Portia

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Hello Australian Perfume Junkies and friends, So glad to have you drop by Scent Diary. Grab a cuppa or beverage of choice, sit back and check what has happened, been eaten, spritzed and seen in our lives in Sydney, Australia.

At then end please leave us some comments. What or who did you see, do, eat with. Did you spritz, purchase, have arrivals or finish a sample? What’s happening in your world? If you’re writing or reading opinions, we can disagree but keep it nice and try not to give or take offense. Right now the world needs a web of friendships and connection more than ever. We all have perfume and each other in common. That’s a whole lot.

Scent Diary: 27.7-2.8.2026

Monday

Morning Routine: 10 Minutes.

• Don’t Touch the Phone
• Avoid Negative Input (TV, Socials, Arguments)
• Drink Water
• Get Sunlight in My Eyes
• Move Body 3 Minutes
• Set One Intention
• One Small Win
• One thing I’m grateful for.

OOOHHHH it’s frosty out this morning. As soon as I got up took the dogs for a wee. BRRR! Back inside and straight to Trivia Q&A

Jin is up and shingling around the house. He’s taken control of the couch, dogs and TV. Monday is his Sunday and with these shingles he’s taking it very easy.

Goldfield and Banks Southern Bloom

Midday and all the Trivia Q&A is written. I’ll come back this afternoon and pre write the Runs and Jackpots for next month.

Dogs fed and walked. Today is patchy sunshine and when the sun is out it’s so warming.

Sending the Trivia to the Queens and printing my sets out.

Jin and I took his sick little body out for Yum Cha. Fortunately Shingles is non contagious unless the sores are open. Front are scabbed up and back has been caught pre-burst.

I’m the messiest eater. You can always tell where I sat for Yum Cha. It’s like a blast radius. SO DELICIOUS.

We were wandering back to the car. Jin popped off to the toilet and a dear old friend that I used to work Gilligan’s Cocktail Bar and Banana Bar with was wandering past. I’m like, “JASON?!?” super nice catch up. So many happy memories. He looks almost exactly the same.

On the way home a car veered into us and gave us quite a bump. Poor girl, she was very rattled by it. We did the details, we kept it very low key. Her car was way worse than ours but still, Jin’s baby.

Came home to the TV show pre-agreement. Very humbling.

Grabbed out a modern bottle of Guerlain Mitsouko EdT and opened it. Something lovely to cheer my spiraling head. It’s had a little glow up. Like an eau fraiche version of itself. Prettier and less enigmatic. Maybe that deep buwill come with time. Review to come, somewhere.

Did a diabetes health check. This is not a bad result, especially considering we had Yum Cha for brunch. Yes we ate the beans and Chinese broccoli BUT there were pork buns and spring rolls too.

Jin went to bed really early. He’s hoping to go to work tomorrow. The shingles are all scabbed or receding and we have them covered in calamine and enormous band aids. So he’s not contagious and has a shit tonne on his plate this week.

Did some loads of laundry and hung all except the last.

Had sausages and salad for dinner. Sorry, no pics. I was famished and ate before clicking. YUMMY!

A bit of TV with the dogs.

Walked and fed them. Poor old Paris is really feeling it tonight.

Bed.

Tuesday

Morning Routine: 10 Minutes.

Today is so gorgeously sunny and bright. Walking the dogs first thing while there was still some chill in the wind was delightful. Paris was full of beans.

Came to the computer and did some organizing and blogging.

I have a list of jobs that. need doing but am giving myself a day of laziness. The dusting got done but tomorrow morning I’ll vacuum. I put some laundry out to dry that had washed overnight. Now I’m going to make a cuppa, some sourdough rye bread toast and lay in front of the TV with the dogs. Woo Hoo!

OH DEAR! My day has been derailed. Jin is home at 10.30am?!? I just finished writing that last paragraph and the screen door opened. We are off to the doctor.

CHANEL Coco vintage extrait. Just a dab under my chin(s). Can’t leave the house scent naked.

Doctor happy with Jin’s progress. I bought us Thai to celebrate. SO YUMMY! Pad Thai Pad Si Ew, Egg Fried Rice and Curry Puffs.

Then we came home and both of us fell deep asleep.

When we woke up it was already 4pm!?!

GAH! Straight into the bath. Too late to bet clean, shaved, rest my skin and put a face on.

Used a new bath soak today. A gift from my mate Sue, who just returned from Fiji. Smells amazing. I spent a full hour in there just loving it.

Going dude mode to work. Naughty

Olfactive Studio Flash Back in New York.

Trivia was busy. Loads of my faves in the house.

Afterwards Jin had asked me to drop in and grab some groceries. I made it with minutes to spare and practically ran around the supermarket with the tannoy blaring they are closing in five minutes. PHEW! Grabbed everything he ordered and some milk for me.

Watched some TV with the dogs.

Fed and walked them.

For bed. Chopard Wish. Wanted something sweet, but not sickly. Perfect fit. Fabulous over the Flash Back in New York remnants.

SLEEP

Wednesday

Morning Routine: 10 Minutes.

Lanvin Arpege. Very old pic, much more air in the bottle now.

