My Love Affair with Jars
My first job was as a clerk at a video store, Video Village. I loved it. So much organizing to do: straightening boxes, shrink-wrapping boxes, alphabetizing boxes! I was also very proud of myself when we were switching out our bright yellow paper movie sleeves for sleeker ones, and I cut stacks and stacks of it into scrap paper. My colleagues gave me quite a razzing for it, and I just didn’t get it. Did recycling paper really make me the world’s biggest nerd? Don’t answer that. (Besides, now recycling is cool.) Well, that same sense of pride still wells up when I find uses for would-be tossers. Like jars! Sara Vahle got me started with her recycled jar centerpiece. Since then I pretty much save every jam, salsa, and spaghetti sauce jar I empty, figuring I’ll find some use for them. Jars have taken on a new level of excitement now that we have zero containers (we only packed clothes and electronics for our move to Prague). So I’m pretty happy with my little salsa jar. 
It makes my earrings easy to see, grab, and put back. 
Which beats the jewelry box I stuffed them all into for packing… even though it IS a Tiffany’s box… that came with a free key chain from the grand opening I covered as a reporter… because I’m not actually a Tiffany’s kind of girl… though I do love their signature turquoise…), 
And I love my other little salsa jar that keeps my wine bottle stoppers from rolling around in the classy/handy cardboard box I repurposed from some Ikea purchase. 
And I also love my garbanzo bean jar that makes my art supply shelf look charming enough to belong to Van Gogh, or someone. (Nevermind that my art supply shelf has one box of tiny acrylics and eight paintbrushes.) Exhale. There. Any other ideas on how to use empty jars?
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