When Bad Things Happen..

by Musette

 

Oooh!  Before I forget:  Winner of Honour Woman/Honour Man is ….lala!  Contact me at evilauntieanitaATgmailDOTcom with your details.  Thanks!

 

So….nothing really bad.  Just stupid-bad.  Smells are ‘off’.  I’m recovering from whatever this nasty chestal thingamajig is, but it’s also my sinuses, which are almost totally short-circuited.  Upshot of all of that weirdness?  My cooking is off and smells have morphed into Bizarro World.

 

Made chicken noodle soup yesterday.  What on earth was I thinking?  I put enough red pepper in there to stoke a furnace!  This soup will be a base for the next 6 batches of soup, it’s that spicy – and not in a good way.  My tastebuds are gone because my nose is shot.

 

Which is probably a good thing…because…

 

I’ve been up since 2:45a.  120-lb Rottweiler.  Bark! Bark! Bark! (pause)  BARK! BARK! BARK!  Got up, took him out.  He peed.  Laughed at me.  Danced back inside.

BARK! BARK! BARK!  3:30a …locked him in his room but the longterm barking continued.  Took him out again, 4:30a.  Peed again.   Bark! Bark! Bark!.  Somewhere between 5a and 6:45a, when I did NOT get up to let him out, he was butt-sick all over his room.  120 lbs can produce a lot of sick.  Soapy bleach water, 3 rinses and another bleach rinse.  Smell is still there.  Can’t tell if it’s in the room or in my nose. Hey!  I thought my nose was shot!  Now is not the time for it to recover.

 

I ground some dark espresso beans this morning and the base-grind (you know how, if you don’t shake the grinder the bottom is way more powdery than the top?  Yeah, that)…anyway, I realized that the fine grind released a skunk-like scent.  I’m aware of the skunky qualities inherent in a super-dark bean but …is it me or is there actual skunk in this batch?

Bacon.  My favorite food group.  Tastes like fat.  Chocolate, my best friend in the world?  Doesn’t taste like anything at all.  At this rate I will be Kate Moss’s size by Christmas!

 

Consider:  after de-sicking the boys’ room, mopping the kitchen (I’m buying stock in Clorox)…..yet ANOTHER pervasive smell….another dead mouse.  How can something so small smell so bad?  Found this one, luckily.  NOT under the fridge like the other one.  Put on my big-girl panties and picked it up myself.  It’s not the dead body.  It’s the taiiiiiiil.  Ew.  Interesting, though, that I picked it up by the taiiiil.  Gah.  The stink.

 

I am Smelled OUT!  And it’s not even 8am!  Time to regroup and try to salvage a Day of Disaster Smells!

 

So all the floors, walls, etc are washed, back end-washed dog is resting.  I’m showered and de-ickified  and totally not into anything other than peppermint tea and getting some customers attended to.    But I did want to wear a fragrance that would beat back the bleach/dogsick smell and give me some sense of control over this totally out of control day.  Work is piling up – gotta pull it together.  Mitsouko was out of the question, the olfactory equivalent of firing an ICBM to kill a spider.  These are garden-variety icks, not Real Trauma.   Citrus didn’t seem right – I pulled out all my lemony/orangey stuff and…nah.  Still too stench-y in here, which made Fresh Lemon Sugar smell like Scrubbing Bubbles.  Ack!.   Aldehydes were a migraine waiting to happen, so no Brillante, dammit.  Incense only incensed my already roiling guts…..I settled on vintage Diorella because it’s so weird that it transcends all genres.  It’s like the Moon Maiden Visits Jupiter.  It’s green enough to cut through the “my house is a disaster but I’m workin’ on it” smell but strange enough to not attach itself to any particular olfactory memory.  I will be able to wear this on another, less fraught day and not make any scent associations.  Besides, Diorella associates with no one except, maybe, her stepsister Parfum de Therese.  But I wasn’t willing to take a chance on her – don’t know her all that well.  ‘rella has stomped all over dogsick before – she’s very reliable.

