Smells
- The first smell of Autumn reminds me of a drive I took in high school. I was sixteen years old and had just broken up with my boyfriend, who was three years older than me. I was heartbroken after finding out he had been cheating on me through most of our relationship. I didn't want to home and explain to my mom why my face was all red and blotchy from crying, so I drove around for about two hours with the windows down - reflecting on our relationship and thinking this was the end of the world. Ahhh...if we only knew then what we know now. So now when that first smell of Autumn comes, I think back to that night - only now I'm not sad, it makes me smile when I think of how silly I was.
- Moth balls - I can't help but think of my Grandma & Grandpa's old house; and that smell followed them when they moved into the mother-in-law's quarters in our house when I was in 8th-grade.
- The smell of Drakkar. I, along with all my girlfriends, LOVED this cologne. It seemed that every guy I knew wore this when I was in 11th-grade. If they didn't wear this, they wore Polo. In 11th-grade, my friend, V, had a party every weekend. Whenever I smell Drakkar (which is very rare nowadays), I think of her parties. All the cool guys were wearing it. ;)
- Chlorine. The smell of chlorine always reminds me of swimming in my cousin's pool.
- Aussie Hairspray (the purple bottle with pink print) - I think that's the name...something like that. I was out of town for a weddding and had to stop at a QT to pick up some hairspray - this was all they had. The smell of this spray reminds me of when I worked at a local movie theatre. I know I had to of used it at home, school (after gym), etc., but for some strange reason, it reminds me of working at this theatre. I would keep a can in my purse to "touch up" my 3-inch-high bangs. Gotta love the 80's!
Songs
- "Angel" by Aerosmith - This always reminds me of my first "real" boyfriend, Tyler. This was our song. He's also one of those what-was-I-thinking-boyrfriends. Poor guy.
- "Heaven" by Brian Adams - The first song I ever danced to with a boy...that wasn't a relative. :)
- "Heaven" by Warrant - This was the song of me and that boy who broke my heart...the one that sent me driving around town.
- "Don't Speak" by No Doubt - I have to laugh when I hear this. I dated this guy on and off for about a year or so. I finally got sick of his antics and broke it off. He shows up at my house the next morning crying, and playing this song loudly outside my apartment. "Doesn't this remind you of us," he asked. Um, no. This guy works with one of RD's best friends. I told RD's friend that I went on one or two dates with this guy - I was too embarassed to admit to any more than that. This ex would flip if he knew RD's friend knew me. I received calls and cards for a few years after saying that I was "the one that got away." Again, poor guy.
- "The Chair" by George Strait - It's RD and my's song. Talk about a wonderful memory. It always reminds me of the night we met.
- "Groove is in the Heart" by DeLite (?) - Another high school song. It reminds me of this goofball we hung out with, Al. He swore the song was, "Grover's in the Hole." I can't help but move to the beat when I hear this song.
- Almost any song from the late-70's - early-80's. My mom was a shopaholic (and still is, though she's flat broke, but that won't stop her). Every weekend, and many weeknights, she would drag me from store to store. They always had the latest soft-rock hits playing in the background. Now when I hear one of those songs from way back when, I think of hiding inside those rounders and making silly faces in the mirrors of the dressing rooms.
- Stale beer breath - my dad.
- Cigarette smoke-filled houses, clothes, cars - my parents. I was always embarassed to have friends over because the smoke was so thick.
- Diesel - the smell of diesel fumes always reminds of looking for my bus in grade school. Walking up and down the aisles of those big, yellow buses, looking for #47. Aahhh...smell that fresh air.
Sights
- Big, fat, fuzzy caterpillars - In preschool, and on into grade school, I took great pleasure in making a little home for these little critters I would find during recess. I would set up a bed of grass in my pencil box, and check often with excitement, waiting to see that perfect little cocoon.
- Pencil erasers - Not the ones already atop your No. 2, but the kind you buy separately to put on your pencil once your eraser has worn thin. These little pink cone-shaped erasers made perfect make-believe lamps in the little village I had made in my lift-top desk for my Astrosmurfs (from McDonald's...the green, UFO smurfs) and Smurf figurines. I would fold up a piece of Kleenex for them to have a bed.
- Trapper-Keepers - I always had fun picking a new one out each year. Heaven forbid I use the same one two years in a row! I had great dreams of being very organized at the start of each new year. It didn't take too long for that dream to lose its thunder.
- Clogs - I saw a little girl wearing clogs just yesterday. I didn't know people still wore these. I went through so many pairs of clogs when I was little. I have a scar on the top of my left foot to prove it. Damn, I loved those shoes...those loud, ugly, dangerous shoes.
