Toletta
I was thinking I would state what this post is all about “right out” at the beginning of this post, but then I realized it would be better to get as much fun out of this as possible, leading you guys down the dramatic pathway of blog posting. (Well, dramatic pathway/trail/byway/highway/beltway is a bit of a stretch seeing as this blog never has been all that dramatic in the first place. It would be rather presumptuous of me to suddenly assume my mediocre writing could elicit the emotion of drama in your collective hearts. Work with me here.) I’ve also been thinking how to best phrase this post, because the subject dealt with here is a rather sensitive one. I’ll try to walk the line here and make this work.
I’m on the fourth floor of the science hall at St. Thomas, and I realize that having a sit down in the bathroom would be advantageous to my current condition. About two minutes later, I flush the toilet. Something is not right. Not right at all. Where I am sitting suddenly feels very very warm, much like the warmth you feel from anesthetic, just before you lose consciousness. I did not pee on the toilet seat, I think to myself, but anyhow. Yes, everything is A-OK there. I am 21, and luckily still know how to correctly use the bathroom. What on earth is going on? I wonder, almost aloud.
Time out real quick. You may or may not already know what’s going on here. If you do, I’ll be awfully impressed - the answer, like the answers to many difficult questions, is fiendishly simple yet rather unexpected. Also, you may find yourself wondering why I am bothering to write this at all. Well, I am an easily fascinated person … I find I get the most out of life that way. (Ok, well it’s not on purpose, but it’s an idiosyncrasy of mine so I can rationalize it, right? Right. It works for me.) So, this incident happened to surprise me. It may not surprise you. If it does not surprise you, I will find that surprising, which I guess makes sense because if you are not surprised you will be surprised that I find this incident surprising in the first place. Mais je m’ecarte.
So, wondering what on earth/the heck happened, I flush again. Once again the warmth. This time, I noticed something strange. If I am not mistaken, there’s steam rising from the toilet. No way. I put my hand down near the water. It’s … hot. The toilet has been hooked up to the hot water line. The steaming toilet is connected to the hot water. Hot water flows through the toilet. Don’t expect cold water from this toilet, because this is the toilet that uses hot water. It’s been like this for 9 years. I’m investigating further tomorrow.
Comments
Sagert
The mall where I work has heated toilet seats. And a recording of birds chirping in the bathroom. But I would like to try one of these steam-powered toilets.
Mykala
Me: "Oh wow, that is crazy."
Alex: "Yeah I know! I have used that toilet before but I honestly just thought I had peed all over myself."
Ooooook.
Justin Gehring
I wonder if it helps santatize it at all.
Dan McKeown
Wow, that IS surprising. Also, I was under the impression that water must come to a boil if it is going to be used in a sanatary function. I could be wrong, it is rare, but it has happened.
John T F Larson
Dan, you are correct on that. Boiling water will kill most bacteria (there are some that actually do well in it, surprisingly enough) but warm water will only encourage the little buggers.
ps. I am also shocked/surprised to hear that a toilet has been running off of hot water for the last 9 years, without anyone doing anything to correct it.
Nils
I would think that a toilet using hot water would "enhance" the toilet odors to a highly dangerous and toxic degree. Never use that bathroom again.
John T F Larson
Agreed, hot water would really bring out the "essence" of the stink.