This exchange occurred during my oral exams last week:
Me: So my faith was genuine, but there was also a big cultural component to it– I wore Christian t-shirts, I listened to Christian music, and all that jazz…
Committee member #1: You listened to Christian music and jazz?
(laughter)
Committee member #2: There is Christian jazz.
Committee member #1: Christian jazz? Really?
Me: Yeah, you know, it’s about 80% as good as real jazz.
hard to believe it’s as much as 80% — improvisation sounds too much like giving in to your sinful tendencies
Yeah, 80% was a pretty generous estimate, but it was an on-the-fly comment.
How’d that go over?
I like to think it showed them a glimpse of my winning personality. At any rate, they approved me.