Got behind a...

[SearchingForRainbows]

THANKS EVERYONE!!! I really needed a laugh today!!!

And, I thought the worst that could happen was when my "favorite sanity saver" rolled in the remains of a dead snake... Or when she was a puppy, came inside, and threw up a dead, totally flattened mouse. I was going to eat a late lunch - Maybe I'll skip it...

P.S. Star, I was laughing so hard that I was crying just as hardwhen I read what you wrote. Whoever said it should come with a warning is definitely right

 

[HaoZi]

Sus, pretty sure you win the worst smelling person contest with that story. I only specified the "worst fart" I ever smelled, lol. I've smelled worse things in general, but some of the "worse" parts of that was knowing what made the smell over the smell itself. I'll tell you, maggots have their own smell no matter what they're eating, and it makes me puke. There are reasons I never finished that criminal justice degree and stopped working jobs in that field - much as I like certain aspects of it I could never deal with the smells involved.

 

[AnnieO]

LOL - that's why all the MEs I have ever known carry Vicks... It's not just in books and movies...

 

[DammitJanet]

I will never forget the day years and years ago when my mom and I were in the grocery store with my late grandmother. We were in the isle that carried the eggs and dairy items. She was turned towards the eggs and butter and we were turned the other way. All of a sudden we heard it...the ghastly fart....coming from this elderly woman. And then the smell that just enveloped the entire area around us. She casually turned around and looked at us and said "we have to get out of here because something really smells bad!"

People all around us just looked at us like she had three heads. LMAO.

 

[Marguerite]

How many of you remember that wonderful scene in the movie "10"? George Webber (played by Dudley Moore) is talking to the minister who married the young couple (George is trying to find the impossibly beautiful bride he has become obsessed with) and the minister's very elderly housekeeper staggers out with the tea tray. She's clearly no longer up to the task. Then the old lady breaks wind very loudly. You can see Dudley Moore's eyes begin to water. The large dog in the room yelps and runs outside. The minister leans forward and says softly, "She's old, poor thing, and deaf, she doesn't know it's her. So when she breaks wind, we beat the dog."

Back in my uni days, we often had to "go bush" as part of a practical exercise. The conditions were primitive. We would arrive in camp and the lecturers would work to set up the water pump that took water from the creek and pumped it to the showers. There were cows upstream, and I knew that the water in those showers (cold water only, in early spring) would only be rearranging the E.coli. We also had some tasks which required us to get into the lake and the ocean (COLD!) but it was a healthier washing opportunity. So I spent the week staying dirty, pretty much. I wore my army camouflage gear the whole time, didn't bother to change (no point) and didn't even strip at bedtime. it was so cold I just climbed into my sleeping bag liner (a pink flannelette nightie with velcro fastener along the bottom hem) over the top of my army gear. During the day I had my equipment belt on with water bottles (from the rainwater tank - safe to drink, unlike the creek) and my utility knife (not legal, these days).

I wasn't the only one not showering; few people did. Those that did had gastroenteritis by Day 3...

After ten days of this, we were pretty ripe. But the whole busload of us smelled the same and we were used to it. We didn't notice. But when we finally got back to the city, THEN we got reactions!

The first thing I did after walking home (I only lived a hundred yards from where we were dropped off) was run a hot bubble bath, and soaked in it for an hour. My clothes went into a tub to soak. But at least I still had a clean set to change into - I'd only stunk up one set of clothes!

Marg

 

[HaoZi]

LOL - that's why all the MEs I have ever known carry Vicks... It's not just in books and movies...

I know. I've tried it, but not only did it NOT work (just added an extra layer to the miasma) it also caused severe skin irritation. You'd think after 20 years of smoking I wouldn't have a sense of smell, but no. I've cut waaaay back on the cigs and each day reminds me more that trying to kill my sense of smell was one of the reasons I started.

 

[Marguerite]

You only use a really tiny amount. The thinnest smear. I actually use Tiger Balm instead, you have to use even less but at least it is not petroleum-based. And if you need to avoid it up the nostril, put it under your nose or just under your chin. It should help. Or put it on the lapel of what you are wearing, so there need not be skin contact.

Marg

 

[HaoZi]

Short of actually stuffing my nose full of Vicks (considered trying that, too), it just doesn't help me. I've also tried putting that or oil essences on the inside of the masks you use for painting, also a no-go. Maybe a gas mask would help.
Not worried about it as much these days, ever since I had Kiddo I knew there was no way I could go back to that field. If I go back to college I'll be changing my major to an earlier love - marine biology.

 

[witzend]

I'm liking the earplugs up the nose idea.

 

[Marg's Man]

I'll be changing my major to an earlier love - marine biology.

Are you sure? I have fond (!?!) memories of week old Aplysia that had not been properly treated with formaldehyde. In Australian summer heat THAT'S a serious stench.

Like you Haozi I never liked the Vicks/Tiger Balm options. The smell of putrefying things was just overlaid by the smell of the menthol and together they simply added to create an even worse stink.

Marg's Man

 

[Marguerite]

Good point, honey. I still remember with un-fond nausea, those warm summer afternoons dissecting the same increasingly putrefying dogfish in Vertebrate Zoology prac. Week after week they would thaw out the same fish we'd worked on the previous prac. After a six week series, it was NOT pleasant! A few good farts would have helped mask the smell.

Marg