 

So…..now that I’ve thoroughly ooked you out with the skunk and mice and dogsick – here’s a question:   when you are having the kind of day(s) I’m having, where things aren’t really serious but they stink – in a literal sense – what scents do you reach for ?  Or do you go commando?   I’d love to hear how others cope.    If you like, I can have Pick hit ‘randomize’ on random.org for a little sample of vintage Diorella – hang on, he’s ringing his little bell again.  I don’t think the Immodium has ‘taken’ yet.  <sigh>.  Okay, I’m back.  If you guys want to share your Scents that fix those Nasty-Smelling Days I will have him wash his paws and he’ll pick a randomized winner for a sample of the vintage Diorella (houndstooth bottle).  That’s the least I can do, since I probably put you off your breakfast with this tail, erm, tale.    Besides, it’s the Hollerday Season.  I like giving!

 

  • sunsetsong says:

    EEEEK! Empathy from me, I found out our new rescue dog had a delicate digestion when I skidded (fortunately did not fall!!) in our dark hallway on the way to the loo at 3am) Have always been grateful I was wearing slippers that night (although they didn’t last any longer). Following a lengthy cleaning session I had inhaled far too much Dettol to have any residual sense of smell. My shower consisted of Chanel No 5 bath, body and a lot of EDP which was very restoring after it beat off the Dettol smell. Fortunately I am still able to wear No 5 without any adverse associations…….

  • Lavanya says:

    Oh..no..hope your day gets better..usually on such days I’d pick a comforting perfume that I don’t have to think about..something with sandalwood, maybe?

  • LindaB says:

    Big time YUCK to the mouse, dog sick, and skunky coffee smells!! You poor thing. When I’m having a “off” day, I reach for the old standby’s that require no thinking and provide a familiar backdrop…so we’re talkin a handful of different vanilla’s, Body Shop White Musk, Lutece, or Chanel Coco.

    Btw, I wore Mitsouko for two weeks straight not too long ago. It was a depserate time and she pulled me through gloriously…xoxo

    Hope you’re feeling bettah, dahhhlllling!

  • mary says:

    Anita, you take the grand prize for grace under pressure. I like to burn incense when stinky stuff happens. The sage smudging also sounds like a good idea. Are already under snow where you live? My two little doggies got into a waste basket and greeted me with an impressively shredded kotex the other day. Tails wagging. They looked so cute. There are some countries where they eat dog, you know.

  • Ninara Poll says:

    Oh dear… I spent the entire week after Thanksgiving suffering from rotavirus. Now that I’ve more or less recovered (still having chills, GI discomfort, aches, and clogged nose) I discovered today, courtesy of my bank, that my XBLA account was hacked on Dec 3 and a set of charges made the 3rd and 4th. Made calls, filled out paperwork, changed passwords… ugh, it’s a mess. I make associations with scent very easily, so on those days that stink either figuratively or literally, I avoid scent. I truly hope your noxious day improves and its scents fade! >:d<

  • Maureen C says:

    If you have a range of any kind or a stove where you can heat some fresh rosemary leaves they release a wonderfull antidote fragrance to a variety of dog smells . We have three dogs, one with a penchant for sneaky toxic waste farts – so plenty of experience. Happy to try some vintage dior as an alternative!

  • Austenfan says:

    It really is a Charlie Brown story, isn’t it. When you thought things were bad they can only get worse.
    My dog is only small ( standard wirehaired dachshund), but she used to have the disgusting habit of eating any kind of faeces she could find, ( including human). Of course she more often than not would have to throw that up. Not pretty, and a ghastly smell. It’s amazing how much vomit such a small creature can produce.
    She once regurgitated her entire dinner in my car, on the gear box, which is next to impossible to clean. As she gets fed a raw diet, it most unluckily contained quite a bit of paunch ( rumen), which has it’s own particular charm for dogs, but alas not people. She is such a lovely dog though, that I actually don’t mind cleaning up after her, and she is only rarely sick.

    If I feel “off” I tend to go for light citrusy things. Eau Parfumée au Thé Vert is a staple for those days.

    I am well supplied with Diorella, vintage and current, edt and extrait, so you don’t need to include me in the draw.

    • Musette says:

      I love au The Vert! I have those little towelettes and they are perfect for those weird moments.

      Why do dogs do that? If there is a crack, they will vomit or back-end right over the crack. Same with the car. Why not a level, easily cleanable surface. But noooooo :-w

      I think they have some GPS or sonar, that allows them to find ‘the spot’ guaranteed to make it the most difficult to clean! 😉

      xo >-)

  • Meg says:

    Wow…Wishing you a less noxiously fragrant day from here! I’m probably with the commando camp, although mabye some mentholated in the right mood… Maybe some Menthe Fraise or, I haven’t tried it but it sounds like it might fit the bill, Espirit du Tigre?

