My Favorite Smells

I love the smell of cinnamon, pine, holly--those wonderful Christmas scents--probably because I love Christmas so.

I like the smell of onions and garlic sizzling in hot olive oil. So many of the main dishes I cook start out that way, and it's such a savory odor.

I like the smell of clean laundry. It's like the reward for my labors, after I've spent the time to wash, dry, and put the laundry away.

I love the smell of bread baking. And it's not as good when I use a bread machine instead of making it myself, so I know part of it is the reward for my labors.

I love the smell of rain. It's so tantalizing, particularly when it's the first rain in a long while.

I love the way my husband smells. When we were first dating, he used to wear Stetson cologne, and it smelled so good on him. He went out of town for a week, and I bought a small bottle of Stetson so I could keep smelling him. Now he uses more expensive colognes, but they just smell wonderful on him.

I love the way a new book smells, one that has never before been opened or read. And I love the way an old book smells.

I like the way herbs smell--particularly sage and mint.