The Grass Is Always Greener

Ever wondered why it seems like everyone else has it better? On this episode we unearth the mystery behind the idiom "The Grass Is Always Greener." 
 
 Is it really greener on the other side of the fence or is your neighbor's greener lawn and life is just a trick of perspective? We talk about bad boy poets, classic country songs, the science of your lawn, and social media pressures on this episode.  Plus, don't miss our bloopers good laugh.

Get ready for an emotive episode! Envy, jealousy, comparison, schadenfreude, but don’t forget a whole lot of happiness and laughter too! 

Interact with us at myunoriginalthoughtpodcast@gmail.com. 
What did you like and what would you want to see in the future? Which idiom do you want us to explore next time? If you have any insight on today's topic, something I missed or didn’t get right, or if you want to be featured in a future What the Idiom? segment let me know. 

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Show References

Atlas of the Heart- Brene Brown

The Grass Is Always Greener In Another Fellows Yard

Billy Jones sings "The Grass Is Always Greener (In the Other Fellow's Yard)," words by Raymond B. Egan, music by Richard A. Whiting. Released September 1924.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ih-kt96CgA

Transcript

Introduction

Speaker 1 0:40

Oh yeah, oh yeah. Hello, podcast family, this is your unoriginal host, Afton Jay, and I am happy to be hanging out with you wherever you are today. Let's get into the intellectual journey we're about to go on together. Every episode, I will feature a popular idiom, phrase, prose or thought that we can explore. I'll bring in backstory, history, current books, articles and experts to help us unpack all that these culturally relevant sayings have to offer. As always, none of what we'll talk about today is my original thoughts, but I will attempt to repackage other people's ideas and talk through them so we can learn and laugh together. I'm going to try to bring you the most interesting useless knowledge in the most thought-provoking and entertaining way. I know how. Okay, let's do this.

Speaker 1 1:29

Today's episode is the Grass Is Always Greener. Doesn't it always seem like someone else has something that you don't? Another person's house is bigger, their car is fancier, they go on amazing vacations or their love life is more romantic. It just always seems like the grass is always greener on the other side. But is it really? The concept of coveting someone else's life goes back to the beginning of time. But where does this phrase come from? Let's get a little philosophical, a little introspective. Let's get a little philosophical, a little introspective and a little smarter as we learn all about this historic idiom.

What the Idioum?

Speaker 1 2:09

Merriam-webster defines an idiom as an expression in the usage of a language that is particular to itself, having a meaning that cannot be derived from the conjoined meanings of its elements. Simply put, an idiom is a phrase used commonly in a language or a culture that means something different than how it literally sounds Today. This phrase means other people's lives always tend to look better than our own, or that we're never satisfied with what we have. But why would we even be talking about other people's lawn? Where did this interesting idiom come from? It's time for our favorite game. What the Idiom? Let's start with our first unsuspecting friend. Where do you think the origin of the grass is always greener?

Speaker 2 2:56

comes from? Was it like biblical, like biblical times? I don't know, jesus said it or something.

Speaker 3 3:03

Jesus was like yo yo grass is greener on this side follow me, it was not biblical um not even close, you're just grasping at straws.

Speaker 2 3:18

Here you're like it was jesus fuck it so what I hear you saying is Jesus said it Got it Definitely.

Speaker 5 3:25

Jesus.

Speaker 6 3:29

I think the origin of the grass is always greener comes from a children's fairy tale based off of I don't know which story, but I have no idea.

Speaker 2 3:39

Just a story, a random story. It's probably a children's fairy tale story.

Speaker 6 3:42

Yeah, a children's fairy tale story.

Speaker 7 3:49

I would say probably.

Speaker 1 3:50

Colonial America, Like someone's. Like that guy's pilgrim hat is like way more fashionable than mine. I want it.

Speaker 7 3:56

Yeah, or you know, he's just got a better farm than me, or whatever. You know, Something's better than what I have.

Speaker 1 4:05

That is a very good guess. It's actually much, much, much older than that, than colonial America, but it is the exact same premise. It was a farm, like jealous of somebody else's farm.

Speaker 3 4:19

I, but I would assume that it's got to be like a 21st or 20th century idiom, because the grass goes greener on the other, got to be like a 21st or 20th century idiom, because the grass goes greener on the other side. It comes from like a fence concept, which is a relatively new concept, right? So I would think it's like a 1920s or 30s or even 40s idiom that originated from I don't know, like a TV show or something. Maybe it's gotta be like a TV show or something.

Speaker 2 4:53

Oh my gosh, that was an incredibly good deduction of clues.

