Saturday, February 04, 2012

It's Not Easy Being Green

"It's not easy being green."
 - Kermit the Frog

 

The colour green represents a lot of things.

It represents nature.


It represents new beginnings.



It represents tea.

I'm trying to drink more of this stuff.

It represents a Canadian dude named Tom.

Strange couple. She must really like green.


It represents Ireland.



It represents football.


It represents a new day.

...and...a punk band.

It represents a giant selling veggies.

"Ho Ho Ho..."

It represents another Canadian dude in a movie who is rather hot.

Ryan! Eh!

It represents being environmentally-friendly.




It represents Lady Gaga.

OK. I've jumped the shark...errr...frog...on this one.
I suppose I could continue, but I am starting to feel a little green at the thought.


Well...that pretty much runs the gamut don't ya think?

No wonder Kermit dedicated a whole song to it!





Really, that was a very long, totally unnecessary introduction to this post.

I am not here to talk about being eco-friendly or frogs or tea or Canadian dudes or music or trees or Ireland or football or any of that stuff.

I am actually here to talk about another thing that green represents.

ENVY.

No...not Ivy.

Uma. Not Oprah.


Beyonce and Jay-Z named their kid "Blue Ivy". Ivy is GREEN dudes!
ENVY.

The "green-eyed monster"


Whoa!

This car is actually called the "Green Envy".

"Throw me a bone dude!!!"
Webster's Dictionary defines envy as the "painful or resentful awareness of an advantage enjoyed by another joined with a desire to possess the same advantage."

Take Tom Brady and Gisele Bundchen for example. Talk about green! First of all, Tom is the QB for the Green Bay Packers. If they win the Superbowl the Giants will be green with envy. No, not The Green Giant. He is too busy worrying about green beans. Anyways...back to Tom. Not Tom Green. Tom Brady. Who, by the way, is of Irish decent. Many men are green with envy already as he is a good looking football star married to one of the world's most beautiful women. Maybe she drinks green tea. I am green with envy because I wish I looked like her. Gisele says she is green - meaning eco-friendly - even though they live in a 22,000 sq. ft. home. Anyways...this is a very long photo caption so I will stop now. 
Now,  many people use the terms envy and jealousy interchangeably, which is understandable, but incorrect as they mean different things.

Jealousy is the fear of losing something that one possesses to another person  while envy is the pain or frustration caused by another person having something that one does not have oneself.

So long-dress chick is envious of pink chick. Now if her tie-man dumped her for pink chick, then she would be jealous.
 Get it? Got it? Good.


Envy generally involves two people, and usually jealousy involves three people.

Both envy and jealousy are related to schadenfreude, or getting pleasure from the misfortunes of others.

Poor Mr. Bump. I really want this book. I think it would make me laugh.

This speaks directly to the fact that in Catholic Christian teachings, envy is one of the Seven Deadly Sins and ridding oneself of it is critical in the path to salvation. (Please note - I am not Catholic).

Who does a needlepoint of the Seven Deadly Sins?
Like, really?


So envy is a bad thing then, right?

Yeah...pretty much.

But I get envious. We all dip into all of the deadly sins to some degree whether we want to admit to it or not. I believe it is part of the human condition and Lord knows that the condition of us humans is not perfect.

I thought this little "Sins Axis" was rather interesting and kinda funny.

I think it is how we act upon and/or react to our feelings of envy. If we let it take us over, it certainly pecks at our self-esteem - which really is the root of where envy begins - with how we feel about ourselves. Without self-confidence, of course, we are going to wish we were somewhere else, in someone else's shoes - and while we are at it, make them Jimmy Choos please and thank you.
Jimmy Choos. Green, of course.


But seriously, I find that with age has come a higher level of self-confidence and I am much more comfortable in my own skin than I was in the past. I am more appreciative for what I have and therefore, less envious of others. I admire and daydream - yes. But wisdom brings a certain reality check with it...and I mean this in a good way.

Envy is a sure path to unhappiness and if there is one thing I know for sure - and this is what I would tell Oprah if she ever asked me - is that the most important thing in life is to be happy.

Oprah. Not Uma.

I mean - of course you must be kind to others and not break the law and la la la. But without happiness, what is the point, right?

Smart dude that John was.

And you can't be happy with what you have if you are in a constant state of focussing on wanting what someone else has.

Ha!

So have an attitude of gratitude. Give thanks for all that is.

But shit peeps, I wish I had Gisele's legs.

Smiles,

Lora



2 comments:

  1. Hi Lora,
    What a great post!
    Absolutely brilliant ....
    The pictures made me laugh!
    You have a great way of making a point =]
    ~Deana~

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  2. Ahhhh...I loved this post :) At first it was the GREEN that drew me in...:P Great way to start the morning - Love the images. - You're Brilliant!

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