Some Random Throughts on Old or Old Lady Perfume Part 2

About 10 or so years ago used to work with a woman, every Saturday it was just me and her in this one section. You get to know your work partner well. Jojo was in her early fifties at the time. She was one of those women whose weight didn't change, she was the same weight from her late teens onward. It seems these non-gaining weight women must have a trunk full of clothes from back in the day, because they'll pull out outfits from a different era and wear it from time to time. We had two of them at work. For example, Jojo would come in wearing acid washed baggy-but tapered at the ankle-jeans from the 90's, and maybe a day-glo top from the 80's along with it.
I think she kept perfume in the trunk, too, because she would wear something that would drive me up the wall! Our other retro dresser wears Opium and she uses a light hand and it's fantastic on her. Whatever Jojo wore, it had an old fashioned smell to it. I wish I would remember what it was! But the smell would get to me so much so that I recalled us having a perfume conversation before and her saying she liked "Vanilla Fields" so I brought her in a bottle, I had extras at home I had grown tired of. I thought at least it was from the same decade somewhat. From then on Jojo reeked of Vanilla Fields and that also drove me crazy. The seating arrangement changed before I picked out another perfume for her, so she continued on with Vanilla Fields.
Maybe it was our perfume competing that drove me crazy, or her heavy handed use of fragrance, I don't know. Why did I think her first perfume was old? Obviously this was before I became a perfumista, otherwise I'd have answers as to why. I think whatever it was smelled "Dated" to me. What makes something dated? Having been exposed to it during a certain period of time, just like a song or style of clothes would seem dated. So whatever Jojo was wearing was something I had smelled long ago. But even back then I'd smell my old, not-used-in-long-time bottles and the scent would bring me back in time, happy memories. Jovan Musk Oil. Coty's Muguent, Emerude. Heaven Scent. Jontue. Charlie. Enjoli. (Yeah, all the drugstore fragrances).

Sometimes when I smell some vintage perfumes they transport me back 30 years ago, to the bathroom of ** Mount Pleasant Street in Somerville, which was my Grandmother's house. She kept about 3 of those old metal cabinets you use when you don't have a closet or shelf space. I have 2 of the cabinets here, storing my photography stuff, plus her 1950's kitchen table and chairs. But those metal cabinets were loaded with perfumes, lotions, old medicines, those floral scented bath pearls and squares and dusting powders. My grandmother said you needed to dust powder before getting into a girdle, it made it easier to get on. What did she have for perfumes? Oh, a lot of Avon and the usual drugstore offerings, I don't recall anything exotic like Shalimar or any old Guerlains or Carons. The last time I was in there was 1989 when me, my mother, aunt, uncle and a cousin or two cleaned out the place, they were selling the house. My grandmother passed in 1980, but my uncle continued to live in her apartment, my cousin downstairs and once my uncle passed and cousin moved out the kids had to sell. But her bathroom was just as she left it back in 1980. I got an unopened Avon Timeless dusting powder set, it was in an amber faceted plastic container. For some reason Timeless appealed to me at the time, and I wasn't one to wear a girdle. I can vaguely recall it's scent now, I remember it being amber-y.

Second Chance

Its been a while since I've been here. I haven't been anywhere for a while, except the hospital. Its amazing, you're just chugging along with your life and then something happens and turns things upside down. Around 5am on September 10th, I suffered a cardiac arrest. If it was after 5am I wouldn't be here, Hubby leaves for work at 5 and he was in the bathroom getting ready when I hit the floor. (And I didn't just hit the floor, I banged my head on the way down on the table and now have a scar from it, in spite of the stitches, that's the least of my worries)Anyhoo, Hubby knows CPR and saved my life, he did the chest compressions, blew air into my mouth until the ambulance and fire department arrived. I do not remember anything. I do remember being tired and pushing myself to finish something at the kitchen table, I must have been making something, bracelets I think. Then I remember waking up in a hospital room and thinking I was in a hotel, totally confused. I had spent a week in the ICU, it was very touch and go, they all said I was lucky to have made it through everything. My heart had stopped, once they got that up and running there was some trouble with my kidneys so I had a round of dialysis. Then I spent a week on the cardiac floor, got a pacemaker last Thursday and was discharged on Friday. (I do feel like I fooled them into discharging me, I didn't feel ready but I just wanted to be home, in my own bed and so on).

Yes, a pacemaker. They call it an ICD and I just can't google it, as long as it isn't shocking me I don't want to know. Someone called it "like having a cardiologist in your pocket" and "an insurance policy in case your heart stops again". I go from thinking I'm fine to needing a cardiologist in my pocket, plus a whole team of doctors at the hospital. I was the youngest on the floor, I'm 45. Never thought I'd see this day or this happen. Thinking back on it, I should have seen it coming. My cousin visited me in the hospital and said they all have heart trouble on my mother's side, and I remember my Nana carrying around Nitroglycerin and my Aunt having a heart attack. So a family history, plus me smoking, being overweight, being on adderal, burning the candle at both ends, it all adds up now. They did say I had pneumonia (which I had seen my primary care doc for the day before, he said bronchitis) and that traveled to my heart causing infection and weakening the muscle. Or I may have had a bum ticker to begin with.

Today I finally feel slightly better. It wears me out just walking around Walgreens, using a shopping cart as a walker, picking up all my new prescriptions and whatever else. BTW, Skin Musk is on sale. Last night I managed to sleep on my left side (where the ICD is) and that helped, since I've been constantly on my right I've got a pulled hamstring which makes getting out of a chair or bed painful. Ugh. But today was better, I feel more back to normal, but am still sore where the ICD is, my ribs still hurt. And I'm still reaching for a cigarette, which I haven't had since this happened. I'm getting used to it. I'm chewing the nicotine gum when I need a pick me up. No more adderal, really, never again. I'm allowed 1200mgs of salt a day, which I adhered to all week except today which I cheated a little for supper.

So I've got a second chance at life. No idea what I'm suppose to do with it yet. What I do know is: when I'm tired I go to bed-I don't give a shit if things don't get done-they can get done the next day, I'm not breaking my neck at my job doing doubles (actually I'm not working at all right now, no set return date either, I'll just have to live frugally for now)and I'm not going to stress over stuff. So what if I couldn't remember the pin numbers for our checking accounts and now have to reset them? I got the money in the bank via a teller and will fix the pin situation when I have the time. My memory hasn't been so good since this happened. They took up a collection for me at work so the bills will get paid this month, at least the important ones. Maybe, maybe I'll list some stuff on ebay to make up the rest. I don't know. I'm just playing by ear right now.