Blogs

eBay Order Benefits Blind Cats

I won an auction today on eBay for a 5ml bottle of Inferno, 10% of the proceeds to benefit Blind Cat Rescue & Sanctuary, Inc. in St. Pauls, NC, through eBay's Giving Works program. I visited the BCRS website, and oh my. This is a wonderful organization. If you go to their "Meet the Cats" page, there are some wonderful stories, but be prepared with a box of Kleenex close by. Some of these are sad, sad stories (although they have a happy ending). I wish 100% of the auction went to this organization, and I plan to donate to them as soon as I am able. If you see any other auctions that benefit Blind Cat Rescue & Sanctuary, please consider bidding (here is a link to a list of eBay auctions that benefit BCRS). You can also just visit their website and click the "Donate" button. These seem like truly good people doing wonderful things for blind cats.

July 17, 2008

Marcilla

Marcilla: Blue lilac, lily of the valley, golden musk, beeswax, white ginger, bergamot, green tea, and nectarine. In the imp: Beeswax! A beautiful glowing scent, a lot of delicious bergamot and nectarine, but so well blended that I couldn't pick the notes apart. On me: Bergamot is definitely in the forefront for me, and the musk just makes it more spectacular. It is beautifully blended, so I can't pick out the other notes, I can only say that this is a gorgeous sunny yellow scent. Bottle is a must.

July 16, 2008

Oooh! Update!

Got the CnS notification last night for this order that I placed on June 9. Go, labbies!

July 16, 2008

Midnight Kiss & Blood Kiss

I picked up a couple of new scents from eBay, Midnight Kiss and Blood Kiss. I like them both pretty well. Midnight KissEternal desire, unquenchable passion: red musk, cocoa absolute, Nepalese amber, red sandalwood, aged patchouli, nicotiana, and blood wine. In the bottle, smells strongly of cocoa, almost chocolate syrup, and smoke. Can definitely smell the musk and patchouli. On my skin, it's a much softer chocolate-y smell. A little smoky. A little wine-y. Kind of like body incense. A keeper. Blood KissLush, creamy vanilla and the honey of the sweetest kiss smeared with the vital throb of husky clove, swollen red cherries, but darkened with the vampiric sensuality of vetiver, soporific poppy and blood red wine, and a skin-light pulse of feral musk. Musk and clove. A little bit of a pot smell. It smells better on Ben than me. On my skin, it doesn't smell nice at first, but gets better after a few minutes, a little cinnamon once it dries a bit. Doesn't last long, though.