Origins of The Grass is Always Greener

Speaker 3 5:01

What's the answer? Well, I mean, you're kind of right.

Speaker 1 5:07

We had a few great guesses and they were so close. I know what you're thinking. That doesn't make any sense. How can more than one answer be correct In this episode?

Speaker 1 5:20

Our idiom's timeline is kind of like a puzzle. Just like people, humans are a complex puzzle of emotions. In today's idiom, we are talking all about envy. Envy, it's a tricky emotion. We've all felt it. It's hardwired into our DNA. This emotion goes all the way back to the beginning of time. You can see it in the Bible, in the rise and fall of empires and even in our own lives.

Speaker 1 5:49

Envy makes us think things we don't want to think, feel things we don't want to feel and sometimes do things that we shouldn't do. But what exactly is envy? Let's break it down. According to psychology, to feel envy, three conditions need to be met. First, we must be confronted with a person or persons with something, a possession, quality or achievement that has eluded us, like physical attractiveness, intelligence or even wealth. Second, we must desire that something for ourselves. And third, we must be personally pained by the association of that emotion or emotions.

Speaker 1 6:32

Another interesting thing about envy is that it gets confused with jealousy. Many people say jealous when what they really mean is envious. Envy and jealousy are subtly different psychological constructs. If envy is the personal pain caused by the desire for the advantages of others, jealousy is the personal pain caused by the fear of things like losing a relationship, losing one's advantages to others, or having to share one's advantages with others. To share one's advantages with others. Envy is covetous, jealousy is possessive. Jealousy is not circumscribed to the romantic sphere, but it can also involve one's friends, reputation, expertise and so on. People tend to get the two mixed up because they don't know the difference, or it's easier to admit being a little jealous versus envious of someone. And then, if you feel the tug of envy or jealousy, this might give rise to subtle defensive feelings such as ingratitude, irony, scorn, snobbery and narcissism, which all have in common the use of contempt to minimize the existential threat posed by the advantages of others. Contempt to minimize the existential threat posed by the advantages of others. And then you bottle up envy and it can morph into resentment. Oh, so many feelings.

Speaker 1 7:52

The depth and range of emotions that humans can feel sometimes can be difficult to explain. If you are interested in learning more about all of these emotions, you should check out Brene Brown. Her book called Atlas of the Heart is amazing. In this book she explores 87 emotions and human experiences that define us. Her book was written so we could all better understand ourselves and each other. She has a whole chapter called quote oh, the places we go when we compare, where she goes into depth about all of these topics and more. You want to learn more about envy, jealousy, resentment, comparison and even schreudenfreude and freudenfreude. Ha, you didn't even know there are emotions that you've never heard of. This book has so many knowledge nuggets about emotions that I didn't even know existed. Go check it out, you will not be disappointed.

Speaker 1 8:49

Anyway, back to the star of our show, the big green-eyed monster, envy. I think this episode's idiom does a great job at describing what Envy is like in a very simple to understand way. But the idiom as we know it today was taken from a famous proverb that can be traced back to the Latin poet Publius Ovidus Naso, better known as Ovid. He lived from 43 BC to 17 AD. He is considered one of the greatest poets in the history of humanity. He wrote works including Curides or the Heroines Amores or Loves, eris Amatora, the Art of Love and Metamorphosis. He completed his most famous and revered poem, metamorphosis, around 8 BCE and it is regarded as a poetic masterpiece. And it is regarded as a poetic masterpiece. He was eventually exiled from Rome for his works because they were deemed too erotic and offensive at the time, and he was also possibly involved in a nasty scandal involving adultery. He is quoted as saying he was banished because of Carmen de Eter, or a poem in an error. He eventually died alone in his 60s and, interestingly enough, the Council of the City of Rome revoked his exile after his death In 2017, if you math, that's more than 2,000 years after his death.

Speaker 1 10:19

But better late than never, right? Even if you have never heard of this infamous bad boy poet, ovid's works still live on through you and me. You might not have ever read Metamorphosis, but if you have ever said the grass is greener on the other side, you're referencing our man, ovid. In his works, he writes crops are always more fertile in someone else's fields and the cattle next door has bigger udders. Fast forward to 1924, and you can see where Ovid's writing turns into the idiom we know today. It comes from an American folk song by Raymond Egan and Richard Whiting in a song called the Grass is Always Greener in the Other Fellow's Yard. Just in case you have not heard this musical classic, I found the vinyl, dusted it off and I will play it for your listening pleasure.

