Don’t ask what provoked me to buy a bottle of Seabreeze facial toner, but it was more than a few months ago and I guess I was having a sentimental moment dreaming of my Noxema and Seabreeze days of yore.
I read somewhere that scent is supposed to trigger our strongest memory recall. I experienced this last night during a 9 hour power outage.
Three of the 4 boys were piled haphazardly together in bed, no doubt believing they would be more courageous to endure the thunder together than apart, and the baby was dozing contentedly in his crib.
With no water or power I was fighting images of me washing clothes in a bucket with a stick while my Fabioesque hero chopped wood so we could cook our food. Meanwhile a less hairy version of my hero worked diligently in the garage to hook up our generator so we could run some fans and keep the refrigerator going.
I realized that I wasn’t going to be able to wash my face but hope dawned when I realized that I had my trusty bottle of Seabreeze! This stuff is like battery acid so I was sure that it would rid my sweaty face of at least the days dirt and grime if not a few layers of skin to boot – hooray!
I soaked a cotton ball and soon felt that familiar sting – oooh! As I inhaled the aroma, my world began to blur and spin like an old 45 record. Before I knew it, I was sitting poolside with a slick layer of Ban de Solei SPF 2 oil with Brian Adam's “Summer of ‘69” straining through my Getto Blaster. I had Sun In in my hair and was passionately discussing Bo and Hope’s latest love disaster with my fellow Days of Our Lives junky, Natalie.
I could almost feel the prickle of the suns rays on my skin when…
“MOM!! It’s too dark!!”
Vvvrrrooooom. Plop. I’m back in my dark bathroom with the flicker of a candle illuminating a soiled cotton ball. Whether it was dirt from the day’s grind or a layer of freckles, I’m still not sure, but I’m thinking of putting my kids to bed early tonight and popping the top on my bottle of Seabreeze. Maybe this weekend I’ll splurge on a tub of Noxema as well. Do they even make Noxema anymore?
2 comments:
KK - I feel the need to call you that as I write this comment. :-) It was hilarious because as soon as I read the word "SeaBreeze" I could almost smell it (it's that strong) and started hearing Brian Adams and thinking about Bo and Hope, too. Weird.
I'm glad you think about those days fondly because I sure do - and I'm even more glad that we are still in touch to smile about them.
Btw, I haven't watched "Days" in years, but I do know that Bo and Hope are back on it. And they do still make Noxema! So there are a couple of more opportunities for flashbacks.
Love you lots, Natalie
Next time I'm in AZ we're going to have to get Noxema facials and watch "Sixteen Candles" We can pass notes through the credits! haha!
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