On this day….

Death of arctic explorer Ernest Shakleton, 1922.

I always confuse my arctic explorers. They all have such long lists of accomplishments, sledding here and climbing there and winning such-and-such medals. Take Ernest: the first human to cross the Trans-Antarctic mountain range, this man also scaled an active volcano, helped discover the Magnetic South Pole, and became a knight. He then died of a heart attack in his bunk. I guess we can’t all go out with a bang. He had a good run, but I still would’ve hoped for a more dramatic ending. Like that fellow who said, “I’m just going outside. I may be some time,” and went out coatless into an ice storm to die so the other members of their stranded party could survive on his flesh. Talk about a stiff upper lip (the fact that it was frozen stiff is inconsequential).I never knew how fascinating last words really were. You can find lists of them here

http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Famous_last_words

and here

http://www.corsinet.com/braincandy/dying.html

Hours of entertainment. My favorite thus far is "Either that wallpaper goes, or I do," spoken by my true love, Oscar Wilde.

Alas! It burns!