DAILY DIRT: The worst odors? We’ve pinned down the top five stinkeroos

Daily Dirt for Thursday, Jan. 5, 2023

Rotten eggs and rats, now there’s a combination … Welcome to today’s three thoughts that make up Vol. 492 of The Daily Dirt.

1.  At a recent sporting event I attended there was an individual who … ummm … how do I say it nicely?

Well, he apparently had not bathed in recent days — like maybe a month or so? He was a bit odorous, to say the least. Which, of course, got me to thinking about some of the worst smells to ever experience.

I’ve been making a list for a month or so, and the following is the finished product. For the record, I’m leaving out natural bodily functions for both humans and animals.

• 1. Rotten eggs: Yes, these babies are the gold standard of all too recognizable, nastily nauseous aromas. One unexpected whiff and you are immediately holding your breath looking for the nearest exit.
• 2. Vomit: The sickly, foul aroma of fresh vomit is a double whammy. Not only is the odor itself foul enough, but it’s impossible not to look at the pile of thrown-up chunkage that accompanies it.  
• 3. Sweaty feet: That nauseating, almost sulphur-like scent when someone removes a pair of shoes with an aroma capable of knocking a horse over. And most of the time, the guilty party has no idea how bad his/her feet smell.
• 4. Sewers: Never, ever get too close to one of those openings along a city street on a hot, summer day.
• 5. Bad Breath: It’s like the smell of sweaty feet hitting you right in the face.

2. If your gag reflex is a little weak, you may want to stop reading right about now.

This week’s most disgusting food item deals with eating rats, a subject this part of the Daily Dirt has touched on before, mostly on how popular they are in some Far East countries, China in particular.

Today we’re offering some new information about rodent consumption (and adoration), just in case you’ve been considering such a challenge:

Rats are eaten regularly in Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, parts of the Philippines and Indonesia, Thailand, Ghana, China and Vietnam, according to the International Rice Research Institute in the Philippines.

“Rats on a stick” are popular offerings of street vendors in some of those aforementioned countries, particularly China. Kind of like steak on a stick at the county fair, eh?

On March 7 every year, in a remote village in the hills of northeast India, the Adi tribe celebrates “Unying-Aran,” a festival that features rats as the culinary centerpiece. One of the Adi’s favorite dishes is a stew called bule-bulak oying, with the rats’ stomachs, intestines, livers, testes and fetuses all boiled together — along with tails and legs. Some salt, chili and ginger are added to the mix.

“Rat meat is a bit like pork, but very tender, like slowly cooked pork shoulder,” according to British TV figure Stefan Gates.

 In Africa, some communities have a long tradition of eating rats. In Nigeria, for instance, the African giant rat is a favorite among all ethnic groups, says Mojisola Oyarekua of the nation’s University of Science and Technology. “(The rat) is regarded as a special delicacy and it is more expensive than the equivalent weight of cow meat or fish,” Oyarekua said. “It is delicious and can be eaten as roasted, dried or boiled.”

In Deshnoke, India, there’s a temple, Karni Mata, that is full of revered rats and mice that some residents and devotees consider holy. It’s estimated that there are at least 20,000 rats running around in this temple, fed by the worshippers. The rats have become a big tourist attraction, drawing thousands of visitors to the temple every year.

3. Yes, it’s that time of the week for my son, Geoff, and what he calls the “Thursday 3 Spot.”

Greetings, friends! Welcome to another Thursday 3 Spot!

Today, I am going to skip my NFL Top Five since Week 17 never finished. At the time of this writing, Buffalo cornerback Damar Hamlin remains in critical condition following his cardiac event during the suspended Bills-Bengals game on Monday night. After the regular season ends, in whatever way the NFL chooses, I will have a final Top Five.

We are five days into 2023. It wasn’t a good start to the new year, since Ohio State lost to Georgia literally as the clock struck midnight. It will get a lot better if the Cavs can make it to the NBA Finals without precious King James. Here are five other things that I’d like to see happen in 2023:

• 5. Kanye West never speaks again.
• 4. A whitewash of all Kardashian and Jenner mentions from news and social media.
• 3. My dad stops getting lost driving around the town of Quincy, where he has lived since 1998. (Editor’s note: For the record, his dad got lost driving around Beardstown.)
• 2. More places offering ice cream delivery.
• 1. No. More. Pandemics.

In closing, I’d like you all to check out my new blog: One Geoff Nation , where I ramble about nonsense on a daily basis.

Steve Thought O’ The Day — Eighinger’s have all been rambling on about nonsense for decades.

Steve Eighinger writes daily for Muddy River News. Vasco da Gama he ain’t.