# Public restroom pet peeves



## Iwritelotsofbooks (Nov 17, 2010)

Reading the subway restroom mystery story a minute ago made me think about restroom pet peeves.  
Like people talking on their cell phon at the urinal.  Or people starting conversations at the urinal. Pretty much, anything other than doing your business at the urinal.  

Side note, I work at a restaurant and a woman dropped her cell in the toilet the other day, then insisted the staff fish it out.  Nevermind that the phone would be fried.  Remember when the restroom used to be a simpler place?

Kevin Michael


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## Daniel Arenson (Apr 11, 2010)

My pet peeve -- the nice washrooms, where there's a guy who hands you a towel and asks for a tip.  I mean, yeah, I feel bad for him; he has a tough job and wants to make a living.  But it's all rather awkward.  Realistically, I can get my own towel just as easily, and don't want to feel guilty about turning the guy down, or not tipping him.


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## tsilver (Aug 9, 2010)

I get aggravated with the people who leave a mess in the stall and have made no effort to remove all the paper they put on the seat to show how sanitary they are or don't even flush.  If I'm the only one in the restroom, I stay in my stall until someone else comes in.  I don't want anyone to think I was the one who left the mess.


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## BTackitt (Dec 15, 2008)

One of the stalls at my campus has every available inch of wallspace covered in ... RELIGIOUS graffitti. All sorts of different authors. ALL sorts of Christian religious messages. I almost wish I knew enough about another religion just to post a differing view. But this is the Bible Belt South, and someone could get hurt. I dunno how, but it might happen.. some of these people are NUTS.


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## Jennybeanses (Jan 27, 2011)

I used to work in a pharmacy years ago, and every morning someone would come in and paint the entire washroom stall in fecal matter. EVERY MORNING. And it was new every day because I usually stopped in to check my hair and makeup before clocking in to work. 

So disgusting. In fact, I'm going to cry just thinking about it.


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## MrPLD (Sep 23, 2010)

Jennybeanses said:


> I used to work in a pharmacy years ago, and every morning someone would come in and paint the entire washroom stall in fecal matter.


Woah... just woah. One would have thought at some point someone would have organised 'security' to determine who that was. That would traumatise me as well, a lot.


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## MrPLD (Sep 23, 2010)

People who manage to somehow get water and toiletpaper scattered all over the floor around the toilet... I don't even want to know HOW they managed it.


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## Jennybeanses (Jan 27, 2011)

MrPLD said:


> Woah... just woah. One would have thought at some point someone would have organised 'security' to determine who that was. That would traumatise me as well, a lot.


yeah, they should have, but they didn't. It was just awful. I'm going to have nightmares tonight now that I dredged that back up from the deep.


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## Ben White (Feb 11, 2011)

Daniel Arenson said:


> My pet peeve -- the nice washrooms, where there's a guy who hands you a towel and asks for a tip. I mean, yeah, I feel bad for him; he has a tough job and wants to make a living. But it's all rather awkward. Realistically, I can get my own towel just as easily, and don't want to feel guilty about turning the guy down, or not tipping him.


Have you seen the "Work Outing" episode of The IT Crowd? "I just paid a pound, not to go to the toilet!" That whole episode is great, actually.


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## Iwritelotsofbooks (Nov 17, 2010)

MrPLD said:


> People who manage to somehow get water and toiletpaper scattered all over the floor around the toilet... I don't even want to know HOW they managed it.


how about people who manage to not wipe the urine off the toilet seat?


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## mom133d (aka Liz) (Nov 25, 2008)

Ben White said:


> Have you seen the "Work Outing" episode of The IT Crowd? "I just paid a pound, not to go to the toilet!" That whole episode is great, actually.


And I heard Roy's voice in my head as I read it!

You have named the good ones...how about when there are sinks directly across from each stall, you go to the one in front of you upon exiting right? Pet peeve- those who don't - and beeline for the one in front of me. And you can tell they didn't try another sink and see it was out of soap or whatnot.


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## Vegas_Asian (Nov 2, 2008)

people talking on the phone while in the bathroom is my peeve. especially between classes when its crowded their. I just think its inconsiderate to others in the bathroom and the person on the other side of the line. its not like its impossible to call back in two minutes


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## geoffthomas (Feb 27, 2009)

I am amazed at the number of people who do their business, flush and just walk out.
Wash your hands, people!
In this day and age I thought everyone knew better.

Just sayin......


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## Vegas_Asian (Nov 2, 2008)

geoffthomas said:


> I am amazed at the number of people who do their business, flush and just walk out.
> Wash your hands, people!
> In this day and age I thought everyone knew better.
> 
> Just sayin......


