Adventures in Library Land
Oh, luxury of luxuries - I went to the library yesterday, alone! Curtis was trying to squeeze in some father/son time before work, so he dropped me off at the library while he and the boys did their manly thing. The silence melted over me as I entered the hushed sanctuary of knowledge and enlightenment (I'm being dramatic, of course, but seriously ... peace and quiet is tha shiz, y'all).
I headed for the nonfiction section, where I love to just go aisle by aisle, row by row, and leisurely pore over the titles in search of something interesting. That's exactly what I was doing when I was rudely accosted ... by a (heavy-handed) old lady's offensively overwhelming perfume! Ugh. All of a sudden the lovely library-book smell dissolved into a nose-tickling cloud of sickly floral sweetness. She was at the opposite end, still several feet away from me, but I just had to move - it was bothering me that much. I hurried to the next aisle and took a deep breath; ahh, relief. I resumed browsing.
Until - *sniff sniff* - uh-oh. I'll be damned. Less than two minutes later, and there she came, her perfume announcing her arrival long before her flowery brocade jacket rounded the corner. Once again, I left the scene, found a new spot, and got back to bidness.
Until I smelled her coming again. WTF?
This time, though, she wasn't even on my aisle - she was one aisle over, directly across from me; I could see her yellow-white hair bobbing over the horizon of books. But it was close enough to make my eyes water. And by now I could nearly taste the powerful fragrance. Ugh. So I just tucked the few books I'd chosen closer and headed to check them out. I could have picked out Lord-only-knows how many more, but not while struggling to breathe against a noxious cloud of old-ladyness.
One of the books I checked out is called 101 Ways To Make Your Child Feel Special. And one of the suggestions is to let your kids help you clean - which I do on occasion, and Colin always loves it. So I decided to let him help yesterday afternoon after the library, giving him a paper towel nearly saturated with Windex and pointing him to the nearest window. He gleefully polished the glass in the doors, the windows in the living room, and the TV screen while I did my cleaning in the kitchen. After a few minutes, it dawned on me that he was awfully quiet, which almost always signals something I'm going to frown about.
Sure enough, when I peeped into the living room, there he was - vigorously scrubbing on his baby brother (who was watching TV, oblivious) with the Windex-soaked paper towel. "I'm washing Cameron's face!" Colin beamed at me. He was so proud.
I guess Cameron's face was a little dirty ...
I headed for the nonfiction section, where I love to just go aisle by aisle, row by row, and leisurely pore over the titles in search of something interesting. That's exactly what I was doing when I was rudely accosted ... by a (heavy-handed) old lady's offensively overwhelming perfume! Ugh. All of a sudden the lovely library-book smell dissolved into a nose-tickling cloud of sickly floral sweetness. She was at the opposite end, still several feet away from me, but I just had to move - it was bothering me that much. I hurried to the next aisle and took a deep breath; ahh, relief. I resumed browsing.
Until - *sniff sniff* - uh-oh. I'll be damned. Less than two minutes later, and there she came, her perfume announcing her arrival long before her flowery brocade jacket rounded the corner. Once again, I left the scene, found a new spot, and got back to bidness.
Until I smelled her coming again. WTF?
This time, though, she wasn't even on my aisle - she was one aisle over, directly across from me; I could see her yellow-white hair bobbing over the horizon of books. But it was close enough to make my eyes water. And by now I could nearly taste the powerful fragrance. Ugh. So I just tucked the few books I'd chosen closer and headed to check them out. I could have picked out Lord-only-knows how many more, but not while struggling to breathe against a noxious cloud of old-ladyness.
One of the books I checked out is called 101 Ways To Make Your Child Feel Special. And one of the suggestions is to let your kids help you clean - which I do on occasion, and Colin always loves it. So I decided to let him help yesterday afternoon after the library, giving him a paper towel nearly saturated with Windex and pointing him to the nearest window. He gleefully polished the glass in the doors, the windows in the living room, and the TV screen while I did my cleaning in the kitchen. After a few minutes, it dawned on me that he was awfully quiet, which almost always signals something I'm going to frown about.
Sure enough, when I peeped into the living room, there he was - vigorously scrubbing on his baby brother (who was watching TV, oblivious) with the Windex-soaked paper towel. "I'm washing Cameron's face!" Colin beamed at me. He was so proud.
I guess Cameron's face was a little dirty ...
That's my boy! He always cleans the shower for me while he's in there. And I guess his intentions were good, but Cam probably needed something a little more gentle on his face. :o) Oh well, ya gotta love that enthusiasm!
ReplyDeleteThere's an older lady at work that always douses herself in some nasty smelling perfume. You can smell her trail even after 20 minutes have passed since she was present!
ReplyDeleteLOL Mom - I know - he must have inherited the "clean gene" from you. :) Let's just hope his neat streak lasts into his adolescence!
ReplyDeleteJenna - isn't that disgusting? I guess when people wear perfume every day they, like, build up some sort of immunity to the smell ... thereby making the rest of us suffer!
Too cute! That's boys for ya! LOL
ReplyDeleteI hope my frangrances are never THAT overpowering! Most things I can handle but every once in awhile a scent will hit me that will make me gag! What in the world do they do to make it THAT strong?
I LOVE going to the library. When the boys were little, I would take them to story hour!
John even goes now!! Yep! He listens to books on cd rather than so much Sirrius Radio. I've started listening to books on cd again too...while I'm working in my sewing room. I love to read but only time I have for that is when I go to bed!
I love the library too - I could honestly spend an entire day just reading. But the books on cd are the only "reading" Curtis will ever do!
ReplyDeleteI heart the library. I heart nonfiction. I do not heart flowery perfume. I have some weird sensitivity to smells as it is, and would have had a headache for at least 24 hours after your experience. Remember to check out a Sedaris book the next time you go to the library! :)
ReplyDeleteAaaah! I knew there was someone I wanted to read - I just couldn't think of it, and I racked my brain to no avail. Sedaris. I've got to put that in my phone so I don't forget!
ReplyDeleteThat's funny with the purfume story....my boss started wearing something new & last week I thought I was going to have to leave work a few days....her office is on the other side of my cubical & all I kept smelling was her strong ass old lady scent....what'd she bathe in it first? I finally had to start making sure I wore mine EVERY day so that my nose would smell that & not her! LOL
ReplyDelete