Random-ification

I finally gave in and ordered one of those perfumers’ kits, with the aromachemicals and absolutes and so on. You may now look forward to me guessing at notes, and still getting them wrong.

Last night I was messing around with this and decided to make something really Dirty. So: civet, ambroxan, musks, Kephalis (wood/tobacco), heliotropin, a bit of jasmine, etc. It actually smells pretty good. The DH said, “it’s not repulsive at all.” This is high praise.

But that isobutylquinoline (a.k.a. “leather”) – it’s the Darth Vader of perfumery.

The daffodils are up. Oh, wait a second…they’re gone.

Got a GPS as a gift. Comedians are missing the boat. Imagine if you will: Cheech and Chong on a GPS. Sucking sound; “turn left, man, NO, maaaannnn…..LEFT!” (crashing sound)

Actually, GPS doesn’t work all that well in Middle of Nowhere, Alaska. It instructed us to turn down a dirt road instead of the highway half a mile south. If we’d followed it, who knows…we might have gotten stuck and then eaten by something.

And besides, I don’t even like to use the cruise control. So why would I let some disembodied voice tell me what to do, huh?

On the perfume fora I follow, there is much mention of money now, of refusal to pay exorbitant prices for niche releases. As America slams its wallets shut, what adjustments will the luxury business make?

None, probably.

So much fun watching the arch-conservatives hang their dreams of -- what exactly are they, anyway? -- on the sweaty fat radio guy.

What was it that Bud Fox’s father said to him in “Wall Street?” “I guess, if you live long enough, you see everything.” So prescient.

Madoff. Attica.

OK, I’ll stop with the commentary now.

Wine drinkers: there’s a Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand called “Mud House.” Its top note is passion fruit. There are other tropical fruits, grapefruit, grasses and so on. Website is mudhouse.co.nz. It’s really different, and about thirteen bucks a bottle. If you can find it, try it!

And of course “Wrongo Dongo” (I am not making this up) which is a decent everyday red from the region north of Barcelona. Great label too…and around ten bucks.

Interesting how perfume appreciation opens up wine evaluation skills...



Flea market photo by "Retroholic" on Flickr.