehab, Lohan told Letterman that the three-month stay at a lock-down facility is actually "a blessing."

"To be honest, I'm happiest when I'm working, the healthiest," Lohan said, putting a positive spin on a judge's decision last month
 to let her avoid jail in a June 2012 car-accident case
 in favor of 90 days in a lockdown rehab facility.

That exchange was one of the more friendly bits during the sit-down, which started off tensely, after Letterman asked, "Aren't you supposed to be in rehab now?" Lohan, wearing a 1960's-style flower print dress, stared blankly for a second and replied, "Do you not watch anything that goes on? Are you a tabloid now? May 2nd."

When Letterman followed by asking Lohan how many times she's been in rehab, she smiled and said, "several," then looked out at the audience with a smirk. (This is at least her sixth known attempt at rehab.) Letterman wanted to know how this time would be different and what, exactly, she was rehabbing from? "What's on the list ... what are they going to work on when you walk through the door?" he wondered.

Looking exasperated and biting her lip, Lohan avoided eye contact for a few moments and noted, "We didn't discuss this in the pre-interview." Letterman confirmed that, but pressed on. "To be honest, I'm happiest when I'm working, the healthiest," the "Scary Movie 5" actress responded. "And I think this is an opportunity for me to, you know, focus on what I love in life. I don't think it's a bad thing. I think it's a blessing."

In fact, Letterman suggested, it could be both a life, and career, saver, to which Lohan nodded and agreed. "Now, do you have addiction problems?" he asked, continuing the line of questioning. "Now you sound like Dr. Phil," she deadpanned.

And it went on like that. He asked if it was alcohol and she said, "We've discussed this in the past." So he made a joke about how he was the one having the blackouts now and how he should be in rehab. "I'm just sayin'" she hit back with a grin.

In the second segment, Letterman got around to mentioning "Scary Movie," only to ask Lohan if she'd be at the premiere, or in rehab, and who was driving her there? "Jimmy Fallon," she quipped of his soon-to-be late night ratings rival. "And you," she added, grabbing Letterman's hand. "And Tina Fey and Lorne Michaels. No, I don't want people to think I'm making a joke of that."

Letterman then admitted there was a time he wasn't sure she'd ever be on his show again and praised her for having "enough spine, enough sense of yourself, enough poise to come out here and talk to me," which got Lohan a bit teary. Showing crack timing, though, she grabbed her "Late Night" mug and took a swig to gain her composure.

"Oh, I thought this was going to be vodka," she joked before Dave handed her a tissue to dab her eyes. "God bless you," he said at the end of the interview. "Good luck to you."