Okay, One Li’l Anecdote…
I got on the train after work, as I always do, and as the train filled up, somebody was stuck sitting next to me. She sat there for a few minutes, then suddenly got up and switched to another available seat. And I can’t help going nuts wondering why.
Okay, I’m large. This is not news to the longtime reader of this blog. Actually, it probably is, because usually I use the word “fat” to describe my carriage. However, I have been forbidden from using this term by powers more formidable and sexually attractive than you could ever comprehend. Consequently, I’m going with “large,” and with that said, it’s not surprising that somebody might be irritated by my wideness and move to a seat next to a smaller person. However, this woman was quite petite, so I don’t think that was necessarily the problem.
I’ve been deeply concerned about what foul stench I may be emitting as a result of nine-to-fiving it, as I have been for a long time this semester. I’m no heathen; I shower at least once a day, and I use an inordinate amount of deodorant, et cetera. I’m generally cleanly, and I’m pretty anal (heh, heh) about it.
However, I’m large. Because of this, I find it difficult to perform such basic tasks as walking up a flight of stairs or sitting down without sweating profusely. Sweat doesn’t exactly smell good, and it clings to the body, dries up, and — I imagine — terrible smells ensue. Since I’ve been riding the train at rush-hour, when riders are able to get up close and personal with odors they’d generally live without smelling, I am very familiar with the fat-man stench. It’s that oily combination of sizzling pork and gaping, red assholes (note: not work safe, KURU) that damn near makes me throw up.
But wouldn’t I be able to smell it if I were producing such an odor? I’m not so sure. It’s like George Carlin says: “Your own farts don’t smell so bad, but if it’s someone else, you’d be running to Bensonhurst.” I have to believe this principle also applies to body odors. It’s all about chemistry, man, and my fat-man (er, large-man) chemistry says, “You smell like bacon no matter how much you wash.”
So what do I do about it?
Lose weight? Yeah, I’m trying, but the Sausage Egg McMuffins won’t cooperate.
Figure out a method of showering before getting on the train in the evening? Okay, that’s not going to happen. Shut up, me.
Perhaps I should just live with the curse of the large man, wedged into a seat next to another fat man whose odor makes me want to tear out my nose and tongue.
Posted by Stan on December 15, 2003 9:26 PM | Permalink | Stories of Pain and Humiliation | Digg It
Just in case the web address didn’t come through:
http://www.biopsychology.com/index.php?id=9&type=chapter
Posted by Mike | December 16, 2003 5:38 PM | Reply
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Comments (2)
I remember quite some time ago having heard about
the brains ability to “tune out” some smells as
a means of avoiding sensory overload.
There’s a small blurb here on a “protein” which
acts as a “nose plug”.
It might answer your question as to why you (we)
can’t smell what others smell.
Our smells are common to us and I guess in a nutshell, the brain doesn’t want to invest a lot
of effort and energy in analyzing common smells.
Now the new and different, perhaps, because it
then needs to know if the new or different indicates something harmless or harmful.
I would guess, by comparison, it’s the difference
between the neighborhood you grew up in and a
completely new and different neighborhood. You’d
pay closer attention to the new neighborhood as
a means of determining who’s who and what’s where.
Your old neighborhood, by comparison is familiar
and as such doesn’t get the same amount of attention. Likewise, after you’ve lived in the
new neighborhood for awhile, you’re probably more
likely to know who’s who and what’s where and
over time will probably devote less heightened
attention to the surroundings.
I would imagine, smell, is very much the same.
What’s also interesting is that the attached web
page also talks about “bio-psychology”, the
connection between our senses and our brains and
the fact that not only do we learn sensorily, but,
what we learn differs between men and women, from
one region to another and can also be a pre-indicator of some mental/psychological conditions.
Might be interesting reading.
Posted by Mike | December 16, 2003 5:36 PM | Reply