My family insists that I live in paradise, even though I continuously remind them that our living situation couldn’t be further from their tropical fantasies. My boyfriend and I weren’t looking to rent a home just blocks from the ocean, but when it cropped up in our rental searches on many websites, it was difficult to ignore. Our initial walk-through of the home was mostly uneventful, even though I remember getting the feeling that most of the home was outdated as well as little had been upgraded or refurbished in many decades. There were also the suspicions raised when I realized the property manager showing me the home was burning several sticks of incense as well as had essentially fumigated the home with the woodsy scent prior to our arrival. There could have been an existing sewer leak in the home at the time as well as I wouldn’t have been able to smell it over the incense. But we ignored these red flags when we saw the price, and it wasn’t long before we had signed the lease and moved in. Shortly after that, a strong nasty smell started to creep around the entire home. I tried burning candles, but the best that ever accomplished was putting a layer of candle scent over the inescapable musty smell permeating the ancient house. I finally got some much needed relief when our friend recommended I try putting drops of tea tree oil in our a/c filters. I was skeptical of any suggestion regarding essential oils being a fair remedy for anything, regardless of the application. But she was right—even if just for aromatic purposes alone, the tea tree oil helped make our home smell fresher as well as cleaner. After trying a few oils at a local health food store, I decided to start using frankincense. I appreciate the smell, plus it allegedly has anti-fungal properties, so if on the off chance the legend is any bit right, you can’t be that combined with the lovely smell.