Interest in Pinterest

I had heard of a site called 'Pinterest', but had not thought it was for me, when I read an article that changed my thinking. It was in the October issue of a magazine called Wired, (which, by the way is fascinating itself). The article started out talking about a counselor who had her patients use Pinterest to find pictures to express how they felt. The article also talked about using Pinterst to keep track of recipe ideas, or books you have read.
So I went to the Pinterest site to check it out. I have been exploring it over several days, and I see how people could get addicted to it. The premise is that people 'pin' pictures that catch their interest on'boards', sort of like you might clip a cartoon from the newspaper and pin it up on the bulletin board at work, then you and others can see it whenever you want.
To start, you sign up, a very simple process. You can set up a 'board', giving it any title you want. I started out setting up a board called 'Coping Ideas', and 'pinned' on it pictures and sayings I found that could help me feel better. There are some nice nature scenes, encouraging quotes, and other pictures I liked. I found them by putting in search words such as 'health', 'wellness', 'stress' and 'nature', and browsing through what other people had put on their 'boards'. When I found something I liked, I moved the cursor over the picture, and clicked on the 'repin' button that appeared, and 'repinned' the image onto my 'board'. ('Repinning' doesn't steal the image, it lets you have it, without taking it away from where you found it.)  You can put any caption you want with each picture. I then started searching words such as 'papercut', 'paper sculpture', and 'quilling' (some of the art techniques I do), and set up another board I called "Paper Arts'.
Besides 'repinning' things other people had 'pinned', you can also add a 'Pin It' button to your tool bar, and when you find an image you like anywhere on the web you can click this button and 'pin' the image on your 'board'. You can use this to keep tabs on things you are thinking of buying, home furnishing or fashion ideas, design ideas, diet or exercise, or anything else. I am sure there is a way I can put my own art on a 'board' in Pinterest, I have not gotten that far yet.
As I said earlier on, I can see how people might get addicted to this. It is alot of fun browsing under different search words to see what is there. If you find someone with similar taste to yours, or who has several things you like, you can 'follow' them, and check back from time to time to see if they added anything else you like. You can use Pinterest as a tool to help you organize and keep track of ideas, to express your thoughts or feelings, you can use it just for fun, or use it to cope. I found that when I was browsing and building my 'boards', I lost track of time (not so great), and I forgot to be in pain (GREAT!) It is a fun and pinteresting distraction from whatever ails you (as my grandmother used to say).