> Skip to content
FEATURED:
  • The Evolution of Race in Admissions
Sign In
  • News
  • Advice
  • The Review
  • Data
  • Current Issue
  • Virtual Events
  • Store
    • Featured Products
    • Reports
    • Data
    • Collections
    • Back Issues
    • Featured Products
    • Reports
    • Data
    • Collections
    • Back Issues
  • Jobs
    • Find a Job
    • Post a Job
    • Find a Job
    • Post a Job
Sign In
  • News
  • Advice
  • The Review
  • Data
  • Current Issue
  • Virtual Events
  • Store
    • Featured Products
    • Reports
    • Data
    • Collections
    • Back Issues
    • Featured Products
    • Reports
    • Data
    • Collections
    • Back Issues
  • Jobs
    • Find a Job
    • Post a Job
    • Find a Job
    • Post a Job
  • News
  • Advice
  • The Review
  • Data
  • Current Issue
  • Virtual Events
  • Store
    • Featured Products
    • Reports
    • Data
    • Collections
    • Back Issues
    • Featured Products
    • Reports
    • Data
    • Collections
    • Back Issues
  • Jobs
    • Find a Job
    • Post a Job
    • Find a Job
    • Post a Job
Sign In
ADVERTISEMENT
Blog Logo

Lesboprof: Washroom etiquette

Outing academic administration

  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • Show more sharing options
Share
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • Facebook
  • Email
  • Copy Link URLCopied!
  • Print

Washroom etiquette

By  Lesboprof
September 3, 2012

parasol
Note: Your fair blogger is reading one of the Parasol Protectorate novels, and she has been bitten by the Victorian bug of manners and etiquette. Hence, I shall be channeling this post via Ms. Tarabotti, who is somewhat repulsed by the washroom behaviors of the modern academic female.

We’re sorry. Something went wrong.

We are unable to fully display the content of this page.

The most likely cause of this is a content blocker on your computer or network. Please make sure your computer, VPN, or network allows javascript and allows content to be delivered from c950.chronicle.com and chronicle.blueconic.net.

Once javascript and access to those URLs are allowed, please refresh this page. You may then be asked to log in, create an account if you don't already have one, or subscribe.

If you continue to experience issues, contact us at 202-466-1032 or help@chronicle.com

parasol
Note: Your fair blogger is reading one of the Parasol Protectorate novels, and she has been bitten by the Victorian bug of manners and etiquette. Hence, I shall be channeling this post via Ms. Tarabotti, who is somewhat repulsed by the washroom behaviors of the modern academic female. (The pictures, though, are the product of LesboProf herself.) That said, if the readers’ own sensibilities are offended by the topic, please feel free to ignore this particular blog entry and move on to another.**

dualrest

The worst thing about my new position is the loss of a private washroom. (Yes, I know that we Americans call it a bathroom, but washroom seems so much more civilized, doesn’t it? Bless the Canadians and their quaint ways.) Whereas few academics have private washrooms, most academic buildings these days have some single-stall restrooms scattered throughout the building. Those single stalls serve several useful purposes: allowing transgender folk to go to the bathroom without anxiety over being castigated for using what someone assumes to be the “wrong” bathroom; providing an opportunity for parents to take their child to the bathroom regardless of anyone’s gender/sex; and giving those who might need, perhaps, a little more time in the washroom, a place to be without worrying about discomfiting the people in the other stalls. But alas, your fair blogger has taken a position in a building with only large, many-stalled bathrooms that are shared amongst students, faculty, staff, and visitors alike. This congregate setting leads to reflections on what I believe to be missing pieces of public restroom etiquette amongst the academic set. Thus, I shall set below a list of guidelines for the shared restroom:

