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ice breaker 380x401 The best ice breaker EVER.

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Mamamia Friends, I am passing a gift on to you all. I have no need for it anymore – I got hitched, had a kid, and never go anywhere interesting these days.  But I don’t want this gift to go to waste.

I’m going to give you an ice breaker – or, let’s call a spade a spade  – a pick up line. It works best on men, as was my habit (but feel free to let me know if it works on women as well). It  works just as equally on one individual, or a whole group at a party. If you find yourself struggling to generate conversation in social situations, this one rarely fails.

Now it’s fairly low brow conversation, but it does really appeal to the general public – the common man if you will.  To be honest, I can’t take credit for this line as I pilfered it from a dude in a bar at Sydney Uni circa 1993: he used it successfully to kick-start a lulled conversation, and I immediately took to it and ran with it for about 15 years. One time, many years ago, I heard Merrick and Rosso using it when they were on Nova and that’s when I knew my line had gone viral even before going viral was a thing…

And here it is:

‘Sooooo, what’s your favourite biscuit?’

Now, most men will run with this and become quite interested – it’s random, but not threatening, and so much better than “So what do you do?” (such a deathly question to start conversation, in my view!). They’ll probably ask you about your favourite biscuit too – or even elaborate on why they love that biscuit. And then you take it from there. But a few will inevitably go ‘huh?’ and get a look on their face like an NRL player listening to an explanation of gravity – if this happens, just ask them ‘What do you always buy when you go down the biscuit aisle in the supermarket?’ That should sort them out. If not – move onto another dude quickly.

iced vovo The best ice breaker EVER.

Iced Vovos

Now, over the years -in the interest of research- I have categorised the various answers to this pick up line into what type of man you have encountered. And these are my hard won findings:

Kingston, Tim Tam man – Boring! Everyone likes these biscuits. This man doesn’t think outside the square. He’s just following everyone else and going down the path of least resistance. If you want a lateral thinker, this man isn’t for you.

Honey Jumbles, Tiny Teddies Man– He’s sweet, but has serious Peter Pan Syndrome. You won’t get this one to commit – he’s locked in childhood and doesn’t want to grow up. You’ll be cutting the crust off this one’s packed sandwiches for work.

Monte Carlo, Iced Vo Vo Man – Ladies, run for the hills, you’re barking up the wrong tree with this one. Gents, congrats: spot on gaydar.

Salada, Sao Man – Give him kudos for thinking laterally, savoury instead of sweet. But is a cracker a biscuit? (Hey, that conversation can go for hours at a party, especially if everyone’s on the sauce). This man’s a real fitness nut, very healthy. You might be up at 6 am jogging with this one. You’ve been warned.

scotch finger The best ice breaker EVER.

Scotch fingers

Spicy Fruit Roll, Scotch Finger Man– Yes, believe it or not I have heard this answer. An old fashioned gent this one, personified by an old pair of slippers and a smoking jacket. Want a sugar daddy? This might be the man for you.

BBQ, Pizza, Cheese and Bacon Shapes Man– A real party boy. He’s a bit spicy, a bit fun, salty and sweet at the same time. Don’t go for this one if you’re the jealous type.

And the ultimate man – drum roll please. The ANZAC Biscuit Man. If a man answers this (and he’s a rare species this one) – picture yourself being swept up Sigrid Thornton style by a tall, dark and handsome man in a Driza-bone. He’s all OZ and all man.

So, I hope you can use this line to your advantage. It always worked for me – it intrigued my victims, got them talking, made them remember me, let me know in one quick answer a little insight into my prey. And I bagged myself a BBQ Shapes man a few years back who’s turned out to be a real winner.

Good luck to you all my friends – and let me know how you go.

PS: Please note – tongue is firmly in cheek. Do NOT break up with your partner if he cracks open a packet of Iced Vo Vos tonight, I cannot back this information up with any real empirical evidence – yet.

Angie Holst is currently on 12 months maternity leave and had told all her colleagues that she was looking forward to being a lady of leisure for a year – she is still waiting for that leisure time to kick in. You can find her Twitter here and her blog here.

What’s your best pick up line? Have you had any funny ones used on you?

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157 Comments so far

  1. Brenton

    I was reading this and laughing, especially the bit about trying to explain gravity to an NRL player. Then I started thinking about my favourite biscuit, just before you started breaking them down.

    Monte Carlo and Iced VoVo are my favourites and well, you are right. Can’t find a man to save myself but non-practicing Catholics still call themselves Catholics, so I still continue to call myself gay.

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  2. Tanya

    My partner of 10 years just answered “Iced Vovos or Monte Carlos”!!!
    Uh Oh!!!