Speaker 5 11:09

You've always seen the fine clothes Maggie's hanging on her back and never see the mortgage that is hanging on their shack. Mike is buying fancy bonnets just to decorate her dome, but he hasn't got a single drop of rye at home. Get the home brew and some glasses and it won't be quite so hard, just to see how green the grass is in our own backyard.

Speaker 1 11:51

If you were digging this jam, go download it on Spotify today, okay, okay. So throughout history we have looked at our neighbor's yards and thought, hey, their grass looks greener than mine. But is it true? Let's first look at the literal meaning. Is your neighbor's yard greener than yours? Scientists have found the answer. Yes, somebody actually spent time researching this topic. Clearly, we were bored of researching important things like the cure for cancer, but I digress.

Speaker 1 12:28

Research shows the answer to the age-old question is perspective. The grass looks greener in your neighbor's yard because you see it from a different perspective. The grass in your yard is viewed from a 90-degree angle, as you are essentially looking right down at it, while you will view your neighbor's grass because you are creepily sneaking peaks over your fence. Well, you will view your neighbor's grass, because you are creepily sneaking peaks over your fence, at something approaching a 30 or 45 degree angle. This means that you will see the imperfections and soil on your side of the fence because you're looking down and there's no blades of grass to hide it. When you view your neighbor's grass, however, you'll see more grass behind the grass, as if you're viewing everything from a shallower angle, and this means that it will appear greener. This is so interesting because the grass on the other side of the fence is only appearing greener because of where you're viewing it from, not because it's actually greener. I think we can see how this relates to our everyday lives. You look at your life and your house does not look as kept up, or your car is older, your kids don't behave as well, your family is not as perfect as your neighbors, whatever, but that is the perspective you get to see. What you're not seeing is that their house looks nice on the outside but maybe it's a little bit of a mess on the inside. Or that your car is older but it's paid off and their nice new car is leased and they can't afford it. Or that their kids behave in the few moments that you see them when you wave hello, but really they are holy terrors when you get them alone. Or that that perfect family you see fights all the time and is going through a nasty divorce.

Speaker 1 14:03

Comparison is the thief of joy. You are seeing their life from a 30 to 45 degree angle and not seeing the full picture. When you compare yourself to an unreal standard, you will miss how good your life is, but I am seeing the whole picture and my neighbors actually do have it all I know. Their house is nicer, their grass is greener, their car is new and it is paid off and they have a better paying job. They're freaking killing it. Am I allowed to be envious now? I still think the comparison is the thief of joy here.

Speaker 1 14:38

But since you asked, let's ask ourselves a few questions. Why is your neighbor's grass greener? Does your neighbor pay a premium lawn service to come take care of their yard? How much does that cost and do you want to pay for that? They have a nicer home and their car is paid off. Okay, maybe they've been saving their money for years to do that. Or maybe they work 80 hours a week and you only work 40. Do you want to work that much? Or do you want to have your time off and enjoy that? They have a great marriage where they're happy, but they also go to marriage counseling twice a week, make sure to have date nights once a week and they make time for each other to stay connected. That's a lot of work, but you're only seeing the end result.

Speaker 1 15:23

Instead of being envious of what others have, you can be thankful for what you do have, or figure out a way to get more of what you like. Most of the time, this involves more work, time and energy that you'll have to sacrifice. If that is what's worth it to you, then you can also make your yard as green as you'd like. Whoa, whoa, whoa. Not everything is that simple. Whoa, whoa, whoa. Not everything is that simple. It's just not about working hard. Some people get everything because they're super lucky in life. I'm not. Everything is super hard for me. On Instagram, everyone is naturally beautiful and they get like millions of dollars being influencers and everyone is happy and they have perfect lives, except for me. It's not fair Again. You are comparing yourself. Now. It's to something fake and it's an unobtainable standard.

Current Culture Triva

Speaker 1 16:12

Let's get into the very interesting topic. That's a rather new cultural phenomenon. It's the rise of the internet and social media. But first we need to make sure we are all understanding what we're talking about. The terminology on social media and the interwebs is ever-changing and confusing. Let's ask our friends to help when we play Current Culture Trivia. So we are now going to play Current Culture Trivia.

Speaker 3 16:39

You ready, okay, okay.

Speaker 1 16:41

I'm ready, All right. So this is going to be a mix of interweb, social media and slang trends to see how culturally knowledgeable you are.

Speaker 3 16:52

I'm going to be so bad at this.

Speaker 2 16:57

Okay, here is your first slang term. Please explain to us what the kids mean when they say the term dog water.

