Part 3: The Bottles Have Landed Hey guys, Joe A. here with another one for ya’! Welcome back to SHELF CONTROL, where one man attempts to bring order to a fragrance collection that clearly stopped respecting boundaries, triggered mild family concern, and may or may not have been one blind buy away from needing a full-blown intervention! Well gentlemen… The Great Bottle Migration is officially complete! The drawers, cabinets, boxes, shelves, corners and mysterious little fragrance hideouts around the house have finally surrendered their contents. For the first time, my collection feels like ONE collection that's together, visible, accessible and staring back at me with the collective expression of, “Yeah Joe… you bought all of us.” And seeing everything together has been eye-opening! There are forgotten gems I’m excited to wear again, bottles that immediately reminded me why I bought them, obvious phases I apparently went through and more than a few fragrances quietly challenging my repeated claim that, “I don’t own anything like this...” BUT... something else happened that I really wasn’t expecting. Once every bottle was finally sitting in front of me, the question stopped being, “Where am I going to put all this?” and quietly morphed into: “What exactly am I trying to build here?” When a collection is scattered around the house, it’s surprisingly easy to focus on what you’re missing. When it’s all staring back at you at once? Gentlemen… suddenly you become very aware of what you’re NOT missing. Maybe the next step isn’t automatically buying another bottle. Maybe it’s finding the ACTUAL gaps. Rediscovering something great that got buried three years ago. Giving more attention to fragrances that never got their fair shot. Or realizing you already own six answers to a question you were about to solve with bottle number seven. And maybe that’s the biggest surprise of Shelf Control!! I built all this shelving because I wanted to see and enjoy my collection better. I didn’t realize that seeing it better might actually change the way I collect.

#sotd... Dior Homme Sport 2021 by Dior... This is a spicy woody fragrance. Dior took this version into a whole different direction than your normal Dior Homme line by removing the powdery Iris and focus more on a sharp citrus and that is blended with some woodsiness. The opening hits you with a bright and zesty citrus scent before transitioning into a sharp spiciness. The dry down is sophisticated and woody making this a versatile fragrance. Good projection for the first few hours. Great longevity for a EDT as I went 7 hours before refreshing. I give this a solid 8.5 out of 10.

I just got finished meeting with several people this morning and I gave someone a ride back to the car about 30 minutes ago. It is 12:00 PM at 3 AM. I put on orange cream at 11:30. Someone standing 2 feet from me complimented me on the fragrance that I was wearing. I met with four people today and all of them complimented the fragrance that I had on. Big shout out to Michael Payne. For this wonderful creation.

Twenty four years ago today, I made a decision to change my life for the better. I sat in my first AA meeting with a bunch of people I did not know and made a promise to myself that on my 30th birthday I would be one year free from tobacco and alcohol. I gave up a lot of other things, too, but this was the day that I went 24 hours without a cigarette in one hand and bottle in the other. That decision gave me my power back. I was in control again, and I had my whole life ahead of me. It was definitely a struggle. I had to change everything about myself. It started with little things - waking up in the morning and drinking grapefruit juice to block the nicotine receptors, freshen my tongue, and slow the cravings. Finding something else to do with my hands, and not taking that mid afternoon smoke break. Going home and having a glass of water or a soda without any "extras." I woke up every day and told myself "I am a person who doesn't smoke and doesn't drink, so let's go about being that person." I pretended to be that person until I became that person. Eventually, after two years, my family rewarded me with a vacation. I chose San Diego Comic Con, and it was there that I discovered a renewed sense of joy and creativity that led me to photography and the career and life I've had till now. It hasn't been an easy road. But every day that I have walked away from it, I have walked toward a better life and a better future. My old sponsor has been kind enough to send me a new coin every year. They are not official, but they mean a lot to me. I keep it in my pocket to remind me of what I can overcome if I set my mind and my feet in the right direction. This year's might be my favorite so far. And I'm wearing Telegrama. That barbershop scent with lavender and spice reminds me that, like getting your hairs cut, sometimes you have to trim the old things off to let new growth take its place. If you're struggling and need help, please seek it out. There are many of us here who I'm sure have been through it and willing to lend a hand. There are lots of support groups out there, too, and I'm sure we can help you find one.

There’s been a lot of talk lately about the decline in participation here, so I figured I’d throw my two cents in. For me, I comment when I actually have something to add. If I own the fragrance, have sampled it, smelled it at a counter, know the house, or I’m interested in trying it, I’ll usually jump in. I like comparisons, first impressions, SOTDs with some substance, unpopular opinions, performance talk, clones versus originals, new releases, and anything that can actually turn into a conversation. But I also think the lack of engagement goes a little deeper than the posts themselves. I think people have become too sensitive to criticism and disagreement. A respectful difference of opinion is not disrespect. We are not all going to smell the same thing, like the same thing, or agree on what is better. That is actually where a lot of the learning comes from. I also think some good brothers have left because disagreements turned into resentment instead of just being disagreements. That is unfortunate. You should be able to tell me you completely disagree with my take on a fragrance, explain why, and we both move on. Maybe I even learn something from you. There is also a little selfishness with engagement. Some people want everybody commenting on their posts, but you rarely see them interacting with anyone else’s. If everybody only participates when they are the one posting, then eventually there is no real community. I have also heard people blame the AI bot for some of the decline. I think that is kind of ridiculous. I understand why people do not like the regurgitating and automatic bot engagement. I am actually not a fan of that part myself. But one comment from a bot does not prevent experienced brothers or newcomers from adding their own thoughts. If ten guys want to have a real conversation underneath it, the bot did not stop that. The human engagement is still up to us. Then I hear about the paid portion of the platform. I have not seen anybody kicked out of the Brotherhood because they did not participate in the paid side.