Skipper Barbie
The Nose Knows
Cooking by smell seemed like an unreliable tactic to use to prepare food when I had recently lost my sight. My cooking instructor at the Orientational Center for the Blind once mentioned that she had students who relied more on scent than talking timers to cook; something I found nifty, yet unrealistic for myself. After all, I had been sighted for twenty-six years and did not cook often when I had vision. However, I began to notice how some of my classmates would know their dishes were close to being done seconds before the timers would go off.
Most of my cooking peers lost their sight as adults and a few under more tragic circumstances. So when my friend Nelson, a headshot victim, began to pick up the scent cooking technique, I began to feel like Skipper – Barbie’s under developed little sister. I could not comprehend how I was able to pick up new scents, but could not apply that skill to cooking. At times it felt as if my nose played tricks on me; making onions more pungent than what I recalled and steam from a pot of boiling water smell like the mist from the sea. This caused me to distrust my developing nose and hours of confusion in the kitchen. Nelson was also in his 20’s and arrived at the rehabilitation facility with limited cooking skills, yet overnight he became a blind chef.
Nelson and I were in the kitchenette at the O.C.B dorms where we munched on the brownies we baked earlier that morning. I was not surprised at all when he was able to pick up the rum extract aroma a few feet away from my batch of brownies. While enjoying our chocolaty snacks, I confessed my frustration to Nelson. “I so hate being able to smell everything, but not being able to rely on my nose!” “Chilax foo! You’ll get better with time!” he shouted back in an urban tone. I explained that I felt like I had this new body that I did not know how to use – it was like going through puberty all over again. He brought up that he was struggling with computer class and was thinking about dropping out of the course, but realized he should stick it out.
A familiar perfume filled the room as we both heard flip-flops over the linoleum floor run in to grab something out of the fridge and jetted back out without saying a word. We laughed and in unison shouted her name. We joked about the woman’s floral scent being too strong. It felt good to pick up a fragrance as quickly as Nelson, and I realized it would take me some time to learn to use my body the blind way. I thought about the years it took me to figure out the style of hair and clothing that best suited my body and face, smiling as I flashed back to all my wardrobe mishaps. Unlike vision that can be affected by lighting, angles, or illusions, scent tends to remain untainted by its surroundings. Realizing how strong and effective scent can be for me in the future allowed me to understand that taking my time to develop my nose was the best approach. The woman came back in the room and asked, “Did you guys call my name? How did you two know it was me?” Licking the chocolate off my fingers, I said, “The nose knows.”
About the Author
Belo Cipriani writes both creative non-fiction and short fiction across several genres with the help of adaptive technology. To read and edit, he uses a talking computer that runs a screen reader called JAWS and a talking dictionary device called Franklin.
Belo holds a Masters Degree in English with an emphasis in Creative Writing from Notre Dame de Namur University, where he studied under award winning poet Jacqueline Berger and fiction writer Kerry Dolan.
He is heavily involved with the San Francisco literary community and is a member of Litquake, The California Writers Club, and a contributing writer for Bay Area publications. Belo and his guide dog Madge live in San Francisco.
Learn more at http://blindamemoir.com/
Skipper’s a Barbie Girl
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The Complete & Unauthorized Guide to Vintage Barbie Dolls with Barbie & Skipper Fashions and the Whole Family of Barbie Dolls $15.99 âSince her introduction in 1959, Barbie® has reigned supreme in the world of dolls, and today she is collected by fans around the world. A required resource for all Barbie collectors, the revised and expanded second edition of this ideal reference book features more than 150 new images and updated prices. Now over 400 beautiful color photos illustrate this complete listing of Barbie, her f… |
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Complete and Unauthorized Guide to Vintage Barbie Dolls With Barbie and Skipper Fashions and the Whole Family of Barbie Dolls $22.49 Complete and Unauthorized Guide to Vintage Barbie Dolls With Barbie and Skipper Fashions and the Whole Family of Barbie Dolls |
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Skipper $19.96 Skipper |
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Barbie: Skipper’s Baby-Sitting Blues $4.99 This book is in New – Excellent condition |
Tags: Barbie, collectibles, doll, ken, skipper, skipper barbie, skipper barbie 1963, skipper barbie clothes, skipper barbie's friend, skipper barbie's little sister
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