matt dash low dot com

Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief review

Matt — Sat, 13 Feb 2010 07:15:34 +0000

Saw this movie today during the day time. Think I might go to the movies by myself more often.

Anyway, I liked the movie. At the very least it’s worth a “rental”. Its a great fantasy fix until the Last Airbender(other Avatar) movie comes out. When I was a kid, I’d spend a lot of my youth reading about Greek mythology and dreamed about what the world would be like if these Greek gods were still here among us. I’m tempted to grab the books now. I just feel kind of awkward going into the children’s section just to grab the set.

Female lead actress is cute.

But I digress. I always check out the female lead actress (actually, I check out any actress, I don’t discriminate)

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Am I allowed to complain about poor service?

Matt — Sat, 23 Jan 2010 06:15:49 +0000

So its Friday night and my mom’s too lazy to cook. The decision is made to go out for dinner. Dad wants to grab some Japanese food since its been a while since he’s had sushi (while I went for it twice this week and will be going again tomorrow).

Seeing as its a Friday night, I correctly calculated that most of the nearby sushi places would be full and decided to head out a bit further toward Metrotown shopping center. There’s a whole bunch of sushi places in the area so I figured we’d have a bit more selection to choose from if a certain place was outrageously full.

Now, where does Japanese restaurant critique Matt go when he wants some top quality (and really affordable) sushi?

That’s right. We hit up Sushi Garden.

Dad dropped me off and I bolted right for the cashier while he fished around for a parking spot.

Pro tip: If there’s no one at the front taking names, always head to the cashier or to someone who looks like the manager. Most people stand around at the front and wait for someone to approach them asking if they’re looking for a seat. Be more pro-active and ask to put your name down on the list. You might be able to jump a few people that way. Dick move? Yes. But nothing comes between Matt and his sushi.

Anyway, here’s the story.

After we finished consuming an insane quantity of raw fish, rolls, tempura and the like (I wouldn’t be surprised if I woke up in the hospital tomorrow), one of the servers came by and took our plates. But the plate still had a perfectly good piece of raw Tuna on it. Once she started piling plates, my dad noticed it and questioned her why she was cleaning up so quick?

He was visibly irritated that she had taken away a piece of edible tuna along with that white radish or carrot stuff that no one eats. You know, the stringy stuff that sashimi sits on? Yeah, I think my dad is the only person in the world who actually eats those. He wanted to eat some and compare it to the other places, but I digress. But she compensated and brought us one fresh piece of tuna sashimi (I watched her like a hawk and made sure she didn’t slip that other one into a new dish).

When the bill came, it turned up to about 52 bucks with taxes and all that. Normally, I’d tell him to tip about 6 or 6.50 (I figure thats around 15%). But I told him to drop 4 instead. He was a bit more lenient and left 5 as a tip. He took the bill up front and paid (at this point me and my mom were standing outside) and the manager politely asked him if everything was okay before looking at the bill and such. Dad answered with a gruff yes, paid everything and we walked out.

I told him he should have given the manager a piece of his mind about what happened earlier and in hindsight he did agree. He does a better job of expressing the annoyed look but he knows I’m a better communicator and told me to that I should have been the one to convey his message. So in the future, if he ever gets annoyed at service or food or something, I get stuck as the guy designated to tell them “Whats up”.

But yeah, see I don’t consider what happened a serious big deal worth a free meal or anything like that. At the same time though, I felt that it should have been something brought to the managers attention. My guess is that the girl wasn’t looking clearly or wasn’t paying attention or something. I was tempted to tell the manager myself but just wasn’t sure if this was something important enough to bring up.

Food was great though. I mean if you’re in the area and want some affordable sushi, definitely hit up Sushi Garden. Its in my top 5 Japanese places in the Burnaby area.

4635 Kingsway directly across from Metrotown’s Boston Pizza. Close to the intersection of Kingsway and Mackay.

Assorted sashimi (17 pcs) – 13.95
Medium party tray (Chopped Scallop Roll, BC Roll, Dynamite Roll, California Roll, Ebi, Hokigai, Tobico, Tuna sushi, Salmon sushi) – 25.00
Prawn and sweet potato tempura – 7.50
Alaska Roll – 3.95

Final tally was about 52.00 or so.

