The jar

Do you have a lot of stress in your life, Kittens? Do you have a group of people who just seem to bother the crap out of you? Do you wish you could tell these people to suck it, even though it would not be in your best interests to do so?

I have an alternative that works really well for me. It was inspired by those ceramic jars that you can find at Hallmark with the little sayings such as "Casino Money", "Retirement Fund," or "Ashes of Obnoxious Teenagers."

Well, here's what I did. I actually did this a few years ago:

1. Get yourself a clean, empty jar. Don't bother buying one from the store. Remember, Kittens, reduce, reuse, recycle. I suggest an empty peanut butter or tomato sauce jar. Make sure it is absolutely clean and dry.

2. Get yourself some masking tape and a sharpie. It has to be masking tape, not scotch.

3. Tear yourself off a strip of the masking tape. Using the sharpie, write, in big, fancy letters, the following phrase on the tape:

ASHES OF PEOPLE WHO PISS ME OFF

4. Place your tape on the front of the jar, in the middle. Now let the fun begin.

Every time something or someone gets under your skin, take a piece of paper and write their name down. Open the jar, and tear that piece of paper into little itty bitty shreds. Now seal the jar. Or, if you prefer, put the paper through a shredder, and deposit the shreds into the jar

I like the latter option.

Now when the jar gets full, dump it into the garbage. You could recycle it, and that would be the better, more environmentally friendly option, but recycling the paper with the names of those who have pissed you off would be like recycling bad chemicals into the atmosphere. You need to let go of these bad vibes, Kittens.

Your jar will fill at varying speeds, depending on the number of people who piss you off, as well as the frequency that this is done. Sometimes my jar will fill up in a matter of hours, other times a matter of weeks. It's perfectly normal if there are some names that make it to the jar on a regular basis

I find this ritual--well, comforting is not the word here, nor is soothing--but the emotion I feel when I rip these names up into shreds makes me feel a whole lot better.

And it's okay if you want to write someone's name over and over again and fill the jar up that way. If that's what you're feeling, go for it!

I haven't used the jar in a while. I was very proud of myself for that. However, I'm dragging it out of the cupboard tonight...it's gonna get some use soon.