July 15, 2008

A displaced Southern gal

My second wedding

Nope, I'm not divorced. Two weddings, same guy. A bit of background: My husband's parents immigrated to the U.S. from Pakistan about 35 years ago. He and I had a traditional American church wedding in Tennessee in early June (and I swear I'll get pictures of that posted one of these days now that I have them back from the photographer), and to honor both our traditions, we gathered with his family in Colorado over the weekend for the walima, a celebratory feast the groom's parents hold after a Pakistani wedding. From my sister's e-mailed photo album: And here's the link to the pictures. Brace yourselves for an explosion of sparkly color! So as Jen said, Friday night was the mehndi - sort of like their version of a bachelorette party. Traditionally, the night before the wedding, all the women gather to celebrate with the bride, and there's food and dancing and singing and the bride gets her hands painted with henna paste. And the men are very much Not Invited, though apparently that varies depending on how religious the guests are. In our case, it was a ladies (and young boys) only thing because many of Z's older relatives would have been scandalized if the women were dancing in front of the men. The whole thing was quite an experience. Twelve zillion people I'd never met, many of whom Z either didn't know or hadn't seen in years, probably half of whom were not native English speakers. And in addition to learning the names, I had to remember which honorific to use. For someone who's older than you but of the same generation, you add "baji" (for a woman) or "bhai" (for a man) to the end of their name - it's sort of like the Japanese "san," as far as I can tell. Older generations tend to be "auntie" and "uncle" (or "mamu" in Urdu) no matter how - or if - they're actually related to you. And all the honorifics apply whether you're addressing the person or speaking of them to someone else who cares about that sort of thing. So I had to sort out Deeba-auntie and Uzma-baji and Asid-bhai and Khalid-mamu and Sabina who's just Sabina because she's younger than me. I also have four nieces and two nephews I hadn't met before Thursday, and I had to get them all sorted out (though that was pretty easy because Z talks about them all the time). (Also, aren't they CUTE?) (Sorry for all the parentheses... this is how my thoughts are running at the moment.) Auntie and Uncle (as my parents-in-law have asked me to call them) brought all my traditional clothes back from their last trip to Pakistan. In addition to the yellow shalwar kameez I'm wearing in the mehndi pictures and the orange lehenga I wore to the walima, I also had two less formal shalwar kameez in midnight blue and in pink. I dressed that way all weekend, which earned MAJOR points with Auntie, and since there's been some tension regarding her only son marrying an American girl, especially after her oldest daughter married an American guy, I'll take all the points I can get! Shalwar kameez is insanely comfortable and flattering pretty much no matter what you look like. On the other hand, that gorgeous beaded walima outfit was HEAVY. The dupatta (the drapey thing on my head) was about fifteen pounds, and I'm wondering if the neck pain I woke up with this morning has something to do with that. But whatever, it's not about comfort when you're the bride, it's about looking amazing and showing the doubting family that the American girl can fit in. There had been some tension about that before this weekend, but while we were there, the only person who said anything was my eight-year-old cousin Mannan. I have to tell that story because I'm so insanely proud of my nephew. Mannan came up to me while we were all hanging out at Auntie and Uncle's house after the walima. "So you're Zaiem-bhai's wife?" "Yes I am." "But you're American." "Yes I am." "I thought Pakistani people were only supposed to marry other Pakistani people." "Well..." I dragged that "well" out for as long as possible, trying to figure out how to basically justify my existence to this eight-year-old boy... And then my BRILLIANT five-year-old nephew Zan leaps to my defense. "Hey! My papa's American!" "He IS?" And I left them to it, because I didn't want to make a big thing, but I thought it was amazingly brave of him to stand up to his big cousin on behalf of an auntie he'd only met two days before. He's totally my hero. So the weekend was amazing, and all the food was incredible, and I got big points for dressing like the family and getting up to dance at the mehndi and learning a few key phrases in Urdu or possibly Arabic (it's hard to sort them out, actually, because the cultural and religious traditions are so intertwined that sometimes Z says he can't tell whether his family is doing something because they're Pakistani or because they're Muslim). And I think this is my last wedding for a while. I need a nap.

Shollin

July 15, 2008

vultureguy's Blog

Bad gets badder

I wore Troll today. We knew we had an announcement at work about how majorly the teams will be impacted. Our team is being moved to another area and will be in line later for these changes. First waves though are my friends, my coworkers and previous team members. 60% of their jobs are going. Of 239 people in the general center, 99 will have a job in the center still and 140 of those jobs are going to India. Those people affected will have 3 choices: apply for one of the few jobs staying, apply for a lower-paid "customer-facing" role (which means they won't get pay rises going forward until the base salary of the job they are in catches up) or go somewhere else. That's just our center. THere is another center that is equally affected. And then the area my wife works in and the one I will be moved to will be impacted in the future, sometime next year. From this I can guess that when they hit our area we'll be looking at 60% job loss. Really ridiculous. The at least admitted that they're paying the Indian staff 75% less. They are being profit-minded, they don't care that most people will be forced into lower-paid roles within the company. Our employer has been one of the higher paying organisations, however some organisations are starting to pay equivelant or slightly more for some similar roles. I'm really pissed off about it all. I feel that they've been lying to us all along, having been told they would "take care of" us, that there were plenty of comparable roles throughout the organisation for people who wanted them and that there would still be roles in the center. We got a CnS for our Mead Moon and Hay Moon order. That will be nice, to get that and sniff. And hopefully the Life Shit that has hit the 2 people I ordered CD IV & V decants from will get sorted and we'll be able to sniff the newer of the 2 CDs. I managed to get some Bezoar, Pickled Imp and Clemence from someone else, that was cool. Bezoar & Clemence had been on my bottle order but I don't think they are quite what I'd hoped. Pickled Imp is a possibility and I really really want to sniff Hand of Glory. I won't be able to get much but that's fine. I haven't pushed my sales/swap list and maybe I can swap for someone's unloved bottles. *sigh* I'm really looking forward to our 2 week vacation from the 23rd, and to seeing my friends that I haven't seen for about 4 years. They're here for only a week from the US but that will be nice.

