shower woes

I can't get it out of my hair! It's completely stuck, embedded, trapped... and I am beginning to think that I will have to shave my head a la Natalie Portman in order to get rid of it. That's right... I'm talking about the smell of cigarette smoke. We went out last night and my hair still smells.. POST SHOWER! I shampoo-ed my coiff twice with this in mind, but upon flipping it upside down to blowdry it, I discovered to my horror that it still lingerrrrrrrrred. My jeans? Forget it. They are absolutely embedded with smoke odor. And not to be graphic, but today, while getting dressed... I discovered that my bra has picked up that lovely smell as well. That cigarette smoke penetrated not one, but TWO SHIRTS to get to my poor unsuspecting undergarments.

My poor, poor abused clothing. Everyday, I pull an assortment of clean, fresh-smelling clothes out of my closet. I smell absolutely fantastic in the morning; not in that 'over the top gagging on perfumey products' way that I'm allergic to, but rather the pleasant smell like the one that dryer sheets aim for but can't quite achieve with total success... fresh, light, and wonderful. Did I mention that I'm also modest? The lingering scent in my clothes of our detergent mixes ever so pleasantly with my Nivea body lotion, botanical silk deodorant, and, once in awhile, my mango mandarin body splash (infused with real mango and mandarin orange extracts). I leave my room each morning and frankly... I wouldn't mind getting to know me better.

By the end of the day, I smell like an ashtray. No, an ashtray doesn't describe it. More like the smell of all the dirty cigarette butts in the sidewalk when the sidewalk sweeper comes and sweeps them all together. I even feel grayer. My smell-good efforts go down the toilet as soon as I enter the world that exists outside our nice ciggy-free apartment. Doing laundry is a depressing activity... because you get your jeans to that desired comfy stage (1 day post-wash) that you absolutely adore. But then the weekend comes, and you want to wear those jeans out because your bum looks the best in them, but at the same time... you know they're going to reak like all hell within 5 minutes at the bar.

In Spain, it is hard to avoid walking straight into the clouds of ciggy smoke. Unfortunately, such a high percentage of Spaniards smoke... I'm convinced that smokers occupy the majority of the population over the age of like, 12. In fact, on the way back from classes in the morning, I always pass a school during a time when the students are on some sort of break... and the amount of cigarette smoke coming through the gates of the school is baffling... because geez, they're just kids. But there's always a HOARD of 14 year olds puffing on their ciggies looking as if they're in some sort of ecstacy upon relieving the craving. "Ughh wow, history class was sooo boring today... GOD I NEED A SMOKE." Sometimes it's almost like a video game. I am a really fast walker, and Spanish people... well, aren't. So I have the double task of 1) weaving through the people without ramming into those travelling in the opposite direction and 2) of avoiding breathing in the puffs of smoke. Sometimes it's unavoidable.. you see it coming like a big cloud of emphysema in slow motion and you try to dodge but it's JUST TOO LATE.

One of the best things ever was when, back home, the law was passed banning smoking in restaurants, bars, etc. I was so happy. I could wear a jacket to the bar knowing in advance that it would smell just as it did before leaving. Hypothermia? Not a problem anymore! Here, not only do they smoke in bars and restaurants, but there is seemingly no public place that is off limits. I remember two years ago when I nervously went for my 'new' haircut in Sevilla (scared the hairdresser was going to give me that mullet look that remains popular here), and there was a woman under a dryer with foils in her hair and she was smoking. When she got back to the chair next to me for some more snip snips, she lit up again. Like, oh my God woman, can you go 45 minutes without the nicotine?! Smokers in the bank. Smokers in the internet centers. It's crazy. I CAN'T ESCAPE IT without staying at home and being a recluse. Word on the street is that starting next year, Spain is following suit and banning smoking in all public places. So, I guess til then all I can really do is just suck it up and wash my jeans 9 times a week.