Hooray for LA Scentsation!

hollywood

 

I am running around like a madwoman, trying to get the last-minute stuff done so I can hie off to LA!   I can’t wait to meet everybody!  We have such a fun day planned.  And it will be wonderful to be back in my old stompin’ grounds – I spent the bulk of my mid-adult life working in LA and, strange as it can be, it holds a particularly warm place in my stone-cold heart.  I love the way LA smells – that weird mixture of rotting vegetation, salty air, haze, flowers everywhere.   I love driving west on Sunset, to the sea (double points if you know what song that is from), heading home to Santa Monica.   I remember when Casa del Mar was a crackhouse/flophouse/residence and you just didn’t walk down that particular part of Ocean.  Now it’s oh, so posh.  Santa Monica Farms, which make the best fruit juices on the planet – across the street from my last LA gig, where I almost ran into Michael Keaton in the parking garage  – with my car.   Roscoe’s.  If you fall off the Hollywood sign and roll down the hill you’ll end up at the original Roscoe’s which is across the street from my first office, at the Sunset-Gower studios.  That neighborhood, back in the 80s, was so bad that we couldn’t safely walk from our offices to the restaurant (well, we could but it was a bit of a screech.  And besides, NOBODY walked from the Studios to anywhere!  It’s like that scene in LA Story  where Steve Martin gets in his car and Fred  Flinstones it a few feet to his neighbor’s house)…Roscoe’s.

I’ve been almost too busy to sample perfume.  Sick little chicken – she may or may not make it – El O thinks she’s got a kinked intestine.  I’ve spent the past few days soaking her swollen butt in warm salt water.  If I were a real farmer….but I’m not.  So rather than just cut my losses I hold her little body in my hand and make her sit in the warm, salty water until she poops and the swelling goes down.   It’s dumb, I know.  But I can spare 20 minutes for a little life.   My friend who sells eggs for a living thinks I’m crazy – but she has 150 chickens.  I have 8.  None of them has a name and I do consider them livestock…but…c’mon.  I have to give her a chance, right?  She’s half the size of the other chicks but she’s hanging in there and she can be kind of feisty, which I love, so warm saline it is.

 

I worried about what to wear for the Event.  Ha.  PORTIA will be the MC.  So who will be looking at me?  That’s right – NOBODY!  Not even me!  I’ll be too busy ogling The Fabulosity What Is Portia!!!   Portia will look so fabulous I could be wrapped in toilet paper and chicken poop and nobody would notice.  That’s a relief, since I can barely find my shoes – at least the ones that aren’t covered in chicken poop.  You know the best thing?  We’re on a Bus!  So I can wear ridiculous shoes!  If I can find them!  YAY!  I haven’t been in heels since …….. and who knows …I could look like that chicken, trying to walk in them.  We’ll see…

But when I have pulled my head out of the coop and into the armoire, I’ve been reaching for two things:  Parfums de Nicolai’s  L’eau Mixtepdn and The Different Company Sublime Balkiss. tdcsb  Both of them carry that signature ‘snap’ of blackcurrant in the opening.  L’eau Mixte softens it with a hint of rose and jasmine.  TDC’s Sublime Balkiss does a saltier take on the blackcurrant.  I like the Nicolai for cooler days but since we’re veering from 80F to 50F in the blink of an eye I’ve been able to wear both on the same day!

I haven’t seen a lot of blackcurrant popping up in perfumery these days – for awhile it seemed as if every other scent had it – it was the pink peppercorn of berries.  Then, poof!  Gone.   Or else I just missed a whole new crop of them – and that’s okay.  I am happy as a clam with these two.

So!  You can tell I’m …okay..I got nuthin’.  But I do have a chick whose butt needs soakin’.  And I’m going to do it clad in Sublime Balkiss.  Something tells me Sheba’s Queen never had to soak a chicken butt.

  • Joe says:

    My dahlink!!! We meet on Saturday for many, many hugs and tons of fun sniffing! I cannot wait. Sniff-Till-Ya-Drop!!! Whee.

    I love that L’Eau Mixte, by the way. Summer scent to me … and my decant is long dry.

    xoxo See you soon!

  • Dionne says:

    Ohhhh, so envious! I told Portia I actually checked out flights just to see if by some freakish’ chance of the universe tickets were ridiculously cheap from Calgary to LA, so I could come. (Unfortunately, no. Reasonably priced, but not insanely inexpensive.) Do you think this could be an annual thing? Because next year could be a possibility.

  • poodle says:

    I love chickens. I wish I had a few. I really hope yours pulls through. I bet you’re the best smelling chicken butt soaker ever.
    So jealous of everyone going on the LA Sniffa bus. Please share lots of pictures.

  • Emily S says:

    I hope you guys have an excellent time 🙂 Sounds like a lot of fun. I’m going to second FragrantWitch’s motion: wear lots of fabulous shoes!!

    And your poor, poor little chicken… I hope it’s alright. You’re an angel.

  • FragrantWitch says:

    Aw, bless your chicken-butt-soaking self! I would do the same thing and I’m glad that El O is the back- up butt soaker. Hope s/he is better soon!

    I am SOOO JEALOUS of you all heading to LA Sniffa! Musette and Portia- TOGETHER!! All of you lovely Posse people in one place. Sniff lots, wear fabulous shoes and laugh like drains. Then, please, report back!

  • Aww poor little chickie.. I hope she gets better. I’m sure you’re going to have a fabulous time in LA. Wish I could be there! Post pics!

  • Kandice says:

    Musette,

    You have risen to great heights in my eyes for your devotion to your little chick. I am a huge animal lover and am so touched that you would work so hard to make her better. I hope she rallies and has a long life. Also, have a great time at the LA Scentsation – wish I could join you!