I am a nursing major and I get disgusted when my bio or micro bio classmates walk out of the bathroom without washing their hands. THEY should know better


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## CaitLondon (Oct 12, 2010)

Small, but annoying: The giant rolls of paper dispensers that are unreachable far up and beyond, and/or when the ends cannot be found on new rolls.


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## mlewis78 (Apr 19, 2009)

T.L. Haddix said:


> Lazy people who just walk away from a stall without flushing, first of all. I think it has gotten worse since the advent of the smart, self-flushing toilets (which do NOT flush all the time on their own). That leads to my other PP - people who don't bother to stick around and make sure the toilet did flush. How hard is it to flush a danged toilet, people? When I'm in a particularly bad mood and I go in a public restroom and find most of the stalls dirty like that, I will rant and rave out loud about stupid, lazy people and how it isn't rocket science. I quite frankly don't care at that point who hears me. I've gotta go and I'm ticked!


This is my biggest pet peeve. If it takes two flushes or more, they should flush again!

Another one is seeing strands of hair in the sink or on the counter. Too important to clean up after themselves or to even notice? Gross!


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## JimJ (Mar 3, 2009)

lacymarankevinmichael said:


> Reading the subway restroom mystery story a minute ago made me think about restroom pet peeves.
> Like people talking on their cell phon at the urinal. Or people starting conversations at the urinal. Pretty much, anything other than doing your business at the urinal.
> 
> Side note, I work at a restaurant and a woman dropped her cell in the toilet the other day, then insisted the staff fish it out. Nevermind that the phone would be fried. Remember when the restroom used to be a simpler place?
> ...


Well, the phone could possibly still work if she stuck it in a bag of rice for a day or so. Still, it's a little messed up that she wanted the staff to get it out, it's not their fault she dropped it.

I don't really have any aside from the obvious like messe left in the stall. One annoyance that I have is with a local movie theater bathroom. I'm an avid moviegoer, so I'm there all the time, and there are several stalls with broken locks and I always seem to end up in one of them when the bathroom is crowded. Really annoying and I wish they would fix it but it's been like that for a while.


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

1: Purse/coat hooks. Tend to be on the door. Which tends to be not reachable while in a sitting position. So if one might need something out of the purse/coat one needs to get it out ahead of time just in case. Not that there's anywhere to put it then. Would it be so hard to put a hook on the side of the stall? Before they renovated and modernized the Pentagon, the ladies room toilets had a hinged shelf in each stall. You go in and lock the door, and then put the shelf down and put your purse, or whatever, on it. Handy. Off the floor. Nice. 

2.: Handicap accessible stalls. Grab rails are nice. But why do they always put the giant toilet paper dispensers _under_. I'm fairly able bodied (though I like the higher seat ) but I find it awkward to get paper off those rolls. And if you're not careful it can easily end up on the floor. And there's the aforementioned problem trying to find an 'end' -- even harder to do if the thing is at calf level and you're bent over trying to reach. Would it be so hard to put it above the grab rail?


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## tsilver (Aug 9, 2010)

Oh those giant toilet paper dispensers.  The people who invented them and the ones who install them so that you need to be a pretzel to use them should be encased in a giant toilet paper dispenser and rolled down the highway.


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## John Dax (May 21, 2010)

Eye contact. It's just not necessary.


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## P.A. Woodburn (May 22, 2010)

Believe me none of your complaints equal anything I have seen in Ireland, France or Egypt.


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## mlewis78 (Apr 19, 2009)

P.A. Woodburn said:


> Believe me none of your complaints equal anything I have seen in Ireland, France or Egypt.


The hole in the floor/no toilet? I've seen those in Paris and particularly remember that there was one in Père Lachaise Cemetery.


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## NapCat (retired) (Jan 17, 2011)

not covering the sand in the litterbox.....


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## Iwritelotsofbooks (Nov 17, 2010)

Men's restrooms that still have urinating troughs instead of urinals.  What is this, the 1950's?


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## Geoffrey (Jun 20, 2009)

Do not talk to me at the urinal.  Its a rule.


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## geoffthomas (Feb 27, 2009)

mlewis78 said:


> The hole in the floor/no toilet? I've seen those in Paris and particularly remember that there was one in Père Lachaise Cemetery.


Found porcelain holes with foot rests in the floor in government offices in Indonesia and Malaysia. And of course, no toilet paper - bucket of water with a ladle. Not my way of doing things.

Just sayin.....


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## NapCat (retired) (Jan 17, 2011)

Geoffrey said:


> Do not talk to me at the urinal. Its a rule.


Excellent Rule !!


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## caseyf6 (Mar 28, 2010)

LACK of hooks.  I refuse to put my purse on the floor (just...eew) and I dislike holding it in my lap.

