On being a super smeller

Maybe "super smeller" is overstepping. I don't have anything official decreeing my smelling status. But, as an adult, I have become increasingly aware that I am sensitive to smells (pleasant and unpleasant) and I process/learn through them, as well.

A couple of nights ago I was struggling to fall asleep.  As I finally began to drift off around 2:30 a.m., I was enveloped by the aroma of freshly ground coffee. Heavenly, comforting and nourishing.

And curious. My mind was aroused enough to wonder: who nearby was quietly grinding coffee at this hour?

Suddenly, the smell morphed. Skunk. Wow. It was so strong that it smelled almost chemical/inorganic. Foreboding. I got out of bed to confirm there was nothing hot in the kitchen. It didn't smell like fire/smoke/burning...it did smell like synthetic heat.

I lay back down and could not get back to that drowsy place. My system was stressed. My receptors had taken in the chemical message loud and clear: fight or flight!

My heart and pulse alternated pounding, fluttering, racing. My eyes were wide open. I was so tired in body, though, so I stayed in bed. Eventually, past 4:30 a.m., sleep came.

Today has been humid. There have been plenty of wonderful breezes, cold and warm fronts competing in relative vicinity bringing dark clouds and scattered showers.

It has been the kind of day where suddenly, in a fit of stillness, sweat would begin to stream.

Since going soap- and shampoo-free a couple of years ago, I have virtually no body odor. I can't remember the last time I used deodorant. Being a super smeller, I have enjoyed noticing the way my body, specifically my arm pits, smell on a day like today.

I wonder what my body, my chemicals, are communicating. Hormones, pheromones, any-other-mones.

This evening my pits smell like semen. How interesting. They have smelled like this before, though not frequently. A bit salty, a bit musky, a scent that screams re/fresh birth/life.

I confess, I have been taking hits of my intoxicating pits.

It's no wonder, really, that, a) the scent of the so-called seeds of life would smell really good; and b) that if you dug a little deeper, semen would contain elements both male and female...so a woman could exude this particular scent.