Monday, April 12, 2010

RandomBuzz

Saw the trailers for the upcoming season of “True Blood” last night: “Waiting Sucks.” Brilliant. Here’s the thing though: Hollywood bodies in South Louisiana? Lemmee tell ya: there is no way that those people snarfing pork chops at Merlotte's are gonna look like the extras on “True Blood.”
Those extras spend 4 hours a day at the gym. Trust me. In BonTon, Louisiana, Merlotte's is the gym.
Finally got around to trying L’Artisan’s Al Oudh. Late to the party as usual. This one deserves a whole post. The title? “Perfumes I’m embarrassed to go grocery shopping in.”  I mean, I love it. But, ahem...this one makes “Boudoir” feel like some little-girl violets-at-Easter cologne.
If there is anything more beautiful than a Lady Banks rose vine in bloom and cascading over a fence, I don’t know what it is. I’m looking at one right now.
It’s spring here in the South. The time of year that you actually want to go outside, assuming that you can tolerate the pollen that is coating everything, like sticky yellow talc.
Here’s a tip from an old-timer: put a tablespoonful of locally produced honey in your tea or coffee once a day, starting around January. Honey is made from pollen. This is a homeopathic, and it works. 
ELPC’s Tuberose Gardenia smells just right, right now.
What is going on with those little bottles of vintage Shalimar? They’re going for $50 to the-sky’s-the-limit on fleabay. I mean, I want, but $50 is my absolute limit -- which I’ve never paid -- for used perfume that might or might not be “off”; what’s yours?
Grain de Musc’s recent writeup  on the forthcoming L’Artisan tuberose by Duchafour was really intriguing. Also made me resolve to order a sample first. 
Two great recent samples: L’Artisan’s Havana Vanille (more vanilla than tobacco, imho) and Annick Goutal’s Vanille Exquise (nice and boozy). Both last, a long time, even on my skin. Will save these for October.
Q: What always smells better than it tastes? A: Barbecue.
From the TV shows I’ve never watched list: “American Idol.” Yes, it’s true! Does this make me an elitist? 
So be it.
If it weren’t for the HBO shows and “Mad Men,” I’d get rid of the damned thing entirely. We have about 400 channels. There’s never anything on any of them.

Got a bottle of Balmain’s “Ivorie.” I never knew what “soapy” really meant until now, but no matter. It’s green, green, green and megasoapy and will be perfect for July.
I really like the fig scents too. “Ninfeo Mio” and “Premier Figuer,” especially. I don’t know about wearing them outside though. Maybe the Ninfeo Mio; it’s more green than fig. But we have every kind of wasp and hornet you can possibly imagine here. Figs are their favorite thing in the whole world. I'd rather not be.
The other night the DH and I watched an episode of that makeover show where the bitchy woman and snide guy rip into some poor girl’s self-image so they can subject her to their ideas about style. I glanced over at him. He was staring at the screen in horror. He said “I’m looking at this...other world.”  Ya think?
Better advice: Sweetie, return all those ugly clothes and spend the $5000 on a therapist.  If you didn’t need one before, you will now!


photo © Kokimk|Dreamstime.com used under license

13 comments:

Mals86 said...

Ivoire had to grow on me - at first I felt that the soap and the moss hated each other, like one of those "I can't believe I married this person, get me out!" couples. Turns out, though, it's more a case of The Odd Couple: they snipe a bit, but there's affection underneath.

I like it better when the air's humid. Which should hit us any day now here in Virginia...

BitterGrace said...

Your response to TV reminds me a lot of my feeling whenever I look at fashion and "women's" magazines. I always find myself wondering who this stuff is for.

Ivoire is good stuff. Parfum is incredible, and sadly rare...

Melissa said...

I'm also in agreement with your TV comments. If I could get just TCM & be able to watch Mad Men I'd be happy. I'm amazed at how many channels we have for there to be absolutely nothing on. I remember as a kid getting maybe 5 stations & being fine about it. And that fashion show just makes me angry. It's way too often that they take what seems to be a basically happy person with bad taste & turn them into someone sad with $5000 worth of clothes they won't wear. The family & friends that get them on this show should be slapped.

Also ditto on the vintage prices. I've wasted money before fighting it out on Ebay, but now it has to be a steal for me to even bother. Besides, I trip up on plenty of good stuff at estate sales that they are truly giving away. Ivoire was one, as was Shalimar extrait!

And here in Alabama we're getting the same dusting of yellow powder. But the weather & the
azaleas are GORGEOUS! You have to soak it up while it's here & before the turbo heat sets in!

The Left Coast Nose said...

Hmmm... I would have answered "coffee" rather than BBQ...

ScentScelf said...

I have Ivoire in the edt, and really think I need to wait for a shot at the parfum before I make any pronouncements. (Suffice to say that, at the moment, they would not be particularly favorable. Soap soap soap.)

Lawsy, that is another world. Unfortunatley, it's one a generation thinks is what people do. Snark, snark. I used to spend part of a class at the start of every American Idol season, explaining all the ways the AI "audition" process goes against the way a professionally led audition would be conducted.

I like both coffee and BBQ as answers to the question. :)

Anonymous said...

Completely with you on the worth(lessness) of television.

I would amend the question to: "what smells EVEN better. . " "Bacon" will also be accepted as a correct answer.

I did once pay $50 for a vintage scent that wasn't vilely off but had lost its vim and personality, so I've dropped my limit to "a steal".

Moving into the bright-weather scents here, glad as always that it's a dry climate and not a swampy one! For me, EL PCTG is something to wear when I feel like pretending I'm on an old-fashioned Hawaii trip, in the days when people arrived via ocean liner. Pairs brilliantly with a mai tai or similar paper-parasol-decorated drink.
-- Gretchen

Olfacta said...

Hi Mals -- We usually get our humidity starting around Memorial Day. Can't wait. Good to hear from you!

Olfacta said...

Hi M -- I always wonder too. Well, definitely not me, that's for sure!

I see Ivorie in extrait sometimes on fleabay. Didn't know it was rare. Uh-oh.

Olfacta said...

Hi Melissa -- Yeah, and it seems like they always put the big-chested plump girls in these empire waisted blouses that make them look pregnant. And pants that are too tight and too long. And and and. And I wish I had the estate sale gene. The ones I manage to get to are either incredibly depressing or incredibly depressing and filled with junk nobody cleaned out of the basement for 50 years. I did get a pretty bottle at one, but have never seen any perfume I'd want.

Olfacta said...

Hi R -- Yeah, coffee too. I bet you have more coffee places than barbecue joints. We have many and they all smell incredible, but it's the very rare place that does't cook the stuff until it's like a shoe.

Olfacta said...

Hi S -- Once upon a time, back in the mid-80's, there was a show on NBC (I think) called "Anything for Money" and it was the spiritual grandaddy of all these reality shows. Or what was that game show where the people used to dress up like chickens or whatever and then rush the stage?

Olfacta said...

Hi G -- oh yeah. Bacon. My husband dredges it in brown sugar first. That way you get pork fat and empty calories! Worth it though...

Aparatchick said...

I'm going to have to remember your tip about honey next January - we have pollen covering (not just dusting, covering) everything and I can't make a move without a kleenex close at hand. Our farmer's market always has honey; I'll have to give it a try.

Another person who has never seen American Idol. I don't know why, really, I suppose it just doesn't sound interesting to me.

Havana Vanille - loved it. It's now in the back of the drawer since I don't think it will do too well in a Florida summer, but I'll be bringing it back into the rotation come fall. I'm wearing Ava Luxe Fig Leaf today, no hornet attacks so far....