vultureguy

July 15, 2008

Agrat-Bat-Mahlaht

Agrat-Bat-Mahlaht: Amber, cream accord, white honey, apple blossom, skin musk, caramel, and teak. In the imp: Amber and caramel. I am such an amber whore. On me: The amber and caramel blend beautifully with the honey, and I get a hint of cream. The teak adds a bit of kick to the blend.......no hint of apple anywhere (thankfully, as it's not a favorite). This is definitely a "Mia" scent. Need!

July 14, 2008

Inez

Inez: Golden amber, vanilla musk, myrrh, cedar, carnation, and red sandalwood. In the imp: Vanilla amer-y goodness, with a touch of carnation. On me: On the carnation!!! The carnation is the most prominent note, deepened a bit by the amber and the musk. There's a touch of cedar and sandalwood adding to the spiciness of the carnation, helping it stay promiment. This is absolutely gorgeous. Another MUST have.

July 14, 2008

Dionysia

Dionysia:Wild plum, pomegranate, raspberry, Siamese benzoin, plum blossom, patchouli, frankincense, and mahogany In the imp: Plum and pomegranate yumminess. On me: Heaven!!!! It's a beautiful plum scent, and the frankincense comes forth to make her a sweet plum incense blend. Wow. This is SO very me. It is beautiful, sweet, incensey, a tad bit earthy, and absolutely amazing. I NEED a bottle.

July 14, 2008

Ambitionless

SW Questions (not answered yet)

Do you like honey? Will you like to try creamy honey with black sesame or with cinnamon powder? This sounds amazing. I love creamy honey. Actually, I love any kind of honey. I use it on plain yogurt, for tea, and sometimes as an ice cream topping. What cartoons did you grow up watching? Any animated shows you still watch? I used to watch Gargoyles, X-Men, Batman, Animaniacs, and others. Who are your forum friends, person or people your witch can contact for ideas? Greylen, Stellans, DenMother, Wildbriar Are you planning on buying anything off your BPAL wishlist during the round? No. I specifically left things off my wishlist that I might buy for myself, so my wishlist is all up for grabs. Which witches would want Bpal boxes? Or imp cases? Maybe an imp case (portable little one), but I'm all set on boxes. Houseplants and/or things to put them in: thoughts? I have managed to keep a money tree alive for several years, but I'm still convinced I have a black thumb. I would take a new pot for my little money tree (doesn't need to be larger than 6 inch diameter) but I don't need one necessarily. No living green things though. I will kill them. Do you read graphic novels/comics? Which ones? I read the Serenity ones, and Spiderman ones. I've wanted to get my hands on the ones that Joss Whedon wrote for the X-Men. How about everyone else-what jewelry do you wear everyday-or do you change jewelry all the time? Lately, I've been wearing a Serenity piece that Stellans gave me and also my Fleur de Lis pendant and chain that my sister got me from a street vendor in New Orleans. How about a short - or longer - piece of fanfic? Usually I hate fanfic, but if it was written by my witch herself I would be THRILLED. Maybe something involving Firefly or Twilight. Slash welcome; again only if written by my witch. What is the weirdest and/or most practical thing you are not buying for yourself right now? It's not weird but it's practical. Storage and organizational things like files. Would you like handmade piece of calligraphy as a gift? Oooo. I so cannot do calligraphy so I have great admiration for those who can. How do you feel about homemade pet treats? I feel a little nervous about homemade cockatiel treats because so many different foods that are harmless to other animals can kill them. Gifts for SO? If you really wanted to. But Eric doesn't lust after anything material other than books. Lush you are lusting after? Any and all non-super-floral bath bombs! Also, their Breath of Fresh Air toner. If you have children, would you want something included for them? Not applicable. Are you lusting after anything from Villainess? Any smooches or body butters. Anything dessertlike or fruity. Bubble bars or bath bombs? Both? Neither? Bath bombs! How you feel about the single mug tea filters? The kind that have a mesh or ceramic filter that fit right it the mug? Love these. I have one already though. Shoe size? 8 1/2 (U.S.) CD scents I am interested in/hoarding? Really anything except for Theodisius (sp?) Melty vs non-melty treats? Melting is not a problem as it is cold here and probably will stay cold for several months. Socks? I love socks but can rarely find 100% cotton. What I covet at the checkstand: Orbit sugarless gum. Butterfingers. Starburst. Is any witchee opposed to "naughty" gifts? If no opposition where is the line drawn? I am all for the naughty. Anything that is legal is okay by me. Maple syrup: Y/N? Oh yes. Who are your favorite Disney characters? Jack the Pumpkin King, Zero. So what's everyone's favorite BPTP nail color? Blood Countess

