patchouli

Yuck! Can't stand that and a lot of strong smells really nauseate me, especially at a certain time of the month. It's like I get temporary morning sickness for a week. Can even smell the perfume of people passing in cars if they have the window down. What's popular here is a kind of herbal incense that people burn to repel mosquitos--it makes me gag at the best of times. Sometimes at outdoor restaurants they burn it under the tables. And a popular morning routine for old folks here (who are up and about when I run at 5 AM) is to enjoy their morning coffee outside, with the mosquito coil burning underneath. There's another kind similar to patchouli that's burned indoors at little altars in homes and businesses-not much ventilation sometimes so it can be choking.


Then there's the garbage truck--I swear it syncs its rounds with my long runs. The stench of garbage (probably much heavier on rotting fruit than in other places) on an 80+ degree morning is pretty bad!