a highly-developed sense of taste and smell

From Mark and Heather's World

I used to think I was the unlucky one, not having the sophisticated palate or finely-honed sense of smell that my wife has. When she eats something she can discern subtle tastes. Sometimes I don't even know what she's referring to. "Cardamom? Isn't that the kind of sweater Mr. Rogers used to wear?" She can taste something and tell you several of the ingredients... "That thyme really pops. And the basil rounds it out nicely, especially with just a hint of saffron. Don't you agree?" "Huh? Ohhhh, yeah.... absolutely. I can really taste it." All the while I'm thinking, "Tastes like chicken."

"Do you SMELL that?!?!?!," she'll say. I inconspicuously sniff my armpits to see if she's talking about me. "Oh my gosh!" I respond. "How could I not??" Then I glance around to see if perhaps a garbage truck lost control and crashed into a sewage pipe. When I don't see anything, I remain silent, waiting.... "That perfume was AWFUL." "I comPLETELY agree. How can she put on that crap?.... Oh, right. I meant him, not her. Did I say her?"

Yeah, I was pretty jealous. She's so LUCKY. However....

I've changed my mind.

You see, there are a lot of BAD smells out there. In fact, I think there are probably more bad smells than good - and I'm not even counting the ones I produce (some of which I'm very proud). If you think about how many smells there are in the world, it seems as if a person with a strong sense of smell would be incapacitated a lot of the time. Why, if it were me I wouldn't be able to take out the trash, bathe my dog, check to see if the milk is spoiled, or sleep in the same bed as me. Come to think of it, the old tried-and-true method of checking to see if a pair of underwear is dirty wouldn't work, either. Or maybe that's just a guy thing.

It must be very difficult to go through life being able to smell slight nuances in rotting fruit, for example. "No bad smells" was actually a strong factor in her consideration of professions.

Yeah, it must be nice to be able to truly smell and taste things, and thus be able to really appreciate the flavors, but I guess I'm pretty happy being semi-anosmic.