  • Lisa D says:

    I’m in a tizzy, waiting for Saturday to GET HERE ALREADY. I’m so looking forward to seeing some of the Posse in person – my heart is all aflutter!

  • Musette,
    I am quite excited! SQUEEEEEEEEAL
    Liz cook sent me a bunch of samples from One Seed for the crew on the bus and the ScentBar crew too.
    So FRICKEN excited!!
    Portia xx

    • Tara C says:

      Portia, I told my LGBT friends at work that I was meeting with you this weekend and they were jazzed- they also demand a photo, we must have a photo op together! We are preparing our float for SD Pride weekend and they wanted to do a Priscilla-style pose with the huge waving silver fabric on top. 😉 At that point I mentioned I was meeting you and they were green with envy.

  • Mals86 says:

    Wish I could go, too. Hug everybody and smell everything you can possibly manage, please!

    I have turned into a real blackcurrant ho lately, I think: AA Pamplelune, the aforementioned Enchanted Forest, L’Arte di Gucci is all toploaded with the stuff… Chamade’s got a bit of it, and so has the new Silences Sublime.

  • Bring the chicken. Road trip! What fun this weekend. Looking forward to meeting all. I worked out with Franco Wright and Scent Bar that we’ll have the jeweled-encrusted Micallef Rose Extreme on display at Scent Bar for trial, AND a hand-painted Micallef crystal bottle 75 ml decorated by Martine Micallef herself as a prize during the visit – not to mention a sample of the new Denis Durand Parfum Couture for Micallef in all the Scent Bar gift bags – plus a big 3,75 dram gift of the new Parfums Retro Grand Cuir eau de parfum for all. LA Rocks!

  • Jen says:

    Have a wonderful Scentsation my Babylon Sister! Love that Steely Dan tune. Best wishes to your dear chicken. I have to miss the event and I’m so so upset about it!

  • Ann says:

    Hi, sweetie! Bless your heart (and your little chickie’s, too)! Am sending up prayers and good thoughts that he/she pulls through and grows up to be a fine, upstanding chicken — the pride of your coop. Can’t wait to hear about all the adventures in L.A. Sounds like a blast! Have a fabulous time, everyone!

  • Tora says:

    Oh I hope your chicky gets better. All your good care should surely help! I am excited for your trip to LA, you all are going to have the very best time! Someday I will join one of these get togethers and meet all the wonderful folks I only have met online. Have Fun!!!!!!

  • Beth says:

    Musette, you go with your chicken soaking self! Solance, your dog story cracked me up! My aunt once had one that ran over to the neighbors right before Thanksgiving and ripped the heads off his prize turkeys!

    Hope you all have a blast in LA. Wear the heels! Kick them up and smell lots of pretties! I look forward to hearing the stories 🙂

  • Dina C. says:

    I just did a search on blackcurrant note, and I was amazed at the very long list of fragrances on it. My fav so far is Gucci II edp — used up a whole bottle of it. I hope your little chickie grows out of its problem and starts to thrive. Have a great trip to LA. I’m looking forward to stories and photos.

  • FearsMice says:

    I love that you care enough to try to help one little chick make it… Hope he/she pulls through.

    I’m terribly envious of all who are going to LA Scentsation — can’t wait to hear the stories of your adventures there! Have a wonderful time, y’all!

  • solanace says:

    Good luck with the little chicken. I once had a puppy who wasn’t supposed to make it, and it became a beautiful and quite huge dog. Water with a syringe every hour, lots of aloe and Zorro made it. Who knows? I love that you’re taking care of it. My grandma was a farmer, I understand all this is silly from a farmer’s point of view, but I think this respect for life is a nice feature of what we are. I often wish I lived in a farm in the middle of nowhere, like my grandma, who made her own dresses, but this is one point that makes me happy with the pollution, the schedules, the whole stupidity of contemporary life. I see it as evolution. (By the way, the aforementioned dog once dug a hole under the fence and ate all the fourteen neighbour’s chickens – who had names.)
    Have fun in LA!

  • Tom says:

    Looking forward to seeing you!

  • spiker says:

    Have a lovely trip – just wish I could join you all. I hate to ask, but you do have a back up chicken butt soaker for while you’re in LA, right? Just go ahead and lie to me if you don’t. I’ve always been a sucker for animals.

    • Musette says:

      I do – for realz. El O was the first to Soak That Butt. He will do what he can to help her get strong – but he won’t let her suffer, either, if she continues to go downhill (she’s looking pretty good today). She’s in good hands. xoxoxoA

  • rosarita says:

    Aww, hope that little chicken butt gets better! You have a fabulous time on the bus with Portia and take lots of pictures. L’Eau Mixte is lovely, just another thing I’d like to have more of. Big hugs!

  • Tara says:

    Bertrand Duchaufour did that weird blackcurrent scent The Enchanted Forest thing recently… Sadly it smells like cat pee on me. But I do love blackcurrent notes in a scent in general. Send good wishes for your little chicken to make it!

    • Musette says:

      Oh, TEF didn’t work that well on me, either. It juuuuuust skirts Cat Pee Territory. Too close for comfort. If I want to smell like cat pee I’ll wear Yatagan or, as Lee calls it – Catagain 😀

      xoA

    • Mals86 says:

      Man, I love that Enchanted Forest thing. If I weren’t on this huge FLORAL+LEATHER kick lately, I’d be wearing it. Yeah, it’s a little cat pee. No, I don’t care.

      • Emily S says:

        Yep it’s just skirting cat pee for me too, but I’ve learned to almost like that in TEF. It’s like a warm little animal inside a dark forest. Crisp blackcurrant and fresh fir needles and the sweet, vegetal note of fir needles on the forest floor. I love it : )