Eclectic Views

    
Hanging questions, rhetorical or otherwise...
  

    
Is it generally better to do something awkward very quickly or to spend a
little more time accomplishing something elegant?
  

    
I think I'd prefer elegant, but I'm not sure what you mean by
"awkward."  If the object was, say, to do a somersault just to pass a
test, I do it cattywhumpus style and quickly go on to do other things I
cared about.
  

    

No one answer for that question.

If you're sewing your wedding dress, it's better to spend more time and
accomplish something elegant. If you are trying to stop your car so you
don't run over the kid who just ran out into the street, quick & awkward is
a much better choice than a smooth graceful stop that crushes the kid.
  

    
somersaulting "awkward" ..but describing it "cattywhumpus"-  
 -automatically makes you "elegant" IMO...   
  

    
I have known some kids, however...
  

    
I must concur that there is no one answer. For all of the reasons above,
stated much more elegantly than this awkward clod feels this evening.
  

    
> no one answer

Plate of concurrence.  Take the example of Damocles's own predicament,
having taxed the patience of Dionysius to the point where he found himself
seated at a banquet with a sword suspended above his head by a single hair.
Depending on whether the sword was positioned high in the rafters or lower,
if the hair should break he might have a second warning, at most two.  By
finding those in the crowd whose gaze kept returning to the sword and the
hair by which it dangled, and watching for a sudden change in their
expressions, if he kept his legs cocked and his feet positioned on something
solid, as against the legs of the table, that might be enough time for him
to push himself out of the path of the falling sword.  It would be terribly
awkward, but if executed quickly enough it might save his life.

But let's leave him under the sword for the moment, as it affords us the 
opportunity to put other questions to him.
  

    
<I have known some kids, however...>..i second that notion
  

    
Mil gracias to (rujoganas)!
  

    
I'd want to ask him-..looking out at that crowd looking back at you,
Damocles...do you have any sword-spotter strategies?..  are you
accessing the group as a whole..or maybe picking out one person in
particular? What are your instincts in moments like these? 
  

    
-you are most welcome (cjp)#9
  

    
If I was in the desert and driving a VW beetle and it broke, I would do
something half-assed like fix a way to run it on three cylinders to get to
the nearest place with water and a telephone.

But apart from emergencies, I do it right or wait until I can do it right.
Otherwise, it bites you on the butt later.
  

    
Okay, say you were headed home, and the nearest place with water and a
telephone in your direction of travel is 20 miles away and at slightly
higher elevation, whereas the nearest place in the direction from which
you'd just come is 15 miles and at slightly lower elevation.  Which way 
do you go once you get the VW running on 3/4 of its cylinders?
  

    
Hm.  I'd whip out my cell and call AAA.  If there was no signal, I'd
probably go back the 15 miles by coasting.  Or, if I were a horror film
(and there's no sign that I'm not in one, come to think of it), I'd
probably return to that crummy looking motel I passed on the deserted
stretch of the highway with no guests and check in for the night and
see if that odd guy at the front desk could get the other cylinder to
work.
  

    

The times I've had car trouble in the Mojave were completely out of cell
range.  There are some garages in towns like Lone Pine, California, that 
specialize in going deep into the back roads to tow vehicles, for 
serious bucks, but usually one has to walk or get a ride (if anybody goes 
by) to a phone or possibly a ridge with a few twigs of cell phone 
reception.  Go back downhill or forward uphill is a good question.  In 
extreme environs, especially in the ciold or winter or the heat 
of summer, I'd be playing it safe.  In nice weather in the spring 
or fall, or on a road with plenty of traffic, I'd be bolder.     
  

    
along comes a shadetree mechanic in rusted pickup..offers to help
out..yanks a sparkplug wire opposite bank of the down
cylinder..suddenly engine seems to run smoother..less vibration..you
happily lay 20 bucks on him & he leaves..there's a hill ahead..what to
jettison? The Wurlitzer strapped to the roof or Auntie Em?