The sitcom 'Friends' needs no introduction and I wouldn't dare give one , for it's far beyond my mediocre reach. But I speak of Friends here because every time I find myself in a 'smelly situation' there is one song that comes to my mind. Can you guess which one? Hint - Friends and Phoebe? Anything? No? Well alright it's the one Phoebe Buffay from Friends used to sing ,'Smelly cat, Smelly cat what are they feeding you? Smelly cat, Smelly cat it's not your fault!'
Of-course, before settling for 'Smelly Cat', I weighed the pros and cons of other options in my mind's scale as well! Yes, I wanted to do a lot of other things in such situations initially, like offer them my perfume or a change of clothes. Ask them how long it has been since they had taken a shower? May be even ask if it was a raining day in their underarm region. Or better yet just cover my nose with a handkerchief right in-front of them to let them know that they stink. Sometimes I even wanted to offer mints or a toothbrush & toothpaste combo to people with bad breathe. But all that would have been rude right? Nobody likes to smell bad. Nobody does that on purpose. There could be so many genetic reasons for bad odor. So I came to the conclusion that my 'Smelly Cat' is the best way out, to deal with Smelly Predicaments or who knows even at times be dealt with?
I know it makes no sense but what can I say that's exactly what happens to me now when I encounter Smelly Folks! It's like a thought bubble escapes my mind and there a teeny-tiny version of me begins singing the song. And with that I focus less on the smell and more on the hilarious song and situation. Yes, that's how I cope! And it has happened so many times now that the song has become my very own Smell Repellent Anthem!
Once I was travelling to work in a packed Volvo bus and there was this man standing next to me. His hands were raised towards the hand holds and I was just under the danger zone. He looked like a typical IT guy on the way to work with headphones, goggles and a nicely ironed shirt. From a distance you would have admired his dressing sense. But you had to be where I was to realize that it was unbearable to remain standing next to him! Even the deodorant or the perfume he had so generously sprayed on himself seemed insufficient, such was his underarm odor. But what could I do? There wasn't an inch to move in the bus so I stood there trying to breathe through my mouth. But how long can one do that right? The traffic had made the commute so long that it was becoming unbearable by the minute. That's when the thought bubble came to my rescue and 'Smelly Cat' saved me from being boggled down by that audacious smell as I diverted my mind to the frivolity of the situation.
There was another instance and this time on a long haul flight from India to Sydney. Can you imagine sitting next to a person who smells bad, and that too for hours and hours together? It was horrible. But then what could he do as well since there were no deo-sprays around, they are not allowed in cabin baggage right? So again as I sat there wondering if I could switch seats, which seemed impossible in that packed flight, Phoebe's Smelly Cat came to my rescue. And I began humming it which took my mind off the odor emitting from the adjacent seat and I actually ended up having a great conversation with the man. Smelly Cat actually helped me focus on the person rather than the smell. Unbelievable I know!
So there that's how I deal with smelly people. How about you?
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