In this two-minute youtube, Rachel Ray explains a series of methods for easy jar-opening: banging the lid, using a rubber band, using rubber gloves. The audience's paroxysms of ecstasy notwithstanding, this is handy stuff to know.
(via Consumerist)
Update:
Alan sez, "it seems to me the point of these methods should be to reduce the amount of force required to open the jar, and to do so safely. One technique that works for me: use a butter knife, spoon, or flat-head screwdriver to pry the side of the jar lid away from the jar out just enough to break the seal. You will probably hear the air escaping from the jar as you do this. the lid can then be unscrewed almost effortlessly."
