Was there a question, then?
"Was there a question, then?" -- Skullwreck Bob (aka Jon Reddick)
Meaning
Spoken as an interruptive comment in the middle of a conversation to convey that the speaker not only is not following the flow of the discussion, but in fact has forgotten the initial topic altogether.
Can express either natural mental defect, or diminished cognitive function brought on by copious alcohol consumption.
Backstory
At a pirate-themed birthday party for Debbie McNulty in 2004, attendees were given a fictitious pirate name and required to devise a backstory about their pirate and how his/her name came about. Jon drew from a hat and received the name, Skullwreck Bob.
He decided that "skull wreck" must certainly be meant to express some history of head trauma, which would result in brain damage. He chose to manifest that brain damage with an inability to stay focused. Later in the party, after much imbibing, the time came to tell the story of your pirate.
Jon launched into an involved setup for a dramatic pirate story which began something like, "Arrr, there I was on the deck of the most feared vessel on the seven seas. The ocean, she was whippin' up a storm the likes of which Davey Jones himself had never seen, when on the horizon..." Midway through the story, he stopped abruptly, looked puzzled, and asked, "..was there a question, then?"
In the context of the story it may have faded into obscurity, but Jon then chose to continue with the personality of Skullwreck Bob throughout the rest of the party, and would regularly interrupt conversations only to stop sharply and ask, "Was there a question, then?"
