As an experiment I am trying to navigate downtown by smell, to get me more in the animal headspace. This is the second day so far that I have done this, you can see the scent navigation tag for more details.
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Getting off the streetcar, I smell food: Pizza, maybe? Somewhere in the distance. The wind has largely blown it away, as soon as I’ve moved.
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“Mall smell” is a thing. Nearby, however, I found an outdoor food court, by following the smell of something fried and spicy. Nothing vegetarian, but interesting find.
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Spice World! Closed, but I can still smell the anise from behind the door.
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I’m astonished by how much I can detect people. Cologne, body spray, fabric softener, sunscreen, you name it. People leave sort of a trail behind – By walking through it, you can detect it, and it’s long! At least a hundred feet, if the wind is favorable.
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I can also tell the overall air quality is better today, there’s less “dusty” smell from passing cars on the streets. Still, there is a trash can somewhere that needs to be emptied. Not interested in tracking that down.
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There’s a slight… warm? gradient to the locations of food. Following the nicest smells has led me to the same food cart pod, the one I visited yesterday, which has a ton of different smells happening. I don’t know if its air conditions, or placebo effect, or what, but I feel like I’ve actually improved at this since yesterday. It’s less awkward to hold my sinuses open, and I feel like I have better scent resolution and identification: I’ve not detected anything truly new, but I haven’t needed to. Increased resolution has done a lot.
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This burrito is great – It’s pretty generic, but the increased focus on smells has also come with an increased focus on taste: I’m getting 100% of this salsa. The smell has also convinced me to try some kind of fried Chinese dumpling: delicious, but too small for the price. This has, however, convinced me to come back to only order appetizer-sized items. I want to try more of these carts.
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Unfortunately, the food may have ended the exploration portion of the smell adventure – I can smell some intense smokiness from a downtown street fair, but the lingering aftertaste of burrito, beer, and bing is interfering with accurate navigation. I wonder if dogs have this problem.
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Fashion forward = you smell like lotion. I don’t make the rules, I just smell them. I did pass someone who had a lovely floral scent, but “you smell nice” is a weird complement for a stranger to give, so I kept quiet on that one.
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Arriving home, I notice my apartment has gotten stuffy, in a way it usually is but that bothers me somewhat now. Opened a window: Hopefully it won’t get too cold at night!
Anyway, I love doing this, and I highly encourage others to try at least once. I don’t know if I’m going to keep posting about it, but its been a fun way to get myself putting out text, and I think that’s a healthy place to be. 🙂
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