Miss OstrichA downside to living with a guy is that I can't escape the smell of man. My roommate is great, except that he's a big guy who sweats a lot and doesn't shower every night. He doesn't stink; he just leaves that hot vapor of masculinity wherever he goes. I don't mind it, but sometimes I need to escape it for something more feminine, so I finally picked up a simple table-top air freshener the other day at the supermarket.
I chose vanilla. It's not super strong and overpowering, and it is just enough scent to mask my roommate's while I lay in bed. What I forgot, however, is that scent is the strongest sense tied to memory.
The freshener itself is a little cone you pop open and let sit on a surface (my desk) while the inside gradually melts and evaporates. I put it behind my fan so the smell would disperse faster, then settled into bed with a book. All of a sudden, I thought about my ex. I thought about driving with him by the beach, the piggyback rides he used to give me and laying in his bed watching his broken disco ball twitch as it tried to spin from his ceiling. As soon as I caught on, I snapped out of it. I hadn't thought about him like that in years. I was confused for a minute then realized: the scent from the air freshener matched the smell of the musky, vanilla shampoo he used while we dated.
I tried to forget, but memories kept coming back. I didn't feel pangs of regret or sadness or even happiness; just nostalgia, I guess. I've gotten used to it now, but at first I was surprised at just how quickly I remembered little things from being with him.
Has this happened to you? Do you agree that scent is the strongest sense tied to memory or is there a different one that works better for you?
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Comments (72)
My hot vapor of masculinity has claimed the lives of four women so far.
scents, along with everything else.....
My ex never wore cologne... but he ruined Excel gum for me forever. -That's okay, there are so many brands out there anyways.
*Though, that really sucks...Vanilla is one of my favorite scents. >_O
My ex smelled like dirty, hasn't-been-washed-in-four-weeks laundry, so I'm not reminded of him often (thank goodness) because I'm clean and hygienic.
I've been reminded of my exes by smells but I can't really describe them...they just happen.
oh yeah, if another guy is wearing the cologne my ex wore when we dated i'll immediately know what smell it is and think about him.
@wherethefishlives@xanga - haha, I'm so glad you made a comment on that... I thought I was the only one to be struck by that line. Guess it's not just me.
every time I smell polo cologne i think about one of my exes. And every time I hear a song by nickelback I think about a different one.
it sucks when it comes up when you're not expecting it.
depends i love certain scents and many make me go nuts.
None of my exes had outstanding smells. I at least haven't come across any smell that sparked up any memories, at least. Though guys in hats and sometimes just the way a person's face looks reminds me of one of my exes a lot. He had a weird face, but it's not too uncommon to see a girl or guy with a similar nose and that reminds me. It's pretty silly. n_n there's this girl on xanga that actually has a very similar likeness to my ex. So whenever I see her picture I think of him a bit.
@methodElevated@xanga - wow that sucks. lol
For me, it's music. I have had many a song ruined by memories of exes :(
I just like man smell in general.
Not gross man smell, just man smell.
I'm not sure if it's the strongest sense tied to memory...I have to check my psych book for that. But I do agree that scents, tastes, and other sensory stimuli have strong emotional impacts in certain contexts. Maybe you can find a miniature stink bomb that will remind you of any unpleasant scents he bestowed upon you? That would probably ruin your home for a while, though...Haha.
Am I the only one who got the wrong idea with the post name? Please tell me.
certain scents do bring back things for me, but it's not that strongly associated with memories... otherwise i'd have an example of a memory to give you right now haha
Haha, no, that's never happened to me.
My ex ruined some Oasis songs for me, since we used to listen to my favorites together.
@wherethefishlives@xanga - lol a wit, this one.
hmm I definitely like a guy to smell nice, but it doesn't ruin any scents for me (my favorite smells have never had anything to do with men ha). I would say visual cues get me the most.
Scent is probably the strongest trigger of nostalgia/memories for me. I still remember the shampoo I used during my first family trip to FL; every time I smell it now, I think of that trip.
Certain candy smells bring me RIGHT BACK to childhood.
There are colognes that drum up memories for me, but mostly they remind me of exes. Which, oddly, makes me remember that toward the end of my relationship with each guy, I became distinctly aware of his scent, and did NOT like it how I used to.
@BlackSunshine7@xanga - haha! No, you most certainly aren't!
A couple of scents are connected to people in my past. Its very interesting the power a smell has over our memory. For one ex interest, it was his cologne. For another, it was the air freshener he kept in his car. I wouldnt say those scents are ruined for me. Although, before I got over them, I hated the feelings I got everytime a scent reminded me of them.
@BlackSunshine7@xanga - yeah I thought it was gonna be another one of those. "I can't eat vanilla anymore cuz it makes me think of my ex *cries". Which I can't fucking stand. Glad its not though.
Yeah, they are certain smells that remind me of people. But wheather it's good memories or not I just kinda try to push it aside. Never want your life to be run by your memories.
All but one of my relationships were long distance so I never got to really smell their scent. Har har.
yea that kind of thing happened to me too after my first boyfriend broke up with me. i always wore vanilla perfume and made sure i always smelled like it becuase that was his favorite scent on me.
then after we broke up, i stopped using it because it always made me thing of him and made me cry.
but now the both of us are really good friends and when i smell vanilla i still remember what i had, and think fondly of them, but i don't think i'll be using vanilla perfume anytime soon.
Scent IS the strongest sense linked to memory. Scent is the only sense that is directly processed in the brain without having the intake of information needing to be thrown about the brain in order to identify it before then making it to the area in which it's processed.