Also, the auto-flushers.  I understand why we have them but I hate them on many levels.  1) They are often LOUD.  My little one used to scream when she heard them.  2)  I hate it when they flush...uh..."early".  3)  I dislike when they DON'T WORK.  I really don't like sitting there waiting...

One more thing-- I dislike the really, really loud blow dryers.  I dislike blow dryers in general, but the ones we have in our local theater are SO loud (tile walls) that I refuse to use them.  I'll either wipe my hands on my jeans or skip the handwash by using antibacterial gel.


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## mlewis78 (Apr 19, 2009)

caseyf6 said:


> LACK of hooks. I refuse to put my purse on the floor (just...eew) and I dislike holding it in my lap.
> 
> Also, the auto-flushers. I understand why we have them but I hate them on many levels. 1) They are often LOUD. My little one used to scream when she heard them. 2) I hate it when they flush...uh..."early". 3) I dislike when they DON'T WORK. I really don't like sitting there waiting...
> 
> One more thing-- I dislike the really, really loud blow dryers. I dislike blow dryers in general, but the ones we have in our local theater are SO loud (tile walls) that I refuse to use them. I'll either wipe my hands on my jeans or skip the handwash by using antibacterial gel.


Agree! The loud hand dryers make me feel irritable. They had one in the ladies room at the now-closed Barnes & Noble here (Bway/66th). I never could understand why the autoflushers go off before I get to sit down, and they flush away the tissue (that is meant to be on the seat) right off the seat.


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

caseyf6 said:


> Also, the auto-flushers. I understand why we have them but I hate them on many levels. 1) They are often LOUD. My little one used to scream when she heard them. 2) I hate it when they flush...uh..."early". 3) I dislike when they DON'T WORK. I really don't like sitting there waiting...


I generally just find it funny when they flush early. . .but, as for waiting. . .you know there's always a button on the things. . . .you can flush 'em manually if they don't go automatically. . . . .

The ones I've been in are not particularly loud, but then we have a pressure one at home which most folks who've not used before find to be loud. I like that it takes _everything_ on one flush. What's the point of 'low flow' if you have to flush it 3 times per use?

Oh, and as to the jet engine hairdryers. . .yeah. . .they're loud and push your skin around. . . but at least they work! Unlike many hot air dryers. And, of course, if there are hot air dryers there are no towels so you end up leaving with still wet hands. . .which isn't fun at all if it's a cold day. . . .I'm recalling some public rest areas along the interstate. . . .


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## KindleChickie (Oct 24, 2009)

People who take the handicapped stall even when they do not need it.  I have witnessed a mother directing her young daughter into the only handicapped stall.  The daughter would have problems with a taller toilet.  The logic is lost on this one.  

I have a chronic medical condition and sometimes I NEED a taller toilet and hand rails.  You guys have no idea the anxiety of using a low toilet and then realizing your knees wont allow you to stand back up.  The fright of thinking you are going to have to ask a stanger to help you off the pot.


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## mom133d (aka Liz) (Nov 25, 2008)

Geoffrey said:


> Do not talk to me at the urinal. Its a rule.


My son is a talker, at least when he's sitting. We're trying to break him of the habit. No one likes a talker in the restroom.


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## BTackitt (Dec 15, 2008)

KindleChickie said:


> People who take the handicapped stall even when they do not need it. I have witnessed a mother directing her young daughter into the only handicapped stall. The daughter would have problems with a taller toilet. The logic is lost on this one.
> 
> I have a chronic medical condition and sometimes I NEED a taller toilet and hand rails. You guys have no idea the anxiety of using a low toilet and then realizing your knees wont allow you to stand back up. The fright of thinking you are going to have to ask a stanger to help you off the pot.


I refuse to use the handicap stall unless it is absolutely the only one open and I am in danger of peeing my pants. However at that point, all bets are off.


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## caseyf6 (Mar 28, 2010)

We have auto flushers here that don't have that little button.  Or if it does, I can't find it.  Some have the little black rubber button but these don't have anything.

I have used the handicapped spot when I was potty training my youngest.  But that was because we both needed to be in there so I could help her.  I only used it those times or when I absolutely HAD to go.


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## mom133d (aka Liz) (Nov 25, 2008)

caseyf6 said:


> I have used the handicapped spot when I was potty training my youngest. But that was because we both needed to be in there so I could help her. I only used it those times or when I absolutely HAD to go.


And when the little one is too young to wait outside for you.


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## mlewis78 (Apr 19, 2009)

I use whichever stall is available, handicap or not.  I don't think I've ever kept anyone from going.  I often have to wait for an available stall.  

Those dryers take a long time to work with my hands, even though they blow the skin into contortions.  And I do see the button to flush again and use it, but it's still crazy that they automatically flush before I even sit down.


