Coworker in a cube two cubes down uses some kind of cream or substance; about three times and hour, and it smells something horrible, like extremely strong detergenty-like smell, so strong that it sticks in the air for awhile and burns my eyes and makes another coworker’s throat hurt.
Alas, the Sass is low on the totem pole and can do little to stop it.
I thought this was some kind of dollar-store disaster hand cream, but maybe this is this some kind of medical ointment? Can anyone recognize what I’m referring to?
If it’s stinging your eyes, it sounds like a muscle ointment, possibly Tiger Balm or or Icy Hot, though that’s really not the sort of thing most people would apply at work.
Both of those have a pretty noticeable menthol smell though. It could be any number of prescription medications, but there’s really no way to know specifically what it is.
Could it be a medicinal ointment that contains stuff like carbolic? There’s one The Bloke swears by made by a company called Rawleighs, and it stinks to high-heavens. Apparently it used to go by the more common name of Man and Beast: let’s just say that after he applies it to whatever little wound he’s suffered, I’d rather sleep with the dog that night.
Tea tree oil. Straight tea tree oil smells like a horrible chemical (a broken bottle can cause unaware folks to call 911 to report a chemical spill, I found out once) and is used by people as an antiseptic, anti-fungal, anti-psoriasis, anti-<insert skin problem here> treatment, and it’s a popular, noxiously smelly ingredient in a variety of skin care products.
Well, that or ask her to keep the windows rolled down next time she’s at the car wash. I’m not sure how many times through will do the trick, but when the towel-dry guys stop wretching, its usually a pretty good sign.
(…And toss her $2 extra for the “hot-wax” will ya? She’s there anyway.)
Wait, what? The sulfur face mask barely has any smell at all, so I seriously doubt anyone could smell it several feet away.
Out of curiosity, am I the only one who was confused by the OP at first? I was under the impression it was going to be a thread about coffee additives…
…to do what, mask the smell? It’s a pretty toxic and noxious oil, hope it’s not smoked. It’d taste horrible, and it’s hard to imagine tea tree oil smoke being particularly safe to inhale.
I had a similar problem with a co-worker who sat only a couple of feet away, and posted about it here a few years ago.
I took the opportunity of sneaking a look at her desk when she was out sick one day and found the source of the stench: “Christmas Spice” hand cream. It stank like horribly over-scented seasonal potpourri and pungent scented candles combined. It made my eyes water and I had to leave the floor for several minutes. When I returned, with my nose returned to normal, I could smell the stuff on the other side of the floor.
She also liked to spray herself, at her desk, with some sort of tropical coconut pineapple body spray. Thank God they fired that nutcase.
