Me: Did you wash the basil, too?
Primo: No. Just the tomatoes.
Me: Why didn't you wash the basil?
Primo: Because you only asked me to wash the tomatoes.
Me: But the basil is for your salad. I brought in the tomatoes then went out to the garden to get the basil and then I put the basil next to the tomatoes and you didn't think to wash the basil, too?
Primo: You only asked me to wash the tomatoes!
I'm sure you've heard the joke, which is usually told about programmers, but would apply to engineers too, I think:
ReplyDeleteA woman asks her husband "Can you please go to the store and get me a gallon of milk? And if they have eggs, please get me a half a dozen."
So the man comes back home with 6 gallons of milk.
A clear understanding of if/then statements is not always a good thing.
DeleteI just had to storm upstairs to thrust this in the face of my engineer.
ReplyDeleteME: Do you see? Do you see how wrong he is?
HIM: Yes, he messed up.
ME: ... You would've only washed the tomatoes, wouldn't you?!?
HIM: You don't know that.
ME: Would you have washed the basil?
HIM: ...
ME: Well?
HIM: You don't know that!
I love that! I tried to comment on your math/jazz post but the page kicked me out.
ReplyDeleteI'm with Primo on this one...although *if* I were not tired, I probably would have asked if you wanted me to wash the basil. (I have a 5yo and a 7mo, so I'm always tired, which means I stop looking for subtext and become very literal.)
ReplyDelete