I was occupying Stall #6. Someone walked in and went into Stall #5! Obviously in this situation, your first choice should be Stall #4 - everyone gets a buffer. After that the next appropriate choice is Stall #1 or #3 because let's face it, the lady in Stall #2 narrowed her chances of getting a buffer by choosing a center stall. And your last choice should be Stall #5. I know that I am probably overthinking this but public restrooms are not the best places in the world and these little courtesies can make a difference in the experience by minimizing the amount of information I get (visually and audibly) about what is going on in your stall. I know it's not that big of a deal, but I'm just saying, next time you use a public restroom, you might consider giving a buffer stall (where possible) and see what you think about it.
Tuesday, October 7, 2008
The Buffer Stall
This post has nothing to do with Paul and me or our adventures, it is just a little digression on a personal topic. I practice something I call the "buffer stall." This means, when I use a public restroom, I make every effort to offer my fellow patrons a stall between us. However, I appear to be somewhat alone in this. Just this morning, I was using the public restroom at work (which I do about six times a day now). Here's the set up:
I was occupying Stall #6. Someone walked in and went into Stall #5! Obviously in this situation, your first choice should be Stall #4 - everyone gets a buffer. After that the next appropriate choice is Stall #1 or #3 because let's face it, the lady in Stall #2 narrowed her chances of getting a buffer by choosing a center stall. And your last choice should be Stall #5. I know that I am probably overthinking this but public restrooms are not the best places in the world and these little courtesies can make a difference in the experience by minimizing the amount of information I get (visually and audibly) about what is going on in your stall. I know it's not that big of a deal, but I'm just saying, next time you use a public restroom, you might consider giving a buffer stall (where possible) and see what you think about it.
I was occupying Stall #6. Someone walked in and went into Stall #5! Obviously in this situation, your first choice should be Stall #4 - everyone gets a buffer. After that the next appropriate choice is Stall #1 or #3 because let's face it, the lady in Stall #2 narrowed her chances of getting a buffer by choosing a center stall. And your last choice should be Stall #5. I know that I am probably overthinking this but public restrooms are not the best places in the world and these little courtesies can make a difference in the experience by minimizing the amount of information I get (visually and audibly) about what is going on in your stall. I know it's not that big of a deal, but I'm just saying, next time you use a public restroom, you might consider giving a buffer stall (where possible) and see what you think about it.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
5 comments:
how much did microsoft pay you while you were making this post?! You should become a teacher. We have a key to our very own "staff" bathroom. We don't have to share with students or anyone else, a locked room all to yourself. It's true bliss...
I remember in high school when one guy gave a speech in speech class about urinal buffer zones. I thought then as I do now that it could have applied to women as well.
Great point Cindi! You could also add, how much does Microsoft pay you while you make 6 daily trips to the bathroom? (I, of course, make many more than 6, but also get paid less. Nice to know that I still have a smaller bladder than you, even though your uterus is the size of a basketball.)
also, another good point about staff bathrooms. We used to have a staff bathroom, but now we don't and we only have a total of 2 stalls in the women's bathroom. No buffer even possible. Even more annoying is the fact that we have to share the bathroom with clients. As usual, foster care gets the short end of the stick!
Actually... the first choice is stall #4. The second (and only other choice) is to go to a different restroom. In our restroom there are 4 urinals... even numbers just screw everything up.
Also, the sad part about being salaried is that you don't "get paid" for any non-work stuff... You just have to get it done on your own time. Generally they give you 50-60 hours of work for the week. If you have to squeeze in 6 bathroom breaks, that's fine, but you still have to get your work done.
The Buffer is always a major consideration for the "idiot gender" (us guys), unless you ... we'll leave it at "don't ask, don't yell." What's worse than not being afforded the buffer stall, is being audibly and olfactorily ambushed by a new neighbor who does not believe in the merits of the courtesy flush - in some cases, multiple courtesy flushes; in some rare cases, the constant courtesy flush where you just keep the handle buried.
Yet, even more disturbing is the "guy" who, regardless of rows and tables of available space, decides to sit down right next to you! Fortunately, in the Army, tact and subtlety are not part of the Warrior Creed. When this happened to me once in Iraq, I stood up and loudly said, "You're either gay or complete moron. You have 2 seconds to vacate this seat." Fortunately, I out-ranked by a comfortable margin, so he was obliged to comply.
Buffer Laws should be enacted.
Post a Comment