I hate coffee





Yes, I hate coffee--or maybe I should say I hate the smell of coffee.  I have probably just offended more than half of my readers by making that statement.  Sorry, but the smell of coffee turns my stomach.  The only time I remotely like the smell is when I first open the can and inhale the fresh coffee-bean scent. 

But like I said, there are some of you who disagree.  Why is that?  It is because smells invoke memories (good and bad) more than any of our other senses.  Although coffee doesn't bring back bad memories, I do remember always having a pot on the stove, my parents drinking many cups of coffee, and the constant stench of it in my home growing up.

The scents I love?  The smell of fresh cut grass.  For some, the connection is related to the pain of allergies.  I love the scent of fresh-baked bread and chicken noodle soup.  The smell of baby powder or the spicy smell of Monarda (Bee Balm) as I rake out my perennial beds in the spring.

As a writer I need to invoke the use of scents in my work.  What does fear smell like? Or Joy?  They are a valuable tool in the writer’s arsenal.  They are a powerful tool to evoke emotion in the reader.

 Your turn:  What are your favorite smells? Or the ones that invoke less than memorable moments?

2 comments:

  1. I read this as I was having my morning coffee. I took a sip and said, "Poor Jennie." hahahaha I love the smell of popcorn cooking in a pot on the stove with real butter. I hate the smell of pig farms in the summer heat.

    Great post, Jennie!

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  2. I love the smell of freshly ground coffee and bake bread and chocolate. And a sunny June morning--it has a smell all it's own. Agree with Reba about the pigs. Another scent I hate is strong perfume. It makes me sick. One last smell I love....walking through the woods on a carpet of newly fallen leaves.

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