Carmencita

July 14, 2008

For Swap - August 2008

I have the following for swap, some that don't love me and some that I've bought bottles of. These have only been tested once or twice. All are stored in a cool, dark place, in a climate-controlled, non-smoking home. This is my wish list, but I'm open to suggestions and would be willing to swap for something non-wishlist if there's something you think I might like. Here is a link to specific notes that I like/dislike. If you want to buy: I will sell LE/Unimpable decants for $2, GC imps for $1, or take the GC lot for $15. Chant d'Automne is $17. Sturgeon Moon is $16. Hony Mone is $18. PM me if you're interested. Thanks! Bottles Chant d'Automne (Halloweenie 2008, full) Sturgeon Moon (full to just below the top of the label) Hony Mone (full to just below the top of the label) Halloweenie 2008 Decants Harvest Moon Hellhound On My Trail Huesos de Santo Gunpowder Ichabod Crane The Hessian of the Hollow The Witching Time of Night Other Limited/Unimpable Decants Blood Garden Chaos Theory III Chaos Theory IV Crowley Hony Mone L'Autunno Lune Noir Luperci (2008) Lydia Mama-Ji (*note: this is a lab imp ordered from CBLDF, not a decant) Midnight Kiss Mme. Moriarty Mr. Ibis (*note: this is a lab imp ordered from CBLDF, not a decant) Mr. Jacquel (*note: this is a lab imp ordered from CBLDF, not a decant) Schwarzer Mond (2008) Sturgeon Moon The Illustrated Woman Vampire Tears War Western Diamondback GC Imps & Decants Full to the top of the label or just below, unless otherwise noted. Azathoth Bitch (decant) Caliban Crossroads (label is a bit oil stained) Cthulu Deathcap (decant) Djinn (decant) The Dodo Dorian (decant) Dragon's Eye Eternal Florence Grog Haunted Horreur Sympathique Hymn Inferno (decant) The Isles of Demons Jezirat Al Tennyn Kurukulla La Bella Donna Mia Mente Ladon Languor Maiden Masabakes Moscow Nanshe Nocnitsa Nuit The Obsidian Widow Penitence Queen Gertrude (x2) Santa Eularia des Riu Severin Shoggoth Swank Tavern of Hell Thanatos To a Woman Twilight Ultraviolet Wanton Wrath Xiuhtecuhtli Y'ha-nthelei Zephyr

July 14, 2008

Verdandi

Deep herbs and apple with black amber. Reviewed: 07/13/2008 In the imp: Apples and spice, like fresh spiced cider. Wet: Fresh, juicy apples and spice. Drydown: This has a great throw. It lasts a good while, too, but the apple eventually fades out, leaving the spiciness to dominate. I never got anything herbal from it, just spicy apples with very little morph. I like this very much on my skin, and I think it would make a wonderful room scent. It seems to be a fall scent to me, so I'll tuck this away until the weather starts to cool down again.

