Friday, December 26, 2008

A Strange Scent

So my wife gave me a bottle of Axe Body Spray--a nice gift. The flavor is called "Phoenix." I spray it on this morning and am hit with the smell of roasted birds. Kidding. But it was strange: incense. Frankincense, actually.

I know nothing about perfuming. I have no idea how perfumers make something smell good, but I am confident there is incense in this stuff.

It actually smells pretty good, though smelling it makes me feel like I haven't been going to Lutheran churches. :)

9 comments :

  1. Dixie said...

    Pastor Hall, Christ is Born!

    Once I was sitting in a meeting and the Frenchman next to smelled so absolutely delightful...just like the Liturgy or one of those old European churches...that I could no longer contain myself. I apologized but explained that I had to know what scent he was wearing. He was a good natured sort so he wasn't offended...thank goodness...and told me he was wearing Thierry Mugler's "Amen" (how appropriate). So I picked up a bottle in duty free on the way home and I have tried wearing it myself...but it doesn't smell the same on me. (I know...it's not typical for a woman to wear a fragrance designed for a man but often it crosses over well.)

    So this is good to know. I may have to get some for...my husband...ya...my husband, that's the ticket. ;)

  2. Christopher D. Hall said...

    Two things to keep in mind: there are other scents involved, and they smell quite masculine.

    Second, it smells very different in the bottle (or air, if you will) than it does on me, so don't think I'm crazy if you puff it in the store. :)

    Merry Christmas!

  3. Dixie said...

    Well then I really may have to get some for my husband since I don't mind smelling like church but surely don't want to smell like a guy!

    No...I won't think you are crazy for a variety of reasons...fragrances are like that, which is why the Frenchman smelled delightfully like church but I just smelled nice when I wore the "Amen".

    What is crazy, however, is how frequently I do catch a whiff of what I call "phantom incense". Well, actually, I don't think it's crazy but others might.

  4. Anonymous said...

    Pastor Hall,

    That Axe spray is just about the worst stuff for people with chemical sensitivities (MCS). One whiff can put a sufferer out of commission for several days. Your parishioners with MCS might be too shy to tell you of the problem... i.e., Please be "scentsitive" and don't wear scents!

  5. Christopher D. Hall said...

    Thanks for the concern, Anon. I never put on much "scent," and on Sundays don't usually use any cologne or body spray at all.

    Having one with severe allergies at home (Eliana has a fatal allergy to peanuts), I know sometimes even a little is still too much. However, I refuse to give up my scented deodorant, as the repercussions of that would be ghastly. :(

  6. The Rev. BT Ball said...

    Hall-
    Axe? What are you 14 or something? This is the stuff my catechumens spray all over themselves and it reeks to high heaven.

    What next - Sex Panther?

  7. Rev. Larry Beane said...

    I few years ago, while I was a campus pastor at a high school, I was filling in for the vacationing pastor for Sunday services at a local parish, and I kept catching a whiff of incense as I was getting things in order. I found it hard to believe that this church was using incense. The elder on duty was an elderly man and extremely well-read theologically - who really loved the liturgy in all its glory.

    I noticed that when he was around, I smelled the incense. I asked him about it, and it turns out that he loves church incense, and used some frankincense-myrrh oil as a sort-of cologne. It smelled glorious - but wasn't at all overpowering like "Axe" (I teach middle school kids, some of the boys think it makes them smell good - uh, it doesn't).

    Anyway, I ended up getting a call to Salem, and this erudite gentleman ended up transferring to Salem after his church was destroyed by Hurricane Katrina.

    He bought me a vial of the Frankincense-Myrrh oil as a gift, and it is really nice - by far better than commercial after-shaves - and better yet, it makes you smell like Jesus. You only need a tiny dab - you use so little that the stuff lasts forever.

    You can buy these little vials of scented oil in a lot of places, such as Whole Foods markets and health food type stores.

  8. Christopher D. Hall said...

    Yes, I am fourteen. And I was four when we went to seminary together.

    But to all the fourteen-year-olds out there, don't bathe in the stuff. That's the real problem, with all the "sexy" commercials for it. Sorry, I've been using various Axe products since I was in Germany ten years ago. And my wife likes it. And you can't have her.

    Hollywood: "Smells like Jesus"...I have no response to that. ;)

  9. Rev. Eric J Brown said...

    Please wear some when next we meet for Winkel. Seriously dude. . . wear some. Lots even.

    We should then have a discussion on incense.