Perils of Pinterest

I joined Pinterest two months ago, but I didn’t get around to pinning my first idea until last week.  (I wanted to keep this finger painting  idea as an idea for F week.)

And then I pinned another and another and a half hour later the table was still not set and I had no vegetable ready to go with my enchiladas.  Not to mention I felt depressed.  I have been reluctant to return to the dangerous land of Pinterest since.

You see I am in a moral dilemma.  Although I see all the good in Pinterest,  I also see the bad.  Maybe I am a pessimist at heart, but to me Pinterest is women living in the future instead of living in the now.

When I see tags like “my future bedroom” or “someday” I kind of go a little crazy. I don’t care what you want to be, I care what you are.

I also feel that Pinterest fuels discontent.  My house, my wardrobe, my kids’ parties, my closets all the sudden aren’t good enough and there is something better– way better– out there.  My real life is never going to compare to those perfectly lit photographs on Pinterest and not only have I wasted an hour, but I feel crappier about my life and myself too.

And my last gripe against Pinterest is that it is passive and not active. My friend, Kelsie, over at Love, Kelsie Rae made this wise graphic:

The hour I spent pinning what my armoire could look like painted, I could have actually been painting the d@%# thing.  Pinterest almost paralyzes me to start the project because what if I find a better idea out there.

So although, I see merit in gaining inspiration and gathering ideas and dreaming, there can be too much.  I am sure I will continue to pin as a file system or a vision board, but I will watch myself and my time and make sure that I am creating and doing much more than I am pinning.  I want to be in my life now, not just waiting for my future.  And I want to be happy and content with what is my reality.