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  3. sandandsurf

    I’m gay (female) and would’ve said iced vovos. Just sayin’ :P

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  4. My favourite biscuits have disappeared

    I remember my favourite biscuits being ‘Pigs in Mud’. I don’t even remember the brand of the biscuits but they unfortunately no longer exist. I do remember that I found it hilarious that they were actually a chocolate biscuit with tiny little pigs squashed inside it (similar to the satisfaction we feel when twisting open Oreos today, I felt when picking the pigs out of the mud). It was hilariously fun to eat these biscuits but also sad because I used to eat them with my grandmother all the time when I was a little kid (sadly she has passed away now). If only they’d bring these back!

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  5. PickyPocky

    I love Pocky! Or Hello Panda. Don’t know if anyone knows what these are but you can get them at Asian shops and they are delicious and so fun to eat. I also love Wagon Wheels, Arnott’s chocolate teddy biscuits and TV snacks though….

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  6. Dallas Wolf

    Seems I bagged myself a Monte Carlo… Hmmm :)

    Me: They are shortbread type biscuits dipped in chocolate and sandwiched with jam.. Mmm Yum

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    • aholst

      Monte Carlo eh Dallas? That’s a worry – ha ha….

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  7. Jemma

    My husband likes Strawberry Oreos.
    Oreo cookies aren’t that different or out of the ordinary.. and I agree my man is a stable loving traditional breadwinner who provides well. Very intelligent.. but the strawberry means he’s still kinky. lol

    This is fun!

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  8. meggles

    Angie,
    I love this! Your post had me laughing Friday afternoon and so when a group of girlfriends and I went out on Saturday night, I told them about it and we all decided that everyone of us had to ask at least one random guy the ‘biscuit question’ that night. Turns out the response we got (after the initial eyebrow raise and confusion over such a random question) was so good that we used it on pretty much every guy we came across!
    And can i say, it gave me the confidence (mixed with the champagne im sure!!) to approach random guys and apart from a few “your an odd-ball looks” it generated great conversation!
    One responded with arrowroots as his favourite which got us chatting about how as kids we used to have them with butter inbetween and squeeze them to make worms, and another had us girls in hysterics after he answered “ice vovo” (after i told the girls Angie’s take on the iced vovo lover!!!!)
    A lot of anzac biscuits too!
    As silly as it sounds i’ve been feeling a bit down over being single lately, as the last few times i have been out and boys have gotten my number and havent done anything with it (why ask for it if your not going to use it – so annoying!!!) but this little ‘exercise’ was so much fun it made me feel more confident and not as lonely and sad as I have been about being single lately!
    will definately be working the biscuit question next weekend too!
    Curious though – your BBQ shapes man, did u meet as a result of the biscuit question?
    Thanks for suggesting something different!!

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    • aholst

      I’m so thrilled it worked for you – no I didn’t meet my husband with the line, I think I rolled it out a few dates in. But be heartened – you are probably a young thing! Plenty of time. I met my husband at 32 and was definitely in a low patch being single. He waltzed into my life at a pub when I least expected it – rarely met guys in pubs before that so it was a real surprise. I say always be positive to opportuntities that present themselves and remember it’s a numbers game. You’ve got to stay out there – and as people always tell you, Mr Right won’t come knocking at your door. Yep – that’s enough cliches from me for now. Go and chase up that Mr Arrowroot – he sounds straight up and dependable ha ha!

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  9. Louise

    What were the rectangle biscuits with the salty outside and the lemon cream centre? I could eat them forever.

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    • Susan As Well

      Arnott’s Lemon Crisp – their only sweet and sour biscuit and, yep, I could have eaten a whole packet on my own when I was a kid :)

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    • sandandsurf

      +1 Love love those. Means you’re sweet and spicy!

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  10. smashleigh

    favourite pick up line.. “wanna drink?” lol
    and do subway cookies count as a favourite biscuit?. LOVE them.

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  11. Alli

    We use to talk about men in terms of the cake they were- mud cake was a crowd pleaser but boring… Mars bar cheesecake was a different and twist and turns you don’t expect… Carrot cake- health nut but wants cake so not quite.. And so on :-)

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  12. MellissaD

    My husband of 9 years loves Monte Carlo’s. GAH! ;)

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  13. Will

    A butternut snap or ten, any day of the week!

    And whilst vo-vos suck, give me a home-made YO-YO anytime!

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  14. JosieY

    I’m just getting a kick out of the fact that there are 135 comments about biccies!

    And I devour my peanut paste/choc chip bicces. Straight from the oven.

