[Quoting from my OP: “The smell of burning tobacco is, among very many ‘goodthinkers’, right up there with the satanic brimstone of earlier times (OK, regarding that issue, there is the public-health factor; but I would contend that numerous anti-smokers abhor the smell in itself, and because of that, bring in in their support, the ‘poisoning others’ thing).”]
Jackmannii: it would seem that you and I are in agreement as regards much on the “scent / perfumes” scene; but not on the “tobacco” one. I don’t deny that smoking tobacco is basically unhealthy, and not a good idea. Feel, however, that hating the practice because of its threat to health (plus disliking the smell); vis-a-vis disliking the smell, and roping-in in support, the unhealthiness of smoking; have some resemblance to the chicken-and-egg conundrum – I suspect that many haters of smoking would, if they were honest, not be certain which for themselves was the cause, and which the effect.
Thanks for this information about a scene which is, first-hand, unknown to me. To be candid, reading this has me thanking heaven that I’m tone-deaf and totally cannot sing, and thus am extremely unlikely ever to be a member of a choir !
Also, I don’t care whether people smoke, it’s their funeral, but second hand smoke makes me ill, right then and there. It is definitely something in cigarettes, even pipe smoke doesn’t have that effect on me. Ever since I was a small child – when people smoked A LOT more. I’m not self-righteous (about that, anyway), just nauseous, thank you.
I don’t disagree, but I agree with the OP that some people take it too far. There comes a point where a person must adjust to the world rather than the other way around. Nobody should be dousing themselves in strong scents , but if a person is really so allergic that a coworker’s shampoo or deodorant or hand lotion is going to cause an asthma attack, I have to wonder how they manage in everyday life. Maybe they could get their employer to require that all employees and visitors abstain from using any scented products (and I have heard of people who wanted to dictate which detergent coworkers use to wash their clothes), but how would they manage at the supermarket or the mall or on the bus or at a restaurant …?
I have never really been assaulted by a mixture of “artificial” smells in my day-to-day life. I may catch a whiff of someone’s strong perfume after they’ve exited the elevator, but it doesn’t strike me as noisome. Most “artificial” smells are pleasing in low doses.
But I can see how they can be cloying. Nowadays, every electrical outlet seems to be occupied by a Glade air freshener. Everyone’s Febreezing everything. Everyone’s got the strawberry body wash and the spring-fresh laundry detergent, in addition to the perfume and cologne and deoderants. Why? Because everyone’s afraid of B.O. If there was a pill you could take to transform your farts into puffs of lavender or pumpkin spice, you wouldn’t be able to keep it on the shelf. (If they can convince people to buy scented tampons, why not?)
So while I’m not sensitive to all the smells, I certainly can understand how someone else could be. There’s way too many DIFFERENT kinds of odors out there–based on chemicals that some engineer somewhere came up with so that he or she could get a raise. It seems like a no-brainer that these things would cause some headache (literally and metaphorically).
Me too, because this certainly is the problem. It’s not perfume per se (although, I know some people really are that allergic, but what offends the non-allergic is the people who coat themselves in it). It isn’t always, but frequently it is, smokers who think we won’t notice they just had a cigarette, when all they are doing is making themselves smell like someone poured perfume over an ashtray. I had to sit next to someone on a long airplane flight right after flights banned all smoking, who smoked, I think, an entire pack just before boarding, then poured some kind of perfume or cologne all over herself. I’m not allergic (unless the perfume had real pollen in it, which I guess was possible), but my eyes were watering, and my nose was running. The skin on my face was even burning a little. Halfway through the flight, she had a cigarette in the bathroom, which isn’t allowed, but wasn’t being policed that well back then, and doused herself again, coming back smelling like a heavily scented ashtray. I already tend to get headaches on flights, and I had a terrible one that night. I’m sure the smoke and perfume contributed.
When my husband was a sergeant and squad leader in the reserves, one of his privates failed to bring soap and a towel to a week-long FTX. He fell for the advertisements, and just brought a bottle of Axe spray. He thought he wouldn’t have to shower for a week if he sprayed himself with Axe every day. My husband had to order him to shower. He sent him to the Px and made him spend money on soap and a towel, which made him furious, and he was a shmuck for the rest of the week.
And I think of Private Shmuck whenever I see an Axe commercial.
Some of you need to spend some time riding on buses in the third world, and get used to the idea that human beings have a natural odor, which, in general, is more pleasant than any refills in any Glade plugin.
Homo sapiens is a social species, and evolved a dependence on having other people present. The odor of other people (yes, body odor) around you was, before the advertising era twisted your priorities, thought to be comforting.
I’d just like to point out something I mentioned in another thread with a similar subject: so-called “unscented” deodorant is a viable option ONLY if it is used reasonably.
If sprayed or larded on to a similar or same degree the prime offenders take it to with perfume/body wash etc., unscented deodorant is even more offensive…because it is anything BUT unscented.
I’ve always been amused by those who apply bucketfuls of it and then stride confidently about, secure in the knowledge that they’re not offending anyone.
In fact, if I had a choice, I’d rather be subjected to their natural B.O. than I would that God-awful chemical smell of unscented deodorant.
Yes!! I have practically no problem with any scents at all, except Axe! It smells so unpleasant to me that I sincerely cannot understand how anyone considers it a good smell. I think it must be one of those things like the taste of cilantro, where different genetic types experience it differently.
(Bleach and Lysol make me feel ill, but I’m not allergic. They just smell toxic. Probably because they are.)