Deodorant flavors

You wouldn't believe the amount of thought I've put into this topic. I would assume that most people don't really care or think about it that much. 

In any case, let's get to it:

Chronologically, the first deodorant I can specifically remember using and liking the scent of was Degree "Pure Rain." A few years ago they discontinued this flavor, which disappointed me greatly since I thought it was a lovely smell. As the English language does not have a good vocabulary for describing scents, the best I can describe it as is somewhat fresh and fruity. 

To my surprise, a month or so ago I noticed that this flavor had made a return and was labeled as "NEW" on the package. It isn't new. It's old and they decided to recontinue it for whatever reason. I don't know why they discontinued it in the first place. This new version nominally smells the same, but when I use it, I find that it ends up smelling too much like baby powder for some reason. The old version didn't do that. 

In addition to Pure Rain, at some point or another, I used another Degree flavor, orange flower and cranberry which I also recall smelled nice. Unfortunately, that scent was also discontinued. Degree also has a scent called "Pure Clean" or something like that, which I think I tried at one point or another, but I didn't like it. 

I have emailed Degree asking about why they discontinued Pure Rain and how the new version doesn't quite smell the same. I doubt they're known for their customer service (unlike, say, a company like Patagonia) so I'm not too optimistic about receiving a satisfactory answer on this front, but hey, it's worth a try. Because their website is terrible, I had to go find the direct email address for customer service instead of just using the contact form on the website. Also, for some reason, they wanted my address on the contact form, which I don't really understand. I decided to just put my school's address, not my home address. In the end, it didn't really matter because I had to write a direct email instead. 

Now, I usually use an assortment of Dove women's flavors. The first one I remember using is the cucumber scent, which smells like cucumbers like you would expect. It's a nice, fresh, crisp and spring-like smell. I was considering getting that flavor again recently, but I decided against it in favor of the chamomile flavor, which I think is more cozy and fall-like, seeing as it's fall now. In the spring I might get the cucumber flavor again. I have never smelled actual chamomile, so I'm not sure how accurate the chamomile scent is, but I like it. I suppose some might consider it an old lady-ish scent though. 

I also have a pear flavor, which I can't seem to find in stores anymore, which also disappoints me. It smells very distinctly pear-y, which I like. I like deodorants that have distinct smells, unlike this Dove pomegranate flavor. It smells fine and alright, but it's too vague. I don't have that problem with the chamomile or cucumber or pear.   

Right now, I have three different deodorants to choose from: Dove chamomile and pomegranate and Degree Pure Rain. There's a small remnant of the Dove pear flavor, but it's not really enough to be practical to use. I like having variety on this front, depending on my mood that morning when I'm getting dressed. Some days I might go for the vague/indistinct pomegranate flavor, or other days I might choose the chamomile. 

Scent and memory/associations
Pyschologically speaking, scent is very connected to our sense of memory. In my experience, this is most evident regarding certain people who smell like specific scents. 

Cases in point: one of my sister's friends, who smelled like Gain Lavender laundry detergent. A guy I knew in high school who once used his mother's cucumber deodorant because he ran out of his own, and I noticed the scent. Someone I met this year, who smells beautiful; he uses a particular deodorant that I just happen to really like the smell of (I asked him what it was just a few days after meeting him). Now I strongly associate that scent with him. I would almost use it myself, but a) it's possible he might find that odd, at the very least and b) it's possible that scent on myself would be too distracting. (I guess I could test it out on the weekend, however?)  

A possible theoretical downside here is that if something goes wrong and for some reason, I end up hating him, that scent might be ruined for me, but that's really getting ahead of myself. 

Other people's deodorant
I think I'd like to do a survey of what deodorant the various people I know use. I'm curious about what might end up being the most popular brands and scents and such. I also want to go to a store and smell all of the various deodorants for sale and take notes about which ones I like and dislike. Additionally, I want to compare the packaging and marketing for men's and women's deodorant. It'd be a bit of an analysis of material culture, perhaps. 

At the moment, I only have a small selection of deodorant on hand. I have my Dove flavors and Degree, and also one men's deodorant. The men's deodorant claims that you can "Feel clean, masculine and confident," whereas the Dove says "Our best care for beautiful underarms." What if women also want to feel clean and confident? And maybe even masculine? What if men want to have beautiful underarms? (I don't understand why men aren't also socially expected to shave their underarms. Then maybe they could have beautiful underarms too. They have way more hair there and it can look bad.) 

Can smells be beautiful?
I think they can. I haven't asked quite enough people about this yet, but so far, there seems to be a bit of a gender split on this: women tend to say that smells can indeed be described beautiful, whereas men think they can't. Sometimes I smell a soap when I'm washing my hands and think, "This soap smells beautiful" or, on the contrary, "This soap smells ugly." And of course, a person could smell beautiful as well.