    Yummmmmmm.

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  15. Gab

    Hang on! You said “penultimate” man. What about the ultimate? You’ve left me hanging. Have they edited out the punch line? I though I was going to hear about the chocolate royal man or maybe the mint slice man. Oh my god, I can’t stop now…. I’m wondering about the TV snack man ( maybe not a good option) . His mother’s homemade short bread man…. This is fun.

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    • afd

      Me too! Both the ‘penultimate’ (second-last thing), and the waiting for the mint slice thing! My husband always buys tim tams (black forest / cherry variety) and mint slices if anything in the weekly shop – but then, that’s for my sake! Are mint slices exclusively a woman’s thing? I know he doesn’t really like them, although he won’t leave them totally alone if they’re there… *grin*

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  16. Anonymous

    Absolutely hysterical… cant wait to start experimenting with all the biscuts!
    P.s. lm a Cruskit gal – whats your take on that?

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  17. Susan As Well

    Waaah! Just tried it on my son who is the only male in the vicinity at the moment. He said he likes them all, no favourites…. Is he a gay Anzac with boring tastes who occasionally breaks out and goes to a party? Do I need to hide the slippers and smoking jackets…

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  18. Melsie

    Well, they’re not really biscuits, but I have a thing for Ginger Kisses – oh so good in all their fake food-ness

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  19. Cady

    Oh oh. My favourite is a Gaiety or ten … and boy could that give the wrong signals …

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  20. jess88

    Mine are choc royals – the ones with the biscuit on the bottom, the layer of jam and the big dome of marshmallow on top all coated in chocolate – UH-mazing!! Om, nom, nom.
    I’m so trying this line next time theres a lull in conversation when Im on the sauce with my mates.

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    • Christy

      Jess, those are my husbands all time favourite biscuit. Its been a long running joke in our family that he didn’t eat Choc Royales, but inhaled them. The whole packet from the front door to his computer – and that isn’t a long walk.

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    • Nikki

      My fav too!
      As kids, my sister and I used to smash them on our forehead, pick of all the shards of chocolate, suck off the marshmallow, lick off the jam and eat the biscuit! No idea why as they are delicious as one! Haha.
      Scared the buggery out of an Irish friend when she first saw us do it and it is now our special biscuit…

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  21. nissynis

    What about arnotts ginger nuts? I am absolutely cuckoo for them :)

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    • Sussie

      He’d be a ranga for sure!

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  22. Sezzard

    Haha is every woman in oz asking their significant other (if applicable) what their favorite biscuit is? Lol
    Mine said Monte Carlo…. Which suits me perfectly because it’s my favourite too. Don’t think he is gay but I’ll take my chances! Haha

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  23. WouldYouLikeACookie?

    Funeeeee! Oh I had to stifle my laugh so as not to wake the sleeping child…I mean, husband. Speaking of, he’s a sucker for those Squiggly biscuits.

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  24. Becstar

    Hmmm this may explain why I’m single. I like ginger snaps and no one has mentioned them

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  25. Faybian

    We both like min slice bikkies. I also like any type of shortbread and hubby likes “any sort of chocolate bikkie”.

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    • Anon

      I really dislike the word ‘bikkie’. And ‘hubby’ for that fact.

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  26. Violet

    Hubby loves a Wagon Wheel (or 3!).

    I love Arnotts Venetians, or homemade choc chip (white and dairy choc)…..

    Do Macaron’s count? Because if they do I will admit that I am madly obsessed with them, and I will bake a batch in order to gobble them all up myslef!!

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  27. Emmy

    Penultimate means second last. not last. just sayin’

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    • Anonymous

      I thought the same.

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    • InKL

      Yar. Thought I was missing something. Im not though am I?

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  28. Kate

    This is absolutely hallarious! I just tested my man and he firstly chose the Kingston’s, but then after closely reading him the definitions he jumped on the Anzac biscuit band wagon!

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  29. Mimi

    mine is……………….

    So you like Stuff?

    ive used it when on dates in the past when i was single and dating gets a laugh and breaks the ice

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    • Anonymous

      So what about oreos? Do they bite them or unscrew them and lick the icing??? Yes I am American but also love frozen mint slices

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    • MissT

      Yes! And in an awkward moment, everyone enjoys “I like stickers, do you like stickers?”

      It has saved me many times, especially if a conversation takes a turn for the worst. “Well, this conversation has gone pear shaped – I like stickers, do you like stickers?”

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  30. peartonjohnson

    Personally, I don’t ‘get’ biscuits. What the …..? Why not eat chocolate?