Speaker 3 17:09

Oh my God, I wish you could see my face right now. Is that what the kids say?

Speaker 4 17:13

Yeah, girl Dog water.

Speaker 3 17:16

I've never heard that before. I would assume it's not a good thing. Like that's the water your dog drinks, so I bet it's, you know, like floppy seconds or something. That's all I could guess. Okay, I told you I was going to be bad at this.

Speaker 2 17:36

I like floppy seconds though.

Speaker 1 17:41

That girl's got my dog water. What does NFT stand for?

Speaker 4 17:52

never heard of an nft okay, uh, it's the, it's the thing that everyone's buying online okay, yeah, I mean, I it sounds, it sounds familiar, but it was kind of like I didn't know that from pokemon go, you know okay all right.

Speaker 1 18:10

next question what is a thirst trap? A thirst trap? No, no, no. Thirst trap T-H-I-R-F-T trap, Thirst trap.

Speaker 4 18:22

Thirst trap is a gesture, picture or expression given to another person with the intention of getting their attention. So, that can be like sexy pictures. It could be like trying to look a certain way or be a certain way to somebody. It could also be a derogatory term made by someone to someone that maybe is trying too hard to get attention A thirst trap trap.

Speaker 1 19:03

How do you, word for word, know the definition?

Speaker 5 19:04

of thirst trap, but not nft priorities.

Speaker 4 19:06

I live in the real world. These traps are real.

Speaker 2 19:08

Nft pokemon go real estate is not it's like literally the word for word. Definition of thirst trap.

Speaker 1 19:24

Here's one that I want to see, if you actually know.

Speaker 2 19:28

Did you have a Napster? A Napster, no, wait, you seriously don't know what Napster is. No, I don't know what Napster is.

Speaker 7 19:37

Oh my gosh, oh my gosh, no.

Speaker 2 19:42

Another like profile thing. Oh my gosh. No, Napster Girl was the first way to ever download songs. No, what did we have? We had like was it like LimeWire or something? I don't know? Oh my gosh, LimeWire or something.

Speaker 1 19:56

I don't know what are some. Oh my gosh, LimeWire. I haven't heard that in forever. How would you describe what a meme is?

Speaker 7 20:10

Like a drawing that makes fun of something or a situation or something and has, you know, words on it. Okay, like a one. You can call them one panel, like a cartoon, with the drawing in it and then somebody saying something down below, kind of poking fun at somebody or something or I don't know. Yeah, situation.

Speaker 2 20:35

That is a great way to explain it. I'm not going to lie.

Speaker 1 20:41

That the official answer is. It is a unit by which cultural information is spread.

Speaker 2 20:49

Okay.

Speaker 3 20:49

So funny cartoon drawing.

Speaker 2 20:51

We will also accept. We will also accept.

Speaker 1 20:56

Do you know the acronym A-I-T-A-H?

Speaker 6 21:02

Say it again A-I-T-A-H. I think I might see it when you give credit to God, but is this the one that you say when it's all the glory is his? Something like that, no it definitely means am I the asshole, not the?

Speaker 2 21:26

glory to God, all right, not glory to God, not even close.

Speaker 6 21:31

Am I the asshole? Yeah, I do not know that one. That is a new one to me.

Speaker 1 21:36

Yeah. So, like you'll see it a lot when, like, people are asking for advice, They'll always start off with A-I-T-A-H. Am I the asshole? And then, like somebody will, like the whole Internet community answers back whether or not they're being you know the asshole or not. You haven't read it a lot.

Speaker 3 21:53

No, I did not know that. One Glory to God.

Speaker 2 22:00

Do you know what Friendster is? No, I have not heard that one Friendster.

Speaker 1 22:04

Did you know that Friendster for all of us who were born in the millennial that is the precursor to MySpace and Facebook.

Speaker 2 22:14

Oh really. Oh yeah, I was a total MySpace kid.

Speaker 1 22:19

If somebody says cap as in that's cap. What does that mean?

Speaker 7 22:29

That's like top of the line or the best.

Speaker 1 22:32

That is a great guess.

Speaker 2 22:34

Do you think it's cap? Because it's the top of something.

Speaker 7 22:37

Well, I'm thinking, yeah, cap is on top of somebody's head, so it'd be like the top. So yeah, I don't know, it's taking a guess, okay.

Speaker 1 22:49

That's it. That's all I've got for you on current culture trivia.

Speaker 4 22:55

Thank you, and I will sign off as the Rizzler.

Speaker 2 23:01

What's a Rizz? What's a Rizzler?

