site banner
PaperclipPerfector  1d ago (text post)   1505 thread views

Friday Fun Thread for February 13, 2026

Be advised: this thread is not for serious in-depth discussion of weighty topics (we have a link for that), this thread is not for anything Culture War related. This thread is for Fun. You got jokes? Share 'em. You got silly questions? Ask 'em.

2
Top Bottom Old Controversial Comments
Jump in the discussion.

No email address required.

Paging @Closedshop.

I decided I need a cologne. My problem is, I hate so many basic scents I have no idea what to look for. To be more specific:

  • I hate vetiver. My wife uses essential oil of vetiver for medicinal purposes, and it smells like someone poured water on a burning birch log.
  • I hate patchouli. My wife had both Messe de Minuit and Patchouly by Etro, and they smelled like a damp, musty, mildewy cellar.
  • I hate... I don't know what's inside Pot Pourri by Santa Maria Novella, but it smells like healthcare. Like some 19th century ointment.
  • UPD Turns out there was a full bottle of Penhaligon's Racquets Formula in my wife's perfume closet that my mom got me a long time ago, and... I hate it as well.

Practically everything from your post features either patchouli or vetiver. I have no idea where to start if I can't stand either of them.

Smells I like: sea, pines (and conifers in general), pipe tobacco, coffee, citrus, chocolate, cherry, vanilla, rain, wild mushrooms, leather.

Why do you want cologne? The best smell is no smell, just be clean. I’ve never once had someone walk by me surrounded by a miasma of perfume and thought to myself “How wonderful! How intoxicating!”

@Rov_Scam @TowardsPanna @SubstantialFrivolity

Sorry CHUD,

•You WILL choke on a cloud of my generously applied Drakkar Noir cologne

•You WILL be blinded by the glare of my 10mm gold Cuban chain

•You WILL cope, seethe and dilate in jealousy at my forty-thousand dollar Rolex

•You WILL purchase a reasonably priced certified pre-owned European import sports car from my automotive dealership, subject to in-house financing options

And you will be happy

So much cologne. What can men do against such based posting?

You WILL be blinded by the glare of my 10mm gold Cuban chain

I love the term because whenever I see one, I just picture it on an old Miami Cuban dude in a straw fedora and a linen shirt.

  1. Really? When a woman passes me with an enticing perfume I think something very much along those lines. Perhaps with a bit more eroticism.
  2. Even so, perfume and cologne is generally supposed to be personal-space-percieved only. Scent is your strongest sense for memory. It fosters emotional connection between humans, point blank. Absolutely worth the $25/year to have some.

perfume and cologne is generally supposed to be personal-space-percieved only.

Which is fine, provided the personal space is limited to someone who is kissing you. It does not extend to the entire elevator.

When a woman passes me with an enticing perfume I think something very much along those lines. Perhaps with a bit more eroticism.

In other words, you can put it with cars and athletic ability in the category of things men think impress women because they impress other men. I have never once heard a woman compliment a man for his cologne or tell me they liked the smell of a guy's cologne. I have heard a lot of women complaining about guys who wear too much cologne.

I have never once heard a woman compliment a man for his cologne

I have.

Hell, I've been the guy who's gotten complemented for his colonge!

I'll be the first person to criticize men and women who go overboard, but that doesn't mean people hate it completely.

perfume and cologne is generally supposed to be personal-space-percieved only

When has that ever been true?

There's a good reason why perfume is banned in some places. Pushing your personal preference for smell on others in a way they can't ignore is rude.

Really? When a woman passes me with an enticing perfume I think something very much along those lines. Perhaps with a bit more eroticism.

Different strokes, I suppose. I find perfume to be actively off-putting. Thankfully, my wife is not a perfume kind of gal.

Any smell is disgusting and rude, it is the equivalent of black kids blasting music on their phone on the subway. Hard to believe, but the smell of a Yankee Candle store does not give me an erection. I disallow my wife from using any scented products at all.

What is this place?

This website is a place for people who want to move past shady thinking and test their ideas in a court of people who don't all share the same biases. Our goal is to optimize for light, not heat; this is a group effort, and all commentators are asked to do their part.

The weekly Culture War threads host the most controversial topics and are the most visible aspect of The Motte. However, many other topics are appropriate here. We encourage people to post anything related to science, politics, or philosophy; if in doubt, post!

Check out The Vault for an archive of old quality posts. You are encouraged to crosspost these elsewhere.


Why are you called The Motte?

A motte is a stone keep on a raised earthwork common in early medieval fortifications. More pertinently, it's an element in a rhetorical move called a "Motte-and-Bailey", originally identified by philosopher Nicholas Shackel. It describes the tendency in discourse for people to move from a controversial but high value claim to a defensible but less exciting one upon any resistance to the former. He likens this to the medieval fortification, where a desirable land (the bailey) is abandoned when in danger for the more easily defended motte. In Shackel's words, "The Motte represents the defensible but undesired propositions to which one retreats when hard pressed."

On The Motte, always attempt to remain inside your defensible territory, even if you are not being pressed.


New post guidelines

If you're posting something that isn't related to the culture war, we encourage you to post a thread for it. A submission statement is highly appreciated, but isn't necessary for text posts or links to largely-text posts such as blogs or news articles; if we're unsure of the value of your post, we might remove it until you add a submission statement. A submission statement is required for non-text sources (videos, podcasts, images).

Culture war posts go in the culture war thread; all links must either include a submission statement or significant commentary. Bare links without those will be removed.

If in doubt, please post it!


Rules


Recommended Posts And Communities

Recommended Realtime Chats