Smell

Good Morning everyone,

A little background on what I am posting. My neighbor from across the street showed up at my door this morning looking for a drink because the "haints" had ahold of him. I know he is an alcoholic, (and maybe I am his enabler, I don't know, but don't judge me). He was sitting here drinking some vodka I had in the freezer, and I could smell it. Made me think about how important smell is, and the influence it has on our lives. This got me to thinking about the things in my life that I associate with the smells involved. I would like to share with you, and you with me, what you associate with certain smells. I will start this off.....

My mother worked at Phillip Morris, so the smell of tobacco from her. She also wore Evening in Paris, which I strongly associate with her.

My father was a wood worker at Willet furniture, so the smell of cherry wood.

The smell of fresh hay as I was putting it in the loft.

The smell of fresh mown grass. (I owned a lawn service until last year).

The smell of the woods early in the morning, as I was squirrel hunting.

The smell of onions cooking, and also the smell of popcorn on the stove.

The smell of coffee perking in my parents old percolator.

The smell (and taste) of some good moonshine right out of the still.

I could go on, but I think you know by now.

What smells and tastes brings back memories in your past?

WBR

Nice post, thanks.

I have in life, a few times, been reminded of the smell of the bathroom in my grandparent's house. It makes me stop and focus on the moment when it happens to relish it to it's fullest.

Sheepskin rug, peacock feathers in a green handmade ceramic jug with a crab on it, wooden floorboards that betray creepers, the huge electric boiler that lived in the massive airing cupboard full of the thickest towels, the super-soft and sweet spring water straight from the tap that gave a lather with just a touch of palmolive soap, and of course, an obligatory row of musty unchanging books.

I love the memories.

originally posted by: whiteboyrick
The smell of onions cooking, and also the smell of popcorn on the stove.

Butter makes it double-good.

Also, the smell of the old Toyota my Grandfather donated to me. It was his beekeeping car but he had retired. Oh the smell! Beautiful.

When I was a child, my father managed a retail tire shop. I spent a lot of time in and out of tire storage areas, playing around the tires, helping where I could, etc. Additionally, my first real job was in a tire shop. I am always reminded of those times whenever the rubber smell hits me in any tire establishment. It is such a strong smell and I could see how many wouldn't like it, but it is familiar and comfortable for me.

GSR makes me think of breastfeeding.

a reply to: whiteboyrick

Your post brought back a memory of a funny event that happened years ago.

I had gone to my sister's house to visit. I was there for about a month. I had a lot of quality time with my two year old niece.

I had been home about three months, when my sister called me to tell me about shopping trip to the mall with my niece. She said they were going up the escalator and my niece got very excited and was screaming, "Auntie is here!" "Auntie is here!"

My sister said she also got excited and was looking for me. She said she didn't see me anywhere, but my niece keeping screaming that I was there. She asked my niece if she could see me. She told her, "No, I not see her". My sister asked her how did she know that I was there, my niece said, "I can smell her mommy, I can smell her."

My sister said the moment my niece said she could smell me, she could too. Unfortunately, what they smelled was a shop that sold my signature scent at the time. I think the thing that stood out for me, was that they could pick out my scent in a shop that sold so many different scents.

Our olfactory senses are stronger and more complex than we realize.

Two stroke skidoo exhaust will take me right back to my childhood. Many fond memories associated with it.

The smell of paper money…..takes me back to the not so good times when i was a substance abuser

The smell of wood smoke on a jacket from sitting around a campfire bull#ting with the guys.

The crisp cold winter air on a clear day almost odourless but calming.

The smell of a fresh cut pine Christmas tree, again many fond memories from my youth

The smell of death, nasty but I was grave digger in a very old and full cemetery. Some plots were pre purchased long ago so you need to squeeze them in between two neighbors…sometimes the rough boxes would be exposed and they would drain a putrid black water that smelled like formaldehyde and well death. My first job. Don’t miss it. But it did help me find a big ass rotten mouse in a wall at work because well I recognized the smell of death and knew there was something dead someplace near.

