February | 2020 | Takhallus-e-Haqeeqat

“Where are you girl? Come and help me with the garnishing.”, mom called out to me, as the much awaited guests were to arrive in about an hour.

“Serving is fine. But what are we gonna do to create an ambience?”, I asked, prompted by my hyper-sensitive olfactory senses.

“Oh, I hadn’t thought about it. I guess you should be the one coming up with a solution” , she said.

Though preparations were being made since morning, we had not been able to create just the right kind of atmosphere. Something surely was missing.

“Has the shoe rack been removed from the entrance?” , I asked my brother.

“Yes, ma’am.” , he said, “And the damp clothes have been taken care of as well. Now, dare you expect any more favors from me.”

Yeah, we all know how brothers are, don’t we ? Now, the kitchen whiffs were to be taken care of. To that end, baking soda was boiled on the adjacent stove and the exhaust fan was switched on. It felt better, but not outstanding. There still was a tang of fried onions and I’m not sure of what, in the air.

“What about the garbage disposal?”, I thought to myself.

I was under the impression that the culprit that had been trying to spoil the event was finally caught. So, I simply dropped a sliced lemon into the garbage can and went out to burn some aromatic candles. They sound perfect, don’t they? “AROMATIC Candles”! Don’t you just seem to like the sound of it? Candles with scent, and without smoke. Well, you might want to know they are pretty much without the aroma as well. The so-called fragrance lasted for hardly 10 minutes and then it was all…whhoofff..

I had given up all hopes.

“Let the guests enjoy the void in the air and the fact that we are inefficient hosts”, I said and surrendered.

“Let’s just spray some air freshener and be done with it”, said my mother.

“Mom! “, I said, “I just burned aromatic candles here and tried all the Google tips on ‘getting rid of household odors’. How long is an air freshener gonna last anyway?”

“What choice do we have here. Let’s just give it a shot”, said everyone unanimously.

“Whatever.”, I said.

So anyway, we sprayed this awesome fruity aerosol from Ambi pur and welcomed our guests in. I clearly wasn’t hoping for it to last any longer than 5 minutes. But what do I know, because it did! And it practically covered any foul smell that was left after my sincere efforts. The guests were all impressed by the tantalizing aura and all of us heaved a sigh of relief.

My Mother whispered to me as she passed by, “So, are you gonna say it yourself , or…”

I cut her mid-dialogue and said, “I know, I know…Mommy knows best”.

I am blogging for #SmellyToSmiley activity atBlogAdda.com in association with Ambi Pur

From the moment I open my eyes in the morning, (well…not exactly morning), till my head hits the pillow, there’s a whole lot of heterogeneous odors waiting to be battled. This may range from the commonest ones such as Daddy’s socks to the more specific types, like that pesticide with an awful smell, that is potent enough to haunt you in your dreams.

And how could I forget the damp smell of clothes waiting to be washed, the pungent smell of eggs and of course, that acrimonious odor that follows my action of killing a cockroach with one of those aerosol sprays. Now although they come with a promise of “pleasant smell”, they never actually do and come on, how much can you expect from them! Even your liquid vaporizers can let out a very nauseating tang.

Now, most of the people are scarcely affected by these diverse “aromas”, but not my mistake that I have a very sensitive olfactory system. And it’s no rocket science that kitchens are the incubators of all these odors. Vegetable peels, rotten eggs, leftovers attracting fungi and what not! So, enough of the types and sources of odors. It’s time we proceeded with the solutions.

The simple solution to all the kitchen odors is this: Set out a small bowl of household vinegar on the counter next to the stove, to absorb smells and of course, install an exhaust fan or a chimney. For burnt utensils, sprinkle salt on the burnt mess to eliminate the smoky odor. The typical refrigerator smells can be eliminated by keeping a bowl of water with lemon squeezed in it and baking soda can take care of your perspired apparels. Too old school, eh? What can I say, they do work.

Fixing it with Baking Soda

When it comes to me, I am not yet satisfied with the mere elimination of redolence from my house. I want a perpetual blossom to linger. To that end, I keep “smoking” incense sticks and myrrh, particularly in my room. Oh yes, they work wonders. I have fallen for those aromas so frantically that I wish oxygen smelled like that, or maybe nitrogen. But, “Haaye Haaye ye Zaalim Zamana”…they say it’s not good to puff up your lungs with the smoke of it (True and logical, of course, but I shouldn’t be expected to understand logic. I am just a little girl, right? RIGHT?)

But, bless these people who came up with something as efficient as a room freshener and praise be to those who have taken the craze of ‘aromaholics’ like me seriously enough to have introduced a whole range of tantalizing aromas. The Cash Cow for Ambi Pur is the feature that unlike it’s competitive brands, it does not only cover the whiff, rather, eliminates it. Tried and tested, it helps you get rid of all the obstinate, tacky smells .

It comes with fragrances as diverse as you wish them to be. From Lavender Vanilla to Dragon Fruit to Hawaiian Flowers, all of the fragrances have been designed to rejuvenate your senses, and take it from a person who lives off aromas, you will find yourself beaming to these scents. Now, be it a Sunday Brunch with cousins, a casual get-together with friends, or a fancy party , you know exactly what you need to intoxicate the atmosphere.