The Toilet Seat Debate
Posted by Deutlich on December 31st, 2007 | Filed under: UncategorizedAs you may have already read, I had to move back in with my mother recently. Had some roommate drama which ended in me footing the bill for “our” apartment. This led me to sublease the place and blah blah blah. The lease is thankfully over in the middle of February. I’m sick of paying two rents.
Anyway, mom and I constantly go round and round on the same topic because we are equally thickheaded and ridiculously stubborn (like most Germans). It’s a thing.
One of the things that bothers my mom to no end is a) leaving the second level bathroom door open and b) leaving the toilet seat and/or lid up.
Now, I understand about the door. When we have guests, there’s no need to bombard them with the sight of the bathroom. I get that.
However, I don’t like putting the lid down. The actual seat needs to stay down, sure. Men are nasty and don’t even pay attention to how often they splash on the toilet rim and I shouldn’t be forced to move that unsightly lid. Since my brother’s back in town for the holidays, there’s been quite a bit more discussion on this topic than usual because he doesn’t bother putting the seat down anymore. I suppose living in male-only barracks will do that to a guy.
But the lid? What? Who cares?
You see, when I was in my late teens I got just a wee bit too drunk for my own good. When I went to use the bathroom, I didn’t pay attention to the fact that the lid was down and promptly pissed all over the toilet instead of IN it. You can imagine my disgust and embarrassment (even though no one else knew… well, except for you all). Ever since that day, my philosophy has been to leave the lid up. Makes sense, right? Right.
Two days ago my mom was complaining about the lid being up, yet again.
Mom: “You guys NEED to put the lid down on the toilet.”
Me: “No! The lid stays up, just the seat goes down. I don’t want to be fumbling with the lid at 3am. It’s a pain in the ass.”
Mom: In her most crestfallen voice, “but my hamsters drowned in the toilet!”
Me: “Mom, we don’t have any hamsters! Yours died almost 40 years ago!!”
Mom: “Probably longer.”
…
I rest my case. Toilet seat down, lid stays up.
End of story.
December 31st, 2007 at 3:20 pm
My ex-boyfriends parents were adamant about leaving the toilet lid down and I never got it. What’s the point.
But out of habit from being there all the time for 3 years I just do it now.
And how to hamsters drown in a toilet? did someone put them in there… or did they somehow crawl in?
December 31st, 2007 at 3:26 pm
Apparently they didn’t have cages for the hamsters at this point, so they locked them in the bathroom to “keep them safe.”
To this day, I’m not exactly sure if they crawled in their themselves (I doubt that’s what happened) or if one of her brothers drowned them on purpose. For that matter, my mom’s not all that positive either.
December 31st, 2007 at 3:30 pm
I feel your mother’s pain. When I was young I had a baby chick drown in the toilet. No idea how the little bastard got up there. I was heartbroken for, like, hours.
And yet, I agree – Seat? Yes. Lid? No.
December 31st, 2007 at 4:19 pm
haha. that’s funny that she’s been keeping it down for that reason. i close the lid because otherwise by cats like to drink out of the toilet. and i’m just not down with that.
January 1st, 2008 at 12:55 am
TK – I’m pretty sure that would’ve broken my little heart. I suppose I should be more empathetic towards my mom. Then again, it happened over 4 decades ago. She needs to move on. Glad you were able to do so.
Michelle – In your case, not only do I completely understand but I’d do exactly the same thing (’cause…ew).
January 2nd, 2008 at 12:13 pm
Someone from the “lid and seat down please” crowd here….
I guess it comes from years of conditioning from my parents, but I’ve always been an “all down” guy. Plus, that way there’s no “guys leave the seat up, girls put it down” thing…..everyone’s unhappy, which, IS the real point of a compromise, right?
Plus, there’s just something about looking down into a toilet bowl….its just….ew.
January 2nd, 2008 at 5:20 pm
Yeah, I can see a valid point in that. I suppose I got used to it from college or what have you.. that, and I avert my eyes for the most part.
January 2nd, 2008 at 11:46 pm
Oh, man. I would get on my brother’s case whenever he was home and we had to share a bathroom. I watched so many shows just telling you about how gross public bathrooms are, and the reason being when you flush a toilet, germies are released into the air, and they travel up to four feet, so it’s not just public bathrooms that are bacteria ridden. I’m a germaphobe, and I did not want his airborne crap flying onto my toothbrush.
January 3rd, 2008 at 12:20 am
Pretty sure I’m never leaving the lid up again. I did NOT know that.
January 4th, 2008 at 1:24 pm
YES!!! The lid down camp wins!!!