I miss the smell of washed clothing and bedding hung out to dry on the clothesline. I remember the smell of my GGM wore the scent of Lilies of of Valley and Lavender. I remember the sound of the attic fan running while sleeping with window open. The smell of the ink in new books to read. What do you miss ?
You mentioned the smell of the ink in new books and it immediately took me back to teachers handing out mimeographed paperwork. I absolutely loved that smell. Yeah, I’m weird. The smell and lack of smell to the water. My grandfather had iron water coming from the outside hand pump. I miss that smell but on the other hand, the one thing I can do without is the smell of chlorine and whatever else is in the water when I turn on the tap now. I do remember the wonderful smells of my great aunts’ yard when the morning glories were in bloom. Their home had a fence surrounding it and a person could barely see the fence because of the thousands of morning glories. Later this summer, we should have a few and it takes me back every time they bloom. Grandpa’s coffee in the morning. He made it so strong that even the smell of it could bring the dead back to life. Grandma’s bread whilst it was baking......yeah, great stuff.
I remember the fragrance of Evening in Paris cologne, everyone wore it back in the early 1950’s and I don’t know if it even exists anymore. Back then, it came in a whole set, of powder, cologne, and deodorant (maybe more ?). My mom had all kinds of flowers that bloomed over the summer, and I loved the fragrance of each one. Mom had that Lily of the Valley perfume, too, it was called “Muguet” or something like that. We still sleep with the window open and a fan running in the summertime, but didn’t do that when I was growing up.
The first thing that oddly popped into my mind with these questions is that I miss the sound of a garage door opening and closing. I miss the smell of the honeysuckle poking out from the fence at the house 2 doors down from mine when out talking a walk. I miss the smell of fresh hay and horse manure when driving into my subdivision from the stables at the entrance. I miss the sound of the crunch of walking across a thick layer snow to get to the mailbox (it rarely snows where I live now).
Mothballs. My grandma's closets smelled of mothballs, but oh what wonderful things were in there! One whiff of mothballs and I'm a kid again and all's well with the world. Roses. Grandma always wore rose cologne and made her own sachet from her rose bushes. What didn't smell like mothballs in her house smelled like roses. The smell of roses gives me comfort. The sound of far-off train horns. A sound from my childhood. Comforting. Water gurgling over rocks in a stream. The splash of a fountain. Waves on the shore. Elemental sounds soothe the soul.
The smell of a library. My grandpa's pipe tobacco. My babies' sweet necks. Modeling clay or Silly Putty. The aroma of tobacco "cooking" in a tobacco barn. The sound of my dad's Zippo lighter and the smell of lighter fluid. My little dog's toenails clicking on the staircase.
The sound of the rooster doing his dance around the hens and then crowing about it. The sound of the lifters exploding assuring the drift round was successful. The sound of a small block V 8 with Hooker headers and a cherry bomb muffler. The sound of a 4 cycle 2 cylinder John Deere once called a Johnny popper. The sound of long path DX on 75 meters. The sound of the content timberwolves howling. The smell of Shepard's sourdough bread as it raised the cast iron dutch oven lid. The smell of campfire coffee with eggs and leftover fatty prime rib chunks sizzling in a cast-iron skillet. The smells of my mother's vast flower garden. The smell of my grandma's rouge. The smells of cutting various lumber. The smell of new leather custom boots.
You mentioned attic fan. I remember the rattle of that old metal window fan on humid Virginia nights before air conditioning. When I hear that sound, it still makes me drowsy. I remember the dank smell of walking down into a dirt basement that was merely a hole hollowed out under the house.
The smell of the county fair..... French fries, onions and green peppers cooking, sweet smells coming from the cotton candy machine.
I miss damp musty smell of my grand parents basement, where the coal was kept. Miss the smell of hot and very humid smell of the attic in their house. My GF also worked for Christmas lighting factory and he had many lights in boxes, yet they had a Christmas smell to them. I miss the smell of my babies soft and fragrant necks after a bath. Oh and the smell of hay in the barn.