“Does this smell OK to you?”

When Julie asked me that question I didn’t know how to answer. First of all, I didn’t want to smell it at all because, let’s be honest, it might stink. It might be some kind of rancid smell or something. Then again I was afraid if I didn’t smell it I might hurt her feelings and we were still in the new stages of dating where I couldn’t just say something like ‘get outta here’.

All I could think of was, why is she asking me this? What does she want me to say? Am I going to blow it with her? So slowly I walked over to the stove and looked at the pot full of bubbling “something”.

I decided that the most diplomatic answer would be to tell her that it smelled exactly like it should. I figured I couldn’t go wrong with an answer like that.

So I bent over the pot and took a deep breath. I heard Julie say, “Breath it in, Tony. Smell the essence. And now you will do whatever I tell you to do. First of all, I want you to…”