  • mals86 says:

    Please don’t enter me in the draw (don’t want to be a piggy!).

    I feel for you, I really do. Wow. And it always does seem to come like that, one thing and then another and then ANOTHER… until it gets to the Just Ridiculous stage and you can feebly laugh. And then when it’s over you can belly laugh because it was Just So Flippin Ridiculous that everything happened at once.

    Whew. A few weeks ago, Taz was sick in the middle of the night, and then I had to go get Bookworm from school before 9am, and I felt a little shaky in the middle myself, so I went commando until I was certain I wasn’t going to be sick. After that, Prada Infusion d’Iris, which I figured was probably safe.

    But then, I didn’t have LINGERING bad smells to deal with, like you did. If I’d had that… well. I have no idea what I’d turn to at that point.

    • Musette says:

      Vodka.

      ^:)^

      xo >-)

      ps. I would love to enter you in the draw, on the off-chance that you would win, just to be a >:)…but I love you, so I won’t! o:-)

  • Joanna says:

    Ugh, with my migraines I have big time aversions to almost all smells. I was insanely sensitive to smells during all 3 pregnancies too. To this day I can’t eat apple pie because during one of my pregnancies that particular smell would immediately induce vomiting. I find that on days like that either going commando or sticking to singular notes like neroli or ylang works best.

    With smelly messes I usually go old school and dump baking soda over the offensive area and let it sit for as long as possible then vacuum. I follow up by washing the area with a vinegar and water solution if needed.

    I am CRINGING at this story of your rottie though! We added a bullmastiff puppy to our family this weekend. He is CUTE but now I have visions of him being a 150 lb smell-factory in the near future! I swear it seems like no matter which pet we bring home they end up being from pure Stinky McGee bloodlines.

    • Musette says:

      You have a bullmastiff puppy in your house? If you don’t share photos I will have to come up there and boost him! Oh, the smooches! The smooches!

      And yes, he will stink the living daylights out of your house. That is what you got him for, right?

      ;))

      btw – I had one (two) of those food aversions, both from food poisoning. It’s hard to get over those.

      xo >-)

      • Joanna says:

        I made him my gravatar. I’ve been trying to get good shots of him for days but he’s floppy and quick and I usually end up with a picture of a nostril, paw or rapidly disappearing rear end. Before deciding on a bullmastiff and doing the whole breeder search and all we discussed it with our vet and he laughed and said it would be a great breed for our family as long as we’re not offended by drool or dog farts. Your barfing rottie image just gave me a moment of pause.
        Hope you’re feeling better. I was going to insert something here about how I made it through allergy season without much fuss and haven’t battled any nasty colds but that would be tempting fate so I’m not going to do that.

        • Musette says:

          HE IS SOOOO ADORABLE!

          Are you going to do agility work with him? He is such a cutie! I love Bullmastiffs. But like most large working breeds, he is a prolific farter.

          but you’ll have awhile before that. Right now you have cute puppy breath!

          xo >-)

          • Joanna says:

            I am hoping to get into agility with him. It’s something I’ve never done before but I’m anticipating needing to keep him active so he doesn’t eat my home.

  • ggperfume says:

    I would go commando – and drink ginger ale all day. (Yes, even if I wasn’t the sick one). Sip ginger ale and admire its sharp but light bouquet. Burning an UNscented candle also helps in some mysterious way to diminish the fug of bad smells. Happily, I live in a place that never gets colder than about 32F (and then only at night) so windows can always be opened if needed.

  • Disteza says:

    L’Air du Rien is my answer for stinky days. I challenge anything to breach its halo. It’s sweet golden butt doesn’t let ANYTHING else through.

  • Patty says:

    Wow, you have my sympathies. Things were fragrant around our house for a few days, thanks to a dead chipmunk that escaped from our cat and died behind a cabinet in the living room. Nowhere near as bad as your situation! I agree with those who elect going commando. Nothing will kill your love for a fragrance faster than associating it with an event like that.

