EL BLOG ILUSORIO DE RUDY: Erfolgtraurigkeit Is a Dirty Word

22.6.09

Erfolgtraurigkeit Is a Dirty Word

Schadenfreude: German noun made of Schaden (damage) and Freude (joy). Thus the Germans coin damage-joy, or joy from the injuries that occur to others!

But while all of us have familiarity with Schadenfreude, it is passing strange that its opposite feeling is not more well-known. This is Erfolgtraurigkeit, or a frustration at the achievement of others. It is a sentiment of universalness, yet finds little use in American vocabularies.

Admittedly, Erfolgtraurigkeit does not roll trippingly from one’s tongue!

Regarding this emotion, Gore Vidal said, “Whenever a friend of mine succeeds, a little something in me dies.” Yet Vidal is a smallish individual, and perhaps the scope of his thoughts are bound by his stature. For my part, Pau is my close friend and Kobe Bryant is still my favorite player. So I say let the Lakers enjoy their garlands!

Besides, I am enjoying myself this summer every bit as much as the “Black Mamba”! (As an aside, I believe that someone should inform that oversized ebon rodent what a snake's diet usually consists of. ¡PUM!)

Kobe from Ball Don't Lie,
Rudy y Woody from RudyFans.

No comments:

Post a Comment

I welcome your civil commenting.

Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.

"El Blog Ilusorio": In the Orbs of Others!

Rudy's Hypothetical Rules of Basketball

1. In ten years, nobody will remember the details of score, assists, or rebounds. They will only remember who won them a chalupa.

2. Any shot worth shooting is worth shooting twice.

3. When not shooting on offense, you should be communicating, passing, and running. Also, yell “Foul!” repeatedly. Why? How can officials summon help if you yell “Good D!” or “Our opponents are superior!”?

4. If legitimately called for a foul, say, “A good call!” (Do this no more than once a game.)

5. When in possession of the ball, have a plan. Further, have a back-up plan, because the first plan won't work (unless you are Brandon Roy).

6. Use cover or concealment as much as possible. (Both Oden and Pryzbilla provide these in abundance.)

7. On defense, ignore words and direct your eyesight to the ball. (Opposing Cleveland, LeBron James told me he would pull up for a jumper. I advanced upon him. Then James drove baseline with great speed. Both of my ankles gave way!)

8. The faster you begin an opponent’s blow-out, the more shots everyone will get.

9. Be polite and professional to everyone you play against. Then destroy them, for they wish to defeat you.

10. Practice shooting in a dimly-lit practice area with someone shouting unflattering threats at you. (I found this useful in Europe, where partial power outages were not uncommon.)

11. You may feel sad about snapping another team’s back with a clinch alley-oop or a clutching 3-pointer. But sadness is preferred to losing. And the winning will then bring happiness. (In the case of defeating the Lakers, the happiness will be most pronounced.)

12. Purple is not my color. (It may not be anyone’s color.)