College students know the struggle of sharing the same bathroom with people on their floor -- so many things could happen. I have experienced the struggles of a community-style bathroom and dreaded that unfortunate moment when another person walks into the bathroom. In that moment, we all have a few thoughts run through our heads, and here are a few that run through mine...
What is my cue to go number two?
One of the major things one thinks about is going number two when someone is in the bathroom or in a stall close to them. In college, it is an awkward waiting game to see what happens. "I really have to go...when are they leaving?!" One could just get it over with, or just make a lot of noise to cover up and go quick. Do something like pull off a Band-Aid, or I've even heard of putting toilet paper in the bowl to quiet the noise. But, any way you do it, it needs to be done.
What IS that?
Sometimes the toilet in a dorm is clogged. It is inevitable. But sometimes you just look in and think, "What on earth? Is it moving?!" Then you automatically think, "Moving on..."
I hope this stall has toilet paper.
During rush hour, or if a floor only has a few stalls, you take what you can get and you are just praying that there is a good working roll of toilet paper; not a roll that is hard to spin, a good one.
When flushing is really loud.
Some public places/dorms have really loud flushing toilets. I go to bed kind of late at night and when I use the bathroom the one thing I have on my mind is, "Oh, crap... I hope this doesn't wake everyone up..." And then to top that moment off, the bathroom door has a very recognizable squeak that would probably wake up the people in the next dorm over.
Why am I wearing flip-flops?
One of the necessary items to bring to college is a pair of "shower shoes." I understand that they don't want us to get like a weird infection or something, but really? I guess the feeling of wearing flip-flops during the winter is nice. That is about the only "enjoyable" thing about the shower shoes.
Singing in the shower: Join the person? Judge their performance? Keep silent?
I know that not all of us can be Beyoncé, but some think that they are rock stars when they sing in the shower. There are many levels of comfort when showering in a very close stall to someone that is rocking out. First level is that you don't know this person at all. In this instance, you would probably determine whether you feel comfortable singing with them. Second level is knowing them and actually having a conversation with them; if there happens to be music involved, you perform a fabulous duet. Then you have the mic level, which could work with every kind of familiarity. You listen and mentally score them on their performance. It's always nice to have a music major on your floor, and this is one of the unsaid times to appreciate their singing.
Why are you talking to me while I brush my teeth?
At 10 or 12 at night, there are those select few that have so much energy that they talk the whole time you (two, three, etc.) are brushing your teeth. But, the worst is when they ask about your day or about plans for the weekend when you are brushing your teeth. I think to myself, "Why?," or I just result to a subtle game of charades to explain (which I do often).
Well, these are just a few things that you might think about when you use the bathroom in a dorm or in a public place. Hopefully, it made you go, "Oh yeah! I do that!," or, "Yes, that is funny." But hopefully, it doesn't give you nightmares about them. Dorm bathrooms can be a funny place to see people and say "hi" when you haven't seen them in a while. Even though jokes about toilet paper/community bathrooms might be "tearable," hopefully you have found this article entertaining.