    • Musette says:

      Oh, poor chipmunk. I wish cats would kill like dogs. I had an Airedale who could snap a rat’s neck in a nanosecond. My Rott pack killed two raccoons once – I wasn’t around but heard from my neighbor that it was the fastest, cleanest kill he’d ever seen.

      xo >-)

  • (Ms.) Christian says:

    For some reason, when I am stuffed up sick, that always seems to be when I make a pot of chile con carne, and because I can’t smell or taste properly, the stuff is incendiary. I’d recommend coconut milk to tone down your soup, but don’t know how that would go with the noodles…

    My cure all scent for when I am sick, dealing with cat crap/vomit/hairballs/effluvia and so on is the original Comme des Garcons edp. I swear it has magical properties.

    Wishing you a fast return to olfactory wellness.

    • Musette says:

      I think it’s a function of not being able to smell which is, of course, totally connected to taste – my dad, as he aged, made stuff so stinkin’ HOT! That ….x(

      He used to look at us very oddly, as we were hopping around like morons, fanning our mouths….

      I’m making chicken curry tonight – will have El O taste as I add the curry paste – I make my own and it’s blazin’!

      xo >-)

      ps. soup is gawn! I realized that it made a perfect decongestant. Ate the last of it for lunch. I can breathe pretty clearly now!

  • dinazad says:

    Poor Musette! Hope you have a night of rest and sweet smells after all this!

    Skunks haven’t made it to Yurrup, so I don’t associate them with stench – they’re the cutest critters, especially the trio in the picture above.

    As for stench killers: cleaning vinegar. Also stinks, but you associate it with cleaning, which makes it better. Also 4711, ‘cos you can’t smell any cleaner than that! Eucalyptus or peppermint essential oils might help too. As you can see, I’m all for the radical approach….

    Or maybe Rumba?

    No Diorella for me, thanks – she doesn’t talk to me. She might, on a good day, nod from across the street but alway in a way that makes me feel I’m not worthy of her attention.

  • tammy says:

    I had an odd day yesterday where I just couldn’t get my perfume right…I started with Asja, then went on to Fifi, then Nikki, then Y…I smelled pretty good ( not to say potent!) but I had a very unsettled feeling. I should have just put on Nuit de Noel, but I am trying to make my pre-formulation last as long as possible…

    Rice for the pup, Musette….it’ll help him a lot!

    • mals86 says:

      Holy cow, them’s some big-caboose fragrances! All at once, too. I am impressed.

      • Musette says:

        I’m stunned!

        What that YOU the Hazmat Team was racing to save? ;))

        (trying to imagine all that – then Nuit de Noel! :0

        xo >-)

        • tammy says:

          LOL!!! I did NOT add Nuit de Noel to that brew….and I am a very light applier…and I was home alone…

          But yeah, pretty fragrant. Asja won out overall, BTW.

          The combo of Fifi (extrait, hardly any sillage) and Nikki was quite nice, actually.

  • Teri says:

    whoa boy do I feel your pain….

    Worst vacation ever. Driving up to Ludington, MI for the yearly vacay, our son (8 at the time) vomited on the dog (yes directly ON the dog) who in turn expressed her displeasure at being his emesis basin by vomiting all over our rented camper). We stopped in Holland for a visit to the ER (for the son), a car wash (for the vehicle and the dog) and a detail shop (for the remainder of the vehicle odor). By the time we reached our destination, all three of us were sick. Turns out we’d contracted food poisoning, and we spent the bulk of our vacay week in bed.

    I turned the rented (and unused for camping) camper back in the following Monday (my husband wimped out) and pretended not to notice the rental agent’s sniffing and odd looks as he inspected the camper for damage.

    I hope that you and the rottie feel better soon and that any relatives and/or friends of the deceased mouse take his death as an object lesson and overwinter elsewhere.

    I’d need something quiet and unobtrusive scent-wise after such a trauma-filled day. Max Mara is my comfort scent for when things go awry in Teri-world. And if even that is too much of a muchness, I just shower and talcum myself. Talcum powder takes me straight back to childhood when someone I loved would bathe and powder me and put me to sleep. Never fails to bring out my inner peace.

    • Musette says:

      Oh, Teri!

      Oh! b-(

      :((

      but a secret ;))…okay =)) at the notion of the 8yr old starting a vomit chain reaction! OMG!

