gistfile1.txt

### Don't you wish you could use this if-nil idiom?
first_name || "Joe"

# Well you can't if you expect first_name to be blank instead of nil, so Ruby will short-circuit.

# Enter deblank:
class Object
  def deblank
    self.blank? ? nil : self
  end
end

# Now you can do this:
first_name.deblank || "Joe"

# Instead of this:
first_name.blank ? "Joe" : first_name


# Probably not really worth the added confusion to other developers however, unless it was in ActiveSupport

### Another possibility...

class Object
  def otherwise
    self.blank? ? yield : self
  end
end

# Now you can do this:
first_name.otherwise { "Joe" }

# Instead of this:
first_name.blank ? "Joe" : first_name