By Mark O’Neill
Contributing Writer, [GAS]

Divorce is a messy stressful affair (from what I hear).   First, there is the breakup which is obviously painful and upsetting for both the husband and the wife (it’s even worse if there’s children involved too).   Then the lawyers get involved and the arguments then start over who gets what.   Months or even years later, you stagger out of the marriage, having aged ten years with your computer game collection under your arm and your laptop under another.

But Angie Schmidt had other ideas when she got divorced.   She decided she needed a bit of laughter to cheer herself up.   So she started a business called Smashing Katie which sells divorce gifts to women (Katie is apparently the woman she blames for the breakup of her marriage).

Gifts can be as simple as a wedding ring coffin or as scary as an Ex Knife Block (!)

The business has been a success – but it has divided people over whether the business concept is a sound one or not.   Some have praised Schmidt for having the personality to get over the bump in her life and moving on, but others, including one divorce attorney, thinks that the last thing a divorcee wants to have, are constant reminders of a failed marriage –

“You don’t want to have a bunch of reminders around about your failed relationship,” she said. “I’d get away from these kind of cynical reminders that just sit on your desk. The best thing I did when I got divorced was use some frequent flier miles to go to Paris for a week. That was the best gift possible.”

What do you think GAS divorcees?  When you got divorced, would you have liked gifts like this?   Or is this just twisting the knife a bit too much?

Breaking up can lead to a business – San Francisco Chronicle