Every Friday afternoon, a mathematician goes down to the bar, sits in the
second-to-last seat, turns to the last seat, which is empty, and asks a girl who
isnt there if he can buy her a drink.

The bartender, who is used to weird university types, always shrugs but keeps
quiet. But when Valentines Day arrives, and the mathematician makes a
particularly heart-wrenching plea into empty space, curiosity gets the better of
the bartender, and he says, I apologize for my stupid questions, but surely you
know there is never a woman sitting in that last stool. Why do you
persist in asking out empty space?

The mathematician replies, Well, according to quantum physics, empty space is
never truly empty. Virtual particles come into existence and vanish all the
time. You never know when the proper wave function will collapse and a girl
might suddenly appear there.

The bartender raises his eyebrows, Really? Interesting. But couldnt you just
ask one of the girls who comes here every Friday if you could buy her a
drink? Never know – she might say yes.

The mathematician laughs, Yeah, right – how fucking likely is that to
happen?