Speaker 4 23:04

Look that one up, rizzler.

Speaker 1 23:06

Okay, you're the second person to tell me Rizz. What is Rizz? Check it out. Am I going to regret putting this on my Google search?

Speaker 4 23:13

No, this one will actually make sense.

Speaker 1 23:16

Okay, so for the, the podcast, I've got a couple different words that I'm trying to help adults learn um, because it's about like the internet and like cool culture words, and I know you know them. So, for example, the word sus sus means suspicious, okay am I sus no. Are you sus no? Okay then. Are you sus no? Okay, then what's sus?

Speaker 9 23:37

Like like sketchy kind of Like, if you're saying something and then it seems like you're lying, then you would say that's sus Okay.

Speaker 1 23:48

First word that I need help explaining is dog water.

Speaker 8 23:55

Dog water means like something that you don't like yeah, like how would I use dog water?

Speaker 1 24:01

how would I explain that to an adult?

Speaker 8 24:04

like a food that you don't like.

Speaker 1 24:06

Is dog water like it's bad yeah, why would you say dog water?

Speaker 8 24:13

because, like it's dog water, not people water okay, not people.

Speaker 1 24:21

Water, that makes sense, makes total sense. What about the tea? A lot of people don't know this one.

Speaker 9 24:26

Like, hey, like give me the tea oh okay, so the tea is like if you haven't seen someone in a while and like so, pretty much like give me the info. Like give me the info would be like a sentence where you could use T, like give me the T for giving the info.

Speaker 1 24:44

Like we want to gossip. I'm like, hey, girl, give me that T. Yeah, okay, okay, that makes total sense. Got it, got it, okay. So I hear this one all the time, but I don't really know what it means. Okay, if somebody tells me that's cap, what does that mean? Not true?

Speaker 8 25:00

Like, how would I use it? Like if someone said something that like it's my birthday, but it's, but it's not your birthday, yeah, then you'll say that's cap.

Speaker 1 25:10

Ah, okay, that makes sense. Okay, can I say that's cap in.

Speaker 6 25:16

No just cap.

Speaker 1 25:19

Dad threw the word riz at me the other day. What is the word riz mean?

Speaker 9 25:26

So riz means like, like, if you like a girl, then you would like riz them up, and then you would like say it's like saying a pickup line, pretty much okay, he called himself the Rizzler.

Speaker 1 25:43

Should I be worried?

Speaker 9 25:45

um, I don't know what to say about that.

Speaker 1 25:48

I don't either. I didn't. I didn't get it all right. Okay, I'm gonna ask you some questions that you may or may not know. These are older people questions, but I want to see how many you might get right, okay, so do you have a MySpace account? No, do you know what that is? No, no, no, myspace account, no, okay, what about a Friendster?

Speaker 9 26:15

No.

Speaker 1 26:15

Or Napster, no, no, no, napsters. Okay, do you know what MySpace is? Have you ever heard of that word before? No, no, never heard of MySpace. You don't have a MySpace account. I don't have a phone. I was born in 2015. Oh, okay, that makes sense. Do you have an email account? No, I'm gonna play a sound for you. We're gonna listen to the sound and then you tell me what you think the sound is. Okay, what do you think that sound is?

Speaker 9 26:56

I think it kind of reminds me of like a walkie-talkie, okay, but it also like I feel like the and makes it sound like you're in a plane and then you like took off, like those sounds are like you're pressing buttons.

Speaker 1 27:12

Okay, but you've never heard that sound before. No, never, okay. What if I told you that sound was how we got internet back in the day? It's how we connected to the internet.

Speaker 9 27:23

I would laugh. That's depressing.

The Pintrest Syndrome

Speaker 1 27:28

Yeah yeah, old people sounds. So. Social media has brought us some very fascinating and funny things, but it has also brought us mental health issues. Social media has given rise to a whole generation of people who think that the grass is always greener, and it is killing our mental state. Multiple studies have shown a strong link between heavy social media and an increased risk for depression, anxiety, loneliness, self-harm and even suicidal thoughts. I call this the Pinterest syndrome. If you are constantly scrolling and comparing yourself to the beautifully altered or filtered and staged images on the screen, you will never be content and will inevitably be unhappy. We all need to be reminded that these quote influencers are giving you a snapshot of their lives, mostly curated for the perfect moment, that perfect bite of food, that perfect makeup look and the perfectly funny thing that that dog does, but you do not see the real world they live in. Of course, you're going to be envious of something that is unobtainable. Being envious of these things can trigger feelings of isolation, unworthiness and even drive some to commit suicide. Nowhere is this more evident than in our young adults. Suicide is the leading cause of death in adolescents aged 15 to 29 worldwide.

