Announcement: I’m running a free challenge next week called 30 in 7: Plant Powered Challenge. Your mission? Eat 30 different and distinct plant-based foods in one week with my guidance and gentle accountability. Get all the details and grab your free spot in the challenge here.
Taste:
Slurpy Foods
Slurping makes the food experience so much more enjoyable. True, it may be considered rude in many cultures to slurp your meal, but in some countries it is a sign to the chef that the food presented is delectable and appreciated.
From a sensory perspective, slurping allows more air into the mouth which can subtly change the flavor profile of that food. There is also something undeniably satisfying about a slurping noise while eating or drinking; turns out just like with crunch, we adore making noises while eating.
Examples:
Slurping up noodles in a kick-ass ramen noodle soup or pasta dish
Sucking in as much juicy goodness as you can from a bite of a ripe peach
Slurping wonton or miso soup with one of those special spoons which amplifies the slurping sound and allows for more liquid to slurp with!
Slurping a milkshake or really exquisite scoop of melting ice cream.
Tell me, what are your favorite slurpable foods?
Scent:
Gasoline:
While totally bizarre, there are people who truly enjoy the scent of gasoline at a gas station (including me!). I was very curious about why some people genuinely marvel at the aroma of this caustic substance, so I did a little digging.
Turns out that our proclivity towards gasoline stems from the fact that it activates the mesolimbic system which is tied to our reward pathways in the brain. So, the smell of fuel actually releases dopamine!
One chemical in gasoline in particular, benzene, can partially numb the limbic system leaving us with a sense of euphoria.
Over time, due to aroma and scent being deeply tied to our memory centers like the hippocampus region of the brain, we can begin to associate the smell of gas to more pleasant experiences like how you always fueled up before a family road trip or enjoyed mowing the lawn every Saturday with your Dad.
Do you like the smell of gasoline? Be honest… we’re in a safe space here!
Sound:
Listening to music is part of my self-care and anti-stress routine. Many studies have shown how music can tame the fight or flight response, fill us with joy and is even used in certain modalities of therapy.
This is a playlist I made that I listen to when I need to calm my nervous system down and want to build emotional resiliency. Enjoy!
Touch:
2 day old beards
I’m going full weird on you today. Ready?
I love the touch of a 2 day old beard growing in. I quite fond of the prickly sensation on my palm and the short, spiky hairs that gently dance back and forth to my touch.
Sight:
Optical Illusions:
“The owls are not what they seem”
If you know this reference….we definitely should be friends. :-)
Our brains love predictable patterns and order over chaos. When it comes to optical illusions, it could be that our brains sense a challenge. Something is not as it seems and not as we would expect. These unpredictable distortions is what makes optical illusions so alluring. We make predictions about what we observe based on all other the external and sensory input we remember or have experienced from the past.
Here are 22 optical illusions to awe yourself with. #2 blows my mind every time.
Tell me, what is rocking YOUR five-senses this week?
I am loving these posts every Sunday.
And as a kid, I always loved the smell of gasoline ⛽️. I thought I was a weirdo for loving the fumes but now I feel seen. Lol.