Something fishy in the air

I left the house this morning and could smell fish. Odd. I got a lift to work (lazy, lazy) and when I got out of the car I could smell fish. The air today is cold and damp, but there is no way this could be a sea breeze. Not in Oxfordshire.

Walked into work, smelling fish. Got to my office, no fish. Phew.

Had to go to a meeting, got outside, could smell fish. Ask someone, can you smell fish? No, they couldn't. Could it be I have some fish in my bag? Started surreptitiously sniffing it in the street. Strange looks from people. Have I trodden in some fish? Check shoes. Could *I* be smelling of fish? Go to toilet. Negative.

Forget about it till I go out for lunch. Bugger it, I can smell fish again. I have worked out that I can only smell fish *outside*, and that only I can smell it. On the way back to the office, I ask a colleague to smell my coat -- cue comedy moment while she sniffs at various parts of me and says 'no, no fish'.

Wait, she says, just by my left shoulder. This bit smells a bit fishy. I whip my head round to see if I can smell it, and my hair flips across my face.

Hang on, I think, and grab a handful of it. R, I say, would you smell my hair? She does and says Wow. That's really strong.

We had fish for dinner last night: haddock steamed it over a base of onions, anchovies, fennel and tomatoes. I steamed that smell right into my hair and it seems that every time I go out in the damp it steams itself right back out again. Nice.

I want to go home and scrub my hair and I want to do it now.

joella