Christina Kim

Before we get started, a note to listeners that this episode includes exploration of racist material.

Before we get started, a note to listeners that this episode includes exploration of racist material.

Before we get started, a note to listeners that this episode includes exploration of racist material.

Ever since I was a little girl, I've been enveloped by the smell of lemon, rosemary, and spices. It's the smell of this Spanish perfume called Álvarez Gómez Agua de Colonia, the classic fragrance that's been made in Spain since 1912, that my grandmother, mi yaya, and my mother have always worn.

Ever since I was a little girl, I've been enveloped by the smell of lemon, rosemary, and spices. It's the smell of this Spanish perfume called Álvarez Gómez Agua de Colonia, the classic fragrance that's been made in Spain since 1912, that my grandmother, mi yaya, and my mother have always worn.

Ever since I was a little girl, I've been enveloped by the smell of lemon, rosemary, and spices. It's the smell of this Spanish perfume called Álvarez Gómez Agua de Colonia, the classic fragrance that's been made in Spain since 1912, that my grandmother, mi yaya, and my mother have always worn.

It's the smell of my yaya sitting on the couch in Madrid, with her legs crossed, wearing her kitten heel house slippers, reminiscing about being a little bit wild, un poco traviesa, as she reaches over with her soft hand to give mine a squeeze.

It's the smell of my yaya sitting on the couch in Madrid, with her legs crossed, wearing her kitten heel house slippers, reminiscing about being a little bit wild, un poco traviesa, as she reaches over with her soft hand to give mine a squeeze.

It's the smell of my yaya sitting on the couch in Madrid, with her legs crossed, wearing her kitten heel house slippers, reminiscing about being a little bit wild, un poco traviesa, as she reaches over with her soft hand to give mine a squeeze.

It's the smell of my mom running after me whenever I'm in my childhood home in California, with a bottle of it, trying to spritz some over my head, a fuss-fuss before we leave the house to smell fresh. And the smell of her reassuring hugs, which let me know I am never alone. SIGHS The top note is crisp, sharp, like a Mediterranean lemon whose yellow-hued brightness makes my nose tingle. SIGHS

It's the smell of my mom running after me whenever I'm in my childhood home in California, with a bottle of it, trying to spritz some over my head, a fuss-fuss before we leave the house to smell fresh. And the smell of her reassuring hugs, which let me know I am never alone. SIGHS The top note is crisp, sharp, like a Mediterranean lemon whose yellow-hued brightness makes my nose tingle. SIGHS

It's the smell of my mom running after me whenever I'm in my childhood home in California, with a bottle of it, trying to spritz some over my head, a fuss-fuss before we leave the house to smell fresh. And the smell of her reassuring hugs, which let me know I am never alone. SIGHS The top note is crisp, sharp, like a Mediterranean lemon whose yellow-hued brightness makes my nose tingle. SIGHS

Once I let the inhale get to my chest, I reach the fragrance's heart note, and it becomes more green and fresh. And finally, when my breath makes it all the way to my belly... The base note rounds everything together. It's like the umami part of the fragrance, this kind of fullness and richness that expands throughout my whole body, like a soft hug, like home.

Once I let the inhale get to my chest, I reach the fragrance's heart note, and it becomes more green and fresh. And finally, when my breath makes it all the way to my belly... The base note rounds everything together. It's like the umami part of the fragrance, this kind of fullness and richness that expands throughout my whole body, like a soft hug, like home.

Once I let the inhale get to my chest, I reach the fragrance's heart note, and it becomes more green and fresh. And finally, when my breath makes it all the way to my belly... The base note rounds everything together. It's like the umami part of the fragrance, this kind of fullness and richness that expands throughout my whole body, like a soft hug, like home.

The act of smelling a perfume is like hearing a full orchestra. In order to actually smell it, your nose has to parse through thousands of different molecules, translate them, and then transmit it to your brain so that you can smell what you recognize as your favorite scent. Be it a perfume or a rose. And that's just what has to happen to smell a single thing.

The act of smelling a perfume is like hearing a full orchestra. In order to actually smell it, your nose has to parse through thousands of different molecules, translate them, and then transmit it to your brain so that you can smell what you recognize as your favorite scent. Be it a perfume or a rose. And that's just what has to happen to smell a single thing.

The act of smelling a perfume is like hearing a full orchestra. In order to actually smell it, your nose has to parse through thousands of different molecules, translate them, and then transmit it to your brain so that you can smell what you recognize as your favorite scent. Be it a perfume or a rose. And that's just what has to happen to smell a single thing.

The reality is that for most of us, our noses are parsing through a massive number of different odor molecules a day. And it's so easy to take this riot of smell for granted. Unless it disappears. In the summer of 2022, I became one of the 15 million estimated people to have lost their sense of smell because of COVID.

The reality is that for most of us, our noses are parsing through a massive number of different odor molecules a day. And it's so easy to take this riot of smell for granted. Unless it disappears. In the summer of 2022, I became one of the 15 million estimated people to have lost their sense of smell because of COVID.