  1. One should not converse with another person while either of them is in the stalls. The most egregious violation of this rule is when one person comes into the restroom and starts a conversation with someone who is already IN the restroom. Nothing is more disconcerting than when someone comes into the bathroom and says, “Ah, LesboProf, is that you? I recognize your shoes...” and proceeds to start a conversation about some workplace topic. I have an office, people, and that is where the discussion belongs! One friend, caught in such a delicate situation, told me she replied to the chatty visitor, “I
    no talking
    am kind of busy in here.” (I am definitely taking this reply and filing it away for future use.) This no-talking rule is especially true when there are other people in the bathroom, as such conversation leaves out the others while requiring that they listen. Thus, it is the height of rudeness. So, if one has started a conversation in the hallway, it should be ended as quickly as possible upon entering the washroom.
  2. Do not take or make a cell phone call while in the bathroom. This is a corollary to the last guideline. Talking
    toilets
    to another person on a cell phone while in a public restroom represents the height of disrespect for other patrons as well as the person on the other end of the phone. Time spent in the washroom is private time, and it should in no way become a shared moment. The call can wait; let it go to voice mail.
  3. Always leave room between yourself and a person
    stalls
    already in a stall. When you have entered a washroom that has at least four stalls, and someone is in the first stall, it is best to select a stall that is at least one stall away from the other person. This distance is respectful and allows the other person some sense of privacy. No one should take a stall next to another person unless there is no choice. Any other choice is lazy.
  4. Most comments in the washroom are better left unsaid. Many untoward things occur in the washroom. Ladies of a certain age almost always pass gas when sitting down on a commode, and one should never acknowledge that this happened. Similarly, washrooms exist for the disposal of all
    bubble
    sorts of waste, and one should not be offended or shocked when people appropriately make use of them, particularly when people work in offices for at least eight hours every day. Nor should one comment on any aftereffects of such an experience. Should someone have truly delicate sensibilities, she could bring a scent-neutralizing spray and leave it in the bathroom, alongside soaps and lotions. (That said, one should be careful about choosing and using such sprays, as they can aggravate asthma and chemical sensitivities amongst other workers.)
  5. Take responsibility for the upkeep of the
    toiletroll
    washroom.
    If you use the last of the tissue paper, be sure to replace the roll or, if you have industrial dispensers that require special implements to open, leave a note for future visitors. Pick up paper towels that have not made it to the trash bin. And for the love of all that is holy, make sure that the commode has flushed. Automatic washrooms do not always function correctly, but they always have a way to manually activate the flushing mechanism. The most attractive washrooms I have seen were in buildings where the women staff actually competed to have the nicest restrooms. Baskets of lotions, soaps, and other ablutions were complimented by sprays of silk flowers and framed pictures. Making the workplace washroom into a more comfortable and welcoming space is always an improvement.

Lest you become overwhelmed by the number of guidelines, I will end my reflection on bathroom etiquette with an overarching quote from the actress Leah Ramini, “There’s a lot involved in going to the bathroom for women.” I simply encourage all women to make the best of our shared washrooms, so that we might all be as comfortable as possible.

class

Because, as all the wisest philosophers say, shit happens.*

ADVERTISEMENT


* One must remember that LesboProf is from New Jersey, after all, and cannot take on and maintain a Victorian England personae (and not curse) for the length of an entire blog entry.

** That means, in essence, don’t clutter up the comments with complaining. I don’t much want to hear it, and you must have better things to do.

ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
  • Explore
    • Get Newsletters
    • Letters
    • Free Reports and Guides
    • Blogs
    • Virtual Events
    • Chronicle Store
    • Find a Job
    Explore
    • Get Newsletters
    • Letters
    • Free Reports and Guides
    • Blogs
    • Virtual Events
    • Chronicle Store
    • Find a Job
  • The Chronicle
    • About Us
    • DEI Commitment Statement
    • Write for Us
    • Talk to Us
    • Work at The Chronicle
    • User Agreement
    • Privacy Policy
    • California Privacy Policy
    • Site Map
    • Accessibility Statement
    The Chronicle
    • About Us
    • DEI Commitment Statement
    • Write for Us
    • Talk to Us
    • Work at The Chronicle
    • User Agreement
    • Privacy Policy
    • California Privacy Policy
    • Site Map
    • Accessibility Statement
  • Customer Assistance
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise With Us
    • Post a Job
    • Advertising Terms and Conditions
    • Reprints & Permissions
    • Do Not Sell My Personal Information
    Customer Assistance
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise With Us
    • Post a Job
    • Advertising Terms and Conditions
    • Reprints & Permissions
    • Do Not Sell My Personal Information
  • Subscribe
    • Individual Subscriptions
    • Institutional Subscriptions
    • Subscription & Account FAQ
    • Manage Newsletters
    • Manage Your Account
    Subscribe
    • Individual Subscriptions
    • Institutional Subscriptions
    • Subscription & Account FAQ
    • Manage Newsletters
    • Manage Your Account
1255 23rd Street, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20037
© 2023 The Chronicle of Higher Education
  • twitter
  • instagram
  • youtube
  • facebook
  • linkedin