Speaker 1 28:58

In the spring of 2023, united States Surgeon General Vivek Murthy, md and MBA, released an advisory called Social Media and Youth Mental Health, in which he says there is a growing evidence that social media is causing harm to young people's mental health, soon after the American Psychological Association issued its own health advisory. The report stresses that the brain is going through a highly sensitive period between the ages of 10 and 19, when identities and feelings of self-worth are just forming. Frequent social media usage may be associated with distinct changes in the developing brain, potentially affecting such functions as emotional learning and behavior, impulse control and emotional regulation. Social media use among young people is nearly universal. Now, based on surveys from the Pew Research Center, in 2022, up to 95% of teenagers surveyed ages 13 to 17 reported using social media. Of teenagers surveyed ages 13 to 17 reported using social media, and more than a third of them use it almost constantly. Pew has also tracked which social media platforms or applications teenagers are using. In 2023, it found the majority of teens 9 out of 10 for those ages 13 to 17, use YouTube, followed by TikTok, snapchat and Instagram. In a randomized study, female participants reported more negative mood changes after just 10 minutes of browsing their Facebook account compared with those who browsed an appearance-neutral control website.

Speaker 1 30:30

But why would all of these envy-based emotions be on the rise? In the US, the proportion of young people between the ages of 13 and 17 years who have a smartphone has reached 89%. Moreover, 70% of teenagers use social media multiple times per day, up from a third of teens in 2012. And adults are not insusceptible. Adults have a more mature mind and are better able to understand what's going on and how to get help, but we're still seeing a rise in depression and social anxiety due to social media related issues.

Gratitude is the Answer

Speaker 1 31:07

So how do we overcome the Pinterest syndrome and the green-eyed monster? Here are some tips to help get over envy and appreciate our own lives. Number one acknowledge envy. Admitting that we are experiencing envy can be very threatening because it means acknowledging your own weakness and insecurity, but it is an important first step. So are you feeling envious? You might be, if you are frequently comparing yourself to another person and if you feel you are losing an imaginary competition. Did you say yes, probably envy. Okay, you got me, I'm envious.

Speaker 1 31:47

Now what? First, understand and remind yourself that marketers and social media is paid to evoke envy, to make you buy and want things. It's a billion dollar industry. Remind yourself that nobody has it all. Stop comparing your life with others. Remember comparison is the thief of joy. Next, shift your focus to the goodness in your life. Be a grateful person and spend time with grateful people. Every time you feel envious, replace that thought with something you're grateful for. It's proven to instantly boost your mood.

Conclusion

Speaker 1 32:23

In an article by UCLA Health titled Health Benefits of Gratitude, published in 2023, it states that in a review of 70 studies that include responses from more than 26,000 people, it found an association between higher levels of gratitude and lower levels of depression. Research published in the past decade has shown that grateful people those are, people who practice gratitude have fewer common health complaints, such as headaches, digestion issues, respiratory infections, runny noses, dizziness and sleep problems. Dr Amelia Simon-Thomas, science director at the Greater Good Science Center, says physiological changes associated with gratitude are typically a reduction in blood pressure and increase in vagal tone, which is taken as an index of increased parasympathetic influence on the peripheral nervous system. Other research shows that when practicing gratitude just 15 minutes a day, five days a week, for at least six weeks, it can enhance mental wellness and possibly promote a lasting change in perspective. Say it out loud to yourself, say it to a friend, write it down, pray about it. Whatever you do, just do this quick mental exercise and it can increase your physical well-being, your mental state and keep that green egg monster at bay. To start you off on your gratitude journey, and just in case you needed to hear this today you are smart enough, strong enough, motivated enough, beautiful enough and your life is enough. If no one else tells you that today, I want you to know that I think you're enough. The next time you sneak a peek at someone else's yard, just remember, the grass is not always greener. It's all about your perspective. So there you have it, from bad boy poets to classical country songs, a plethora of puzzling emotions, social media and gratitude. That was an incredible amount of information. Okay, fun Fact Family.

Speaker 1 34:29

I will leave you here with these intellectual snacks to think about, and you can tell me what you think by leaving us a comment on the podcast or sending us an email to myunoriginalthoughtpodcast at gmailcom. I want to hear from you. What did you like and what do you want to see more of in the future? Which idiom do you want us to explore next time? If you have any insight on today's topic, something I missed or didn't get right, or if you just want to be featured in a future what the Idiom segment? Let me know.

