tree smells

recently, i have been smelling this dense, rancid smelling scent every evenings around my condo and surrounding areas. and the smell was so rancid and pungent that i felt very uneasy. i mentioned it to my mum in passing one evening as we drove out for dinner and was surprised by her strong reaction. don't talk about it when you smell something in the evening hours! she chided me... my father (my ah gong aka granddad) used to tell me that it is not good. you never know what kind of things the smell come from...

but really, other than her suspicion, i was so sure there was a logical explanation to it. but i couldn't figure out what this smell is and where is originated from.  but i suspected it is from some roadside plants/ trees although i didn't know exactly which one. and so i posted a status update in my facebook. i took botany as an undergrad and was so certain some of my friends would be able to answer me... and within minutes, one posting came in... she said it could be the pulai tree (alstonia spp). i did some checks in the net on how it looked like and drove around my estate and the changi business park where there are lots of trees... and lo and behold. indeed there were quite a few of the alstonia spp. and they were all in full bloom!

heh heh... i don't think there is a need to tell my mum about it. no point trying to change the mindset of a person who has this thing about spirits and smells ingrained into her since she was a kid...

:-)