Undergrads are unavoidable.

And i don't mean the one's i work with.  The one's i work with are smart and driven and funny and great.  I'm talking more about the undergrads i interact with in dining commons, around the building, etc.  I don't know these students, we are but two ships ion the college sea at night. 

But i smell them.  And, i know you think i'm going to talk about BO and grossness and whatever.  But no.

It's the ladies this time.  For whatever reason it dawned on me today.  The women at this school smell like bubble gum.  And not just "bubble gum" scent, but also smells that i associate with bubble gum flavors.  Peach Punch, Green Apple-berry.  Shit like that.  And i don't get it.  Maybe this is one of those "im getting old" things, but i don't don't see the allure of smelling like Hubba-Bubba.  I can't see myself being like, "this chicks only kinda fly.  hairs all messed up, but she's funny.  i'm torn . . . but she smells like Grape Ape Jungle Chew, so i'm gonna go for it."

Maybe the thinking is that the guy (let me get hetero-normative here for a minute) will smell the bubble gum and it will remind them of baseball.  Thinking of baseball will make them want to "play ball" (so many sex/baseball metaphors to choose from). 

The only time i ever remember a girl smelling like sugar coated fruit is from my limited exposure to strippers.  You can understand how smelling like strawberries and cream can be an asset in the stripping business.  I mean, you want your customers to want to devour you (right?).  But, for the college population at large, is this what our culture has trickled down too.  Are Bubble-Yum scents for girls the next leggings with Ughs (i'm assuming that's how those are spelled).

I thought one of the reasons girls went to college was to avoid becoming a stripper?


(*editors note: i hold no strong moral or ethical qualms with stripping other than i don't think i would enjoy doing it myself and that it probably propagates bad societal gender politics.  but nothings perfect.