fishing for visitors

Fish and visitors
both smell in 3 days
they say, but

Here's the thing: they have
different smells. And you
can tell, just

Lean in,
let your natural
breath, your process
of inspiration take
a whiff - nothing obvious!
Just as you breathe
as you normally do,
just paying attention
to the air we share
so close
and coming in -

The difference is
subtle, maybe
but distinct.

Oh,
certain visitors
in certain places may
be slightly confused
for fish
By this test,
but
'nuff said, please.
It's way overstated
that angle, and frankly
I find the whole thing
hugely lacking
in offense. The other

thing is: Folks. Come on.

The saying's pre-modern,
in terms of hygiene taboo
and ritual. It dates from days
when people bum-rushed the tub
annually at best, in a long
family process of progressively
dirtier water, and the soap
was not tops, either. In those
days the visitor shows up washed
- if at all - by whatever rain
they picked up on the journey
in the open air, and perfumed
by the fact you probably smelled
as bad yourself, and had definitely
smelled worse.

It's a new day for cleanliness,
practically to a maniac level
if those ruddy and benighted
ladies, knights and rustics
could catch wind of how we
keep ourselves! Very well,

thank you very much.

Your visitors today

And for the last couple days,
apparently, will probably shower
and bathe their way as they go!
So they may well smell

as fresh as days go by
as they did walking in
the door. That same method

now - for the fish? Baby don't even try.
Disastrous. Soap gets
all into the flaky filet
of that beautiful tender flesh
blown apart by blasting water

- by the time you've toweled it off,
all you've got is a super-funky towel
with cakes of fish flesh residue
toppling off it in chunks

gross.

The visitors, though - hey!
Take a sniff now and then!
Just to check, if it's a concern but

they probably see to it themselves
- while you sleep, perchance. You dream
they're in there with their clothes off,
scrubbing and a-sudsing and a-rinsing
and a-buffing. They've heard the saying

too, you know.
They might not realize
the smells involved are quite decidedly
different, but

They don't want to take chances

Stink up your hospitable home like
some disreputable fishhouse!
The air all through permeated
by a slovenly, all-too-seaworthy
b.o.

People get these sayings
so wrong, some times

it'd be funny
if I didn't hate them so much
and wish they'd leave. Tonight's dinner?

Fish again
hint hint hint