Triggers

I've started a project: digitize all the cassette tapes I can find.
After I do that successfully, I'll digitize all of my dad's LPs.

Needless to say - I've found a lot of old memories listening to some of these tapes. Some of these memories I didn't even realize I'd forgotten.

One of the songs I found on a mix-tape was "Substitute" by The Who. The recording on the mix tape wasn't very good, but it was enough.

I haven't added any of the newly-digitized music to my library yet, so when "Substitute" was stuck in my head I had to go to the internet to hear it. I found a version on YouTube and listened all the way through. Then a funny thing happened: I thought I smelled markers and paint.

Usually smells trigger memories in me - but in this case, music triggered a remembered smell. A lot of "The Who" listening went on while I was in high school where I was taking a lot of "Commercial Art" from good old Tom Wood. The commercial art room (was it 702?) always had chemical smells coming from it. Whether it was markers, paint, various solvents to clean the same.