I Guess I Need to Break Up With My Passwords Too

I went to sign into Amazon yesterday and realized my password was a variation of the nickname of a ex-boyfriend from almost three years ago.  Now, I go to Amazon often (honesty moment: way too often), but somehow I just noticed this.  How did I go this long and not change that password?  Maybe it was just easy to remember.  Maybe I got lazy and didn't want to update it.  Maybe I was hoping I wouldn't have to change it.  Whatever the reason, he and I obviously aren't together anymore and it's kinda of a bummer to be reminded of him when I go to sign in to buy a One Direction cool, hipster album.

Afterward, I began to do an inventory of my passwords - all 4,000 of them.  It seems that I have a bit of a habit of using ex-boyfriend's names, nicknames, dog's names and/or street names for things.  In a fit of rage at myself, I changed all of them.  This means 2 things: 1. I rid myself of all the daily reminders of my exes I've collected over my adult dating life and 2. I won't be able to log into my Netflix, emails, Twitter, Facebook and about 1/2 dozen other things because I can't remember the new password.  

There is always a cleansing after a break-up, especially a major one.  We take down pictures, delete phone numbers, emails and texts, defriend or unfollow try to keep that person from popping up in our minds.  That's probably the worst part: all the things that we've gathered over time in joy become reminders of our failures.  It could be sad, and it often is, but it has to be done in order to move on.  Right?  

Even though I'm dusting off the remnants of relationships gone south, I still have the hope that someday I'll be able to fill those areas with memories of someone new.  Someone whose nickname I can make a password that I won't have to change...ever.

~J