If you plan on only ordering one thing though, definitely go for the Alaska roll. That stuff just melts in your mouse. Its got that raw and plump salmon sashimi resting on top of it, while the roll is stuffed with avocado, crab meat (I think), and asparagus. And its drowned in some sorta sweet-ish type sauce.

I need to bring a camera. Words just don’t it justice.

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Urinal Aggro

Matt — Sun, 17 Jan 2010 21:31:58 +0000

Its clear that not every guy in the planet knows about male restroom etiquette. I was at the mall the other day in the bathroom doing my business. And there are like 11 other empty urinals.

And this guy comes in and uses the one next to mine.

I was like whoa. Failure at urinal etiquette here. I finished and got out of there as fast as I could after washing my hands. So guys, please make yourself aware of male restroom etiquette.

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A Bitter Taste

Matt — Sat, 16 Jan 2010 18:04:31 +0000

So yeah, I got sort of pseudo shafted by Blizzard. In a nutshell, there’s a World of Warcraft magazine and I was asked to contribute to it. So I wrote and submitted two articles. The magazine guys loved it and included it in.

But it seems that someone at the company has some thing against me.

I have absolutely no credit anywhere in there at all .

Oh i still get paid, that’s not a problem. It just, you know, sucks when the gaming company that you’ve fanboyed for over half your life (played Warcraft since I was like 7) has a corporate black list that you’re on which says something like “Under no circumstances is Matt’s name allowed to appear anywhere.”

I think I have an idea to the reasoning. Its very political though and I don’t want to get into the detail here. There’s nothing I can really do about it. I don’t see the point in going all legal against them. The best I can do is go public with my experience. Maybe someone important will see it and some changes will happen. Probably not.

I spent an hour with my dad and explained to him everything that happened and he has suggested that I should move on from this whole blogging and writing thing. It just doesn’t seem to be worth all this stuff. I can’t seem to do it though. And as long as I keep playing the game, I’m going to keep writing about it.

But professional writing?

I’m starting to reconsider. Hmm, what about street pharmacist?

Also, I think I’m going to start an MTG blog. I need a name for it.

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Where’s all the single ladies?

Matt — Sun, 29 Nov 2009 10:23:22 +0000

A friend of mine told me to give the whole online dating thing a try. How’s it been so far? Pretty much non-existent. I browse through the matches and I get all sorts of women who I just don’t feel interested in. Are my standards too high? I don’t think so. Maybe there’s just not enough information.

Then again, I doubt I’m going to click with anyone who’s into hardcore fitness stuff.

Do veggies constitute 95% of your diet? Sorry, you’re probably going to hate me.

Into heavy metal or rap? Not my thing either.

I don’t think I’ve come across anyone’s profile where gaming is even once remotely mentioned. There’s supposed to be lots of girl gamers out there right? Maybe I’m just not looking in all the right places.

Or maybe I’m going at it the wrong way. Here’s what I can do for you:

Sacrifice: I’m the guy that will pull the pin out of the grenade and attract as many zombies to my location just so you can make it out to the helicopter and get out alive.

Ideally, you’d be just as cutthroat to the point where such an act wouldn’t have to be required.

Loyalty: I’ll be right behind you at all times ready to shield you. I’ll back you up if you get caught off guard without a weapon. If you’re reloading, I’m blasting away and buying time for you to stock up.

Ideally, you wouldn’t get caught off guard without a weapon.

Anticipation: Look, I’m probably not going to be able to understand and read your mind, but I think I can reasonably anticipate what your next move might be and take action to complement that. If you zig, I’ll zag. If you freeze a bunch of bad guys in place, I’ll have a massive fireball queued up to roast them alive.

Ideally, you make it blatantly obvious what your next move is.

Together, we could be a force to be reckoned with.

Realistically, it doesn’t even have to be a relationship. I’m just looking for a girl with similar interests. I don’t want to be 9th wheel anymore. You can sing the vocals to Paramore – Misery Business in Guitar Hero so that I don’t have to. Be my partner and help me outwit my friends in Taboo. We can share our favourite MLIA stories. You don’t have to be a hardcore gamer or anything. Look, I lost my best friend years ago (we haven’t spoken to each other since and we never will). I won’t deny it’s had a negative effect but it’s time for me to jump start and move on. We can hang out for coffee or tea and come up with defensive plans against zombie attacks or something.