      Thank you for that extremely funny (and gross) visual!

      xo >-)

  • FragrantWitch says:

    You make me laugh but an explosive a££ Rottie is no joke! My dad used to have 2 and even at their cleanest they weren’t exactly fragrant….when ill, I would stay away…far far away. My stepmother used to work for Scarborough and she had what seemed to be a lifetime supply of Nantucket Briar home fragrance products and she would crack those out. They were actually quite effective!
    For me, when I am sick, commando is the way to go. Depending on how queasy, a light bath or shower gel like Eau Dynamisante or Original Source Tea Tree and Mint. For sick daughters, cats, dead mice etc… If I fear associations but still want fragrance I will wear some of my ‘meh’ decants/samples. If I suddenly associate Preppy Princess or Fan de Fendi ( to name but two samples i just received in HofF) with children’s vomit it’s no skin off my nose!
    Hope you and the pooch feel better soon and thanks for the giveaway!

    • Musette says:

      Rottweilers are my heart’s delight but they can be tiresome, always throwing a liver or a spleen or puking their guts up. 8-| Gotta love ’em, though.

      That Tea Tree and Mint shower gel sounds delish. That would make a great floor wash, I think!

      xo >-)

      • FragrantWitch says:

        It would be my pleasure to send you some for just such days! It’s easily obtainable here in the UK- I’m at [email protected] if you are interested …Any UK goodies you pine for?
        I’ve just remembered an apropos Rottie story. The male of my dad’s dogs once got into the change jar ( one if those big office watercooler water bottles and before my dad could stop him he ate a fair quantity of coins. They called the vet he told them to just wait it out unless the dog was in pain. Well, sure enough, a couple of days later the coins came out…neatly stacked. My dad said Bailey could have gotten a job at the bank!:d

        • mals86 says:

          NEATLY STACKED. That is classic.

          • Musette says:

            OMG! TOOOOO …..omg! =))

            and..may I just say THANK YOU for using ‘apropos’? My mother, my cousin M and I would fight over this word always – with mamita refusing to believe it was not a fancy way of saying ‘appropriate’ – and then getting really mad when I couldn’t agree with her. :-< You know what UK goodie I pine for? Socialized Medicine. Seriously. But thank you for the incredibly lovely offer - I found it here! It's like $3 online so I don't want to have you spending twice that in shipping - and you know it's true! But thank you so much! xooxox >-):”>

          • FragrantWitch says:

            You are most welcome on both counts! Socialised medicine does have some seriously good points- like everything, it has its failings but it definitely ensures that healthcare is not discriminatory. Having your gurney rolled to the side in the ER when you are gravely ill because you are uninsured is just appalling.
            Anytime you would would like something from here just give a shout!

  • Katror says:

    I’m with the commando people. Just strong, strong tea. Cheers!

  • LaLa says:

    My husband and I are also under the weather, both sick at home, so imagine my surprise when I logged on a moment ago to find out that I’d won the giveaway. Thank you so kindly, and do feel better soon.

    • Musette says:

      Nothing like a Fun Win to cheer up a Sick Day! You feel better as well – we’re just mostly tired over here. It’s like having a colicky baby, albeit with a Much Bigger Diaper….hey…..! ….nah…dang.

      xo >-)

  • Calypso says:

    It’s an awful series of events but you can’t help but laugh, or maybe at some future date you will laugh.
    Since I live with many cats I also have the occasional “odor” problem. It may sound awful to some people but I confess the most effective smell-eliminator among the many perfumes I’ve tried, one that covers it all up, is–ta ta–Chinatown! Try it!

    • Musette says:

      Really? 😮

      Heck, why not! Bonus: it’s one of the few BNNs that I really like!

      xo >-)

      and yes, I did laugh. It got so bad that it actually became funny!

  • Maureen says:

    Oh my…what a way to start the day. Sorry for your poor nose and poor doggie. I’m thinking just nice lite shower gel & lotion, then tea & nap would be the best medicine for you now. Hope you and your dog feel much better.

  • dremybluz says:

    Sorry that you and the dog are under the weather. When i am in that mode, commando has to be the answer.

  • AnnieA says:

    Sounds like time for Lampe Berger…would try perfume after the miasmas were gone…

  • jen says:

    Ha! What a dogstory. Use some One Drop, guarented to get out any smell.