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## stormhawk (Apr 29, 2009)

I have a problem with all of the above ... and restrooms that smell restroomy.


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## Lyndl (Apr 2, 2010)

mom133d said:


> My son is a talker, at least when he's sitting. We're trying to break him of the habit. No one likes a talker in the restroom.


 My youngest was a singer... his brothers still tease him about it occasionally.

What drives me nuts is that the whole place can be empty but someone has to come and use the stall next to mine.. why would you do that?


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## caracara (May 23, 2010)

Why do I keep coming back to this thread?! Morbid curiosity? Or am I just insane...

I hate the ones at school that are "Closed due to Vandalism". Why would you vandalize the bathroom, they are already awkwardly placed as is.
I also dislike when we are at swim practice, so the pool is not open to the public, and some lady comes in with her small son... First you really shouldn't be in the pool area it's not open. Second due that is our "locker room" so we change in there, awkward when someone else walks in!


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## Keith Blenman (May 31, 2009)

Scrapbookers. 

Okay, really, lousy/broken stall doors. Either the space created by the hinges is massive, or the lock is broken or worn down to the point that it doesn't even work. If it's a public bathroom, you'd think the maintenance dude would have a supply room with a few extra locks lying about.


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## N. Gemini Sasson (Jul 5, 2010)

caseyf6 said:


> Also, the auto-flushers. I understand why we have them but I hate them on many levels. 1) They are often LOUD. My little one used to scream when she heard them. 2) I hate it when they flush...uh..."early". 3) I dislike when they DON'T WORK. I really don't like sitting there waiting...


Definitely those. Irritating to get water splashed on you and you're just leaning forward.

Me, I hate it when people storm into the restroom and shove a stall door open, without bothering to a) look to see if someone's feet are there and b) knocking and waiting a few seconds to see if there's an answer. Sometimes the locks just don't work, people. And if the door is closed, why are they shoving it open without checking first?


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## Lyndl (Apr 2, 2010)

In a coffee house in Amsterdam, my friend and I were delighted to discover a sef cleaning tolet seat!  Once you stood and flushed, the seat actually rotated while it was sluiced with water.  It was so weird, we tried it about 3 times.  Then, of course, we had to walk back out and I'm sure everyone knew what we'd been doing!


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## Indy (Jun 7, 2010)

I like the angle of the bowl to be one that doesn't cause my "hover" to either almost miss, or splash it everywhere.  Deep bowls are better.  Shallow bowls are bad, if I try to hover it just looks like I did a little dance while peeing.  Then so I wipe the seat, stand up, move away and the auto flusher splashes water back all over the seat again.  After a while I just give up, people can wipe their own seat dry if they want to sit.


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## mom133d (aka Liz) (Nov 25, 2008)

Indy said:


> Then so I wipe the seat, stand up, move away and the auto flusher splashes water back all over the seat again. After a while I just give up, people can wipe their own seat dry if they want to sit.


This is especially true of the toilets in my local Target. And the suction is so strong and fast, that I'm positive that if you could flush it while seated, it would cause a vacuum and you'd be stuck to the seat.


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## spotsmom (Jan 20, 2011)

Thanks for all the laughs, folks.  I hope Dave Berry reads this thread.  I can just imagine his column.


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## swolf (Jun 21, 2010)

When there's three urinals and you walk in and there's a guy using the middle one.  Learn the rules dude!

The sink faucets that only give you a few seconds of water and then shut off automatically.

And I love the new hand dryers.  The old ones take way too long, and finally you just gave up and wiped your hands on your pants.

The troughs.  Talk about stage fright.

Certain public bathrooms where you're not sure if you're supposed to lock the door or not, and you don't, and someone walks in.


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## Carol (was Dara) (Feb 19, 2011)

lacymarankevinmichael said:


> Side note, I work at a restaurant and a woman dropped her cell in the toilet the other day, then insisted the staff fish it out.


Wow, I'd totally tell her to fish it out herself. LOL


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## Carol (was Dara) (Feb 19, 2011)

CaitLondon said:


> Small, but annoying: The giant rolls of paper dispensers that are unreachable far up and beyond, and/or when the ends cannot be found on new rolls.


This one happens to me all the time and drives me crazy.


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## BuddyGott (Feb 4, 2011)

I hate when I go to use a urinal and I see that there are crumpled up paper towels sitting in it. Really? They couldn't have just used a nearby trash can?

Also, I don't know if this is exactly a pet peeve, but I always think it's weird when I walk up to a row of urinals and see a guy standing there doing his business while he has both of his hands on his hips like he's doing the Superman pose. 

Seriously, how do they do that without making a big mess? It mystifies me!


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## Anita (Jan 3, 2009)

> What drives me nuts is that the whole place can be empty but someone has to come and use the stall next to mine.. why would you do that?