It’s a big city. Might you know a girl who fits the shoe? I’m always open to meeting new people.

Come on, new best friend. I know you’re out there somewhere. I just haven’t found you yet.

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My Creative Autobiography

Matt — Sat, 28 Nov 2009 00:22:22 +0000

I borrowed a book on the library about instilling a creative habit. It follows the life of a dance choreographer and how she handled different things in her life from coming up with fresh and original numbers, to dealing with failure. Every so often, there’s little exercises that can be done.

Here’s the first one.

What is the first creative moment you remember?

I had a ridiculously vivid imagination when I was 7. Grade 2, right? Yeah, there was a section in the classroom with paints and large paper. I drew me a ship. With wings. It had full sails and everything. Always wanted to be an engineer. So much for that though.

Was anyone there to witness or appreciate it?

My teacher. Most kids drew flowers or scenery with trees and the sun. She raised an eyebrow when she came to mine.

What is the best idea you’ve ever had?

Probably my WoW blog. I never thought it’d become that popular or that’d I meet the people I’ve met over the years (at the convention and otherwise).

What made it a great idea?

It’s opened up a lot of door and opportunities.

What’s the dumbest idea?

Investing in new projects and overextending myself.

What made it stupid?

Because I will never learn that there just isn’t enough of me to go around and that I continually stretch myself too thin.

Can you connect the dots that led you this idea?

The blog came as a result of a need for an outlet. Lots of cool WoW writers out there but there was a niche that wasn’t being satisfied. There was a gap out there and that it had to be filled. (That’s what she said).

What is your creative ambition?

To write stuff that people will find beneficial and worthwhile to them. Bonus points if it’s appealing.

What are the obstacles to this ambition?

It’s not an easy profession to break into. It’s too late for me now to pursue a degree in a related field. It’s not widely accepted as a real job either (even among friends), and it won’t be unless I can somehow make it work. Freelancing is tough especially the way things are right now. Income is dependent on what comes out the other end of your pen.

What are the vital steps to achieving this ambition?

I honestly don’t know. Catch the attention of someone who is well connected, I suppose. Definitely continue working on my craft. Develop a sustained and consistent writing schedule. I’m way all over the place. I seem to be at my best in the ours past 9 PM until 1 AM. I also appear to be on form during the mornings.

How do you begin your day?

Rolling around in bed for about 10 minutes before finally getting up and making myself coffee. I used to rely on caffeine pills but, certain people vehemently insisted that I stop. Fire up the computer, check my EMail, and then pop open up my word processor of choice.

What are your habits? What patterns do you repeat?

Coffee or some other warm beverage. There’s a tendency to read a lot. Anything I can get my hands on, I’ll spend at least an hour reading per day.

Describe your first successful creative act.

One of my earliest posts on what made certain people good in the game at what they do. They each had distinct traits about them that were shared with other people doing the same thing.

Describe your second successful creative act.

I started delving into guild leadership stuff. How to organize players in an online video game and why the stick and carrot weren’t as useful in this arena.

Compare them

I think what made them both successful to me was the positive feedback I received on both. To me there were two messages: People were actually reading my stuff and people liked reading my stuff.

What are your attitudes toward: Money, power, praise, rivals, work, play?

Money: Need it. Wish I had more of it.
Power: Must be used intelligently and wisely.
Praise: Only when it’s earned. False praise does nothing.
Rivals: You run faster knowing there’s someone chasing after you. I study what my “competition” (other blogs) do. When they do one thing, I do something else. I take care to never follow in the footsteps of my rivals. Instead, I make my own footprints so others can follow me.
Work: Mentally stimulating. Sometimes it takes me a while to get in gear. Procrastinate too much.
Play: Don’t seem to have as much time for that nowadays.

Who do you admire most?

Brian Clark. Seth Godin. Garr Reynolds. Darren Rowse.

Why are they your role models?

Because they’re brilliant people who know their stuff and they have their own writing style which benefits their audience.

What do you and your role models have in common?