  • Ann says:

    Oh, poor baby! What an awful day you’ve had. Hope everyone is feeling better and that things are aired out and fresher now. When I’m in that mode, commando is the way to go for me. Gotta admit, though, I would love to try vintage Diorella, as its weirdness might take my mind off my troubles, ha! Hang in there, sweetie!

  • OhLily says:

    Oh, no, what a horrid situation to go through! I hope you and doggie are already feeling better. I’d have to do the Vicks trick for clean up and diffuse the essential oils after. Scent wise I’d probably just use something pleasant and fairly light in the shower, then maybe follow up with a bit of matching lotion. Pacifica Malibu Lemon Blossom possibly.

    • Musette says:

      That’s a great option – PMLB will come up tomorrow, btw – stay tuned.

      fwiw, he’s fine now. He had a banana to ramp his potassium levels back up (he LOVES bananas) and he’s pretty much back to solids now. Unlike me, HE gets to sleep the rest of the day. :-w

      xo >-)

  • rosarita says:

    Oh, my darling Ms A! I’m so sorry for your crappy morning (pun intended.) Anyone who’s had a baby, pet and/or old house knows just how you feel. We lived in a house even older than this one once – dirt basement and all – and dead mice weren’t uncommon. I was always struck by how they looked so natural in my gloomy kitchen.

    In these instances, I think I’d focus more on the shower itself and treat myself to some good smellin’ soap/gel/lotion, no perfume, more hot mint tea and a nap later on if possible. Sending you big warm fleecy fragrant hugs!

  • pam says:

    Just when you feel awful, the doggie/kids get sick, too. Sounds very familiar. Your writing made me laugh, but I know the reality wasn’t fun.

    Usually in such cases I go without scent, or pick one with a lot of the spicy elements, but not a special, favorite one. Loulou can cover about any smell.

    • Musette says:

      pam,

      The reality got so bad it actually started to get funny, oddly enough. Around 7:45, when I found the mouse, I started =)) – well, not on the actual floor, as it was still wet from the scrubbing. But in my heart. ;))

      xo >-)

  • karin says:

    Oh, M!!! Hope your doggie gets better and you can get some sleep tonight. Love the head in the toilet shot – too funny!

    No pets or kids in this house, so no good stink stories on that front…though we did set some mouse traps before vacation a few years ago, and came home to an amazing stink. As you say, how can such a tiny mouse do such damage?

    As to what scents to wear, I would probably spray deodorizer everywhere, open windows, and leave the house for awhile. Guessing I wouldn’t wear scent myself. Maybe I’d go shopping and buy a new one. ;-)

    • Musette says:

      I know where you live. You know where I live! There are NO open windows this time of year, dangitall.

      Isn’t that shot hysterical? I wanted to credit it but I can’t find the original source.

      On the ‘buy new one’ 😕 I’m liking how you think! 😉

      xo >-)

  • HemlockSillage says:

    Oh, no! What a tale of horror! I’m so sorry you’ve been under the weather, then for your dog to be so ill. Wow. Sigh.

    I’m with the majority, I’d avoid perfume when things got thaaat bad. I’d not want to create awful associations with a perfume. When things calmed a bit, I’d probably reach for Amazing Grace. Not a perfumista favorite, but simple and clean, pret-ty. I also dust with a solution of a cap of fabric softener in a bowl of hot water, and mop with it, too, truth be told. Hope your future brightens up, soonest!

    • Musette says:

      😮 😕

      That fabric softener solution is a GREAT idea! Thanks!!!

      He’s fine now, btw. Now he’s just 😕 how to milk it for more attention. I’m watching him ……he’s quite the Manipulator!

      xo >-)

  • Francesca says:

    Poor baby! I hope you and the poochie are feeling better. We sometimes arrive at the Country Cottage to find that a mouse has shuffled off the mortal c. I think nothing beats burning sage for clearing/blocking persistent bad odors.

    I don’t know what personal fragrance choice I’d go for in such a situation.

    • Musette says:

      Oooh! great tip! Thanks! I have sage smudge sticks – I will burn a bit once I get this giant moose’s guts back in order. Oddly enough bananas help!

      xo >-)

      • Julie says:

        Canned pumpkin also is great for that. I have a dog with “stomach issues” – some ridiculously long thing I can’t spell which causes some pretty nasty stuff – and the only thing that has really worked long term is 1-2 T of canned pumpkin a day. Better than shelling out the extra $$ I had been for prescription diets and medications!