This is funny to me....it doesn't bother me that people take the stall next to me, but I know that it does bother other people, and although I don't really 'understand' it I try to not to take the stall next to someone if I can avoid doing so....but today I walked into the restroom at work and the only available stalls were between occupied stalls....and I actually felt kind of bad about using one of them.  LOL


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## mom133d (aka Liz) (Nov 25, 2008)

BuddyGott said:


> Also, I don't know if this is exactly a pet peeve, but I always think it's weird when I walk up to a row of urinals and see a guy standing there doing his business while he has both of his hands on his hips like he's doing the Superman pose.
> 
> Seriously, how do they do that without making a big mess? It mystifies me!


Its a pet peeve. Every time I have to visit my 4 year old while he's peeing he has his hands on his hips. And I keep telling him he's going to make a mess. He hasn't yet so he doesn't believe me. ARRGGGHHH!


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## stormhawk (Apr 29, 2009)

They do that because they can! 

in re: the lady who dropped her cell phone ... serves her right for texting on the toilet!


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## Carol (was Dara) (Feb 19, 2011)

It used to be part of my job to clean out the restrooms when I worked in a fastfood restaurant. You wouldn't believe how many people (in the women's bathroom!) can't seem to hit the toilet. I'm pretty sure some of it was done on purpose.

I have a friend who was once held up at knife-point when he tried to stop a drunk guy from stealing toilet paper from a restroom in a grocery store. I think I'd have said, "If you need it that bad, take it".


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## swolf (Jun 21, 2010)

Whenever I see those group jail cells in movies that just have the toilet sitting there out in the open, I think I never want to go to jail, because I wouldn't be able to do that.


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## cc84 (Aug 6, 2010)

mom133d said:


> My son is a talker, at least when he's sitting. We're trying to break him of the habit. No one likes a talker in the restroom.


Lol this reminds me of my nephew. He's 5 and i took him to the hospitals toilet when he went for an eye exam. Anyway we go in and there's a smell, which he had to comment on "urgh it stinks in here." And there's a woman in the next stall who i presume made the smell because after his little comment there's the sound of her deodrant been sprayed. And my nephew pipes up "What's that noise?"  

Bless em


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## Cindy416 (May 2, 2009)

mlewis78 said:


> The hole in the floor/no toilet? I've seen those in Paris and particularly remember that there was one in Père Lachaise Cemetery.


I still remember the first time I saw that in Paris. I really couldn't believe what I was seeing. We were in a restaurant and went upstairs to use the restroom. Unbelievable.

The one pet peeve (my biggest one) is one that hasn't been mentioned. I hate it when I use a public restroom and there's no toilet paper anywhere. I really hate that. Really. Can you tell??


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## ak rain (Nov 15, 2008)

Cindy416 said:


> The one pet peeve (my biggest one) is one that hasn't been mentioned. I hate it when I use a public restroom and there's no toilet paper anywhere. I really hate that. Really. Can you tell??


many places in Mexico there is TP if you find the person outside the bathroom selling the TP

sylvia


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## Anne Victory (Jul 29, 2010)

When the grass is high enough to tickle your bits...

LOL  Yeah, I used an outhouse or three as a kid - grew up country.  

In all seriousness, though - people not flushing drives me nuts.  So does sprinkles on the toilet seat.  Hello - I'm a girl.  Why is the women's restroom sporting a wet seat.  EEEEeewww.

PS:  Jen, you're not the only one with nightmares.  I have, on two separate occasions, had to clean up a stranger's liquid crap from a public restroom.  Minimum wage isn't enough for that.  Ugh.


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## Cindy416 (May 2, 2009)

ak rain said:


> many places in Mexico there is TP if you find the person outside the bathroom selling the TP
> 
> sylvia


 Lived in Monterrey, Mexico for two summers, and visited a couple of other times. I know what you mean.


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## KerylR (Dec 28, 2010)

Our local grocery store has some awfully tiny stalls.  And the doors open into the stalls.  So, at seven months pregnant, I ended up in a situation where I couldn't get the door shut.  There wasn't enough room for me to stand in the stall and swing the door shut.

So, at seven months I ended up having to use the handicapped stall because that one was big enough to fit.  (For the record I was 150 pounds at seven months pregnant.)


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## mom133d (aka Liz) (Nov 25, 2008)

I think the Penny Arcade guys found this thread:


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## BTackitt (Dec 15, 2008)

BWAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAH


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## Susan in VA (Apr 3, 2009)

T.L. Haddix said:


> Apparently, from what she said when she told the story years later, the toilets in their housing in Germany were so loud, they weren't allowed to flush them after a certain time at night. Anyhow, I remember thinking it was funny all those years ago, and I still think it is amazing today.
> 
> Was anyone else here stationed in Germany in the late 1970s? Can you confirm or deny this?


