We have a kitchen and office renovation booked to start mid-August and my plan was to take extra days off on my vacation to do all of the prep work for it, which is pulling out the old kitchen, tearing down the old surfaces from the ceiling to the wooden floor (the floor is painted already and needs protection), taking down a wall and making sure that everything is ready for the builders. The problem is, because I was needed at work on the 1st of August, I don't have the opportunity to take the time to do it, so I have to do it now.
Which is annoying, as it is the last week of my vacation.
And, since we have been living here through the renovations the entire time, we will be doing the same for this, which means relocating upstairs and using the bathroom as a temporary kitchen. This isn't too much of an issue of course, as at least we have the option and we will have running water, most of the time, which is something that many in the world don't have at all.
But, is that a fair comparison?
You know, they say we shouldn't compare ourselves to others, but it seems that when people say this, it is when the others are better than us in some regard. However, when the others have it tougher than us, we are told to compare ourselves to them in order to be grateful for what we have, so which is it?
To we compare, or not compare?
That is the question.
Personally, I don't think it is possible not to compare ourselves to others in the things that we feel are important or in cases where we need something, because that seems to be a part of the human condition that keeps us competing and, advancing. Sure, we might be happier to live as an island concerning ourselves only with ourselves for a period of time, but one of the things that we do enjoy is creating and sharing, meaning that what we share is going to be judged, compared to the creations of others.
Like it or not, every relationship we are in comes with the comparison factor too, where our partner is going to compare us to past partners and even if they have never had a partner before, they will compare us to their various ideals and assumptions about potential partners. And, even if we come out on top against past partners, can we compete with their ideals?
Never.
But, again, this is part of being human, so suck it up and get used to it, because it is not going away. No matter how inclusive society tries to be, no matter how much it tries to force acceptance, human nature is geared towards comparison and it is what keeps us evolving, advancing, improving and moving. It doesn't matter if we are comparing ourselves against each other or something else, we all compare and through this, build our preferences.
The picture is of a pink rose, but there are those who prefer red and those who do not like roses at all. There are others like my daughter who prefer dandelions, something most people in the world consider a weed when it is in their garden. And it is this kind of example that indicates that regardless of how much we might not want to, we will always compare one with another and form an opinion about which is better and which is worse.
And this is a good thing.
A lot of people feel "hard done by" when they are not considered in the better group and will complain about the comparison factors of society and things like unreal body expectations and definitions of beauty, but would they feel the same if they were in the "in" group? Also, what is the solution, should everyone look and act identically so no comparison is possible or, should there be no preferences at all?
What about financially, which is over the cause for a lot of issues in society. Should everyone get the same outcomes, no matter how they behave? Sure, it isn't necessarily our own fault, like childhood obesity isn't the fault of the child, but regardless, we all have to live with the consequences and no matter how difficult it might be for some or easy for others, if we do not change our, we are still the ones who have to live the experience.
If there was a pill to make everyone look fit no matter what they ate, do you think people's diets would improve?
Unlikely, as there is "no reason" no reason to educate oneself, no reason to improve. No reason to improve isn't utopic, it is a dystopic, as it takes away the very core of who we are as humans and turns us into repetitive robots, playing out the code each day, creating nothing new, because to do so, is to upset the balance of equality, making "new" something to be feared.
And new is feared already, isn't it? It doesn't matter if it is good, it is the "newness" that is the problem because it challenges the status quo through comparison. We can look at crypto as an example of how something new that has the potential to improve human experience, is continuously being undermined because its existence threatens the existence of what is holding us back from that improvement, and it threatens it at its foundation, its core that currently makes it the only game in town. It is like the prettiest girl in school, before that new and mysterious transfer comes in and draws attention away.
This is why it is an attention economy, and while most people connect that with the attention on consumption at the second layer through the internet, it is far more than that, because it is attention at the economic infrastructure layer, the investment layers that enable all of those attention conduits to transfer value.
And while the infrastructure has been able to become monopolistic in nature over the last few hundred years through globalization, it is that very globalization that has borne rise to its competitor, with the "com" part meaning to bring together and the "pete" part meaning to test against each other. With the same "com" being in comparison, and the "par" meaning equality, or inequality as the case may be. This comparison between the two economic systems is necessary for people to build a preference for one over the other - will they choose the one that confines them and holds them back from their best, or the one that enables them to improve?
Well, most people will choose what they know, until what they know creates so much pain and suffering for them personally, that they will start to explore alternatives in the hope they will find a better way to live.
Better.
A comparison to what was worse.
To you.
Taraz
[ Gen1: Hive ]