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Evocative smells

IronWing

IronWing

No Lifer
Some smells evoke a sense of place, a past event, or a strong emotion that time can not dull. The small of McDonalds cheeseburgers reminds me of my grandma as she always took us to McDonalds for lunch.

Other evocative smells:

Brown and serve rolls => Thanksgiving at my aunt's house
Baby powder => shit and slavery
 
Shit and slavery?:hmm:

There are a bunch of perfumes that remind me of past g/f's, crushes, and other women I knew.

Also that distinct school cafeteria smell that I occasionally notice at work when we get just the right mix of leftovers heated in the microwaves.
 
Putting my nose right up to the fan of my power supply gives me flashbacks to doing the same when I was ~3 years old and playing Mean 18.
 
Caulk that smells like my elementary school

A certain citrus smell that smells like an Xmas scratch and sniff book I had. It smells like the tangerine scratch and sniff.

Milk storage that smells like school

Softwood mulch that reminds me of a biker party I never went to. It's an indelible vision and smell, but I don't know where it came from. It's been with me forever.

Cigarette smoke and grease reminds me of my brother working on his car.

Fresh juniper reminds me of Xmas wreaths.

There's a certain smell combination that reminds me of my grandmother, and old people's houses circa 1974. I don't know what it is, but I still smell it every so often.
 
Urinal cakes and a freshly-bleached toilet always bring me back to the swim club days of my youth.

...and has OP been reading Proust, lately?
 
lxskllr said:
Caulk that smells like my elementary school

A certain citrus smell that smells like an Xmas scratch and sniff book I had. It smells like the tangerine scratch and sniff.

Milk storage that smells like school

Softwood mulch that reminds me of a biker party I never went to. It's an indelible vision and smell, but I don't know where it came from. It's been with me forever.

Cigarette smoke and grease reminds me of my brother working on his car.

Fresh juniper reminds me of Xmas wreaths.

There's a certain smell combination that reminds me of my grandmother, and old people's houses circa 1974. I don't know what it is, but I still smell it every so often.
Click to expand...

Stale cigarette smoke, mothballs.
 
I'm pretty sure they've done studies that show the sense of smell is the most closely tied to memory of all the senses.

Found a link.
 
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Old fashioned Christmas incense reminds me of my grandmother, who I was quite fond of. She used to burn it all through the holidays. It takes me back to their old farm house decorated with all sorts of neat old stuff like the tree lights with bubbling water.
 
What I find most striking is my apparent inability to put it into words.
These memories of smell seem to transcend the verbal. I have to experience it and record it then or it slips away until reminded again.
 
ActiveX said:
Here is a good reason to NEVER eat at McDonald s.

McDonald's 4 Year Old Cheeseburger Video
Click to expand...

What's that? Dried, salted, preserved food lasts longer? Amazing.

Back on topic, cocoa butter reminds me of the city pool when I was a kid. Coconut reminds me of an ex because she had a coconut air freshener in her car. Diesel reminds me of bus trips to the grandparents' house. Newsprint makes me sick, because I used to always feel sick if I got up early in the morning, which I had to do when I delivered papers.
 
Limburger cheese always reminds me of one particular hallway in my highschool. Someone had put some in one of the radiators and it smelled every winter when the heat was on.
 
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