# Name a scent that, whenever you smell it, it takes you back to your childhood. **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [February 24, 2015, 3:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-scent-that-whenever-you-smell-it-it-takes-you-back-to-your-childhood/713484 "2015-02-24T03:40:17Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![cwthree](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9de0a6/32.png) [@cwthree](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cwthree)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2015, 6:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-scent-that-whenever-you-smell-it-it-takes-you-back-to-your-childhood/713484/21 "2015-02-24T06:35:10Z")
The smell of the sea shore, specifically the mid-Atlantic US. My grandparents would rent a cottage and my folks and I, and my cousins’ families, would get together there. We’d hang out, swim, collect jellyfish, whatever. I was one of the youngest of the cousins (and my parents the most frugal and least trendy of the bunch), so these family visits offered a tantalizing and frustrating view into the world of the bigger and more privileged kids. They seemed to me to be grown up and children at the same time. I’d listen to them talking about teenager things and I’d look at the magazines and comic books they brought to entertain themselves ("Dominic Fortune! He’s A Brigand For Hire!) and wonder what made these things so interesting to them. Then there was the fried fish. My grandmother would buy flounder (caught that morning), and for dinner she’d bread the fillets with “Italian” flavored seasoned bread crumbs and fry them up. I loved fish and fried stuff, and we rarely had either at home. I would eat that fish until i couldn’t eat any more, or until it was gone. I would eat it now. I suppose I could make it for myself, but it would not taste nearly as good, lacking those crucial ingredients, grandma, love, and memories. ---
**Author:** ![Dereknocue67](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/6de8d8/32.png) [@Dereknocue67](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dereknocue67)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2015, 9:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-scent-that-whenever-you-smell-it-it-takes-you-back-to-your-childhood/713484/22 "2015-02-24T09:30:26Z")
Napalm, preferably in the a.m. ---
**Author:** ![Les\_Espaces\_Du\_Sommeil](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/les_espaces_du_sommeil/32/308_2.png) [@Les\_Espaces\_Du\_Sommeil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Les_Espaces_Du_Sommeil)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2015, 10:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-scent-that-whenever-you-smell-it-it-takes-you-back-to-your-childhood/713484/23 "2015-02-24T10:56:22Z")
> [@Pai325](#): > > Lilacs. > > I think of spring when I was young. Everybody was still alive, and I felt pretty good. > [@hogarth](#): > > Lilacs for me too – we had lilac bushes when I was a little kid. Rhododendron bushes for me. They look similar. But the smell I most associate with my childhood is that of freshly cut grass in the evening. Our garden had a nasty slope at the back so my dad would wait until the end of the afternoon, when the temperatures were getting milder, to mow the lawn. I can still see him wearing only shorts and his old but sturdy gardening boots making his way up and down the slope in the evening sun. ---
**Author:** ![Urbanredneck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ea5d25/32.png) [@Urbanredneck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Urbanredneck)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2015, 11:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-scent-that-whenever-you-smell-it-it-takes-you-back-to-your-childhood/713484/24 "2015-02-24T11:16:55Z")
Grandma house smell. I dont know what it is but I always remember it and I’ve smelled it in other old farm houses. ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2015, 12:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-scent-that-whenever-you-smell-it-it-takes-you-back-to-your-childhood/713484/25 "2015-02-24T12:33:41Z")
Motor oil in a room. Reminds me of a room in a convenience store back in the day that held both motor oil and video games. ---
**Author:** ![not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/not_what_you_d_expect/32/3246_2.png) [@not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/not_what_you_d_expect)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2015, 12:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-scent-that-whenever-you-smell-it-it-takes-you-back-to-your-childhood/713484/26 "2015-02-24T12:44:57Z")
The smell of potatoes boiling always take me back, which is strange really since I don’t remember eating a lot of boiled potatoes, but there you have it. And schools. It’s been awhile since I’ve entered one, but they have a way of taking me back to my youth. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2015, 1:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-scent-that-whenever-you-smell-it-it-takes-you-back-to-your-childhood/713484/27 "2015-02-24T13:01:37Z")
Pond water and cattails. Curry. Heather. ---
**Author:** ![minor7flat5](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/minor7flat5/32/258_2.png) [@minor7flat5](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/minor7flat5)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2015, 1:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-scent-that-whenever-you-smell-it-it-takes-you-back-to-your-childhood/713484/28 "2015-02-24T13:11:10Z")
Diesel fuel… Lived on a farm from 5-8, and a whiff of diesel immediately sends me back to the old barn with my brother, playing around all of the aging farm paraphernalia, getting into everything we weren’t supposed to. Now mothballs bring an entirely different memory: Day-one of bootcamp (ugh!) ---
**Author:** ![kferr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/71e660/32.png) [@kferr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kferr)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2015, 1:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-scent-that-whenever-you-smell-it-it-takes-you-back-to-your-childhood/713484/29 "2015-02-24T13:56:20Z")
Coal smoke. I grew up in Mount Pleasant Iowa where they have the [Old Threshers Reunion](http://www.oldthreshers.org/). When I was a kid (mid 60’s to early 70’s) the old steam traction engines still burned coal. I think they’ve long since switched to wood. Now I’m living in the UK and there are still a few houses and pubs that have coal fires so I get to smell it nearly every day in winter. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2015, 1:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-scent-that-whenever-you-smell-it-it-takes-you-back-to-your-childhood/713484/30 "2015-02-24T13:57:25Z")
