Have you ever smelled something (or somebody) that wasn't there?

-- Anonymous, May 25, 2000

Answers

I don't know if this is really what you're looking for, but after my boyfriend broke up with me, everywhere I'd go, I'd smell him. I'm not talking about his cologne, I'm talking about his own special "him" scent. And, sometimes I smell the old yearbook smell.

-- Anonymous, May 26, 2000

There was once not that long ago that I swore I was smelling freshly cut grass. Now normally that smell causes me to break into about 25 consecutive sneezes but that day I couldn't get enough of it. So I ran to the patio doors, threw them open, took and big ol' sniff and.. nothing. No freshly cut grass smell at all.

-- Anonymous, May 26, 2000

One time in junior high, I suddenly started smelling the cologne of this guy I really, really liked at the time. I don't know where the hell it was coming from, but I didn't move from that spot for about two hours. :)

-- Anonymous, May 26, 2000

A guy I dated a couple years ago smelled like laundry detergent, which was really really nice...and I would smell him walking down the street or something...he smelled damn good.

-- Anonymous, May 26, 2000

I know exactly what you're talking about. About two seconds ago I was just sitting here at my computer and I smelled that Vaseline Intensive Care lotion or something. I was like what the hell is that? I still haven't found the source of the mysterious scent yet.

Oh yes.. and once I was in the drug store and all of a sudden I smelled this men's cologne. My first thought was "OMG RYAN RUTTER". I felt so wierd because Ryan is this guy that I have never met so how would I know what he smelled like.

I'm odd.

-- Anonymous, May 26, 2000

For some reason, the fact that you suddenly smelled an indoor pool cracked me the hell up. Thank you for that...

Anyways, I smell my boyfriend alot.. it's weird, I'll be just any old place and smell him. (And he's not around) So, loud and clearly (to anyone listening) I'll announce, "Hey, I smell my boyfriend!"

-- Anonymous, May 27, 2000

I probably have smelled something that wans't there before, can't remember it though but I'll tell you something weird.

I was in bed reading and I could just taste champagne. Isn't that weird? I could like taste the bubbles and everything.

-- Anonymous, May 27, 2000

Last night it started smelling like glue in here. Glue. What's that about? There's no glue anywhere around here.

I think this is some whole conspiracy by my family to make me think I'm nuts. I can just see them pumping different smells through some invisible hole in the wall...

Or maybe I'm just nuts!

-- Anonymous, May 27, 2000

a lot of times, when i'm driving, my car will start to smell like black sharpie markers. it only lasts a little while though.

-- Anonymous, May 27, 2000

I just now smelled the scent of candy or vanilla in this room but only if I stick my head in my shirt and then slowly breathe in the outer air...

ooooh my GOD!!! [totally off topic] but the little locked door that's attacked to this desk opened by itself..phantom doors!!

maybe that's where the smell is coming from..maybe someone hid candy in there..hah. doubt it. it might just be me or I'm not sure..

-- Anonymous, May 27, 2000

I'm a big freak, I have no sense of smell. I was born without it. That means I've never smelled anything, phantom or otherwise.


-- Anonymous, July 09, 2000

See, I was on the subway earlier today. I could inside the cars as the subway pulled into the station, and I got on the one with the least people (inexplicably one car had seating room while all the others were packed. Well, it became explicable once I got in because there was this fat homeless man sleeping with his big bag of earthly belongings and either him or the bag, possibly both, stank to high and holy heaven. I was wondering if he was incontinent or just hadn't bathed in a year. Also, very possibly both. Maybe he had vomited on himself, like, yesterday, and hadn't really gotten around to wiping it off his coat. These are all entirely reasonable suggestions considering this smell. Anyway, here I am at work, and I keep catching phantom wiffs of that traumatic olifactory offense, but I'll smell my clothes and they just smell like my clothes, and that's what brought me to this phantom smells forum. Honestly, I didn't really know the phenomenon existed, but I figured if it had a name it would be phantom smells, so I searched it at google and here I am. Please make it stop.

-- Anonymous, February 23, 2001