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Bill Hiatt's avatar

Would you rather live a long, uneventful life or a short, glorious one?

I can't claim that one is original. The question is posed in Greek myth, often with regard to Achilles, but occasionally also Heracles (for whom it doesn't make as much sense, since he lived a relatively long life. Thetis, Achilles's mother, knowing that he was prophesized to have that exact choice, tried to hide him away, disguised as a girl in the household of King Lycomedes. But the born hero inadvertently revealed himself to Odysseus, who was looking for him to join the Trojan War. Achilles, who hadn't been a suitor for Helen of Troy and was thus not oathbound, could probably have refused. But, reversing his mother's choice, he decided it was better to fight with honor, even if it meant an early death.

(By the way, the guy in the far left in the picture has an I-know-something-you-don't-know kind of smile--a crafty fellow, like Odysseus.)

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Rudy Fischmann's avatar

Two related facts:

1) I used the word "druthers" just today to explain that "given her druthers", Cecily would cover the house with every Halloween inflatable on the market.

2) I first played the game "druthers" when you stayed at my house in LA for a bjj tournament.

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