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    • Melsie

      Well my husband would love you – he thinks chocolate is one of the five major food groups. When i asked him what his fave biscuit was, he said anything with chocolate in, or on, it!

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  31. peartonjohnson

    So, I don’t know what this demonstrates about my partner. Initially categorically an anzac bikkie guy, now a self-confessed baklava boy who bakes his own??

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    • jess88

      Bakes his own baklava!?!? you’re going to marry him, right? if not, send him my way.

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      • peartonjohnson

        Haha! We have been married 26 years! I’d pass him on, but it’s really hard to get baklava just right!!

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  32. Candice

    Mine loves Digestive biscuits and think they’re the best thing ever. Personally I love Arnotts teddy bear biscuits yum!

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  33. Nora

    I love the dutch Almond finger biscuits!

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  34. elli

    As long as it’s gluten free, I’m not fussy.

    I think this may mean that I’m gluten intolerant.

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  35. C

    Boyfriend: I’d rather eat cake.

    Since I don’t have a favourite biscuit either (I don’t eat biscuits… is that strange?), seems we’re a match!

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    • Daniella

      I love you both. And cake.

      My boyfriend however, is not a fan of cake. I don’t know how we’re together to be honest… ;)

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  36. Kim on her phone

    Jaffa caaaaaaake!!

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  37. Angelina Ballerina

    Did you know that an earthworm has 5 hearts?

    Worked every time.

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  38. MissT

    Mine likes Choc Mint Slice but I just asked and he said “a really good Choc chip cookie is good, but a chewy peanut butter is the best” … Spot the American. :P

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  39. Xanthe

    Best conversation starter: “What kind of childhood did you have…?”
    That’ll give you a great indication of the kind of guy you’re talking to.
    You should, however, be prepared to go cross-eyed with boredom. It sometimes happens.
    If he gets carried away with “childhood” stories, THEN you interrupt with the biscuit thing.

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    • Lily.

      That’s full on for a first date!

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    • LozFromOz

      See, I’d think that one would be a bit of a minefield, what if they had a shocking childhood?? I tend to go with much less threatening stuff, like biscuits or school subjects or sports etc.. But that’s just me!

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  40. Deanna

    Proud to have an ANZAC man :)

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  41. Libby

    I just asked my husband and he said Anzac! Woohoo! So glad he didn’t say Tim tam! ;)

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  42. Another Anon Guy

    I like Monte Carlos and believe me when I say that men have nothing to fear from me.

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  43. Anonymous

    Wagon wheels….yummo

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  44. naomi3

    This is similar to a book I just read called Men Are Like a Box of Chocolates, which was really funny and actually had some good advice in it.

    As for biscuits, I’d say I’d be a choc-chip – pretty mainstream but with delicious surprises here and there. :-)

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    • Yep

      I read that book, too. Loved it!

      I don’t know what biscuit I’d be, but I know what I’d LIKE to be – a mint slice. Delicious, classic and oh so cool. ;-)

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  45. TLeaves

    I am soooooo going to use this next time I need one!! awesome!!!

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  46. Zel

    OH what was that chocolate biscuit that was like caramel and crunchy toffee bits and covered in chocolate and a bit lumpy?

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    • Sammy

      Oh I know what you mean!! I can’t remember though!

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      • Amee

        Where they called `Quattros’? Omg if they’re the ones I’m thinking of, YUMMMMM

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        • KAteateight

          the cadbury biscuit range used to make one sounded like this – they were called Squiggles, and they had a yellow squiggle on top?

          Coles or Woolies do a generic version now.

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        • Sarahlou

          Yep quattro is it, they were fab!

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    • picardie.girl

      Sounds like honeycomb crunch…

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  47. Deborah

    Angie, you forgot one kind of biscuit guy – the one who says he bakes his own. Happiness is being married to a man who cooks.

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    • Anonymous

      Love this! So true

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  48. Penultimate

    Means second last, not last. I was looking for more after Mr Anzac! LOL!

    Funny article though! :)

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    • Alex

      Yes – please don’t use words incorrectly! Soooo anger-making.

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      • anon

        anger inducing. just FYI.

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    • Onesmalllife

      me too!

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  49. JamandCream

    Tim tams are so delicious though! I think it shows remarkedly good taste. Great article though will definitely use this icebreaker in the future!

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  50. Frankie

    This better work Angie, otherwise I’m going to look like an utter tool tonight ;)

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    • aholst

      The pressure, the pressure….

      No, just deliver it with confidence and sparkle. I promise it rarely fails if the delivery is bright and bubbly.

      Good luck x

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    • Lana

      Hope you meet an Anzac Biscuit ;-)

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