        • Musette says:

          oh, yeah! I remember the canned pumpkin, now! Great tip. Thanks! and you’re right – I have NO intention of paying massive simoleans to find out he has Standard Tummy Ick.

          [-(

          xo >-)

          • jen says:

            MIcrowave fresh yams for 5 min; cool slice and feed em to the dogs; our five puppies all were cured by this!

  • DinaC says:

    What a rotten morning…you poor thing! It sounds like it smelled absolutely horrible. My only similar situation would have been when my kids were small and sick. Little kids don’t recognize the feeling of impending vomit, so it tends to get really messy. We learned to keep plastic bags in the glovebox of both cars. I’m in the camp that says no scent is the best scent in these situations. I hope you feel better and your nose gets back to normal really soon. I’m lucky enough to have some Diorella parfum, so don’t enter me into the draw. Thanks.

    • Musette says:

      Oh, yeah on the puking kids. My associations are more visual than olfactory – I was unable to eat scallops for years because of a kid and some black bread. b-(

      oh, 😡 on the Diorella parfum! swooooon!

      xo >-)

  • ElizabethW says:

    Why are other folks’ misfortunes so funny sometimes?! Sorry, Musette, must be your writing! In fact, I’m sure it is. (Hollerday–heehee)

    Sorry sorry sorry you had that awful string of events–including the chestal & sinusy thing. That is the worst and usually takes me at least a month to recover from, with the aid of essential oils–tea tree and eucalyptus. While they don’t do much for the perfumista in me, they do help with the grunge. I also have a “Clear Your Space” water-based sage spray from Garden Dreams which is quite nice. I hope you are feeling better, dear Musette.

    • Musette says:

      Oh, it IS funny, especially when somebody else is writing about it – and it’s over! March’s stories about sick kids and dogs have me ROFL!

      When it is Not Funny: 2:45a! :-w

      Ever notice they don’t start this nonsense at 8am? Wonder why that is…

      Tea Tree Oil fixes everything! That CYS spray sounds lovely!

      xo >-)

  • Furriner says:

    Since I’ve been going through a bout of sickness for the past few months myself, I recommend commando… I’m afraid I’ll associate nasty smells gotten from being sick with scents I love. I find myself staring at a bottle of something I would normally be excited about and then just passing it by…. sad sad sad. Either that or wear something you are indifferent to….

    I hope you are feeling better!!

  • hongkongmom says:

    oooh it sounds like you should be getting a gift, not giving. what an awful nite and morning. On days like that, I would probably forget to put on perfume…i would be so tired from the sleepless night and heavy duty vomit cleaning! Maybe something frankinsensy and pepperminty? I would burn that essential oil.

  • TaffyJ says:

    Oooo I agree in that situation that the best scent is the Unscent. Rotties can sure produce the most toxic smells when under the weather. My rottie girl was sick once in my friend’s van. Did I mention that Maisie was crated? Did I mention she had the D-word, projectile, through the crate and all over the walls of the van? Did I mention that the van was BRAND NEW?

    It was the dead of winter and we drove all the way home, freezing, with all the windows rolled down. Secretions Magnifiques is Downy softener compared to that smell!

    Thankfully, I have no scent association with that day.

    • karin says:

      Ohhhh!!!!!

    • Musette says:

      :((

      I have SO been there. My pack (3) – all 3 – got sick in the back of my Ford Explorer. I had to rip out all the carpeting! The detail guy nearly puked – and that was AFTER I’d taken the carpeting out and hosed/bleached down the space. I think it’s in the Rottweiler Contract Code that they have to, at least once, produce some vile substance.

      Give Maisie a smooch for me!

      😡

      xo >-)

  • Rowanhill says:

    So sorry to hear about the olfactory assoult morning. Under exremely stinking conditions tiger balm under my nose helps. Otherwise the non demanding and comforting, clean scent for trying circumstances is Acqua di Parma’s Colonia – safe and civilized.

  • Cheryl says:

    Commando. At least for the first few hours. Worried about risking a smell-that-with-this-smell association. But I like the above suggestion of a soliflore. Maybe that’s the ticket!