The smell of my dog tucker. He passed away but his leather collar around his urn still smells faintly like him.

The smell that I consider the smell of poverty, you can smell it on some people like damp mildew on their cloths. Probably from living in substandard dwelling coupled with poor hygiene. Almost like black mold. It reminds me of the dank dingy basements I would frequent in pursuit of a fix.

Huge Boss Original cologne - smells damn fine my favourite reminds me of the good old days when going out was fun and I would get dressed up nice for a night of good company and laughs before it turned into a sickness.


a reply to: whiteboyrick

I lost My sense of smell in Nov of 21 from covid (My only symptom), but every once in awhile I get the whiff of what someone is cooking and it smells glorious (its usually something cooking while camping).

I miss My sense of smell.

a reply to: whiteboyrick

Nice topic.

These memories don't always pop up when I smell these but they are fairly frequent associations...

Bacon = my Korean ex girlfriend. On our first date she smelt like bacon because she had been cooking some earlier lol

Gasoline = my father and a specific gas station in Holland. I got out of the car while he was fueling it and he asked me if I wanted an ice cream.

Books = my friend's old bookshop in downtown Boulder especially.

Gun powder = basic training.

Green tea = my old Daost tai chi and qi gong studio I used to go to .

I am sure there are a lot more...

Associated smells can be heart warming or heart breaking. I too love a memory triggered by a smell. I’ve had a smell take me back to childhood with memories I had forgotten.
Although that’s not always the case for everyone else. A smell for a recovering addict can restart their drug abuse. I know addicts who told me certain smells trigger their urges. A chemical used to make or cut the drug can trigger the brain to crave it when smelled, so certain cleaning products may even trigger the urge.

I've always had a fondness for the smell of money and the scent of a woman.

You dont realize how important it is till its mostly gone.

After 20 years working on in and around airplanes my sense of smell is nearly dead, it has to be a very strong smell to get through to me.

a reply to: whiteboyrick


The smell of a campfire or wood is my favorite.

The smell of lilacs, smell them when I think of my dad.

The smell of the ground after a rainstorm in the summertime.

Coffee

Gas reminds me of my stepdads gas station he owned when I was younger. I’m an oil girl

My nanas cover girl powder

Eucalyptus anything, love it

Musk reminds me of my son and sister, they both love it.

I remember the smell of my Grandmother's old house when we would visit her when I was very young.
Could never quite place the smell since...but I've literally smelled it in dreams I've had of visiting there.

Some ingredients to that unique smell...possibly old wood or wood varnish...maybe a slight mothball smell from her closets.

For me it would be Swisher Sweet cigars from my Grandpa.
Fresh Coffee Beans
Roses
Freshly Mowen Grass from playing outside as a kid all the time
Leaves
Meat sauteing in butter or spices

Olfactory nerves have direct connections to portions of the brain where memories are stored. It's an evolutionary adaptation to keep us away from danger and still functions as such but is mostly relegated to reminiscing about deeply emotional events.

a reply to: whiteboyrick

The smell of mojitos and fried chicken take me straight back to when i was about 6 years old, and walking past this pet shop i loved to visit.

Smells trigger memories more than any other senses.
The smell of 2 cycle oil burning reminds me of racing motorcycles.
High end perfume reminds me of hot dates and wonderful evenings.
The smell of leather in the sun, reminds me of my first BMW.

I can’t quite put a name to it, when I step off of the plane in Mexico there is this weird smell, not quite burning garbage, with a hint of swamps. It brings back a flood of memories. I have a lot of ptsd attached to Mexico.

Moving on, Happy New Years to all of my ATS friends.

I was born with Anosmia and have never smelled anything ever. There are a lot more Anosmics than people realize!

a reply to: Irishhaf

That is sad to hear

My wife's is much stronger than mine.

A lot of mine went away due to smoking...I have been quit for a long time but it never fully came back.