One of my girls asked my Mr. Man the other night, “What is the mountain root of 24?”

Without missing a beat, he said, “I don’t know, but I bet they’ll teach that in geopoly class.”

What? How does he come up with stuff like that?

I’ve always been jealous of those people who seemingly and instinctively, have those responses that roll off the tongue.

I’ve jokingly said, “I sound really good on paper,” but it’s true.

I have to have time to formulate a good answer. I have to write it down. Think about it. Say it out loud. Re-write it. Say it out loud again, and then go with it. But, be warned, I might even come back and change it one more time.

Case in point, this column. I started it two weeks ago, but abandoned it when things didn’t flow right.

I’ve gotten better over the years, but I think that has a lot more to do with my confidence level than my ability.

If I had a quarter for every time I said to him, “You crack me up. You say the things out loud that I’m thinking in my head,” I’d be a rich woman.

I mean, some people, don’t hesitate when coming off the cuff with something to say. I’ve often commented to him about such.

The ability, he said, was a learned trait – a skill he acquired from reading a book called “Verbal Judo.”

I read it, and it helped a bit, but he assured me it takes practice and that it is a skill you never quit developing.

There is, however, a fine line in being humorous and being downright mean. I don’t have to worry about that line too much, because I’ve never been good at being mean. Granted, I have my moments, but they are few and far between.

Last week, we were at the Huddle House having dinner. Entertainment for the evening came in the form of the two youngest girls. The oldest was off twirling a baton, if memory serves me correctly.

“Dianna-Grace owes me $4,” Mia said.

But instead of a reply from her sister, we got one from Mr. Man, who said, “So much for that 401M.”

Get it – 401-Mia not 401K?

I thought it was hilarious. Not something I could have come up with, because, quite frankly, I was thinking about why Mia had to loan her sister $4, and more importantly, where did Mia get that $4 from in the first place.

Guess it just goes to show how differently people think.