    Cheryl

    • Musette says:

      oh, I didn’t put anything on for several hours – too busy mopping and scrubbing. b-(

      Perhaps next time (alas, there will be a next time – there always is…8-| I will go with a vetiver oil.

      xo >-)

  • Madea says:

    On those days, I find soliflores are the way to go. Nothing terribly heady, rich or weird.

    Strangely, scents that are designed to be fleeting last about 900 years on my skin, so I usually go for a light spritz of something like Jean Nate (which on me is a little bit spicy and hardly lemon at all). It leaves me wrapped in a small, close blanket of gently scented calm.

    I also like a little Fleur d’Oranger, or some lavender soliflore cologne my Dad gave me. It makes me feel confident and put together but not aggressively perfumy.

    If you aren’t up for perfume/cologne, what about lotion or dusting powder?

    My maternal grandmother (whom I barely remember) apparently wore the original cherry-almond Jergens(is that the one?) and my mother liked that for those days. Just a thought…

    Hope your hound is better, Musette :)

    • Musette says:

      That hound is gonna be hamburger if he doesn’t cut it out – he’s now mostly over it (Day 3…8-| ) but now he’s being a jerk – loving the attention and in the ‘habit’, y’know? So we’re going to cut off his food at 4p, empty him out, Immodium him up one more time…and if he starts that Bark! crap tonight I’mo pack him up and send him to you, okay? :d

      This is like teething. Only bigger. And messier.

      b-(

      xo >-)

  • Lindaloo says:

    If I promise to never, ever, ever again tease you about testing the goodness of Aromatics Elixir on leather (chair or otherwise) will you promise to never, ever, ever again try to plant in my mind the association of my most beloved (possibly even Holy Grail) Diorella with dead mouse and dog-sick, even as an antidote? (Skunk’s not so bad as I kinda like that smell.)

    No need to enter me in the draw, as I do have 3 houndstooth era carded samples which I am carefully hoarding while I search for an affordable bottle.

    Thinking about what to do for Nasty Smelling Days, commando is my most likely approach. Finding a strong man smelling of Aramis might be helpful. Or if I did have to tough it out in “the big-girl panties” I’d be willing to go for a more woody or herbal than citrusy cologne like Eau de Rochas or Tauer’s Cologne du Maghreb or something with a bitter edge like Dolce & Gabbana (original red cap).

    • Musette says:

      Oh, honey! I’m sorry! But let me tell you, Diorella TROUNCED this house. TROUNCED IT! Beat it DOWN! She SO didn’t have time for this nonsense and just got everything back on track. The older Diors and Chanels are like that – they take NO prisoners. [-( For the rest of the day I felt elegant and in control. She was something else!

      xo >-)

    • FragrantWitch says:

      Funny that you get bitter in that D&G. I used go wear it and it was straight up sweet floral musk! The wonder of skin chemistry…

      • Lindaloo says:

        Interesting — I get no sweetness at all. I really want to get some of Dawn Spencer Hurwitz’s Special Formula X that she uses to test clients’ skin chemistry to see what aspects of a scent they amplify. I think she sells it now and that many wear it as their perfect skin musk.

  • nozknoz says:

    Oh, dear – there are days when one would be better off without a sense of smell. I stay away from perfume when my stomach is unsettled (as it certainly would be with a purging Rottweiler around) – don’t want to associate any beloved scent with nausea. Good luck – you are a long-suffering COB, Musette!

    Oh, and I hope the Rottweiler remembers he owes you a really great bottle of perfume for Christmas. You may have to help him with the keyboard, of course. ;-)

    • Musette says:

      I’ve spent the last 5 minutes trying to figure out COB 😕

      Dingdingding! CRANKY OLD BAT! :d/

      You betcha!!!
      The reason I chose Diorella is the same reason I choose Mitsouko for the Really Scary Stuff. It simply Doesn’t Care – blasts through the situation and takes command. At least for me. There is nothing Mitsouko can’t handle – She can prop you up where other scents might leave a gap for the Bad Thing to wiggle through….remember: She is the one who got me through that tornado.

      But I thought it a bit much (and possibly capable of tossing me over the edge into mayhem and 8-x…which is why I chose Diorella. She is like a 1950s girdle.

      xo >-)