In the air #SOL21 11/31

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It was obviously something I ate. I mean, usually I’m as inoffensive as the next person, but last night as I was marking student infographics, I knew something was not quite right. Still, I told myself that I was probably imagining that it was worse than it really was. I was wrong.

While our family snuggled together to watch a show, it happened again, and this time there was no pretending: one of my children turned and grimaced, “MOM! That’s disgusting! SOOOO stinky.” He waved his hand in front of his nose and disentangled himself from my legs. The other child got a whiff and added, “Yeah, silent but deadly. Gross.”

Surely, I told myself, this would – ahem – pass quickly. Surely in the morning all would be well and I would proceed to school smelling practically of flowers.

Alas, morning brought no relief. My body was clearly expressing its disapproval of yesterday’s food choices. I tried to control the emissions, but I was stuck with stink.

There is no worse fate for a school teacher: you can call it flatulence or passing gas or breaking wind, but one way or another, enthusiastically stinky farts are a classroom problem, and not one I usually face. As a former Southerner (though maybe never quite a Southern belle), I was already horrified. This, my friends, is not ladylike. I quickly opened a search engine and typed “How to stop stinky f…” Google filled in the rest. There was plenty of advice, and I took some comfort in knowing that I was not alone, but there was no quick solution. I was going to have to make it through this disaster as best as I could.

I made a plan. First, while our school is just as poorly ventilated as any other school, we were expecting unusually nice weather. I could open the windows – and both classroom doors – under the guise of Covid prevention. Then, though the students’ desks are nowhere near two metres apart, *I* am two metres from them. Distance = dilution. Finally, I could use masks to my advantage. I reasoned that they would surely, um, mask the smell. This was a dilemma I could deal with.

And I did. By the time the first hour ended my tummy had settled and the danger had, well, passed. Still, I think I’ll be extra careful about dinner tonight. Wouldn’t you?

Come write with us! No need to share your tummy troubles at twowritingteachers.org

Published by Amanda Potts

I'm a high school English teacher in Ottawa, Ontario. I read, write, walk & take a LOT of pictures. Sometimes my kids let me write about them. I use this space to think and write about teaching and living.

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22 thoughts on “In the air #SOL21 11/31”

  6. “distance = dilution” đŸ˜‚đŸ˜‚đŸ˜‚ Loved your slice! When I was still teaching, I would just go stand behind the piano and act like I totally planned using it right at that moment in the lesson đŸ¤£

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  12. So funny! I loved the lines “this would pass quickly” and “mask the smell”. Just curious, did the masks actually help?

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  21. Oh my god! I died laughing when I read this, in between thinking how brave you were to share! Haha. I do think we’re long-lost soul sisters because this NEVER happens to me, and just this week, I have been trying to figure out just what the f*$# I’ve been eating that’s causing this. I do not live with humans, but my dog has left the room more than once, between the sounds and smells. For some reason, this is only happening at night, so I haven’t had the joy of trying to blame it on my 3rd graders! I grew up in a household full of women, and this topic is not one I am comfortable talking about with anyone and, honestly, my dog doesn’t even do it, so we’re both a little mind-blown. Or something like that.

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