Looking Up, Looking Ahead
Earlier this year I came very close to an opportunity to teach a student in a one-on-one situation -- an apprentice of sorts, close enough in physical proximity to schedule in-person meetings and whatnot, but far enough away that daily instruction via computer and phone was required. It fell through within a couple of weeks, once the prospective student came to the realization that becoming a natural perfumer is no walk in the park. It's work. I was so excited, I couldn't wait to get started, and I was sending course layouts and lists to this prospective student, really getting into it, letting my imagination run wild; our first meeting, our first ah-ha moment, our connection through aromatics. It was much like how an expectant parent pictures their future child, a chubby, happy, smiling ball of sweetness, more beautiful and more brilliant than any other baby before it -- until the reality sets in, and instead of that utopian-style baby, a colicky, butt rashy, puking mass of tears and poop and snot that we love with all our hearts and souls shows up. I do tend to glamorize imagined situations so that the reality is either an enormous letdown, or a tremendous surprise. It was neither this time. I had a niggling feeling in the back of my mind that sooner or later (hoping sooner before too much time and effort was spent) the student would come to her senses. I was, however, a bit disappointed. I almost allowed myself to become angry about it, I mean, I'd spent so much time preparing and my initial thought was, does this person think I've nothing better to do but to sit here catering to their wishes, uncompensated? That was the old me thinking, though, and I stopped it right there. It's got nothing to do with me at all. This student made a wise decision to stop when she knew she might be getting in over her head, and I commend her for it. My problem is that I was ill-prepared, and again, not her fault. I should already have this protocol set up, shouldn't I? I mean, that would be the smart thing to do. I've been toying with the idea of starting a small apprenticeship group but I was afraid it might be a conflict of interest with the Academy. Do you see I'm talking myself into this? I am. It's an entirely different animal altogether, what I do with students one-on-one, through workshops, meetings, etc., and what I do online with the Academy. What do you think about this?
Must wait to make any moves on this idea until Mercury is done with its tantrum.
Yesterday's lapsang souchong hydrosol came out well. I'm surprised at how non-offensive it is, given its smoky, leathery, burnt characteristics. I like it. I would recommend its being used as part of a skin care regimen prior to bed since some of the smoky effects might linger into the day if used as part of a morning regimen. Imagine walking into the office and someone asks if you smell barbeque, and then you realize it's your face. Eau de Mo's Deep Pit Pork Barbeque. I'm still gathering lilies in preparation of a distillation -- that may happen either this evening or tomorrow morning, when bag three is filled with sweet smelling lily blossoms. The first run, the test run, I made a few days ago is green with bare hints of sweet floral. I want to intensify that floral bit and I'm hoping these extra three bags will do the trick.
Got off track with the soap yesterday. While I was unpacking even more boxes of aromatics, instead of finding the elements for the soap, I found other things to distract me from my mission, and ended up doing nothing. No soap. A few more bottles crowding up the bench, and a sinking feeling that lack of organization is once again kicking my butt. The storage opportunities here are nonexistent. I did want to tell you about this wonderful vintage, say 1950's or 60's, medical cabinet I found in a sweet little antiques shop in Nipomo a few weeks ago -- good price, and absolutely perfect for storing lots and lots and lots of bottles of raw materials. It's metal with the coated porcelain top, sort of like a tray, on top -- loads of dilution fun to be had there. If it's still available in a few weeks, I'm going to make arrangements to have it delivered. I was fortunate in the last house that it had built-in cabinetry throughout and lots of places to store things so they weren't just hanging about in boxes. Not here. There isn't even a coat closet, or a linen closet. It's as if what little storage there is was an afterthought.
So I'm doing a cleanse, which is why I'm here writing this post and not working on projects. My energy levels are very low. A fair bit of butt draggery is going on. I will do my best, though. I have bags of cedar and juniper and white sage to powder for incense, so I'd best work up the energy to do it.
Must wait to make any moves on this idea until Mercury is done with its tantrum.
Yesterday's lapsang souchong hydrosol came out well. I'm surprised at how non-offensive it is, given its smoky, leathery, burnt characteristics. I like it. I would recommend its being used as part of a skin care regimen prior to bed since some of the smoky effects might linger into the day if used as part of a morning regimen. Imagine walking into the office and someone asks if you smell barbeque, and then you realize it's your face. Eau de Mo's Deep Pit Pork Barbeque. I'm still gathering lilies in preparation of a distillation -- that may happen either this evening or tomorrow morning, when bag three is filled with sweet smelling lily blossoms. The first run, the test run, I made a few days ago is green with bare hints of sweet floral. I want to intensify that floral bit and I'm hoping these extra three bags will do the trick.
Got off track with the soap yesterday. While I was unpacking even more boxes of aromatics, instead of finding the elements for the soap, I found other things to distract me from my mission, and ended up doing nothing. No soap. A few more bottles crowding up the bench, and a sinking feeling that lack of organization is once again kicking my butt. The storage opportunities here are nonexistent. I did want to tell you about this wonderful vintage, say 1950's or 60's, medical cabinet I found in a sweet little antiques shop in Nipomo a few weeks ago -- good price, and absolutely perfect for storing lots and lots and lots of bottles of raw materials. It's metal with the coated porcelain top, sort of like a tray, on top -- loads of dilution fun to be had there. If it's still available in a few weeks, I'm going to make arrangements to have it delivered. I was fortunate in the last house that it had built-in cabinetry throughout and lots of places to store things so they weren't just hanging about in boxes. Not here. There isn't even a coat closet, or a linen closet. It's as if what little storage there is was an afterthought.
So I'm doing a cleanse, which is why I'm here writing this post and not working on projects. My energy levels are very low. A fair bit of butt draggery is going on. I will do my best, though. I have bags of cedar and juniper and white sage to powder for incense, so I'd best work up the energy to do it.
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