Bloopers and Extras

Speaker 1 34:59

This is our show and I want to interact with you and, as always, like and subscribe to the podcast so you never miss a new episode. Well, podcast family. That's a wrap for today. Thank you so much for being with us to learn and laugh our way through another unoriginal thought. I'm your host, afton Jay, and I thank you for hanging out with me and, as always, keep being inquisitive. Hey, I just wanted to let you know that if you couldn't get enough of this episode, we'll always have bloopers and interesting conversations included afterwards. If you're interested, just stick around. Bloopers, oh yeah.

Speaker 3 35:47

Are you ready to play what the Idiom? You gotta have like a little theme song, you know like and here, we are what the Idiom yes, I'm ready, I'm ready.

Speaker 2 36:01

Is that the theme song?

Speaker 5 36:01

you made up for me, I'm going to like clip it and play it at the beginning.

Speaker 3 36:04

I think that would be a better theme song. Here we go, I'm ready.

Speaker 1 36:07

What do you think? The origin of the idiom? The grass is always greener comes from.

Speaker 3 36:20

All I can think of is that show, home Improvement with Tim Allen, where, like, the neighbor is always staring Like you know the neighbor, where you only see his eyes the whole time in the entire show. It's like Wilson. His name is Wilson or something. That's all I can think of. When you say the grass is always greener, it's like the weird HOA neighbor who's like staring at your grass judging you right.

Speaker 1 36:38

You think Tim Allen created the idiom the grass is always greener. It's actually a Roman poet who he was like a very prolific poet but he said the grass is always greener in another man's pasture and the udders are larger over there too, or something like that you always want to be on the side that has the biggest udders.

Speaker 2 37:04

That's the winning side.

Speaker 1 37:06

The fun game for this episode is current culture trivia.

Speaker 6 37:15

I hope you have a theme song Do-do-do-do-do.

Speaker 4 37:18

Do-do-do-do-do-do-do-do.

Speaker 1 37:23

I mean, your kids aren't old enough to use these yet, so maybe you haven't heard them, but I'll ask you like a term, and then you can see if you can get it. Lit Lit's not on here because I figured that our generation would know that, but here's one.

Speaker 6 37:36

What Bet? That's another thing. I say bet.

Speaker 1 37:43

Oh yeah bet that one's not on here. But I didn't really understand that one. I was like what. Well, what?

Speaker 2 37:51

does that mean?

Speaker 6 37:53

Bet Like.

Speaker 7 37:57

I don't know either.

Speaker 6 37:58

I use it in case I get made fun of it with my uses. I think it means like all right, like I agree, or like shoot, like yeah, bet All right let's do it.

Speaker 2 38:12

Yeah, that's what it said online. I didn't get it. I'm like too old. What does it mean?

Speaker 2 38:16

when someone says the word tea, as in spill that tea. Oh, like, like, give the dirt, give me the hot gossip. Fill in the T, the details. That one's easy. Give me the hot gossip, those are easy. Those are easy ones, because I didn't even, I wouldn't even have guessed that the kids are still saying, like, what's the T? Like? That feels like such an old term to me now that I would not expect to hear it come out of a kid's mouth.

Speaker 1 38:54

What is when somebody says that's dog water? What do they mean?

Speaker 4 39:01

Outsider looking in spectator.

Speaker 2 39:06

Dog, water.

Speaker 5 39:15

Dog watcher no, not dog watcher, which would make sense why you gave me that dog watching that dog oh no no, not dog watcher, dog water.

Speaker 4 39:32

Dog, water.

Speaker 2 39:35

The word is dog water.

Speaker 7 39:39

That one, I have no idea. I'll just say something like somebody slobbered in or something like when dogs drink water, like somebody is slobbery in or something like when dogs drink water Like somebody is slobbery. Yeah Well, yeah yeah, that makes sense, like it's an adjective like you're dog water.

Speaker 2 39:55

You're very slobbery, yeah, okay, that's the best answer I can come up with.

Speaker 6 40:06

I would have said dog water means like trash, like trash, like it's not, it's not good. Like it's dog water, like you're, it's something that no one wants.

Speaker 2 40:17

Oh my God, you got it right. Did you just like guess that?

Speaker 6 40:23

Yeah.

Speaker 2 40:25

I'm hit. I'm hit, bet so stupid.

Speaker 1 40:30

Yes, yeah, dog water means rubbish or trash. I couldn't have guessed that one.

Speaker 6 40:34

There, you go.

Speaker 2 40:36

Let's see what about cap.