I’d say we’re all geeks who like to write.

Does anyone in your life regularly inspire you?

Nope. In my life, not that many people give a crap really.

Who is your muse?

I have none.

Define muse.

I think it means someone who helps generate ideas or inspiration. I don’t know anyone like that. Most of my ideas come from a wide variety of sources.

When confronted with superior intelligence or talent, how do you respond?

An acknowledgment of their ability followed by the innate desired to match or exceed their talents. I’m fairly competitive when it comes to stuff like this. It’s all in good fun though. It helps me get better at what I do when I notice someone superior.

When faced with stupidity, hostility, intransigence, laziness or indifferent in others, how do you respond?

Stupidity: Inwardly, I want to slap them behind their head. I end up trying to correct them if it’s something simple but I move on if I can sense there’s no hope.
Hostility: I don’t even bother working with them and just move on.
Intransigence (Refusing to moderate a position, especially an extreme position; uncompromising): Sometimes I’ll give in just so we can go forward. If I feel strongly enough about it, I’ll abandon it altogether and go my own way instead.
Laziness: Either try to motivate them out of it or find someone else who can do the job with the necessary enthusiasm.
Indifference: Generally a good sign if they’re okay with anything. It’s like they have no opinion and you retain executive control of everything no matter what you say. After a while it gets dull because you want to know what position they take and why. It gets boring if there’s no thought behind it.

When faced with impending success or the threat of failure, how do you respond?

Success: Sigh of relief. That something I’ve worked on for a while gets accepted. Means I can move on to the next thing.
Failure: Generally, I shut down for a bit and reflect on why something went sour so that I don’t do it again next time. Depending on the severity, I can shut down for a long time.

When you work, do you love the process or the result?

Oh god, I love the process. The writing process is great, but the editing and polishing process does it for me the most. How can I spice up my writing more? How can I convey my message more effectively? Just going through that and experiencing the *click* That’s IT! moment is what does it for me.

At what moments do you feel your reach exceeds your grasp?

Always in the beginning of something. Sometimes I don’t think I’ll ever meet the end goal but I know I have to try and see what I can do with a certain topic. I usually end up getting lucky.

What is your ideal creative activity?

Brainstorming ideas. I’ll change my environments frequently to try and spark an idea.

What is your greatest fear?

Sucking. I am terrified of failing. It’s curious though. When it comes to my creative work, I’m scared about pushing something through that’s not going to be received well, but I’ll do it anyway just to see what happens. I take a lot of risks by writing about stuff that’s never been written about or writing things in ways that have never been done before. But, try as I might, I cannot translate that hardened “I don’t give a crap” writing approach to life. I can’t remember the last time I asked someone out :\.

What is the likelihood of either of the answers to the previous two questions happening?

The first one happens pretty often. I’d say it’s a weekly routine. The second one’s rarer but it does happen.

Which of your answers would you most likely to change?

The second one. I wish I weren’t so afraid of failing. I think it’s held me back more often than I can count.

What is your idea of mastery?

Being able to do something without thinking. Mastery can be attained after working on skills for such a long time that they’re just ingrained in your system. You don’t even have to consciously think about something. You can just react. Being a master feels like there is nothing you can’t do, yet you continue to learn new things and add them your arsenal. At the same time, I think it holds you back. Ever wonder why ninjas don’t have a favourite weapon? It’s so that don’t become dependent on them.

What is your greatest dream?

To get a position somewhere where I can get paid well for what I write about (and quit school!) and where what I write about has a positive impact for some reader out there.

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Friggin’ Epic

Matt — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 21:45:13 +0000

Saw this on MLIA. Couldn’t help but laugh.

Today, me and my mom went to Old Country Buffet for breakfast. Keep in mind that my mom is Asian and there was an Asian couple behind us in line As we went up to tell the woman how many were in our party, she interrupted us and asked
“Four?”,
“No, two,” said my mom.
Then the woman rudely said again, “Yeah, but there are four of you sitting together,”
“No, two,” said my mom “Don’t assume all Asian people are related.”

The woman’s face was priceless. MLIA

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I’ve Run out of Courses and its Frustrating

Matt — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 07:56:38 +0000

It’s a long and disappointing story. I’ve dug myself a pretty deep hole in school and it’s getting to the point now where each semester looks bleaker.

