taking pictures of things instead of buying them

I've seen talk of this from bloggers before - products that you would've bought before, but instead, have just taken a camera phone picture of?

To me, this is a modern day illustration of the difference between appreciating things, and needing to own them.

One is a healthy obsession, and the other is a destructive one.



Image from brian doucette

For example I really like pretty sunsets over mountains - this is a generally positive thing, because I appreciate the beauty, I vibe out on them, and I can share them with others.
I can't own them, or capture them, and I don't obsess over them. I don't spend a disproportionate amount of time scheming how I could get more of them.




Image from sling@flickr

However, I also really like carbon fibre trainers.

This is a very different kind of liking - I love them because they're beautiful, but that's where similarities end.

It isn't enough that they exist. It isn't enough that I can see them in a glass case, or on the Internet whenever I want.

I covet them, in the sense that I need to make them mine, or own them completely to get happiness out of them. This is a much less healthy kind of liking.

So what I am saying is, that using the cameraphone instead of the wallet, we can move our regard of objects a little bit from

if I owned that thing I would be happier (seldom true)

to

I am glad that things like this exist in the world.