032810

*Lord's-Jester*

I am now officially a Professional Perfumer in the eyes of the Natural Perfumers Guild! In order to pass the test I had to send in at least one perfume in finalized packaging; I sent in seven: Selene, Heracles, Ares, Zephyr, Demeter liquids, and Anthea and Helios solids. I decided not to send Chronos, partly because we're waiting on a female version to cure; not that the other version is bad, just that it struck me as more masculine. I will send in both versions in a few weeks. Additionally, I've decided to branch out as far as different strengths go. Instead of making one or two changes to a given recipe, I will basically start from scratch with the formula. The male and female versions of perfume in the main can smell radically different from each other. Selene is one I want to play around with, as the eau de parfum is extremely feminine. Maybe with some radical reformulation, it will become a scent a man would wear; I'm guessing it would need sandalwood, maybe pine needle, and probably some lavender to accomplish this feat.

Looking toward the future, not only do I have to keep my current line of perfumes in stock, but of course I have to keep experimenting with new notes and combinations. In particular, I look forward to toying around with honeysuckle (a really deep and heady extract), magnolia (delightfully fruity; this could be good for the holy-grail fruity-floral), and araucaria (a rosy-spicy crystallized heart note). I have others new to me, mastic, rooibas, flouve, but I think the above few hold the greatest promise. One of the things I look forward to most is this experimentation; new possibilities for sublime accords abound (though I'm not one to focus on accords). And of course, I don't feel I've learned enough about the materials I currently use. Further experimentation is certainly called for. Still, I feel very good about the perfumes in my line of products, though I admit I need to play around more with the nuances of making large batches.

Now comes a slew of marketing. Thorson and I (actually, it will just be Thorson) plan to hit up boutiques small and large, knowing at least three quarters will have no interest. It's places like Henri Bendel where I think we'll have the most luck, partly because they carry at least one other line of natural perfume already, Mandy Aftel's. Another important route to getting my stuff in front of as wide an audience as possible is the blogosphere; there are several dozen blogs on perfume, some of which have quite a bit of renown, and the key is getting samples to the bloggers in question. In all cases, plenty of samples will be needed, both with boutiques and with bloggers. I will have to make whole batches of perfume _just_ for sending out samples. It's been a long road to get to the top of my game, and now that I'm here, there will be no stopping me. Sky is the only limit I can see.

*Health*

There is no question about the following: for optimal health the majority of what one eats should come from grains. The Land Institute holds that for even meat eaters, 70% or more comes from grains, for what do livestock eat but grains. The Land Institute also holds that, for the sake of the starving around the world we must eat grains directly. When grains are fed to livestock, we're working at about 10% efficiency--that is at least 90% more people could be fed if we all ate grains instead of meat. It's not the _protein_ one misses on a vegan diet; one misses the _calories_, this I know from hard-won experience (15 years as a strict vegan).

One of the issues in my marriage was that Janna refused to believe me about this. She struggled over the time we were married (less than two years). Then she met a nutritionist in Portland and I was vindicated--the nutritionist agreed that the proper diet for Janna was exactly the one I had outlined for her again and again. What we burn for fuel is complex carbohydrates--not protein. If you ate only cabbage you'd get _too much_ protein. From cabbage? Flies in the face of everything we've learned. What you need, and nothing more is enough _calories_ from a well-balanced diet; a well-balaced diet consists mostly of grains, with small amounts of vegetables, fruit, nuts, cultured foods (wine, sourdough bread, yogurt, etc.), and a little fish.

*Quotations*

We will not return to the New Deal or the Great Society, nor will we continue to wallow in the increasingly obsolete Reagan view that we don’t need a strong and competent government. Today’s vote confirms our hope that we can have both strength and competence in Washington. It is an audacious hope, but we have no choice.

--Robert Reich

If this be treason, then make the most of it.

--Patrick Henry

From a dog's point of view, his master is an elongated and abnormally cunning dog.

--Mabel L Robinson

The writer should never be ashamed of staring. There is nothing that does not require his attention.

--Flannery O'Connor

I have found it easier to identify with the characters who verge upon hysteria, who were frightened of life, who were desperate to reach out to another person. But these seemingly fragile people are the strong people really.

--Tennessee Williams

Good literature continually read for pleasure must, let us hope, do some good to the reader: must quicken his perception though dull, and sharpen his discrimination though blunt, and mellow the rawness of his personal opinions.

--Alfred Edward Housman

When I write a poem, I don't know quite what it means. If I think I know what it means, I've got a bad poem. I want a poem to be beyond me. I want it to be something that transfers a feeling I don't quite understand the limits of.

--Louis Simpson

Happiness makes up in height for what it lacks in length.

--Robert Frost

Most people are about as happy as they make up their minds to be.

--Lincoln

You will never be happy if you continue to search for what happiness consists of. You will never live if you are looking for the meaning of life.

--Camus

*Music*

March Forth 10:

1. Happier, A Fine Frenzy

2. Lucky Clover Coin, Rocky Votolato

3. Lille, Lisa Hannigan

4. I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For, U2

5. One, Aimee Mann

6. I Want You (Beatles), Jette-Ives

7. Here Comes the Sun (Beatles), Luca Columbo

8. Peace Frog, Doors

9. What I Wouldn't Do, A Fine Frenzy

10. I Think I Love You, The Partridge Family

11. Father and Son (Cat Stevens), Rocky Votolato

12. Elements, A Fine Frenzy

13. Two, Aimee Mann

14. My Will is Good, Port O'Brien

15. Harold T Wilkins or How to Wait for a Very Long Time, Fanfarlo

16. Summer's Almost Gone, Doors

17. Gimme, She Keeps Bees

18. Blow Away, A Fine Frenzy

19. Sun Devil, Rocky Votolato

20. America the Beautiful, Martin Sexton

21. Coda: Light No Lamp When the Sun Comes Down, Joe Henry

Peace love and ATOM jazz