House cleaning, little more laundry.

Miranda came for Admin Day.

During the day Helen dropped around with a special delivery of ANZAC biscuits, home made, for my mate Celia.

Jin came home and worked from home for a while too.

We had to go check out a second hand fridge for one of the apartments. Bought it. Brought it home.

Ysatis de Givenchy

Off to work. Lovely bunch, including a new group of young men. It was a fun and very rowdy trivia night.

Home. watched some TV with the dogs.

Fed and walked them. CHILLY outside tonight. Beautiful full moon.

BUBBLE BATH time.

Penhaligon’s Solaris

Bed.

Thursday

Morning Routine: 10 Minutes.

Dogs fed and walked.

LOADS of Guerklain Mitsouko EdT

Packed the car and headed north nearly 4 hours to hang with my two girlfriends Celia and Karen. They’ve both moved into the same district but don’t really know each other. My mission, besides seeing these beautiful humans, was to get them friendly. I stayed with Celia overnight at her new, beautifully thought out and decorated Over 55s two bedroom home. It’s just five minutes walk from the beach and pools.

There is a lot to cover but instead I’m just going to put some pictures in.

Friday

Completely did not do Morning Routine: 10 Minutes.

Breakfast with Celia and Karen at a very cool cafe called Tartt. Food was excellent, so was the service.

Then we went to the Forster Tuncurry Golf Clubhouse. Karen is the General Manager there so we got the full guided tour. It’s so gorgeous. I forgot to taker any bloody photos. Sorry.

Afterwards I packed myself up and drove home.

Jin and I had a very chill evening. Just hung out. Had some dinner. It was nice.

I’m pooped.

Fed and walked the dogs.

Watched rubbish TV with the dogs.

Hermes Muguet Porcelaine. Mine is a tester. What a fragrance.

Did not sleep. No idea why.

While pottering around the computer one of the housing commission people that lives next door pulled down part of our dividing fence.

Definitely did not sleep after that.

Saturday

Finally, Jin went to work at 4.20am and I fell asleep. Didn’t wake till 10am.

Bulgari Man in Black. The original from 2014. So beautiful and wearable.

Dogs loved the chilly, misty, just after rain walk after I fed them. The cloud is so low the sky scrapers are fogged in. The dogs did not want in this shot, at all.

Very late Morning Routine: 10 Minutes.

Lazy day. Cuddled Paris.

Promised Jin the afternoon together when he finished work.

We had local old school hamburgers and seafood for a 2pm lunch.

Then we had organised to take the new second hand refrigerator to the tenants. Picture Jin and me taking it up four flights of stairs and then having to bring the old one down. Terrifying and hilarious. I kept thinking of Ross in FRIENDS, “PIVOT! PIVOT!”

Because we were already organised to do stuff, I had to say no to a really good gig tonight. It was the wife of one of my school years’ buddies 60th Birthday and my buddy gave her a surprise party. Miranda took the gig and they texted me many thanks. She knocked their socks off. I REALLY could do with the $$$ but needs must…

Jin went to bed early. He’s working again tomorrow because there is some work being done at the depo. It happens monthly, the money is really good and he gets a day in lieu.

Dogs got fed and walked in the very chilly evening. They got home and jumped straight up on the couch. Momo is going to need some retraining when Paris goes to the gods on Monday. Here we are cuddling on the couch.

I went straight in for a well overdue BUBBLE BATH. Didn’t get out till nearly 1am. Heavenly.

Came and did some blog writing. Nothing major, just here really.

Bois 1920 Sushi Imperiale. All the way from 2005, so groundbreaking at the time. Still so good.

Sunday

Cuddled Paris on the couch till Jin got up at 3.50am. He took the dogs for a walk and then I headed to bed for real sleep.

Morning Routine: 10 Minutes.

L’Occitane Iris Bleu Iris Blanc

Spent the morning going to the supermarket, getting everything I needed for lunch and then cooking Savoury Mince. While it was reducing I gave the living area, kitchen and main bathroom floors a vacuum. I also opened the new kettle Jin bought to replace mine after it was dropped. Exactly the same.

Kath and Tina came over for lunch. Mainly to say goodbye to Paris. It’s his last day and they got to have some cuddles, come for a walk with us and really give him a lovely send off.

Kath hates photos so there’s Tina.

Here’s our Savoury Mince lunch. Mum always cut the toast into love hearts. I keep up the tradition.

Paris and me walking off into the distance. You can see how thin and wonky poor Paris is. It’s time to let him go.

Off to work.

Berdoues Maasai Mara

Had a wonderful night at Lockie’s hotel. good crowd, lots of fun.

Jin sent me this pic of him and Paris.

When I got home Jin buzz cut my hair. Now I need to have a bath to get all the shrapnel off me.

Then I’ll douse myself in CHANEL Coco EdT.

Good night all. see you next week.

 

Now it’s your turn. Please tell us something you did, spritzed, ate, wore, bought or finished. Maybe you saw a friend, a show, an exhibition. Maybe you got through the week without having to bury a body. Whatever, please share something with us.

I read and respond to every comment. C’mon, let’s chat.
Portia xx