We need to have a serious talk about Pinterest. I love me
some Pinterest. It’s an awesome idea that has tangible benefits. I use it in a
multitude of ways, some serious, some not so serious. The conversation we need
to have isn’t actually about Pinterest, per se, but about Pinterest’s users.
Since their user base is comprised of members of the public,
one of course expects it to be as diverse as the public is. Within that
spread we find both normal, rational human beings, and another faction that are
a little less rational, whom I sometimes think of as “raving fucking lunatics."
Before you judge me too harshly for my opinion of my
fellow pinners, allow me to explain.
At some point I noticed a lot of quite wacky shit on
Pinterest. Stuff that would clearly never work, or was just downright ludicrous
for one (or often, many) reasons. Being the sort of person I am, I created a
board to showcase these things, and added my commentary to the images. The
board is called, “Presented with Comments.”
I have a modest following on Pinterest. This particular board
has perhaps 400 followers. As Pinterest goes, it’s not hugely well known. But
lord love a duck, some of the people who repin things from this board are
clearly batshit crazy.
Allow me to provide some examples. Let's look at this first.
I presume if you’re reading this blog, you grasp that my
comments on this picture are provided tongue in cheek. And yet, at last check
it had been repinned 48* times from that image, and in a random spot check, I would
say that at least 90% of the pinners
left my text under it, and pinned it to a board that had a "cake decorating" theme.
Oh so what? Not everyone is as hung up on the copy as you are, you’re probably saying, they care about the picture. Well, fair enough, but the issue I have is what that really means is the people who found the image of that horrid cake and repinned it intact didn’t get the joke. When someone reads something like that and pins it intact and clearly has no clue that my comment was just oozing sarcasm, I regard them with a feeling halfway between pity and disdain.
Let’s take another example.
Oh so what? Not everyone is as hung up on the copy as you are, you’re probably saying, they care about the picture. Well, fair enough, but the issue I have is what that really means is the people who found the image of that horrid cake and repinned it intact didn’t get the joke. When someone reads something like that and pins it intact and clearly has no clue that my comment was just oozing sarcasm, I regard them with a feeling halfway between pity and disdain.
Let’s take another example.
This little gem has gotten a respectable 23 repins. In
almost every case, it’s pinned to a board called something like “Glitter All
The Things!” or “glitter glitter GLITTER.” Which right away calls into question
the taste of the pinners, because I despise
glitter almost as much as glue sticks (no, make that more than glue sticks—glue
sticks at least have some worthwhile function on occasion; glitter is forever a
useless, irritating asshole), and yet these people are creating boards to honor
it. I find that to be just strange, frankly. However, once again, in almost
every instance, my text has been transferred intact.
And finally, Exhibit C, as it were.
And finally, Exhibit C, as it were.
So, just wow, right? Eight people thought enough of this to repin it. Two of them on boards that contain either similarly macabre or similarly amusing images. But that means six people actually think this is a great idea and would be a fun, romantic surprise for their sweetie. This is the sort of thing that makes you say, “What the everloving fuck?” It does me, anyway.
Seeing just how weird some people are based on what they’ll pin off Pinterest adds a new dimension to my already sketchy opinion of a good chunk of the human race. Sometimes I walk down the street and pass people, and wonder if one of them is one of the freaks that thinks curling up in a giant box surrounded by flowers and dressed only in lingerie, looking like something out of porno film called “Done to Death” would be an unusual way to say “I love you!” to that special someone next Valentine’s Day. Because apparently there are at least six people on earth who do.
*I realize in the image above it shows 38 repins. It's been repinned ten more times since I took that screen capture, a couple of weeks ago.
