Went to sleep with a headache.
Woke up with a headache.

But dear Italian football, how you do bring the man love. Picture it, Napoli's home stadium 2009, a game against Milan; a sweet young Napoli thing not only gives Andrea Pirlo a welcoming hug but massages his neck and walks up the tunnel steps snuggled against him.

Ooooh, nice shot of Sandro promising to string everyone up by the short and curlies if they don't get with the program.

Please don't let us mess up.

Oh, PIPPO, you ninth world wonder!

Bloody hell, BABY DUCK!

NOOOOOO, he wouldn't come off unless it was serious.

And the downward spiral begins. Still it could be worse than a draw.

Which I need desperately. I'm going to write on both blogs every day; really write and not just squee or natter. Today, I'm going to talk about one of my greatest loves, perfume.

My "beachy" fragrances called to me today. I'm sitting here with Versace's Versense in the crook of my left elbow and Ebba's By Sea in my right. I fervently believe a perfume should wrap the wearer in an experience not only a fragrance. Both of these do a great job at bringing out the marine without resorting to ozonic artifice.

Versense appears more complicated than it is, note wise. There's bergamot, green mandarin, citrus, prickly pear, sea daffodil, cardamom, jasmine, cedar, sandalwood, olive wood and musk. The opening, on my skin, is heavy on the citrus - very lemony and green. The drydown brings out the pear, sea daffodil, jasmine, sandalwood and cedar. I'm not a "nose" and I won't pretend I'd recognise the scent of olive wood if it presented itself with a neon sign.

The ad for Versense shows an evening gowned, tumble haired, exquisitely made up blonde standing on a beach bathed either in moonlight or early sunrise (not entirely clear) It misses the mark, in my opinion. This isn't the glamour of the Riviera or Miami shoreline. It's not the adventurous romance of a tropical beach either. This is a quiet, little known beach somewhere temperate where one would need a sweater in the evenings. The shoreline would be narrow, almost disappearing at high tide, no boardwalk or amenities and sand dunes covered in sea grasses and hardy flowers. The beach houses would be simple and wooden with decades of the salt scent in the walls. They'd stand empty from October to June. There's romance there; the romance of a new relationship, a rekindled love and even the magic of a marriage of 50 years.

In essence, Versense is beautiful, familiar, gentle perfume that tells a story. I think most folk sampling this would realise they've smelled it in nature before. It's not so overtly beachy that it can't be worn to the office and it won't knock anyone out of their socks even if they don't like perfume. It's daytime to early evening perfume and casual night snuggling with the SO. It lacks the oomph for a night time event fragrance.
By Sea is simpler - bergamot, white tea, violet and eucalyptus. It's the same beach as Versense but it's a solitary walk in the early morning. The wearer has the world to herself and all the scents of sea and shore are more fervent while sight and sound remain dreamy and muted. There is a definite soapy element to this fragrance; if you were to wake at dawn, shower and stroll along the shore as the sun rose, just in reach of the waves By Sea is what you'd smell like. On my skin this fragrance definitely brings the marine so I'm careful about wearing it out. (Why yes, I do wear perfume to sit at home at my computer)

Why does Tommy Smyth change the vowel at the end of football players' names? During Ireland - Italy he kept saying "Zambrotto" and I've heard him say "Milanetta" instead of Milanetto and "Monterra" for Monterro. Odd. Very odd.

Random Image:

The nuttiness of silly season - it biteth!

GO AWAY! * coughs *

Laila - The Essence of Norway. I think the jury's still out on this one.