Stressed? Buy a Muji pen. Trust us.
Essentials Week spotlights unexpected items that make our daily lives just a little bit better.
I handle stress like any good American living in this late stage capitalist hell: with retail therapy.
Except I don't really have the budget for a proper Gossip Girl-type blowout shopping spree, and the thought of dropping the equivalent of my rent on a pair of shoes makes me nauseous. Instead, I've found solace in buying a single pen from Muji whenever I'm on the verge of burning out.
Muji, for those uninitiated in the bullet journaling cult, is a Japanese home goods store whose minimalist, virtually branding-free products are both cheap and high quality. Though the store sells everything from basic clothing to essential oil diffusers to kitchenware, its stationary section is the Mecca of office products.
As an avid journal keeper (I always have receipts), there's a certain satisfaction in finding the perfect pen, and Muji's .38 mm gel pens are the holy grail. Encased in a perfect frosted body, the pens are so fine, they can make the most illegible handwriting seem elegant.
I first started my pen-hoarding habit in high school, when I'd wander into Muji to kill time with friends after school. It became a sort of coping mechanism for any stressful situation. Finals week? Buy a pen. Still no prom date? Buy a pen. Spiraling into existential dread over applying to colleges? Buy a pen.
There's a direct link between shopping and getting a boost of happiness. A 2011 study in Psychology & Marketing found that although a bad mood does lead to "greater purchase and consumption of unplanned treats for the self," it also concluded that impulse buys don't often result in "feelings of regret and guilt."
A 2014 study published in the Journal of Consumer Psychology concluded, "making shopping choices can help to restore a sense of personal control over one's environment and reduce sadness." To quote the iconic 1995 teen romance Clueless, retail therapy provides a "sense of control in a world full of chaos."
In high school, my Muji pens served as a grounded island -- featuring palm trees and cool breezes -- in a sea of uncertainty. And being a student whose only income consisted of babysitting cash, I couldn't splurge on much. Instead, I found retail therapy in buying a single pen every few weeks or so. I would go out of my way to pass the Muji store and meticulously sample every pen they had until I could settle on one. My pencil case was always bursting with gel pens, but there always seemed to be room for one more.
I was also that bitch who was too possessive of my pencil case. I've been played enough times to know that when someone asks to "borrow" a pen, they probably aren't planning on giving it back after the lecture. Instead of lending people my prized, beautiful Muji babies, I had a stock of grungy Bics rolling around the bottom of my backpack for everyone else.
My Muji obsession continued through college and into adulthood. Whenever I was home after surviving a wild semester, I'd congratulate myself with a celebratory single pen. When I moved to Los Angeles, one of the first things I did after driving across the country for 10 days was stop by the Muji store in Hollywood for a bright green .38 mm gel ballpoint beauty.
Buying up stationary is more than just for retail therapy — these pens are freaking great. They're smooth, they last forever, and they make writing an absolute dream. It's a favorite in Instagram's bullet journaling and penmanship niche.
Having an artillery of bright pens not only made my class notes more organized (mindless doodles look so much better in multicolored gel), but also motivated my journaling habit. Word vomiting about your day is so much easier when your pen glides across a page! Although I've never had the patience for scrapbooking, I began bullet journaling just to use my beloved pens more often. Mindless doodles take on a new life when they're framing my daily checklist.
And at less than $2 each, they're a steal. So if you're feeling overwhelmed and need to take some control of your life, consider stocking up on a few Muji pens.
