Yes, You Can Take It with You

Thanks to psychologists at the University of Pittsburgh we know that absence makes the nose grow fonder. It was only a matter of time before some enterprising outfit turned this to commercial advantage. Turns out it was Laterooms.com, a UK-based hotel room reservation site.

As a special promotion, Laterooms is offering a “Home from Home” travel kit to a lucky few high-volume customers. The kits are intended to remind road warriors of the sensory pleasures of home, including a pillow case laundered in the traveler’s own brand of detergent, favorite biscuits and teas, etc. Topping it all off, according to a spokeswoman, is this:

We send an expert from aroma designer Dale Air round to their house who captures the different smells in their home then goes away copies it and puts it in a spray can to be used whenever the customer wants.

Cool idea, being able to carry the scent of home with you on the road. But the charm of returning home is that the various sensory pleasures of which you’ve been deprived hit you all at once. Will the Laterooms Travel Kit eliminate the homecoming effect?

Or, in the lyrics of the immortal Dan Hicks,

How can I miss you when you won’t go away?

[Hat tip to Mike T.]