Elevator Smells

If in an apartment you may dwell,
You’ll be attuned to every smell
That wafts inside the elevator
Left by every perpetrator:

The ultra-perfumed female suit,
The lure of which is in dispute.
The dog walk guy with clothes that reek;
They stay unwashed from week to week.

The aftershave with too much splash;
With fresh air it appears to clash.
The up-close spicy onion breath –
Oh, grant me liberty or death!

Sometimes cooking smells float in,
And it requires discipline
To rein in my disgusted shiver
When someone’s sautéing liver.

Still, I’ll cope with every smell
‘Cause not a one could quite compel
Me to (despite what I abhor)
Walk up and down from the ninth floor!