Why having heightened senses can be a very, very bad thing

Part II: A Keen Sense of Smell

My nose usually isn't the keenest on the block. In fact, it's normally too busy either dripping or getting stuffed up to worry about such details as smells.

Not any more.

It has somehow developed into a lean mean smelling machine. Again, I blame it on the blob; it seems to have developed a distinct hatred of onions: fried, sauteed, chopped, raw, quartered, urgh!! The absolute worst is the smell of onions cooking. It got so bad that everytime Rizal cooked up a dish with onions, I had to retreat into our bedroom, with door closed. Even after the cooking, the reek of leftovers is too overwhelming to bear. And still, no throwing up. I don't know which is worse: feeling nauseous or just puking it all out.

Another smell I can't stomach is the smell of fried food. Or the smell of frying oil. Too, too gross to even go into.

The other day I walked into a friend's kopi tiam and I could have sworn it smelled like the chicken stalls at the market; the bit where the chicken sellers slit the chickens' throats and let them flap about while the blood drains from their cut. The pungent smell of fresh flesh and blood mixed with feathers. It was a jolt to my nose. And there I was planning to have afternoon tea. My friend swears the shop didn't smell any different from normal. Like I said, it's the blob's fault.

How does one try to even eat with such an assault on the nose? Eating is as much immersing oneself in smells as well as taste. No wonder I lost weight even though I had no morning sickness.

I still abhor onions. I can stomach fried fish if it's drenched in soy sauce with garlic, ginger and spring onions. I can't bear the thought of Shanghai noodles; one past meal filled me up so much I was left reeling from fullness for a full two days.

Lukcily my aversion has been limited to food only. I can't imagine what it'd be like to suddenly discover that you absolutely cannot stand the smell of your husband. Not being able to stand the snoring is bad enough.