Have you heard of Pinterest? It’s a virtual bulletin board, where you can pin up all the pretty, funny, inspiring and crafty things you find on the internet. And, as with everything these days, it’s a social network – so you can check out other people’s boards, of course!
Fun, right? After all, I had an enormous bulletin board in my bedroom growing up (and it was only when my parents moved – while I was in college – that my dad learned that I had actually screwed it into the wall). And one of the things I miss about going to work in an office is having cubicle walls to display the things that make me happy.
But the problem with Pinterest is that it is so addicting. I was sick last night (you’re welcome for not elaborating on this point, much as I want to), so I asked my mom to watch Annalyn today. I lounged and relaxed and recuperated – and spent three hours off and on (off and on!) sifting through crafty projects, delicious dishes, beautiful landscapes and other things THAT I WANT.
So not only is Pinterest crazy addicting, but it also creates a deep discontent that I haven’t faced since my early blogging days. Every craft project seems just out of my mid-level scrapbooker’s reach, and every recipe appears just a tad too difficult for this average cook. And the landscapes? Surely I’ll never make it there in real life.
As you can see, Pinterest is an issue. Okay, so maybe I just HAVE issues. Either way, I should simply walk away. Right? Just close out and walk away.
*sigh*
If only I could.
Did I mention that Pinterest makes you create boards according to categories? For example, I have a craft board, a recipe board, a places board and more. Basically, it feeds my need to put things in neat little boxes and slap a label on them.
Even better if I can dredge up some funny and label them things like “I Want to Eat That Now” and “I Want to Go to There.”
Pinterest, what are you doing to me? As if blogging, Facebook, Twitter, StumbleUpon and Delicious weren’t enough. Now I’ve got to add pinning to my writing, sharing, posting, stumbling and tagging!
Clearly, I have a love/hate relationship with Pinterest. What about you? Do you pin?
This post will be linked to Things I Love Thursday at The Diaper Diaries. Because sometimes I love Pinterest. (And nobody – that I know of – has a “Things I Hate but Occasionally Love” carnival.)
Well, Mary, I haven’t spent three hours at a time on Pintrest . . . yet . . . but someday I might just have to do that. I love Pinterest so far because it’s just so helpful for blogging. You can find a photo that might work for you, embed it into your post, AND it gives credit to the source for you. What could be easier? I love that part of it, but haven’t really gotten into the whole “social media” aspect of it. You bring new interest to Pinterest (get it?!)
Shelly, I didn’t know about the embedding part of Pinterest. Thanks for ANOTHER reason to pin! ;)
It sounds great – but I can’t add any more time burners into my life!!!!
Smart thinking! Don’t do it! Avoid it at all costs! :)
I love Pinterest. I’d rather be there than facebook. And there’s something about the visual component that is not just brain-inspiring (though it is that too), but it’s actually inspiring to me. As in, I have baked/cooked/attempted far more of the projects I’ve found there than from my normal bookmarking or web exploring.
I also love the sharing part because it gives a chance to learn so much about the people you know. You learn what inspires them, the things and places they dream about, so many things that don’t always come through on facebook, blogs, twitter, or even in a lot of conversations. You learn what you have in common. You also learn about the wide world of other people who are different from you, and that’s nice too.
It does have its drawbacks, I think. It can get kind of echo-chamber-y (with everyone pinning and repinning the same thing), and it can definitely fuel desire for unattainable things, although so far I’ve been mostly able to avoid that feeling. Mostly I like to look at is as a place to store inspiration for when I’ll need it. I can’t travel now, but when I do, I know where I’m going to look. I don’t own a house that I can decorate and remodel endlessly, but when I do, I have a lot of ideas to draw from. Putting things in that someday box helps me not to do too much yearning. :)
Favorite comment on this post. Hands down.
I love Pinterest too! I have the Chrome extension for simple pinning! It is great! ;)
I am visiting today from TILT. I hope you have a great week!
Blessings,
LaVonne @ Long Wait For Isabella
Thanks for visiting, LaVonne!
I do pin…but, have a hard time finding time to dig around to my hearts content. I love the gorgeous pictures!
I LOVE Pinterest…and probably spend ALOT more time than I should there. It definitely is addicting. :)
I have not given it the time I want, because I know I will become addicted. Someone had a whole album (a WHOLE ALBUM) of cute wall decorations using embroidery hoops. I pinned all of those suckers! I totally get that discontent part of it, it is hard. For now, I am leaving Pinterest in a little box, and giving it a tiny bit of my time. I have too many other things that are distracting me right now. :)
Yes, keep it in a tiny box. Don’t give it room to breathe!!! :)
I love Pinterest! I don’t spend that much time browsing but it’s a handy way to catalog the things that catch my eye each day. I pin to my heart’s content and then check other people’s pins on occasion.
Well, you took the words out of my mouth with this post.
The first day I discovered this beauty of a site I was hooked–for hours.
It was too easy to spend hours scrolling and “repinning” photo after photo of immensely cool things.
For me though, there is a realization that there are many things I like that I probably will never make nor ever cook.
BUT I can say, I have made a few of the beautiful dishes I have found, and they have been a hit!
I will say I’d rather spend my time on Pinterest than Facebook.
So I can’t say it any better than you did–LOVE the cool things I find; DO NOT LIKE the time consumer it can be!!
I’ve heard a couple people say they’re more likely to make the recipes they find on Pinterest because the photos are so inspiring!
I got an account but haven’t played on it yet…i’m afraid it will be just one more time sucker. But I have heard alot about it from other bloggers. VERY interested in those oatmeal cream pies!!
Yep. It IS another time sucker. But such a fun one…!
I’m am so glad that others feel the same way. I found pinterest about 4 months ago and it is a HUGE timesuck…after awhile, I would get irritated that my house was messy, my dishes old, my furniture was old and my wardrobe looked like a bad day at goodwill… Nothing was good enough or pretty enough or neat or fresh enough. I imagined living in my little pinterest boxes..in my beautiful rooms and 1000s dollar outfits..i had endlessly pinned. I don’t go on there as much anymore because in a way it is depressing..it takes time away from family and real life–and makes me desire things I will NEVER obtain and envy people I don’t really know.
Do you ever wonder how some of these women do it though? Their homes are always perfect..they have 40 hours a day to do all kinds of craftiness and no one “works” a regular job in the home.<—some may know who I'm talking about….:) Their days seem to be seamless and perfect…never a hitch…never out of money…never a project put on hold because something didn't work out.
Maybe I'm just doing something wrong……could someone pass the "how to live the perfect life manual"..:)