Well, of course they could've, but what the fun in that? :P

In all seriousness, though, I think it's good to be able to think both in fantasyland and in reality. Sometimes things just get a little too cliche, in whichever direction; you're more likely to do something different, from within the framework of whatever genre you're writing, if you can keep different points of view and levels of realism in mind and sort of shuffle through the full deck when you're working out what your characters are going to do next.

Angie