Saturday, November 13, 2010

Let's Talk Sense and Scents

Jo Robertson

I have a nose like a bloodhound.


Seriously.


I can smell a stinky in a toddler’s diaper at fifty paces. Or something burning at 100 paces.






As a new bride I was in the kitchen while my husband watched TV (a black and white on spindly console feet can hardly be called a telly, but that’s another story). He was eating sunflower seeds in the shell. Suddenly I smelled a terrible stench, a cross between a burnt match and a rotten potato.


I rushed into the living room. “What’s that awful smell?”

He bent double, laughing. “I just bit into a rotten sunflower seed, but you couldn't possibly have smelled it from that distance.”
Uh, yeah.

This gift of “sense” is a mixed blessing. One, my husband could never, ever cheat on me. But, on the other hand, when my sweaty little boys ran in from outside, I had to pretend their sweaty little boy smell from all kinds of gross dirt-things was the scent of heaven.


Still do.


I'm amazed at how many people choose their fragrances from celebrity endorsements.

Because I’m ultra sensitive to smells, choosing a cologne is as serious as building a missile. The scent must be light and clean. I must not be able to detect it myself (it'll give me a headache), but I want others to be able to enjoy the delicately mild and pleasant odor.

My granddaughter Annie calls it “Grammy Jo’s smell.” She hasn't yet learned the concept of branding. My sons and daughters hug me, burrow into my neck and say, “Ummm, mommy smell.”

I’ve worn Jovan Musk oil for decades and strangers still stop me to ask what I’m wearing.

When I recently saw an ad of celebrity scents – at very expensively prices – I wondered if and why someone would buy a cologne or perfume based on someone’s celebrity status.

How about you?

Do you have a good nose for smells or not? What are your favorite odors?

Any favorite colognes or do you eschew them all and rely on nature’s scent? Are you willing to experiment with fragrances because they're endorsed by celebrities?

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