Yep, I can confirm that... not _stationed_ there, but lived there from 77 to 89 in half a dozen different apartments, and the older buildings can sometimes have very loud plumbing. Combine that with the German insistence on "quiet time" after a certain hour (and, in some places, from 1-3 in the afternoon as well!), and you end up with annoying apartment building rules like no showers after 9 PM or before 7 AM. _Really_ fun when you're working night shifts.


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## Susan in VA (Apr 3, 2009)

Lyndl said:


> What drives me nuts is that the whole place can be empty but someone has to come and use the stall next to mine.. why would you do that?


Maybe they checked out all the other stalls and just picked the first one that was clean-ish?

Another one that hasn't been mentioned: Those automatic sensors that turn the water on when you're standing in front of the sink. Some of those, maybe the older ones, don't work when the person standing in front of the sink is wearing black. (I've been told it's because the sensor only reacts to the reflection of light, but I don't know if that's true.) I wear black shirts and sweaters a lot, and more than once have had to ask whoever was with me to stand in front of a sink for me so the darn thing would turn on the water.


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## Sharonnelson123 (Feb 18, 2011)

People not flushing. How hard is it people? Even if its a child either they are old enough to know better or their parent should be close enough to know if they did it. Social responsibility people!


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## mom133d (aka Liz) (Nov 25, 2008)

Sharonnelson123 said:


> People not flushing. How hard is it people? Even if its a child either they are old enough to know better or their parent should be close enough to know if they did it. Social responsibility people!


I can't bring myself to do this in a public setting, but it was encouraged when our local government had water restrictions about 6 years ago. "If its yellow let it mellow. if its brown flush it down." I swear those were posted in bathrooms - but not by the govt.


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## Lyndl (Apr 2, 2010)

I read somewhere the other day ( Reader's Digest, I think)  that you should always use the first stall because statistically, it's the cleanest.


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## patrisha w. (Oct 28, 2008)

P.A. Woodburn said:


> Believe me none of your complaints equal anything I have seen in Ireland, France or Egypt.


 Or Italy. In Lucca the only clean bathrooms were those you paid to get into. I grudged the money but I was NOT using those at some of the pizzerias!


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## elakkljakldf (May 15, 2011)

In middle school, the janitors would never ever ever put the paper towel rolls inside of the actual dispenser. Because it is MUCH too hard to toss a roll in the dispenser... they would just leave it out on the windowsill and expect us to make do with the dripping, sometimes sticky roll of towels. ugh. I hated it.


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## Tippy (Dec 8, 2008)

I was taught to treat a public restroom like you would treat your own restroom at home.  That means cleaning up after yourself so the next person isn't grossed out.  I am also quite offended by businesses who don't keep their restrooms clean and stocked with toilet tissue, paper towels and soap.


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## Anne Victory (Jul 29, 2010)

BuddyGott said:


> Seriously, how do they do that without making a big mess? It mystifies me!


Answer: They don't. Words cannot describe the horrors of working somewhere that has a public restroom. When I was a kid, I worked at McD's and an old man had an "accident" (#2) - and it was EVERYWHERE. Floor, walls, ceiling. Guess who had to clean it up? Yeah.

Sadly, I'm no longer a kid, but about five years ago a man walked into the office where I worked and asked if he could use the restroom. Technically, I didn't have to let him, 'cuz it's not like it was a public building / store, but I felt sorry for him. Proof that no good deed goes unpunished: he, too, had an accident. I had to clean that up, too, because I was the only one there so if I didn't clean it up, it wouldn't get done.

Now that I've sufficiently grossed myself out (and probably anyone reading, as well), I'm going to try to calm down again. Seriously not cool


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## Tam (Jan 7, 2010)

At our old dental office, we had a patient who would clog the toilet with paper towels every time she came in for an appointment. The last couple of times we saw her, I emptied the towel dispenser while she was having her dental work done - problem solved...

In our current building, we had so many problems with clogged up pipes due to paper towels that we ended up taking the towel dispenser out of the patient restroom and putting in a hand dryer. People complain occasionally, but at least the toilet works now! I just cannot fathom why anyone would do that, but they did...

The thing that really grosses me out is that for a larger percentage of folks than I care to think about - we never hear the hand dryer turn on at all. Since they dont come with wet hands, I can only assume that a LOT of people dont wash their hands...


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## Holly A Hook (Sep 19, 2010)

I used to have to clean bathrooms at a horse racing track.  After closing.  I'm not even going to describe that.


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## geoffthomas (Feb 27, 2009)

Holly A Hook said:


> I used to have to clean bathrooms at a horse racing track. After closing. I'm not even going to describe that.


