DIY Idea
An Emergency Laugh Kit — Twelve Inside Jokes for a Hard Stretch
Twelve inside jokes on cards, a prescription-style instruction label, and three small props in a box. For someone in a hard stretch — illness, burnout, breakup, grief. Thirty minutes to make. Open one card a day, or all at once.
Materials
- The box: a small lidded gift box, about 7 × 5 × 2½ in inside — big enough for 3 × 5 cards lying flat and the props, small enough for a bag
- The cards: thirteen 3 × 5 in index cards (twelve jokes and the prescription card), plus a fine-tip pen and one colored marker
- The label: one blank sticker label for the lid, hand-lettered prescription-style
- The props: a googly-eyed sticker, a small wind-up toy (under 2 in tall) and a strip of photo-booth pictures
- The packing: a length of ribbon and a small piece of tissue paper or crinkle filler
Inside jokes don't translate. That's the point — only you could have made it.
Instructions
- 01
Make a list of twelve. Inside jokes, half-remembered nights, the time they said the thing at the wedding. Things only the two of you would find funny. Twelve is the floor — write more, pick the best twelve.
- 02
Write one per card. One joke or memory per card, in your handwriting. Add a small doodle or a date when you remember it. Number them 1–12 in the corner so the kit feels prescribed, not random.
- 03
Letter the prescription label. Hand-letter it on the sticker. The label goes on the lid: Rx — Inside Jokes. Take as needed. Add a fake patient ID and date if you want the bit to land.
- 04
Pick the props. Three small things — googly-eyed sticker, wind-up toy, photo strip. Stop at three. More than that and the joke turns into a goody bag.
- 05
Pack the box. Crinkle filler at the bottom, twelve cards stacked flat, props nested beside them. Check the lid closes without pressing, then ribbon around it. The prescription card from What to write inside tucks under the lid as the first thing they read.
What to write inside
EMERGENCY LAUGH KIT — prescription for [their name].
Take one card every five minutes until symptoms resolve. Refill at the source. Side effects may include: laughing alone in your kitchen, texting me at 2 a.m. Do not operate heavy machinery while crying-laughing. Call prescriber if giggles persist past 48 hours. And if none of it is funny today, that's fine too. Keep the box for another day.
— [your name], your prescriber
Sign however you would — Dr. [your name], With love, All my heart, or just your name.
Pro Tips
- The twelve cards must be specific to them, not generic jokes. That time the dog ate the speech lands. Why don't scientists trust atoms does not. If you're stuck for inside jokes, write twelve specific memories instead — same kit, different jokes.
- Use the prescription bit only if it suits their sense of humour right now. For someone who's ill or grieving, it can sting; if you're unsure, skip the Rx label and write a plain, warm note instead. The twelve cards do the work on their own.
- For someone in long recovery (chemo, sustained illness), make a second twelve and hand it over when the first box empties. The refill is part of the joke and a real check-in disguised as a punchline.