There I was, end of the workday, chatting with my friends Lisa and Alex.

Inevitably, the conversation reached the point, where a transition seemed appropriate. Offering a pivot in the conversation, I looked at Lisa and said, “Any who.” “Any who,” an appropriate bridge to be offered up by a folksy fella like me.

Turning to Alex, I noticed a shocked look on his face. “What?,” I asked in confusion. “Did you just say, ‘I hate you?,'” he asked with mouth agape.

Yes, a mumbled folksy phrase turned me from a charmingly awkward storyteller into a world class jerk.

Any who, please allow me to mumble my defense.