Tuesday, April 30, 2013

Let's Make a Deal

Contestant #2 was immobilized with indecision.  As he stood dumbstruck, the immortal words of Jimmy Buffett ran through his head: “My whole world lies waiting behind Door Number Three.”

“Ok, that’s easy”, he thought. “It’s a sign, it must be. I have to pick Door Number Three. But wait a second; I shouldn’t be making any hasty decisions here. I really need the money.  My wife left me in huge debt, I was fired last month, I lost my house and my dog ran away. 

“Yeah, I need to think this through.  Who’s to say Jimmy was speaking to me when he wrote that song? Holy shit, this could be a trick!

“Well ok… if it’s not Door Number Three, then it has to be Door Number One or Two. Jeez, I got a 50-50 chance now, right?  Yeah, now I’m on the right track. 

“So, which one is it, then?  Ok, let’s see. I was born on November 1st, and I’ve never been lucky, so Door Number One can’t be a good idea. And my wife left me on January 2nd, which is a two and, fuck, that seems sorta lucky to me…now that I think about it. I’m goin’ for Door Number 2”

As it turned out, Contestant #2 was right; the grand prize of $25,000 was behind Door Number Two.  It’s funny, though, how things turned out.  That $25,000 wasn’t really enough to cover all his debts, with taxes and all, but somehow, another door opened for him that day. 

After appearing on national television, Contestant #2 was sought out far and wide.  He wrote one of those self-help books, which sold millions of copies:  How to Use Your Natural Analytical Skills to Make Critical Decisions.  

I wrote this for the Week 75 Trifecta Writing Challenge where we are to write a 33-333 word composition using the word “door” in the context of a means of access to, or an opportunity for, success.

 Your comments are appreciated. 
 

53 comments:

  1. How'd you think of this one? I was smiling throughout especially about lucky #2's reasoning! Very fun!!!

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    1. I'm glad you asked how I thought this up. I have no idea. The word "door" just ran through my head and I thought of the Jimmy Buffett song, but alas, that used the literal, first definition of the word. So, how I got here is anybody's guess. Thanks, as always, for stopping by and commenting Gina.

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  2. haha more than one way to skin a cat?

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  3. I love this, because it's just so darn fun, but I also love it because it's true! I was at a book store the other day and the self help section was so vast it took up several aisles! Maybe we should think about writing a book like that too;)

    Great writing-like always!

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    1. Thanks Valerie. Yeah, I think there are so many of those books because they require no opriginal thinking. Just painfully obvious advice. We just have to come up with the latest, trendy hook! ;)

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  4. I like the humor in this...especially because when I'm faced with decisions I second (and third) guess myself and make myself nuts over it. Yeah, I need his book :)

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    1. Thanks Janna. I'm not sure his book will help, but since I get a commission, I'll be glad to send one to you! :)

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  5. Too funny! Easy to mock him--harder to laugh at our own inane processes, though (no doubt because we think we're so clever). Nice work.

    -Rebekah Postupak

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    1. Thanks so much Rebekah. I think you hit the nail on the head. There is a little bit of this silly thought process in all of us and I like to make fun of ourselves.

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  6. Very wishy-washy process to get to the result, but very entrepreneurial to label and harness it. (RogRites)

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    1. Thanks Rog. That, and a little dumb luck, brought him over the top? :)

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  7. There was a very popular short story with this theme. It is covered by those magic words, public domain.
    http://chamblee54.wordpress.com/2011/08/01/the-lady-or-the-tiger/

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    1. I read the link you sent and the only similarity between the two pieces is the idea that someone must choose his fate by deciding what is behind several doors. I recall reading stories like this as a youngster and I imagine the premise is much older than that. Moreover, that premise is only the set up for the main main point of my piece, which was my character's somewhat flawed decision making process.

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  8. haha :D I like how it turned out. I like his way of thinking things out, too!

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    1. Thanks Draug. He's got a truly analytical mind. ;)

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  9. Hah. Funny one, here!

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  10. The title of the book is priceless!

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    1. Thanks so much Jennifer. I was worried the title was awkward.

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  11. Funny how life works out! Very good!

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  12. Is Let's Make a Deal still on? This was very amusing - the way we make most of our decisions is so random, it's a miracle some of us are still alive!

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    1. Thanks kymm. I'm not sure if it's still on; I don't watch much T.V. Yeah, while this guy is a little goofy, those kind of weird reasons for making decisions do pop in our minds from time to time. :)

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  13. The whole time I was reading this the Iocane debate from Princess Bride was running through my head. That's a high compliment.

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    1. Thank you so much Tara. I haven't seen this movie but I looked it up and it's now on my must see list. Thanks for the tip. :)

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  14. Love this Lumdog! Great job demonstrating the bizarre thoughts that lead to certain decisions!

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    1. Thanks Suzanne. I enjoyed trying to come up with those bizarre thoughts. :) I'll get by you site soon.

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  15. wrote a book on analytic reasoning for critical thinking - brilliant! just brilliant! Most folks have obviously been following his line of reasoning for some time now. I can tell you place as much stock in self-help books as do I! ha!

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    1. Yeah, I just laugh when I see them. People pay money to read about something which anybody with half a brain should already know! Thanks so much Jody. :)

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  16. I'd like to say it was more luck than analytic skills but perhaps Fate really was dropping him all of those hints.

    Thanks for linking up! Don't forget to come back to vote!

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    1. Yeah, the analytic skills seem to be lacking. Thanks Trifecta.

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  17. Just wonder if the dog came back... I mean that really was the top of his misery.

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    1. Dog came back when he came into all of that money. Even dogs can be mercenary. Thanks Bjorn.

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  18. Fun piece, and creative take on the prompt!

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  19. Nice story...I'd be doing that in my head too!

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    1. Thanks Maggie. I think we all do that to some degree! lol!

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  20. I thought contestant #2 was going to overthink it and blow it. Shows what I know! Nice story

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    1. Actually, as I started to write it, that's what I was thinking too, but I opted for the (hopefully) less predicatable angle. Thanks H.L.

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  21. "I chose my apparel, wore a beer barrel,
    and they rolled me to the very first row.
    I held a big sign that said
    'Kiss me I'm a baker, and Monty, I sure need the dough.'
    Then I grabbed that sucker by the throat until he called on me...."

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    1. Thanks for suppying the lyrics Jessie. It's a pretty funny song. I actually had a link to a You Tube video with this song, but it was acting up so I deleted it.

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  22. Completely logical decision. Intuitive as well.

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  23. Ha!ha!Loved this Lumdog-glad he got lucky in more ways than one-he sure needed it after all those bad spells:-)

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    1. Yeah, he needed some good luck. Thanks Atreyee. :)

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  24. I really enjoyed the thought processes contestant #2 went through. So clever on maximising his exposure one he'd won. Great story.

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  25. I love the innovative take on the prompt, and I loved the story. LM x

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  26. Excellent reasoning, but I was worried there might ba a tiger behind the door. Extremely creative take on the prompt!

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