July 13, 2008

Wilde

A sophisticated traditional gentleman’s cologne, with just the slightest taint of patchouli’s passion, tonka bean’s decadence, the philanthropy of bergamot, moss’ cynicism, the sharp wit of lavender, and the hopeless romantic longing of jasmine and thyme. Reviewed: 07/13/2008 In the imp: A fresh, clean, men's cologne. Wet: Sharp and clean. I can definitely smell the lavender. Drydown: I keep looking around to see the good-smelling guy, but it's me. It's very fresh, no patchouli to speak of and the florals are light. I'd like to convince my SO to wear this because I think it would be amazing on a man, but he says it gives him a headache. I'm not particularly looking to smell like a guy, but I could probably layer it well with some of my other oils.

July 13, 2008

CaffinatedAngel's Blog

Wishlist

Want Life-time Scents (Will always want a stash of) - Irrelevant and Disturbing Surreal Crawdad Dream Bottle Wants ('cause I liked the imps, and wouldn't mind a bottle.) - Sticky Pillowcase - Bengal - Depraved - Goblin - White Chocolate and Strawberry GC (At least, the big names I'd like to try) The District Countess Willie Crib Girls Emma Josie Neil Gaimen Stardust Tristran Anniversary '09 Copper Phoenix Yule '09 Mother Shub's Spiced Lait De Chevre Mother Shub's Pfancy Pfefferneusse Mother Shub's Toothsome Banketstaaf Pet Magah Bird The Black Temple Burlesque Troupe Sleipnir Pink Snowballs The Peacock Queen '09 Now Winter Nights Enlarge El Dia De Les Reyes '09 Diable En Boite But Men Loved Darkness Rather Than Light ISO those no longer sold I'd like to try or get more of! Lunacy - Strawberry Moon ('09) Lupercalia '09 - Manners Among Men and Women in the Red Light District - Dark Chocolate and Pepper-Smoked Caramel - Dark Chocolate and Cherry - Lovers in a Ricefield - Lovers with Rutting Cats - Man With Phallus Head - Tissue - Voyeurs Among the Cherry Blossoms - Dia - Makhanitis - Melainis - Philommeides - Pothon Meter - Symmakhia - Milk Chocolate Buttercream - White Chocolate, Marshmallow and Coconut - White Chocolate and Sugared Violets Notes: Love/like Skin musk, honey, spices (clove, ginger etc), tonka, fruits (apricot, currant, blueberry, etc), patchouli, mints, coconut Florals that are ok : carnation, rose, lavender hate/don't prefer but know they CAN be worked with... sometimes... Most florals (esp. Jasmine), ozone, metallics, vetiver, myrrh

caffinatedangel

July 11, 2008

Next Order (Already!)

So I got my first shipment of imps on Monday, and I've already got another order in. I sense a new addiction here.... Imps: Miskatonic University Havana Bewitched All Night Long Black Cat Snake Oil Dracul Nephilim The High Priest Not to Be Described Kumiho Bordello Whip Chakra set (Sahasrara, Ajna, Vishudda, Anahata, Manipura, Swadhisthana, Muladhara) 5ml Bottle: Good Omens: War This is so much fun. I'm hooked.

