Friday, October 3, 2008

It's Always Sunny In Chicago

Does anybody watch It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia? If you don't, you should. Netflix it, rent it, or just watch it next Thursday on FX - you will not regret it.

On last night's episode, Dee had to ride the bus after Mac and Charlie blew up her car in order to fake their deaths. That bus scene? Said everything about city buses that I would ever want to say. First off, the bus was packed so that people were forced to stand in the aisles. Second, there was no room for personal space, so Dee had to ask a hulking man if he could possibly avoid breathing directly into her mouth. She got so frustrated that she wedged through the mass of people to get to the bus driver, crawling under a man who refused to move his arms or acknowledge her. She complained to the driver, who told her to get behind the line. Then Dee finally crawled back to her original spot in front of the big breathing guy who kept staring at her.

Then he threw up.

My reasons for recounting this scene are threefold:

  1. I love this show.
  2. This is what my commutes are like...only the bus is generally crowded with businesspeople, but crowded and impersonal nonetheless!
  3. While the guy vomiting totally grossed me out, I felt like him this morning.
I couldn't understand him last night, but this morning, I was 'bout to vomit on the bus. The reason?

Strong perfume/cologne. It's unbearable! I don't know what it is anymore, but I can't handle the stuff. I get dizzy, nauseous...I feel like my body rejects strong perfume. But I also think, hey. How long have you been wearing fragrance in your life? Have you learned in the past 15-20 years that you have been overdoing it? Seriously, you're not 13 anymore.

And I think the worst part was that the smell was coming from 2 different people - one in front of me and one to the side of me. And I couldn't go anywhere, couldn't crack a window. I was trapped in perfume.

Last night at the gym, I was having a grand ole time on the cross-trainer until an obscenely-perfumed woman got on the machine next to me. I had about 13 minutes left on my workout, and I didn't know if I could make it. I couldn't breathe! As soon as the countdown was over, I hurled myself off the machine to do some deep breathing elsewhere.

I think if I had to choose, I could handle 20 minutes of straight body odor before I could handle 20 minutes of perfume.

I know I'm not alone out there. There are people like me who can barely make it past the perfume counters at department stores without burning my lungs. People who minimize their time in the detergent aisle.

I think my sense of smell has changed. As a teenager this didn't affect me. But now? It just tears me up. Does this make me a bad person?

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FYI: I was dancing in the office today, when I remembered David Brent's desperate dance routine from The Office. Mine is not unlike this:




So there's that,

Laura

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

I am the same way about perfume. I go in the opposite direction of the perfume counter in a department store.
My grandmother, who is strange, would lose her voice if she was around someone with strong perfume on. She would try to find someone smoking and ask them to breathe on her because it would help take the smell away.

I can only tolerate fruity smells myself. Juiced Berry from Victoria's Secret is my favorite. I try not to put too much on though.