OPINION / U.S.A. December 5, 2022 THE ASIAN REPORTER n Page 7 MY TURN n Wayne Chan When a nose is not a nose recently learned about being a “nose.” I have a nose, and as far as I can tell, I’ve been using it all my life. But as to being a perfume maker, I have never been a quote, unquote, nose. Let’s back up a bit. My wife Maya and I travelled to Europe on vacation. The last part of our trip was in Nice, Paris, and for a day excursion, we went to Grasse, France, which, I was told, is the birthplace of perfume. So, naturally, instead of lounging on the beach gazing at all the topless people walking around, we decided to go to Grasse and take a perfume-making class. At the start of the class, the instructor explained that being a “nose” is the epitome of perfume making. It’s an art, where a professional nose, after taking one whiff of a perfume, can immediately identify every individual component of a perfume — whether a note of vanilla, jasmine, lavender, or any other scent imaginable. This is when I realized that I do not have a “nose.” I have a nose, of course, but not a “nose.” In fact, once we sat down to “compose” our first perfume, I couldn’t really identify any particular scent. To be honest, it all smelled like I had been dropped into a giant vat of potpourri. A few times during our lesson, I had to go outside to clear my head and breathe in some of the traffic exhaust before continuing to “compose.” So while I may never have a second career as a perfume composer, on a different level, I now have a deeper appreciation of a sense that I’ve had all my life. In fact, you might say it’s been a sense hidden right under my nose the whole time. (Sorry, I couldn’t resist that one.) Of course, there are the pleasant smells everyone is familiar with — freshly baked cookies, the ocean breeze on a summer day, my ability to identify every topping on a pizza at 50 paces. We all have our I favorites. Yet what fascinates me more are the unpleasant scents, the awful odor of things that, for everyone’s benefit, I won’t describe right now. It’s not that I appreciate these terrible smells, but in very specific cases, it’s how people have managed to turn them into very profitable busi- nesses. Since I’m Chinese American, let’s start with Smelly Tofu. It’s smelly, and it’s tofu. That’s it. That’s the product. You can find it in China and Taiwan. It has a rotten stench. It smells like a leather shoe that has been worn too long during a particularly hot summer. And yet, people line up to eat it, typically at night markets throughout the area. It has a crackly crunch and oozes out a bit of soy sauce when you bite into it. The smell comes from the fermentation of the tofu, which can take about a week to truly ripen. It’s a revolting delicacy. But horrible smelling food isn’t just a phenomenon of the east. While in France, I discovered Époisse de Bourgogne, a cheese so pungent that it’s banned on all French public transportation. It’s also prohibited from being imported to several countries. It smells awful, and that is what people like about it. Wait a MINUTE! I’ve missed a whole new business model! Over the next few weeks, my new company Odoriffic will premiere a brand new product that will take over the sandwich world. Introducing … Sandwich au thon avarié. For those of you who are turning to Google translate to find out the literal meaning in French, it’s “Spoiled Tuna Sandwich.” While that might be technically correct, our sandwich is so much more. It’s not just a spoiled tuna sandwich. It’s served with a slice of Époisse de Bourgogne on top and a side of smelly tofu. I can already see the franchise store opportunities. Humor writer Wayne Chan lives in the San Diego area; cartoonist Wayne Chan is based in the Bay Area. Got a bucket? Speed up the composting process with bokashi By Jessica Damiano The Associated Press t’s no secret that the key to healthy plants is healthy soil, and the best way to improve soil is by incorpora- ting compost, which can take up to a year to make. Bokashi is a composting method that can speed that up. It uses an inoculant developed in Japan in the 1980s containing beneficial microorganisms. Compost improves the drainage of heavy clay soil and enhances the water retention of sand. It exudes nutrients and microbes to nourish plants and increase their vigor, while decreasing or eliminating the need for conventional fertilizer. Homemade compost, always a worthwhile endeavor, requires time and patience. Ingredients