Speaker 6 40:39

Oh, cap, Like good on you. Straight up Cap, bro, Like it's like a kudos, I believe.

Speaker 1 40:50

Okay, definitely don't use that your terminology with any of the new kids. What about if someone tells you that that's Cap?

Speaker 4 41:02

That's the maximum that it could be.

Speaker 2 41:07

You're so 40. Okay.

Speaker 5 41:10

Are you ready for?

Speaker 2 41:11

the next one. I'm ready, I'm ready.

Speaker 1 41:13

Okay, all right. What does it mean when you tell someone they are CAP or CAPIN?

Speaker 3 41:22

CAPIN Like C-A-P-P-I-N.

Speaker 1 41:26

Yeah, g technically, but yeah.

Speaker 3 41:30

Oh my God, I have no idea. I'm so bad at this. I am not up with what the hip kids say. Cap in, like. The only thing I can think of is like pop a cap in your ass, but that's probably not the same origination. The captain is presently like a desk pop yeah, it's a desk pop. If you're capping, you just did a desk pop. How's that for really out of date social references?

Speaker 2 42:03

oh, my gosh, it's not even close.

Speaker 1 42:07

Not even close, okay, if if you are, if you are capping or if someone says that's cap, it's a lie or a falsehood.

Speaker 3 42:22

Okay, all right yeah well, uh well, I was capping just now because I said the wrong answer.

Speaker 2 42:32

You're so old.

Speaker 3 42:35

Okay, I just want to like wrap it all up right now. Of all the risks you have, I am the least cool. I am the least hip. I'll give you more adult questions All right, here's the more adult questions you ready. Okay, ready.

Speaker 1 42:48

Please tell me what NFT stands for.

Speaker 3 42:54

Non-fungible trade right.

Speaker 1 43:01

What is an NFT?

Speaker 3 43:03

Oh my God, I have absolutely no idea. Oh my god, I have absolutely no idea. It's like some sort of nebulous term for some sort of item of measurement of an electronic trading transaction of some kind. It's like a fraction of a fraction of a dollar. I don't understand digital currency at all.

Speaker 1 43:24

All I know is that it's a thing thing so we don't know kid terms and we don't know adult terms I'm basically useless in society oh my gosh, no naps, girl was the first way to ever download songs. So you could pirate songs off the internet and make your friends tweet mixtapes Like love CD number one.

Speaker 3 43:55

Love your bestie. Oh my gosh.

Speaker 2 44:00

That is so cute, you still use AOL.

Speaker 7 44:05

Yeah, I'm a dinosaur. You know what can I say? I didn't even know AOL was yeah.

Speaker 2 44:08

I'm a dinosaur. You know what can I say? I didn't even know. Aol was still around.

Speaker 5 44:15

Oh, I feel better now.

Speaker 7 44:16

Thank you, it is still around.

Speaker 2 44:19

I still use it. That's so funny.

Speaker 7 44:20

Yeah, I don't have a junk mail, I just whatever. Oh, really, yeah, I just you know, I don't know. Otherwise, you know, it's like I don't want to have to remember two email accounts and two passwords.

Speaker 3 44:33

That's what I want to do that's so funny On your AOL.

Speaker 7 44:39

Well, you know, I don't know what to say.

Speaker 2 44:42

Can't teach an old dog new tricks.

Speaker 7 44:45

That's true, that is so true. I can't teach an old dog new tricks. That's true. That is so true. I mean I could do stuff around the house, fix the yard, fix, you know, stuff around the house.

Speaker 2 44:57

But computer stuff, oh man, sometimes that just drives me crazy.

Speaker 7 45:01

I guess I'm behind on the slang.

Speaker 2 45:04

I'm trying to get you caught up.

Speaker 7 45:05

Okay, I'm being to get you caught up Okay.

Speaker 3 45:10

I'm being more modern. Now I have to go. I will just have to call you later.

Speaker 1 45:15

No, no, no.

Speaker 3 45:18

You've given me enough material for a lifetime. Oh my gosh, I'm so excited to be on the podcast. It's so funny because people will tell me they'll be like oh my God, I love you on Afton's podcast and I'm like I think they think that other people are me on your podcast because they don't know all your other friends. Yeah, my own brother couldn't recognize his wife. He was like oh, that girl was so funny. I was like that was your wife. He was like what.

Speaker 5 46:10

I swear to Ha. Gotta love those bloopers. That's a wrap. Yep, we're all done here. Oh wait, were you looking for some more fun facts? Okay, check out the next episode. Press play let's go Outro Music.