Thank you....but we can imagine.


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## balaspa (Dec 27, 2009)

People talking away on cell phones in the restroom is a major one!  Really  The call cannot wait until you are off the toilet  Do we all need to participate?  Also, people who do not flush and those who do not wash their hands.


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## *Sandy Harper* (Jun 22, 2011)

Not washing hands is turn off for me.  There is no excuse; most restrooms have soap and towel.


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## stormhawk (Apr 29, 2009)

Flushing paper towels down the toilets with the intent of causing a flood is a fairly frequent passtime at the mental hospital. An ER physician friend recently told me about a woman who attempted commit suicide by toilet. 

And I thought I'd heard EVERYTHING. Nothing surprises me. But this did. 

See, she took this bedsheet, tied it around her neck, and .... no, please don't try to anticipate. You'll never get it. 

She put the loose end of the sheet in the bowl and started flushing. 

And kept flushing. 

And the sheet around her neck got tighter, and tighter.

Until she lost consciousness. 

Would have succeeded, had she not been found.


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## David5240 (Jun 21, 2011)

True story - I was recently at an upscale Chicago restaurant and the guy working the bathroom was eating - not just anything but a huge piece of cake AND sitting on a stool right next to the only sink. The funny part was that they were out of paper towels. I wash my hands and look around (he is oblivious and about 120 years old) - finally I shake my hands to get the water off - water of course gets on his cake. He doesn't notice but does comment to the guy in a stall (in gastric distress) about him taking care of some serious business. Hysterical - I almost cried I laughed so hard.



Daniel Arenson said:


> My pet peeve -- the nice washrooms, where there's a guy who hands you a towel and asks for a tip. I mean, yeah, I feel bad for him; he has a tough job and wants to make a living. But it's all rather awkward. Realistically, I can get my own towel just as easily, and don't want to feel guilty about turning the guy down, or not tipping him.


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## mlewis78 (Apr 19, 2009)

I always thought the reason that some places don't have paper towels but have a hot air machine was because of the paper towels getting thrown on the floor.  Putting them in the toilet is insane.

I always have a small package of baby wipes in my bag for washing my hands when the facilities are inadequate.  (I throw them in the garbage after use.)  The hot air hand dryers take too long and I end up wiping my hands on my clothes after I try using them for a while.


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## Tam (Jan 7, 2010)

I hate hand dryers too - except for those industrial blowers that push the skin around on your hands and get them dry in a few seconds. Those are fun! But then I hate having to touch the doorknob and get my hands dirty again.


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## Katie Salidas (Mar 21, 2010)

stormhawk said:


> Flushing paper towels down the toilets with the intent of causing a flood is a fairly frequent passtime at the mental hospital. An ER physician friend recently told me about a woman who attempted commit suicide by toilet.
> 
> And I thought I'd heard EVERYTHING. Nothing surprises me. But this did.
> 
> ...


I think that has to be the most creative way to end it all. Glad she was found though before anything bad happened.


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## Robert Clear (Apr 10, 2011)

Tam said:


> I hate hand dryers too - except for those industrial blowers that push the skin around on your hands and get them dry in a few seconds. Those are fun! But then I hate having to touch the doorknob and get my hands dirty again.


Totally agree!


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## stormhawk (Apr 29, 2009)

I call most wall-mounted hand dryers "wipe hands on pants machines."

The high powered ones that sounds like jets taking off are pretty cool, but since they're more likely to force the air jet into your face, they're probably better at transmitting Legionnaire's Disease than the regular kind.


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## Brenda Carroll (May 21, 2009)

I have really enjoyed reading this thread, but I must say that if I had my druthers, I would use the ladies' facilities if I could because they are always cleaner so it seems.  
My personal favorite is not necessarily the bathroom facilities, but the people who allow their children to use public restrooms alone.  These are possibly the filthiest places on earth and believe me, most kids do not wash well without supervision.


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## caseyf6 (Mar 28, 2010)

My big issue with the loud dryers is that they are loud enough to damage hearing.  Especially if they are in a newer restroom with those hard tile walls and floors-- LOUD.  I have enough hearing loss without that!!  I use the antibacterial stuff.


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## msdanielle28 (Jun 12, 2011)

Okay I'll throw my two cents in here, I cannot stand those automatic toilets that suppose to flush on their own. It seems like every time I use the bathroom with them they are broken. Needless to say the toilet won't flush because it's automatic. No one wants to see what I left behind and it's not like there is a bathroom attendant I can notify. Just give me a regular toilet with a good ole handle any day. lol


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## stormhawk (Apr 29, 2009)

Brendan Carroll said:


> I have really enjoyed reading this thread, but I must say that if I had my druthers, I would use the ladies' facilities if I could because they are always cleaner so it seems.


