Colorless, Not Odorless

Just because the time clock flashes five-oh-oh doesn't mean the learning stops. I learned a new word today; thiol. The explanation follows. Stepping out of the office into a splendid autumn afternoon reminded me of how good it is to be alive in a relatively healthy flesh and bone body. However, with my first breath outside the low-grade euphoria left me quicker than luck at a Vegas slot machine. "Pee-shoo! What is that stink?"

In an instant I realized what it was. It was that junk they add to odorless natural gas to alert the unsuspecting of possible leaks. The city apparently had introduced mega-doses of the stuff to trace some major escape of gas somewhere. From the concentration that was assaulting my nose the Benavides gas network must have been hemorrhaging badly at more than one location. The air was cool and void of the slightest breeze and so what contaminants our noses were sensitive too hovered at eye level, be they the ever-present South Texas dust, the smoke from a smoldering trash fire, or that stuff they pumped into the pueblito's gas lines. Presently, it was the gas stink that was proving the most bothersome. It was everywhere and going no place. The dispersal factor was registering zero on the meter.

The foul stuff poured out of my pickup when I opened the door. Somehow a greater concentration of gas had collected in the truck cab and filled it up -- like rain water running off a gutter into a barrel. And the smell was so bad. I could just about taste it when I swabbed my tongue on the roof of the mouth. I adjusted myself behind the wheel with the pungent order permeating everything like bad cologne. I thought to myself that "this can't be healthy." ¡Que peste! Why can't they make it smell like garne quisada with rice and beans. That would still get our attention.

The stench provided a learning experience. The stink comes from an organic compound called thiol [thahy-awl]. I looked it up on Wikipedia when I got home. It was not always a reputable source of information, Wikipedia, but they've come a long way. You just have to be a bit more discerning. Wikipedia has earned my respect.

I learned later that some government-connected entity is coming to pay a visit to our little pueblito. It must be an inspection job because a lot of old gas meters in people's yards are getting fresh coats of silver paint. They look so nice now, and how they shimmer in the autumn sun.