must be tossed or turned periodically to expose all parts to the oxygen necessary for their aerobic — or oxygen-fuelled — decomposition. Bokashi composting degrades ingre- dients anaerobically, replacing the function of oxygen with fermentation, which essentially pickles them. This cuts the wait time to as little as 10 days, and creates a product that’s even higher in I nutrients than traditional compost. It can be done in a small, indoor space, and the only equipment needed is a 5-gal- lon bucket with a spout and tight-fitting lid, and a bag of inoculant to kick start the fermentation process. Bokashi inoculants typically contain wheat bran, wheat germ, or sawdust. You can buy a kit or research DIY options to get started. Add kitchen scraps to the bucket in 2-inch layers, sprinkling a small handful of inoculant over each layer as you go and resealing the bucket tightly between additions. You might cover the layers with a plate or plastic wrap before sealing the container to further reduce oxygen exposure. When the bucket is full, drain the produced liquid from the spout every couple of days. Dilute one teaspoon of that “compost tea” into a quart of water and apply the highly nutritious solution to garden or houseplant soil to increase plant vigor and yield. Avoid direct contact with foliage, and use each batch within a day or so of collecting it. Meat and dairy scraps — strictly no-no’s in a regular compost pile — can be incorporated into the bokashi bucket. Continued on page 14 MAYORAL UPSET. A 23-year-old defeated a two-term incumbent to become a small Louisiana city’s next mayor. Tyrin Truong bested Wendy O’Quin Perrette, 47, in Bogalusa, a city of about 11,000 in southeastern Loui- siana, WWL-TV reported. (Photo courtesy of Tyrin Truong) 23-year-old defeats two-term mayor in small Louisiana city BATON ROUGE (AP) — A 23-year-old defeated a two-term incumbent to become a small Louisiana city’s next mayor. Tyrin Truong, a Democrat, bested inde- pendent mayor Wendy O’Quin Perrette, 47, in Bogalusa, a city of about 11,000 in southeastern Louisiana, WWL-TV reported in November. “I’m honestly at a loss for words,” Truong said. “This campaign was never about me; it was about building a better Bogalusa and a better city, and I’m glad everybody got out to vote, because it was a team effort, truly a team effort,” Perrette, who was first elected in 2014, conceded. “I wish the mayor-elect well, but young Tyrin has demonstrated repeatedly during this campaign that he lacks the skills necessary to lead and unite our city,” Perrette said in a statement to WWL. “I pray I am wrong. During the transition period, I will help any way that I can.” With all participating precincts reporting on November 9, Truong was in first place, followed by independent Teddy Drummond and, in third, Perrette, according to unofficial returns published by the secretary of state’s office. Voter turnout was 47%. My Turn: Artist Alex Chiu Indo quake survivor grieves 11 relatives as he rebuilds Continued from page 6 be represented — to … be given the opportunity to be in the mural,” said Chiu. “So they would take pictures next to the mural that they’re at.” Chiu said the project “switched” him into wanting to represent communities of color and to highlight folks in the community who “affected his family and were just a part of our lives.” “If I spent my whole life just trying to paint everyone I’ve met as a thank you for being a part of my life, that would be a great goal of mine,” Chiu said. “So that’s how I’ve approached public art since.” Readers can catch Alex’s newest works in “Illuminating Time” at the Portland Chinatown Museum, located at 127 N.W. Third Avenue in Portland, through early January. To learn more, call (503) 224-0008 or visit . Continued from page 5 but two nephews and a cousin were killed, he said. In a neighboring village, his sister, a cousin, and six other relatives were killed when their homes collapsed, Enjot said. Faced with such a sudden loss of life, and left without a place to live, Enjot is wondering what comes next. He’s with thousands living in tents or other temporary shelters set up by volunteers, barely enough to protect them from monsoon downpours. “The situation is worse than appears on television,” Enjot said. “We are starving, thirsty, and cold without adequate tents and clothes, [with] no access to clean water.” “All that’s left,” he said, “is the clothes I’ve been wearing since yesterday.” Karmini reported from Jakarta.