Tuesday, February 03, 2009

Urinalysis: a multi-part study of the behaviors, codes, customs and characters of the workplace restroom

The Inexplicable Signage

I must confess...When it comes to work bathroom stuff, certain things should just be private. I don't want to know what you do in there any more than you want to know what I do in there. However, with the exception of certain agreed-upon deviances (such as peeing on the seat, or smearing doody on the walls), it's pretty much all the same stuff...To the point where we're more or less able to break it down to a very short numbered list. Number of items? Two.

Or, at least, that's all I THOUGHT that's all there were.

To wit: I saw this sign in the bathroom at my place of employ the other day:



It makes me think on several levels.

First, why is it only en EspaƱol? This company is quite progressive. They don't profile. The same rules apply to everyone in every other context. So, I'm puzzled.

Second, is this really a problem?!? Apparently, it must be, or there wouldn't need to be a sign posted. I mean, if you're yakking away on a handset, there's the echo to consider. Not to mention the fact that if you're in a stall, other people will just think you're talking to yourself, which is even weirder. And personally, I can't imagine having a nice, light conversation with a friend or family member while there is actual excrement actively purging itself from my digestive system. I just think some things should be done alone...and by "alone," I mean without engaging another person in any way, shape, or form, including on the phone. Give it some thought: Would YOU want to have a spirited chat with a pal, pretending not to notice the faint sounds of background-flushing urinals even as your buddy keeps pausing to grunt? Maybe that's just me.

Third...For once, I'm kinda glad I don't speak Spanish. Or else I wouldn't have been able to snap that photo on my phone's camera.

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Also, there is a word spelled incorrectly. It should be "no se permiten" not "no ce permiten".

I think if they're going to post a sign like this an employee bathroom, they ought to spell it right!

Lucy Parker said...

Chicks do this too . . . the last convo I heard some chick have on the phone while on the crapper was regarding some real estate deal, and yes, she was pooing.

Frank White said...

Dang Sussex, don't you know that Cell Phones emit magic rays that disrupt the inner workings of toilets and airplanes?

Anonymous said...

It may be due to the fact that the bathroom is the only place cell phones get reception in this concrete bunker we work in.

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