Small World

I've been in Chicago for the past three days for a grantwriting workshop. Each afternoon, when we adjourn, I'm so eager to escape the canned air and flourescent lights of Northwestern University's Chicago campus that it doesn't even matter that the outside air is cold enough to turn my nosehairs crispy on contact.

Yesterday I even took my post-workshop flight as far as Barney's. I was rewarded twice: first, I got the chance to test the forthcoming Serge Lutens fragrance, Rousse. Verdict: winner. Smells like a cinnamon-orange pomander. Perfect for late fall, which of course is why it's due to arrive in April, right? *eyeroll* The Serge Lutens SA at Barney's, Erica, is a sweetheart who reminds me of Zooey Deschanel. She got excited when I promised to bring her samples of my Serge Lutens exclusives (Bois et Fruits, Rose de Nuit, and Iris Silver Mist) when I come back up in a few weeks.

My second reward was a chance meeting with Ina from aromascope, over by the l'Artisan section. We've "known" each other for years through makeupalley, but had never met in person. We started chatting about our mutual obsession for scent, then eyed each other suspiciously: are you one of us? I had a glimpse of what it's like for gay strangers to connect (although I don't think perfume freaks get beaten up if the stranger they're chatting up turns out to be uninterested in scent). Finally I barked out: "ARE YOU INA??" It was a wonderful moment. We chatted about various lines, I bought a bottle of Drole de Rose (can't handle its brasher Frederic Malle analog, Lipstick Rose, these days), and we headed out to Trader Joes, where I allowed Ina, with her superior acculturation and taste, to point me in the direction of TJ's best delicacies: turnip chips, thick Greek yogurt with honey, and blue-cheese stuffed olives. I added chocolate-covered peanut-butter-stuffed pretzels to my basket, because, you know, they sounded healthy. It was one of the best hotel-room dinners I've ever had.

Today I'm back under the flourescent lights. He's talking about writing a budget justification, and I'm typing a blog entry. This is going to bite me in the ass when my proposal is rejected, but hey, I got to try Rousse and meet Ina. On balance, a wholly successful trip!