We develop strong associations about certain objects that appear initially in our lives attached to people or places, then retain that link for as long we're around them. Temp Tee cream cheese is a mostly local product I took a liking to on visits to my aunt Vivian in New Jersey as a kid. Once she knew I was fond of it, she would always make a point of stocking the fridge with it and bringing some across the border to me when she came to our house.  I was shy and probably didn't express much preference for anything, so she must have been happy that I liked something she could replenish at will. She was not especially demonstrative either and her sarcastic wit confused me and left me a little off balance. I wasn't sure where I stood with her. The Temp Tee was her way of constantly reiterating her love for me, and a reminder that, though we didn't speak the same language, she got me. Now that I live here and see it on the store shelves everywhere, the connection has faded somewhat, but I realized yesterday that subconsciously the link is still there. Every tub that I open and spread on crackers or bagels is linked to the ones in her huge double-doored fridge in Pequannock, New Jersey on those first visits after she saw me gobbling it up. She would always make a point of showing me them as soon as I walked in to make sure that I knew I was welcome there and nothing had changed.