July 10, 2008

My First BPAL Order

After years (literally) of dragging my feet and indecision over what scents to try, I finally ordered my first imps from BPAL on June 22. They arrived on Monday, July 7, and my husband Ben and I had a fun evening trying them out. Here are our thoughts. Bastet Bast, Ubasti, Ailuros, Ba-en-Aset. Represented as both a domestic cat and a fierce lioness, she truly evidences traits of both. She is the Mother of All Cats, Goddess of Sensuality, Fertility, and a guardian and protector of women. She is also one of the Eyes of Ra, and in that aspect is an Avenging Goddess, seeking retribution and punishing enemies of her people. Luxuriant amber, warm Egyptian musk, fierce saffron and soft myrrh, almond, cardamom and golden lotus. Nice. Musky and herby. Definitely smell the musk, almond and cardamom. Gonna watch this one and smell as it develops. I think I like this one a little more than Ben does, but it's probably the next one I'll try all day. Black Lotus Born in the shadows of a Temple to Set, this corrupted Egyptian scent evokes images of black pyramids, river demons, and bleak, deadly desert sands. Black lotus flower, amber, myrrh and sandalwood. Very feminine. Lavender is a little over-the-top, but will soften with wearing. Pretty. Would be better without so much lavender. Again, though, it's nice, and I think that will soften once it's been on for a little while. Bliss A shot of pure, self-indulgent euphoria! A scent that is very, very wicked in its own way: the serotonin-slathered scent of pure milk chocolate. I really (really) like this scent, but Ben's not so crazy about it. Too foodie for his taste, though not objectionable (i.e., he wouldn't refuse to sit next to me or anything). Very almond-y, which is nice. DeSade The essence of pleasure heightened by pain: the raw scent of leather. Smells really nice on Ben. Very leathery indeed, but there's a bit of a nuttiness too. Fascinum Hic habitat felicitas! The penis was a potent and popular symbol of good fortune, strength, power, and fertility in ancient Rome. Images of phalluses adorned Roman homes and shops, bringing the positive energy that the symbol represents into the lives of the inhabitants. A freebie. Smells like cedar and something sweet. Maybe cloves? Too potpourri-like for our taste. Florence The pearl of the Italian Renaissance. Elegant iris, bright berries, gilded amber and velvety spices. Romantic and fruity, with a bit of earthiness. A hint of delicious spices. We're pretty fond of this, although it actually works better on Ben. I'm actually wearing this today, and sadly, it smells too powdery on me. Grog Arrr! Avast ye, matey! This be the scent of pirate rum! Freebie. Whew! Definitely smells like spiced rum. It's actually pretty nice, but I wouldn't wear this to work (unless I worked in a bar). Hecate Magnificent three-faced Goddess of Magic, the Dark Moon and the Crossroads. She is the Mother of Witches, and the midnight baying of hounds is her paean. Her compassion is evidenced in her role as Psychopomp for Persephone, and her wrath manifests as Medea's revenge. Deep, buttery almond layered over myrrh and dark musk. Very almond-y, with some pine. The almond is great, although the pine is not so much. It makes it smell a little soapy. Must be the myrrh. Still, we like this one. Hellcat A soft, sensual, luxuriant blend with a wicked bite: hazelnut, buttercream, honey mead, rum and sweet almond. Definitely can smell the almond and rum. It smells very much as advertised in the bottle, but on me, it's intriguingly strawberry cheesecake like. A fun scent. We like this one a lot. Hellfire A scent celebrating Sir Francis Dashwood's Order of the Knights of St. Francis of Wycombe, also known as the Hellfire Club. A swirl of pipe tobacco, hot leather, ambergris, dark musk and the lingering incense smoke from their Black Mass. Men take note: this one's for you. One of the most complex scents of the first order. Awesome! Definitely can smell the tobacco (high quality, moist tobacco) and incense smoke. Love this one. Iambe Daughter of Pan and Echo and dear friend to Demeter. When Demeter was mourning the abduction of her daughter, Iambe was the only creature in heaven and earth that was able to lend cheer and laughter to the grieving mother. Her scent is one of comfort, beauty and joy: Sudanese amber, patchouli, rose, gardenia, gladiola and white tea. Freebie. Don't like this one. Ben says it's too baby powder-y. I think it smells medicinal. Way too flowery for my personal taste. Kali Kali, the Black One, is the fearless Goddess of Destruction, Creation, Energy [in her Shakti aspect] and Dissolution. Also named Kaliratri [black Night] and Kalikamata [black Earth-Mother], she is the fiercest aspect of Devi, the supreme mother goddess. Kali is a protector Goddess, the destroyer of evil spirits and guardian of the faithful. She, along with her consort Shiva, represent the unending cycle of death and birth, sexual union, creation and destruction. Kali annihilates ignorance, maintains the natural order of the world, and blesses those who strive for spiritual awareness and knowledge of true holiness with infinite tenderness and motherly love. The constant, unending Work of Creation is called the "The Play of Kali". This perfume is a blend of the sacred blooms of cassia, hibiscus, musk rose, Himalayan wild tulip, lotus and osmanthus swirled with offertory dark chocolate, red wine, tobacco, balsam and honey. Complex and sexy. Ben really likes this one (on me). It's got body, but also has a honeysuckle scent. A little dirty, with the chocolate, tobacco and wine scents. This one is a winner. Kitsune-Tsuki Kitsune-Tsuki are malevolent Japanese spirits, akin to western werebeasts: women are possessed by the spirits of foxes, who compel them to perform acts of wickedness and mischief. Asian plum, orchid, daffodil, jasmine and white musk. A very feminine scent. Delicate, elegant and glamorous. Brings to mind high fashion. I would wear this on dress-up occasions, not everyday. We definitely like this one, though. Rosalind Dew-covered berries and fresh green grasses with a faint breath of spring flowers. Freebie. Not bad. A very green scent. A little soapy, though. Schrödinger's Cat One can even set up quite ridiculous cases. A cat is penned up in a steel chamber, along with the following diabolical device (which must be secured against direct interference by the cat): in a Geiger counter there is a tiny bit of radioactive substance, so small that perhaps in the course of one hour one of the atoms decays, but also, with equal probability, perhaps none; if it happens, the counter tube discharges and through a relay releases a hammer which shatters a small flask of hydrocyanic acid. If one has left this entire system to itself for an hour, one would say that the cat still lives if meanwhile no atom has decayed. The first atomic decay would have poisoned it. The Psi function for the entire system would express this by having in it the living and the dead cat (pardon the expression) mixed or smeared out in equal parts. It is typical of these cases that an indeterminacy originally restricted to the atomic domain becomes transformed into macroscopic indeterminacy, which can then be resolved by direct observation. That prevents us from so naively accepting as valid a "blurred model" for representing reality. In itself it would not embody anything unclear or contradictory. There is a difference between a shaky or out-of-focus photograph and a snapshot of clouds and fog banks. A paradoxical scent experiment! — tangerine, sugared lime, pink grapefruit, oakmoss, lavender, zdravetz, and chocolate peppermint. No cats were mistreated during the formulation of this paradox, or in the process of creating this perfume. Very complex. On me, the grapefruit scent is strong (and grapefruit isn't a very good body scent, in my opinion; it smells too much like sweat). It's a really neat scent, though. This would make a great scented candle or bubble bath. Wrath A scent aflame with rage, swirling in the red haze of hatred: dragon's blood spiked with black pepper, clove, and cinnamon. This is kind of neat; for one thing, it's actually a reddish color. Very complex. You can definitely smell the cinnamon and clove. There's a bit too much clove, which makes it smell a little medicinal, and a LOT of cinnamon. It actually burns my nose. This is another one that I like, but not to wear. It would make a great scented candle, especially for fall and winter.