I was originally in the Crim program. But I made a mistake. I took two distance education courses that I had no business taking. The courses themselves were fine. It’s the fact that they were distance that screwed me over because I know now that I simply do not have that level of discipline that others do.

As a result of this, my GPA tanked and I had to forfeit my major declaration. I’ve taken all of my electives. I’ve taken all lower division CRIM requirements (and all of the non-required ones like Youth and Law, Introduction to Policing, etc). But my GPA is still too low and I won’t be able to get into the upper division ones that I need.

To make a headache worse, my course registration was fairly early. Again, all the courses I want have several GPA pre-requisites involved. They don’t factor in the grades from this semester until well after exams are over. Because of this, chances are I won’t be able to get a seat in the courses since they’ll already be full.

This means I have to take a few meaningless courses for fun or for interest. Naturally, there is the threat that it could drop my GPA. I don’t have much choice in that matter. I suppose I could take some time off and try and find a job somewhere. Don’t think that would fly very well here either.

You see, I’ve also reached the point where my cash reserves are dry. I’ll need to apply for a student loan to continue financing for school. The problem with that is that one of the criteria be that I remain a full time student.

During the summer, one of the distance education courses I took required me to head down to BC’s supreme court and make several court observations. After being there for several hours, I observed that this might not be the field I wanted to get involved in. I witnessed defense lawyers using every trick in the book to prevent gangsters and rapists. I watched innocent people get caught by prosecutors. Sure it pays well, but I started to wonder if this is an occupation where I’d be able to go to sleep at night. And I slowly came to the realization that no, this isn’t what I wanted.

Summary

I have to take courses I don’t need, to qualify for money I don’t have, to pay for a discipline that I don’t know if I’m even interested in anymore.

What do I do?

I’m a little depressed about it (not medically or anything). Right now, it just feels like my life sucks. It’d be reassuring to hear someone say “don’t worry, everything’s going to turn out okay”. But House would say “you don’t know that. Things might not turn okay. They might get worse.” And he’d be right.

When I kill large scale Dragons in WoW or oversized yeti’s and armies of Dwarves, if my team failed that night, we’d talk it over and identify what went wrong. Who wasn’t doing their job? Who was caught out of position? What were we doing wrong? We’d identify problems and come up with solutions. If it didn’t work, it was back to the drawing board. And we’d keep going until the Dragon was nothing more than a carcass at our feet with his treasures in our possession.

I don’t know what to do. I don’t have any answers. I don’t have any solutions. If there’s one thing that drives me up the wall, it’s being placed in a situation where I’m not sure if I can directly influence an outcome.

If not Crim, then what?

If there’s one hobby I really enjoyed, it’s always been writing. It’s awesome to get paid to write about video games. It just doesn’t feel like work at all. I wish I had gone into communications or journalism instead. In order to get in, the GPA requirement is 2.75. I’m barely floating above 2.1. That course of action is then ruled out.

In an effort to help myself, I’ve turned to caffeine to help boost my energy and awakeness. The past few weeks I’ve been extremely tired and sleepy. Sometimes, I wouldn’t have any coffee at home. Or I’d be late getting to school and wouldn’t be able to get coffee.

Caffeine pills

So I resorted to caffeine pills again. They don’t have the calories that coffee does and it has a caffeine that’s equivalent to 1 cup of coffee. Of course, some of my friends happen to take objection. I don’t get it. It’s not like I’m abusing it by taking more than the recommended amount. It was just one pill when I woke up, and one pill later on in the evening. I needed the energy to sustain the level of reading and studying I was doing. I had a paper due last Tuesday and of all the academic papers I’ve written in the past, this was one where I was most proud of. I have an exam coming up on Monday. I studied with my group for 4 hours on Wednesday and an additional 5 hours today. I’ve never felt more prepared.

In any case, I’ve decided to stop using them for now at her request. I cave in too easily to friends at times.

If I don’t do well in this next exam, I don’t know what I’m going to do. The prof made a deal with us where if the class average increased by at least 2%, she’d award us an additional 2% on top of that. That’s almost a full letter grade of an increase when combined.

