Tim | Thursday, March 11th at 02:23 PM
I can barely handle the smell of unscented tealights some days. The whole idea of masking smells has never made sense to me. Smells layer and interact in unpleasant ways, they don't hide behind one another. Similarly: people smell much better than deodorant.

Tim | Thursday, March 11th at 02:26 PM
I do like the idea of a ritual sacrifice after vacuuming, though.

One of the neater things about the early church is that their civil disobedience took the form of refusing to offer incense to the gods.

Neil | Thursday, March 11th at 02:44 PM
The chemical air fresheners always do seem designed to hide or mask other odors, and are, you know, vaguely chemical smelling. I find that incense adds a nice smell to a generally nice smelling room, and for me at this point, has strong connotations of home or sanctuary. That smelling it means "this is my place".

Tori | Thursday, March 11th at 02:45 PM
I used to burn incense, but then decided that I didn't really like the way most incense smells. I don't object to adding smells to rooms; I love it when we have a fresh lily in the house putting all the amazing lily smell in the air, and, having lived in basements, I am not opposed to room deodorizers.

My favorite way of making a room smell different after vacuuming is to put a bunch of dried herbs on the carpet before vacuuming. This was something I learned by accident in high school -- my mom was all thrilled with a bunch of coriander seeds that she'd just harvested. I tried one, thought it was gross, and then our giant dog walked into her and knocked it out the dish of seeds out of her hand onto the carpet. I had to vacuum it up, and let me tell you, if you don't like an herb/spice make someone else vacuum it. I thought I was going to be sick.

Fafner | Thursday, March 11th at 02:56 PM
It has never occurred to me to light a stick of incense on my own initiative, but my parents burned it several times a day when I was growing up and K. has burned it several times a day since long before she met me, so when I smell it, it kicks off a subconscious feeling of Home. I like it fine, though I still prefer the smells of cooking, preferably with herbs and sauteed garlic. Mmm.

Julia | Thursday, March 11th at 03:34 PM
With Mira on the cooking. Also baking. Brownies and cookies and such are homey smells. I don't tend to do incense, though I have at various times enjoyed scented candles. I'm picky about them, but they can be nice. Also scented baths.

Tori | Thursday, March 11th at 03:40 PM
Yes, cooking smells are awesome. I love the smell of fresh bread or cookies in the oven. Or the step of risotto where all I have been cooking is butter, garlic, and white wine.

And, again, fresh flowers. Yum.

Tim | Thursday, March 11th at 06:03 PM
A cooking smell I find I do not like one little bit: homemade cheese. Finished cheese, yes. Intermediate cheese, no.