July 10, 2008

Review Round-up!

Dionysia

In the imp: Rich n' fruity, sweet and dark - YUM! On wet: Very sweet - almost a "high-pitched" sweetness, for lack of a better description. The fruit is kinda hanging in the background, as is something vaguely peanut-patchouli and...something else I can't quite identify - maybe the Siamese benzoin? Maybe the mahogany? Hmm...not sure. Whatever it is, it's coming across as almost...fuzzy? Weird! Drydown: Still so incredibly sweet - like candied fruit syrup's been poured over my arm. There's a tinge of sourness every now and then - perhaps from the pomegranate? It usually doesn't like me, so that's my guess. Could be the raspberry, too - I've only ever experienced it in Akuma (not a winner on me, sadly), so I'm not that familiar with how it might play with my skin chemistry. The patch/frank/benzoin/wood are just kinda letting those crazy-sweet fruity notes go wild while they cling close to my wrist. Sniffing up close is a bit overwhelming for my nose (yes, it's that sweet and busy), but waving my arm around *in front* of my nose, letting the scent sorta drift together in distant harmony - wow. WOW. Just gorgeous. Overall: If you haven't already guessed, this is a *seriously* uber sweet blend (according to my sniffer), and not a scent to be slathered willy-nilly! It's a beauty, true - but a *potent* beauty. Very reminiscent of my favourite, Ms. Moriarty, and full of plummy goodness, so will likely be snagging a bottle before CD's departure. Mmm...can't wait to smell her after she's aged for a few months. 4/5

