Death by Fabric Softner

At my old job, i use to have many discussions with exchange students about hygiene and would explain to them how Americans have sensitive noses and stuff and how it was important to use deodorant and bathe everyday. Well here i am, an American with an ultra sensitive nose, and man oh man the smells here can be deadly. And I'm not just talking about rank odors.

I seem to be allergic to the Downy simple pleasures fabric softener. I did my laundry in my economic front load washer (which by the way takes 1hour and 32 minutes to do a load of maximum 10 items) and when i took the clothes out to dry, there was this flowery smell that was so strong my nasal passages started to flare up and i swear a knife was being shoved up my nose. I ended up having a migraine after that and was wiped out the rest of the day.

That evening i made an attempt to go to the mall and do some grocery shopping and this group of guys in their long white thobes walked by me and "OH MY GOD" its the same stinking downy smell. Well i don't know what the hell, but it appeared to me that almost everyone uses fabric sofetener or a combination of fabric sofetener and overkill on perfume and cologne.

It is esspecially difficult when student workers come in wearing a cologne or perfume that irritates me because my head is constantly banging the rest of the day. I try taking antihistimines but have not had any success. So the smells that most would find nice, sweet, even erotic are actually my kryptonite.

The there are the rank smells....

Ok...i've had this issue before when i lived in Jordan, and my sidecick Marlene and I would make really crass and rude comments as we walked by people who "had the case of the funk" as we called it. One of our favorite lines was, "hey you know there's this well known invention called deodorant, you should try it sometime." Most people had no idea what we were saying but we would burst out laughing. Then one day we were so annoyed (more like stupid) and we bought ten travel size deodorants and handed out to people who would walk by us and rank their stinkiness and decide if they were worthy of deodorant, deliberate on the foul odor that just passed by us and run up to them handing them a deodorant and tell them they won a prize. I'm not kidding..we were bad.

Alas I am older, more mature and responsibile and would never dare do something like that...well in theory at least. No i don't have any intentions of doing that but sure wish someone else would

In short, i can't handle the perfumes and i can't handle the body funk. I wonder if it is possible to have my nostril "fixed" so i can't smell anything while i am here and then have it reversed when i return to the states. I actually hold my breathe or exhale when i walk past laborers, guys in white thobes and women in their abayas. At the mall i keep my hands over my nose and mouth. At work i just try my best to stay in my office as much as possible. This STINKS!