Sexy Sexy Pumpkin Pie

I just got back from a long walk round the 'hood and had to sit down immediately to write this down. I always listen to podcasts on the ole iPod when I walk (makes time fly and you have an excuse for not looking anyone in the eye), and one of my faves is KCRW's Good Food. So this evening, strolling around in my old college lacrosse hoodie, I listened to a fascinating segment in which some scientist fellow, an expert on people with disordered senses of smell, talked about studies he's done on scent and sexual arousal.

WELL!

Turns out that the scents causing the most arousal (i.e. penile blood flow) in men were lavender, pumpkin pie, donuts, and black licorice. Seriously.

This made some sense to me--okay, baking smells make you think of mama, then the old Oedipus complex comes in, and lavender maybe is like the essence of girl or something--and I started predicting what we ladies would respond to: Old Spice, steak, whiskey, etc. Ha--I couldn't have been more wrong. For womenfolk, the top arousal triggers were: cucumbers, Good 'N' Plentys, and (in some cases) banana nut bread.


Then Mr. Expert went on to describe a study he'd done on kissing and scent. Apparently, both single and married women like their kissing partners' mouths to smell "fresh and clean"--basically a light eau d'toothpaste. Married men also liked their wives to be spearminty. However, single men swerved from the path: they like their ladies smellin' of alcohol.

Now I'll leave you to work out the psychology of that one while my boyfriend and I head to the home of T.T. herself, who catered a big party today. I'll leave it to her to describe the mouth-watering menu whose leftovers we'll be devouring. Good thing I took that walk and worked up an appetite.

P.S. No one even THANKED me for that ice-cream sundae coupon I gave y'all last week. JERKS.

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