Bathroom Etiquette?

What happened to ‘Bathroom Etiquette?’ I know that we ladies didn’t have a ‘subject’ in grade school on this common question that leads to most clean woman shaking their heads in disbelief at our own gender. I mean, I thought everyone knew the rule of when in a community bathroom with multiple stalls; you should ‘flush and rush’. Also, the toilets are automatic at my work, so when you walk away, you should always do the ‘look back’ to ensure that the flush worked. I can’t tell you how awful it is to walk into a stall and have to quickly look the other way and run to the nearest stall. All the while screaming in my head “Erase, Erase, Erase.”

This topic is of interest to me, because over the past several months, we have had conversations at the ‘fountain’ of what people are thinking. LOL conversations that leave you afraid to eat when the potluck’s roll around, you just never know. My guy friend told me not to touch the newspapers in the break room, because several of the men, take their morning paper to the Lou.. euh. And who knows if there washing? Scary thought.

Recently; I learned that I hadn’t been washing my hands long enough, which amazed me, because my hands are always so dry from washing. I learned this while washing (at least I wash right?) Someone felt the need to tell me that ‘most people don’t know that you’re supposed to sing a song like Happy Birthday or count to 20 slowly to wash correctly.’ So I promptly asked my sister who works in a medical field and she told me that “Yes, you are supposed to wash longer.” So now, I take the time, to smile at myself in the mirror amongst the rush of the day, and tell myself how pretty I am, and I wash, wash, more soap, stand up straight, rinse and call it a day. I feel so much better, even though it’s rather silly to talk to yourself in the mirror. It gives me a ‘kick’ in my step back to my cube.

The other day, I’m sitting on the toilet, I look over and there is a new sign on the trash (within the stall) that reads “Please contact your local healthcare provider for proper disposal of products.” I had to LOL again, what? I asked our ‘office services department,’ and again some ‘nin-ka-poop’ left a diabetic needle in the trash with out the cap. What the hell where they thinking? Again public safety is a HUGE factor.

Why can’t we all have the same principles of the bathroom? Need I remind you that its flu season, and the best protection against the flu and laryngitic that is going around, is to wash, wash and wash some more. Where is common sense? And why doesn’t everyone know this? Sigh…