house parties, cigarette smoke and hormones in the air, learning how to hold my liquor, early rap music, and often regret.

great line. haha — often regret — yep.

My grandpa always used Brut. My dad never used anything. When I was a teenager I bought some sometimes, but I no longer remember the brands I tried. All the girls I knew in high school disliked cologne and complained about it whenever guys wore it, so I guess that combined with my dad not using it just kind of led me away from ever really getting into it.

I didn't know that personal scents aren’t nearly as popular these days in the US. Interesting. They have never been popular here, at least not for men. They give an image of yakuza or of a host bar, so most men won't wear it. Incidentally, Febreze, Glade, and all that stuff isn't popular here either. The Japanese would say it stinks of chemicals.