furygrrl

July 10, 2008

Daiyu

Daiyu: Moroccan jasmine, chrysanthemum, tea leaf, white musk, and acai berry. In the imp: Berries!! Berries with a bit of floral. On me: Wet I got a whole lot of acai and not much else. On the drydown it gets musky and blends beautifully with the acai berry. I also get plum, but it's not listed as a note. I get a bit of teak leaf, but ont much jasmine or chrysanthemum. I am really liking this, but as I have to be picky to not end up buying the entire grindhouse I am still not sure if a bottle of this will be purchased.

July 10, 2008

Tiki Queen

Monoi de Tahiti, vanilla, white coconut, tuberose, ylang ylang, white musk, red hibiscus, and neroli. Reviewed: 07/08/2008 In the imp: Flowers and...pixy stix? Wet: Still flowers and pixy stix. What a strange combination, but it works so far. Drydown: The candy scent has completely faded out, and left a bouquet of tropical flowers behind. I don't get any coconut or vanilla, just pure, fresh florals. It's not my usual style, but it's pretty and I can see myself wearing it out often. Good throw and wearlength.

July 9, 2008

Pumpkin III, Pumpkin Patch 2007

Pumpkin with white chocolate, caramel, pomegranate, and cream. Reviewed: 07/08/2008 In the imp: Caramel, then an undertone of something bitter that I can't identify but makes me wrinkle my nose. Wet: That bitter undertone I noticed in the imp rears its ugly head again, but smooths out pretty quickly as the caramel and cream take over. Drydown: The caramel is gone, and that bitter note (which I'm assuming is the pomegranate, but it isn't like any of the other pomegranate notes I've tried from BPAL) hasn't come back. This has settled into a spiced cake with a hint of chocolate. I don't get actual pumpkin, but more like the spices you use for pumpkin pie. Not a huge throw. This would be wonderful in the fall, but it's a bit overwhelming for these hotter months.

July 9, 2008

Swadhisthana: Sacral

Swadhisthana: Sacral: The Glory of Vishnu, The House of Varuna, One’s Own Abode The Six-Petaled Lotus. The unconscious, the sweetness of life, desire, pleasure, sexuality, procreation, emotion. Swadhisthana is the manifestation of passion, the reconciliation, balance and union of the masculine and feminine within ourselves. In Swadhisthana, we learn to give and receive pleasure. It is the stimulation of the life force, the basis for life itself, and our force on the physical plane. In this chakra, our samskaras are cloistered, and in this chakra they find expression. Because of the highly sexual identification of this chakra, many find its temptations and trials very difficult to overcome. **This is the first Chakra that I've tried, and WOW! I need to try more of them. In the bottle: A deliciously dark incense blend, very sensual and unique. The reviews say floral and/or citrus? But I got none of either one. I did get a bit of an iodine type of smell too. On me: Whoa. Well, it works, it is very sexual! On me this was a very sensual incensey blend with a sharp something that my nose couldn't identify (the iodine-ish type smell, but not in a bad way). At one point (once the chakra started working...), it turned into waffles with a super strong throw, and then went back to being incensey without any waffle traces. I'll have to reserve this one for special occasions.

July 8, 2008

Nanshe

The Babylonian Goddess of Dreams, who bestows the power of Oneiromancy onto her priests. This blend opens up psychic sensitivity during sleep and aids in the understanding and correct interpretation of portents and symbols. Reviewed: 07/07/2008 In the imp: Sharp lavender, bright citrus. Very strong. Wet: Crisp, bright lemon, with something spicy lingering underneath. It's still very strong. Drydown: The lavender has been completely overpowered, and it's a spicy, bright lemon. This has one of the strongest throws I've ever found. Since I have to wear a CPAP mask that covers my face while I sleep I can't speak to any dream properties, but it's quite lovely anyway.