THE SENSUAL MEME
October 04, 2007

1. Name something you hate to look at, and why:
George W. Bush, or any member of his family. Because I dislike them so much. For many, many, many reasons

2. Something you love to look at, and why:
Sparkly things. Crystal, gems, my paperweight that looks like a giant pink diamond. Looking at those things soothes me somehow. It just calms me and makes me feel happy.
I never get tired of sparkle, and I�m fanatical about keeping things like that clean and polished, so the sparkle as much as possible.

3. Name something you hate the sound of and why:
People chewing loudly�especially gum. My mom�s fault? Her mother was neurotic about such things, and she picked that up and passed it on to her kids. The popping and snapping of gum, people slopping food down their gaping maws like hogs at a trough�those were cardinal sins in our house, and heavily punished. Consequently, they make me just as insane as they do my mom, and they did my grandmother.

See also: #1 above.

4. Something you love to hear and why:
I�ll say the first thing I thought of�the wind-chime in my backyard. It has a lovely alto tone, and is tuned to produce a pleasing chime that never becomes annoying. It doesn�t tinkle, it doesn�t go �BONG!�. Just a nice, enjoyable middle tone.

5. Name something you hate the feel of and why:
Anything, if it is touching the insides of my wrists. Ever since I was small, I�ve been unable to stand anyone, or anything touching me there. I wear short or � length sleeves, my watch sits as high up my arm as I can get it, and even though I design and make jewelry, I cannot wear bracelets. I just freak; it�s a visceral reaction and I have no idea why that happens.
But seriously�it creeps me out.

6. Something you love the feel of and why:
My dog�s ears. And I mean every dog I�ve had. Mr. B, Raji, Brunsie, Noel�I�m just addicted to snorgling dog ears. Try it sometime. I recommend it. You can�t be too terribly unhappy with a dog�s ear rubbing up against your cheek.

7. Name something you hate the taste of:
Scotch or gin. I�m no teetotaler, but one tasted like road tar, and the other was like sucking on a pine tree. Ewww.

8. Something you love the taste of:
Boy�only one thing? I weigh nearly three hundred pounds, so it should be obvious that there�s loads of things. I�ll pick two:
My healthy choice would be Pink Lady apples. I like apples, and I luurrve Pink Ladies. They have a wonderful, intense flavor, manage to be both tangy and sweet, and they even feel a little fizzy in your mouth. It�s like cider that you chew. I eat a lot of these�when they are in season, I go for months eating one every day.

My not so healthy choice? Really good fudge sundae sauce. I can eat Mrs. Richardson�s right out of the jar. Of course, the best way to enjoy fudge sundae sauce is to fly to Phoenix, go to Mary Coyle�s, order the biggest size sundae they have, and eat it in it�s natural habitat�cooling slowly over vanilla ice cream.
.

9. Name a smell that you hate:
Popcorn. And not just when it�s burned, either. I don�t even go to many movies because I hate it so much, and the ubiquity of microwave popcorn make my workplace hellish for me at times. It nauseates me, sometimes to the point of being physically sick. I blame the many years I spent working at a discount store, in an area adjacent to their snack bar. They were famous for their popcorn, and that damned popper was going all the frickin� time. I don�t remember hating popcorn smell before that, so I think I may have just been so overexposed to it that I developed a lifelong aversion. That same job ruined the smell of leather for me, due to the belt section (I was in menswear).

Well, it also permanently ruined Christmas for me, but that�s not really smell-related.

10.Name a smell that you love:
Constant Comment tea. It reminds me of several people I hold very dear in my heart, who are gone now. My grandmother, Mum (my surrogate mom), and a favorite English teacher were all big CC drinkers. From an aromatherapy standpoint, I find it simultaneously calming and uplifting. The heady aroma of sweet spices, orange peel and pekoe brewing really re-charges me.

Also, L� Air du Temps perfume. Again, my grandmother wore it, and from the first time I smelled it when I was a tot, it has been my favorite. I simply never get tired of it.

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