When Claire goes into public restroom stalls, she always makes comments. Her comments almost always center around smell. She comments on the overall air quality. She comments on the particular scent when she first enters. She comments on the scented soap and whether or not the paper towels seem fresh. She comments on the air smell that emanates from the hand dryer. She comments on people who don't flush and how disgusting it makes the whole facility smell. And of course, if there's an outhouse type bathroom, her critical comments skyrocket.

I find her bathroom critique fascinating. She's way more sensitive about smells than I am. (She's like her dad that way.) Anytime I go to a public restroom with her, I wait with anticipation to hear what she'll say. Her word choices have matured over the years of course. She used to say things like, "Ewww! Smells like poopies!" Now she'll say, "WHAT is that disgusting smell? Don't they know how to clean in here?!" She'll actually look peeved in certain restrooms as she stomps in the stall and continues to mutter comments. I just laugh from the stall next door. (One time, I heard her even comment on the smell of the paper seat covers as she took one from the wall dispenser. She ALWAYS uses those seat covers in public restrooms if they are available and gets annoyed if the dispenser is empty. THAT will automatically earn a very poor grade in Claire's final bathroom assessment.)

I think it's interesting how some people really aren't smell-sensitive. And some people are super-duper sensitive. I'm probably somewhere in the middle range. Claire is in the upper range for sure. I swear she can even smell which fruit is freshest in the grocery store, without being all that close to the bin. She unfailingly picks the best produce. Scent is a huge factor of course in picking good fruit and veggies and determing proper ripeness. She has a "nose" for this. :)

So her sensitivity has both good and bad aspects. She can't seem to ever tolerate public restroom experiences due to her sensitivity to stench. She almost always has negative comments. But then she's a natural at picking out good food, identifying complex cooking scents, and relishing pleasant aromas overall.
Guess it all balances out. ;)

-bm