A haphazard know-nothing

I am not sure what a perfumista is, but I am entirely certain that I am not that. What happened was I went to Sephora to purchase Ralph Lauren Romance, a fragrance I remembered liking years ago and discovered that I no longer liked it. In fact, it smelled a wee bit like wee on me. I starting sniffing Sephora's wall of samples, got overwhelmed and went home-- hoping that Google could sort me out.

I needed a wedding fragrance. Inoffensive for people hugging me, light enough for summer and to my taste. That's all I wanted. Something different than rose absolute and sandalwood diluted in jojoba (the homebrew scent that I'd worn occasionally for years). Google didn't just answer my question, it introduced me to a world of scent. How odd that something as disembodied as the Internet would fire an obsession for something so sensual.

So, here I am, interested in the history and business of perfume and a terror for sales people who work in shops that sell fragrance. And that's that. I am going to chronicle my obsession for as long as it lasts.