Calamine lotion. Last year my gf found an old, crusty bottle in her mom’s basement. She brought it home just to ask me to close my eyes and try to identify the smell. Freaked me out. I last encountered the odor 50 years ago, yet could ID it at once. ---
**Author:** ![Hi\_Medlo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a183cd/32.png) [@Hi\_Medlo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hi_Medlo)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2015, 2:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-scent-that-whenever-you-smell-it-it-takes-you-back-to-your-childhood/713484/31 "2015-02-24T14:14:51Z")
There’s a paper bag that smells just like the ones they used at the hobby shop I went to with my dad. That smell always makes me feel like I have a new airplane kit to work on. ---
**Author:** ![you\_with\_the\_face](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/ecccb3/32.png) [@you\_with\_the\_face](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/you_with_the_face)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2015, 2:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-scent-that-whenever-you-smell-it-it-takes-you-back-to-your-childhood/713484/32 "2015-02-24T14:17:22Z")
Honeysuckle. Wood smoke. Firecracker smoke. Mowed grass. ---
**Author:** ![Johanna](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johanna/32/8318_2.png) [@Johanna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johanna)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2015, 2:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-scent-that-whenever-you-smell-it-it-takes-you-back-to-your-childhood/713484/33 "2015-02-24T14:45:35Z")
Lily of the valley. ---
**Author:** ![kopek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kopek/32/337_2.png) [@kopek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kopek)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2015, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-scent-that-whenever-you-smell-it-it-takes-you-back-to-your-childhood/713484/34 "2015-02-24T14:46:53Z")
Maybe not the most normal but happy to me – stale grease and dampness. Reminds me of some of the shacks and hovels I grew up in. We were poor but I never really knew it as we always seemed to have enough and found ways to have fun. ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2015, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-scent-that-whenever-you-smell-it-it-takes-you-back-to-your-childhood/713484/35 "2015-02-24T14:48:16Z")
Farm diesel and new mown hay. ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2015, 3:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-scent-that-whenever-you-smell-it-it-takes-you-back-to-your-childhood/713484/36 "2015-02-24T15:01:56Z")
Wax pack baseball cards and gum. ---
**Author:** ![CheshireKat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cheshirekat/32/1207_2.png) [@CheshireKat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CheshireKat)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2015, 3:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-scent-that-whenever-you-smell-it-it-takes-you-back-to-your-childhood/713484/37 "2015-02-24T15:08:07Z")
Cedar - I’m five years old and my grandmother is opening her cedar chest to get out my mother’s old dolls for me to play with. Freshly sawed wood - same age, and I’m visiting my grandfather at his lumber company. Creosote - Most people find it annoying, but it transports me instantly to the old stable where I kept my first horse. ---
**Author:** ![Magicicada](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c67d28/32.png) [@Magicicada](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magicicada)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2015, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-scent-that-whenever-you-smell-it-it-takes-you-back-to-your-childhood/713484/38 "2015-02-24T15:15:47Z")
Like a lot of you, lilac and honeysuckle. Japanese honeysuckle, the invasive kind. And diesel. Fresh cut grass, with onions mixed in. Some that I don’t think have been mentioned yet: Wallpaper paste (made, I think, from powdered starch–it had a pale bluish color with white marshmallow-looking lumps) The old-formula smell of certain products, especially Downy fabric softener, Liquid Gold furniture polish in a tall metal container, and Niagara spray starch The smell of the ground as it begins to thaw And, oh my God, sassafras tea. ---
**Author:** ![Doctor\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doctor_jackson/32/32_2.png) [@Doctor\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doctor_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2015, 3:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-scent-that-whenever-you-smell-it-it-takes-you-back-to-your-childhood/713484/39 "2015-02-24T15:17:23Z")
I’ll second the smell of an old cedar chest. Also, holly blossoms. As a child, I had a large holly bush right outside my bedroom window. In the spring I would lie at the foot of the bed with my head in the open window to catch the breeze, going to sleep with the smell of the holly blossoms all around. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [February 24, 2015, 3:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-scent-that-whenever-you-smell-it-it-takes-you-back-to-your-childhood/713484/40 "2015-02-24T15:17:54Z")
Rosemary. It was about the only herb my mother used, as my father was a meat and potatoes kind of guy who didn’t like “gook” food (as he called anything that wasn’t meatloaf and the like). She put it in her spaghetti sauce and her peroshki. While I’m sure there must have been some other herb in her cupboard, I wasn’t aware of them. The first thing I planted when we moved to Portland was a rosemary bush. Whenever I go out and cut a sprig or two, it reminds me of her. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-scent-that-whenever-you-smell-it-it-takes-you-back-to-your-childhood/713484.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/name-a-scent-that-whenever-you-smell-it-it-takes-you-back-to-your-childhood/713484.md?page=3)