Time to go back to studying.

Oh wait. I won’t be able to stay awake anymore.

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Cheater’s Guide to Understanding Short Answer Questions

Matt — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 04:01:17 +0000

After being in school for 8 years between high school and university, the one type of question that I hated the most was the short answer question. The multiple choice stuff is no problem since you can easily coin toss the answers if you don’t know anything. Essay questions are kitchen-sinkable. I remember my TA mentioning once if you’re not quite sure what to write for the essay question, the best thing to do was write as much as you know and make it fit. After all, if you hurl enough shit against a wall some of it will stick.

But the short answer question represented a significant bane in my academic existence. They used different wording like evaluate or contrast or identify. In my younger years, I had no idea what they were asking for. Since I’ve reached the old age of 22, it’s time for me to pass on my knowledge to the younger generation.

If you ever see cue words like the following, you’ll have a better idea of what they mean.

Contrast: List the differences between two things.

Example: Contrast the characters Mumble and Ramon in the movie Happy Feet

Answer: Mumble is much taller than Ramone and possesses excellent dance skills. Ramone is a far superior singer than Mumble.

Describe: Show and talk about what happened or what you’re seeing.

Example: Describe Frodo’s journey from the Shire to Mordor.

Answer: It was a long and perilous journey with a fat halfling and a creature that had half the theatre wanting to punch him in the face so he could stop talking.

Summarize: List the main points. Don’t go into details.

Example: Summarize the movie Rounders.

Answer: Guy loses a lot of money at poker. Then a massive storyline occurs where he runs around trying to win games to pay off his debt. The final showdown sees the main character winning a lot of money to pay off his debt and subsequently enter the world series of poker.

Compare: Provide similarities and differences between two things. It’s like contrast with more stuff.

Example: Compare the social networking sites of Facebook and Myspace.

Answer: Both revolve around the central concept of finding and meeting other people online. Myspace features flexible profile pages for individuals whereas Facebook maintains a uniform look across the pages of its users.

Prove: Lead the reader from facts and evidence to a logical conclusion.

Example: Prove that it Curtis took the cookies from the cookie jar.

Answer: The cookie jar was discovered open in Curtis’ room on its side with the lid on the table. There were no cookies inside it. Timmy’s shirt was covered in crumbs. His hands showed cookie residue. From the evidence, we can infer that it was in fact Curtis who took the cookies from the cookie jar.

Criticize: Give your opinion on something.

Example: Criticize Paris Hilton.

Answer: Too easy.

Define: Write down the meaning of a concept or word. Is usually followed by the phrase “Provide an example”

Example: Define Gabriel’s Greater Internet Fuckwad Theory.

Answer: The theory goes that a normal person who is given anonymity and has an audience will act like a complete moron. This implies that a normal person who’s identity is readily available will generally not act like a moron although there are exceptions to this case.

Identify: State the obvious answer.

Example: Identify one advantage that mac users have over PC users.

Answer: Mac users will typically enjoy a higher degree of security and stability because not many virus makers will develop viruses that will go after them.

Justify: Offer some support and evidence to a certain viewpoint or position.

Example: Justify Professor Dumbledore’s death at the hands of Professor Snape.

Answer: Dumbledore told him to so he could infiltrate the armies of he who must not be named.

I hope this helps! May all your answers be swift and your multiple choice guesses correct!

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And That’s How the Fight Started…

Matt — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 18:03:58 +0000

These are hilarious!

I heard my wife crying in the bathroom. ‘Honey? What’s wrong’ I asked.

‘Oh, George! Just look at me: I’m getting so old! I have more gray in my hair than blonde, I have varicose veins on both of my legs, and I’m just fat and wrinkled all over! I really need someone to say something positive about me right now!’

I looked deeply into her eyes and said softly: ‘Your vision’s real good, honey. That’s something, isn’t it?’

And that’s when the fight started….

–

My wife and I are watching Who Wants To Be A Millionaire while we were in bed. I turned to her and said, "Do you want to have sex?"

"No," she answered.

I then said, "Is that your final answer?"

She didn’t even look at me this time, simply saying "Yes."

So I said, "Then I’d like to phone a friend."

And that’s when the fight started….