Ah, the sweet smeall of...OMG what IS that?!

The senses are a wondrous thing, equally delighting and assaulting a person a various times.

Sight
Delight: a beautiful sunset
Assault: fat hairy man in a speedo

Taste
Delight: rich, decadent chocolate
Assault: chow hall food (I think bland should be added to the list of flavors)

Sound
Delight: a child's laugh
Assault: a child's scream

Touch
Delight: smooth silk
Assault: wood splinter from the rough hewn desk top you work at

And then there is smell...
Delight: fresh laundry, your favorite perfume
Assault: the latrine trailer, the unwashed masses of third country nationals

Being deployed is almost a continuous assault on the olfactory nerve. Take, for instance, the latrines. While I am glad they are actual toilets and not port-a-johns (which have their own unique smell), they are basically one big port-a-john on a septic tank that has to be sucked out every day. The degree of smell varies from one trailer to the next and you learn to associate the smell with where you are. Much like perfume, there are layers. In one trailer, the first layer smells like formaldehyde and reminds me of dissecting frogs in Anatomy & Physiology class. Under that layer is the usual smells associated with latrines: fecal, antiseptic, bleach, etc. There are not a lot of instances where you think, "Wow! That smells good." So, don't be surprised if I stick my nose in a dryer sheet box when I get back.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Uluru stories - Kuniya & Liru

Image
Long, long ago, there was a young Kuniya (python) boy was surprised and ambushed by a Liru (poisonous snake). Liru threw spears at the boy striking him and killing him. The spears were thrown so hard that holes were left in the rock of Uluru, which can still be seen. The boys aunt felt the evil that happened to her nephew and went to search for the Liru, leaving traces of her tracks around Uluru. When the python woman (the Kuniya of the story) found her nephew she fell to her knees in mourning. Liru, seeing this, began to mock Kuniya. In her grief and anger, Kuniya took her digging stick and struck Liru three times, killing him. This is the only spot on Uluru where water from the rock runs red. Even though Liru was dead, Kuniya curled up on the spot and keeps watch for his return. The first photo shows the path of Kuniya and the second shows her curled up watching for Liru's return. If you look at the rock, the top of it looks like the head of a snake resting on it's
Read more

Kerplakistan

I finally made it after spending almost four days in Germany sitting around the terminal. Eventually, I think it came down to timing - it was the last day of the month and the aircrew wanted to get their two months of tax free. (cynical? Who me?) I can't get into to many details of life here or what I do, but I can give the basics. I live in a B-hut (I have not idea why it's called that). It is basically a plywood tent that has been divided into "rooms". My 'room' is about 6'x7'. I have a bed, a wall-locker, a lamp...really what more do you need? I work about a 20 minute walk from where I live, so I'm getting my exercise every day. Plus, I've been really good about working out everyday after I get off work. What I REALLY want to do is go right to bed, but I know I won't get up in the morning to work out so I force myself. The food is deployed chow hall food. It's not really that different from the food I ate in Iraq. We aren'
Read more

Yasmin Farms Tour

Image
I have to say, I'm very glad this was an organized trip on a bus and I didn't drive, because it would really not have been worth it. The ride is about an hour - the farm is only a few miles from the Saudi Arabia border - and there is very little to see once you leave Kuwait City. I was amazed by three things - the camel herds (cool), the amount of tent cities (workers, I guess), and the amount of trash in the desert (not cool). From the description on the website, I was expecting an in-depth farm tour - how they grow produce in the middle of the desert - that kind of thing. Once we arrived, we loaded up in a golf cart, the driver said, "This is potato." Pointed at a field. "This is lettuce." Pointed at another field. We drove through an open sided barn with milk cows in it, and were dropped off at a kind of petting zoo place. The kids loved this part, I will say that. They got to pet and feed the goats; Harper rode a donkey, they got to see camels u
Read more