Public Toilet Etiquette

GWC Community GWC Hive Mind
#1

ahem

The other day I entered the public restroom at my place of employment. All the toilets were occupied. There was some activity from one of the stalls that signified the person was about to exit. So, I waited. I made sure to stand the appropriate distance away from the stall as to not startle the person exiting.

He opened the door and walked toward the sink. I motioned toward the stall and entered. I “prepared” the seat for sitting and sat. It was warm. That was a pleasant surprise compared to every other time when the seat was freezing cold. For whatever reason they keep the bathrooms like a freezer. Now, and this may sound strange but, the thot passed through my mind to thank him for warming the seat. In the end, I decided against it. As everyone knows (especially males), you do not talk in the men’s bathroom. At all.

Still, I felt obligated to say something. While I contemplated what to do, I heard the bathroom door open and the person exit. The opportunity had passed. Sure it would have been weird to say something in the bathroom but imagine if someone walked up to you hours later and said, “Hey. Thanks for warming the seat for me.”

Did I break a rule of etiquette? Should I write or tweet Dear Abby?

#2

That’s not something I’d want to be thanked for. I just want to escape from that room of germy death without catching anything that will kill me, and then I want to suppress those memories. Thanking me would just bring it all right back to the surface. :smiley:

#3

LOL!

here’s what you do if you feel the need to express your thanks so strongly:

You say aloud, as if to yourself, “wow. warm seat. nice.”, or words to that effect. This way, thanks are given indirectly, and no major barriers broken. The previous user can comment at will, or leave without saying a word.

And it doesn’t have to leave the room.

Thanking later, places one or both parties in a potentially awkward position.

#4

Thus Spake bkitty, Queen of Potty Protocol :smiley:

#5

Your silence was in accordance with Man Law. Any “thanking” is simply out of the question. Let us not speak of this again.

#6

Proper etiquette is to write your appreciation on the wall.

#7

I second that. Thank Crom for the warm seat in your daily reflections, but do not speak of it aloud,

or post it in a foru…aw hell

:smiley:

#8

That warm air could’ve been his methane emission. :stuck_out_tongue:

#9

Screw “man law”. Real men are secure enough to slap the dude on the back and ask him “Did ya leave it in one piece for me?”

#10

If you had said anything to him his reaction would have been a simple and straightforward one.

Let’s review the rules of men’s room, shall we?

1st RULE: You do not talk in the men’s room.
2nd RULE: You DO NOT talk about the men’s room.
3rd RULE: If someone says “stop” or goes limp, taps out they are probably a US Senator.
4th RULE: If someone comments on how you left the toilet (wet, unflushed, warm, etc) you may and without hesitation kill them.
5th RULE: You do not make eye contact in the men’s room.
6th RULE: If they only have a air dryer feel free to dry your hands on your pants.
7th RULE: There is no limit on how long you can sit on the bowl.
8th RULE: If this is your first night in a men’s room, you HAVE to drop a deuce.

#11

Understood. As the following responses show, everyone is different. There is really no one answer, it boils down to how familiar you are with the person who warmed the seat. For example, earlier today I exited the bathroom and my wife entered she shouted, “Thanx hon for warming the seat.”

Oh, it would. It would.

Yeah. I think that is pretty much a given.

giggle I think that would work in the feminine lavatory. You threat that place like a social gathering. The male loo has a purpose and should be entered and exited as quickly as possible.

Of course, as many of you ladies are aware, in a male’s personal domicile it is a totally different experience.

Agreed.

Good advice.

I carry a heavy conscience. It required sharing. Thanking Crom, that makes sense.

There was an odor…

Ain’t that the truth? You know ladies, y’all ain’t the only ones who get ticked when there is urine on the seat or…shiver you know…the other shiver That was the cause for concern and the desire to express gratitude. The area was clean and warm, a double bonus.

#12

I knew the Hive Mind would come to my aid. I only knew a few of those rules, thanks for sharing. I will endeavor to commit them to memory and avoid any infraction in the future.

#13

LOL! Excellent! Also:

9th RULE: Leaving an upper-decker yields 2x bonus points, 5x if at your in-laws.
10th RULE: Taking a home field smash is always preferable to an away game.

#14

When standing at the urinal next to someone, feel free to look over the little partition and say “No wonder your wife keeps me around”

If you’re working construction and the porta john is occupied, feel free to kick the door and yell “quit playing with it, I’m bustin a gut out here!”

If you’re working construction and you’re in said porta john, feel free to reply “Me and your mom’ll be out in a minute”

If you’re in a restroom and someone is obviously nervous and avoiding eye contact, they’re probably scared of violating some sort of ‘man code’. Feel free to block the door and strike up a conversation. If you’re on your way out, there’s also the option of introducing yourself and extending your hand. They’ll feel obliged to shake it, but they’ll also be afraid to because you just came out of the stall.

Crom laughs at your man code.

He laughs from his toilet :smiley:

#15

If you see more than one pair of legs beneath a stall, quietly exit the restroom and find another one.

Unless of course one of the pair of shoes look like they are worth more than your monthly mortgage payment. In that case hold your cell phone over the door take a picture, and threaten to email the bastards picture to the opposing political party and Fox News!

You will no longer have any financial woes… :smiley:

#16

Okay, I have a public bathroom etiquette situation that’s bugged me for quite awhile. I was in a coffee shop with a unisex bathroom. I entered and noticed someone before me had left some dribbles on the seat. I carefully lifted the seat for numero uno. When I was done I flushed, put the seat back down, washed my hands and left. As I exited a woman looked up from her table, saw me leave the restroom, and got up and entered after me. Now I feel like a schmuck because she’s going to assume the dribbles were my doing. What was the correct option:

  1. Obligated to clean up the seat even if it wasn’t me.

  2. Leave the seat up demonstrating that I couldn’t have been the one to leave it dirty.

  3. Just assume she’s one of those ‘squatters’ who will make the room much more messier anyway.

  4. Other…

#17

my co-workers used talk shop in the bathroom, one of them used to lean against the stall side ways to face other people and sing out loud…

i thought that was the norm at work place… or is that just because i worked in the bay area?

#18

Most public restroom etiquette is based around avoiding the appearance of hitting on another man. As a general rule, talking is only permitted between men doing the same thing at the same time, whereas silence is always preferable. Considering that you’re essentially thanking someone for being a mammal and unintentionally leaving residual heat on a surface, it’s best left unsaid.

BTW, this talk of bathroom etiquette reminded me of this:

The Urinal Game :smiley:

If someone is in such a condition that he might “go limp” in a public restroom, most of the general etiquette rules don’t really apply. :rolleyes:

I would have cleaned the seat, but that’s just me. Unfortunately, it’s much like a bathroom with a strong smell: the last person exiting it will be assumed to have “dealt it”. :eek:

#19

Correctomundo.

#20

That’s where I was leaning, except it went against all my training at home. I guess, however, you can assume that in a public toilet the user has turned on the lights and is wearing their corrective lenses…