Sorry to destroy your illusion, but you have clearly never been to a major sporting event. Especially to one of those stadiums where some genius architect has decided that the proper male/female bathroom ratio is 2:1 because that's representative of the demographic in attendance .... but that's not how the usage patterns actually look.

Or a nightclub/bar/small entertainment venue where alcohol is served.

Or a movie theater.

Women are pigs. Okay, many, not all. Or at least enough. It only takes one.

Consider, all a dude has to do is approach the receptacle, utilize it, step away, wash up.

Many women, despite a lifetime of training, are inexpert at the squat and hover, and never think of tidying up afterwards (who, after all, wants to make contact with a dripping wet toilet set protected only by an industrial-sized wad of toilet paper). Not to mention the horrors of the feminine waste disposal bin in the stall.

And don't get me started on the whole empty soap container AND the magic handleless sink that never ever sees my hands no matter where I wave them around it, until they're too far away to catch the stream of water. And the water never gets hot enough to provide any sanitization, anyway.

Wow. Sorry. This might be too much for some of the guys. Should i have used spoiler tags?


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## caseyf6 (Mar 28, 2010)

msdanielle28 said:


> Okay I'll throw my two cents in here, I cannot stand those automatic toilets that suppose to flush on their own. It seems like every time I use the bathroom with them they are broken. Needless to say the toilet won't flush because it's automatic. No one wants to see what I left behind and it's not like there is a bathroom attendant I can notify. Just give me a regular toilet with a good ole handle any day. lol


There is usually a small rubber button on these; might be hard to find but I always try to look anyway.


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## Carol Hanrahan (Mar 31, 2009)

This was a new one for me.  At the rest stop, just across the Mississippi River on 270 in St. Louis.  The hand washing station was a semicircular cutout in the wall.  Put your hands in, the water turns on to get them wet, next a squirt of soap comes out, you lather up, and after a few more seconds, the water comes back on to rinse you, then the blow dryer turns on to dry you.  All you have done is put your hands in and rub!


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## elakkljakldf (May 15, 2011)

Tam said:


> I hate hand dryers too - except for those industrial blowers that push the skin around on your hands and get them dry in a few seconds. Those are fun! But then I hate having to touch the doorknob and get my hands dirty again.


What's your favorite kind? I like the Dyson ones, but the Xlerator (is that what they're called?) ones are also pretty nice.


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## valleycat1 (Mar 15, 2011)

Airport restroom stalls that aren't big enough for carryon bags or without hooks or shelves for totes/purses/coats.

People who flush repeatedly while they're in the stall to cover the sound of their doing their business. (i had a friend in college who even did that in the dorm restroom)


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## Val2 (Mar 9, 2011)

I was in London last week and had to PAY to PEE!!! Not good!


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## swolf (Jun 21, 2010)

Used to work with a guy who not only didn't wash his hands after using the bathroom, he bragged about the fact.  One time he brought in homemade nacho dip to share with everyone, and I just couldn't eat it.


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## msdanielle28 (Jun 12, 2011)

Yes those small black buttons are hard to find on those toilets sometimes, well I think I am just so annoyed at that point I might not always look all around.  Then I am fighting with the tight space bath rooms, especially the one's that the door swings toward you and not out. Who do they expect to get outta there, so between the non flushing toilet, the door opening towards me, and my big purse etc it makes for one exhausting trip to the ladies room. I love it when I'm at home


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## SheaMacLeod (Apr 13, 2011)

I used to work in the office of a manufacturing company.  There were only two women in the office, all the rest worked out back.

My female boss and I would walk into the women's restroom only to find shoeprints on the toilet seat.

That's right.  Shoe prints.  We KNEW it was the girls out back, but multiple talks in various languages yielded no results.

Other much grosser things were also common.

Oh, and my boss at my last company never washed his hands.  Nasty.


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## gdae23 (Apr 30, 2009)

People who hum in the stalls while doing their business. I don't know why that irritates me so much, but it does.


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## swolf (Jun 21, 2010)

And why do women get couches in there?

I think if you're going to provide couches for women, you should provide recliners for men.

Not that I'd ever want to sit around in there, but it's the principle of the thing.


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## BTackitt (Dec 15, 2008)

Every woman MUST sit to go.. so WHY does a guy's bathroom have 2 stalls & 4 urinals, and the women's only has 2 or maybe 3 stalls?? HELLO!!!!!! if 10 men and 10 women all head to the can at the same time, the guys will be all done while there are still at least 4 women waiting in line.

As to why do women's rr have couches? used to be that was the place to change a baby. (now they have those broken baby tables that fold down from the wall with a safety belt.)


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