Friday 5 July 2019

Bathroom habits

Okay, let's talk bathrooms. Some interesting new stats that say we spend an average of 416 days of our life in the bathroom - showering, bathing, moisturising, shaving, applying make-up, cleaning our teeth and even checking our emails and reading our favourite books. Some of us just go there for a bit of peace and quiet.

Seven out of ten of us find sharing a bathroom frustrating, in particular when someone else is hogging the room, the toilet roll hasn't been replaced or there are hairs in the wash basin.

Jenny and I are lucky enough to have three bathrooms - a regular bathroom, an en suite and a downstairs cloakroom. So hogging the bathroom isn't an issue any more, though it often was in the past.

We know exactly what annoys each other - yes indeed, the non-replaced toilet roll or hairs in the basin, but also towels and shampoo bottles left lying around, a dirty mirror, used plasters, toothpaste tubes without caps - and we're good at avoiding the annoyances. We're very considerate of each other's feelings!

We don't like sharing the bathroom and we close the door for privacy. This seems rather unusual as other people happily do their thing with an audience, but that's how we are. We like undisturbed seclusion....

I've used the bath only twice since we moved in ten years ago. I prefer the speed of the shower. A lot of people enjoy wallowing in a hot bath with a glass of wine, especially when it's cold, but not me. I prefer wallowing in a good book.

I certainly don't linger in front of the mirror, inspecting all the wrinkles and crinkles and assorted age-related ravages. A quick glance to make sure I haven't gone bald or lost a tooth and that's it. Luckily, being a man, nobody cares what I look like as long as I have all the expected body parts and I'm not naked or wearing a dress.

And no, I didn't write this in the bathroom.

22 comments:

  1. I don't have to share anymore but didn't mind. Not too sure about sharing today tho. I don't think I'd like it. I have to sort pills there, give myself needles, take blood pressure and GI readings along with, well, the stuff you don't mention.

    As to glamming up, I rarely bothered. I was blessed with good skin and fantastic hair when younger so dabbed a bit of eyeshadow on sometimes and flew. I spend more time in there now than I like but hey, that's elderhood.

    XO
    WWW

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  2. No conflicts here --- two bathrooms, two people. Neither one of us spends much time looking in the mirror, there are too many more fun things to do.

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  3. I've never read anything in the bathroom or lingered in a tub (I'm a shower person, too). I don't share any products with my spouse (shampoo, toothpaste, etc.) so it's conflict-free.

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  4. www: I can see that another person sharing would present problems given all the things you need to do in the bathroom. As you say, the adjustments that go with elderhood....

    Jean: Two bathrooms make things so much easier. I think in Italy two bathrooms are standard practice in most homes.

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  5. Bijoux: We share soap, shampoo and moisturiser, which doesn't create any problems. But I wouldn't share a toothbrush, that seems too unhygienic.

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  6. Wrinkles and crinkles, ha ha. I'm going to go check them again.

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  7. I am too short for a bath - I would drown, so I prefer showers.
    I am the official bathroom cleaner, and I put up with a lot of s...
    Sx

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  8. Joanne: I actually think wrinkles and crinkles are far more interesting than a bland, super-smooth face. But I would say that, wouldn't I?

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  9. Ms Scarlet: Jenny likes cleaning the bathrooms, I do all the hoovering and sweeping. Goodness, I wouldn't want you to drown. Then who would complete your forthcoming red-hot, sizzling autobiography?

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  10. I too don't have to share my bathroom with anyone and my bathroom is usually as clean as the many hotel bathrooms that I had got used to in my travelling days. I also don't spend too much time there as I would rather be comfortable on my recliner or bed.

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  11. Ramana: So you have nobody knocking on the bathroom door saying "Haven't you finished yet?" One of life's little luxuries!

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  12. 2,6 Billion people do not have any access to water and so I suppose they do not spend 416 days in their life in a bathroom. You live a life of comfort , you can feel lucky, but 3 bathrooms seem a bit too much.

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  13. Chloe: I know, there are millions of people without water, without enough food, without a home. They would have all these things if politicians and governments actually satisfied people's needs instead of feathering their own nests. I'm very lucky and very grateful to have all these things. I agree, three bathrooms are a bit too much, but they came with the house when we bought it.

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  14. Your answer is a bit easy , the Western world exploit the ressources from other countries and here too politicians make their fortune and tolerate that people have no homes. It's all too long to explain but there are no simple answers.

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  15. We have one bathroom in this house. and there was one summer when we shared our home with my adult son and his girlfriend and, on weekends, my husbands teens. Let's just say it was a little cozy. But truly it wasn't a problem - it's not a bad thing for people to learn how to be considerate of others.

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  16. Chloe: Oh, absolutely, the rich countries are exploiting the resources and labour and loose regulations of poorer countries, and I wish they weren't doing that, but Western governments turn a blind eye because the only thing that matters is profit. And many of the politicians are being bribed to turn a blind eye by big business.

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  17. Agent: So six people all queuing up for the bathroom? Sounds pretty desperate! But yes, a bit of consideration and flexibility will keep everyone happy.

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  18. Correction (after loud protest): Jenny doesn't LIKE cleaning the bathrooms (see answer to Ms Scarlet above). She just OPTS to clean them in preference to other domestic chores.

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  19. Ms Scarlet: There can't be many people who actually LIKE cleaning the bathroom. It's all far too fiddly!

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  20. The idea of reading or checking email in the bathroom seriously grosses me out. Our house only has one bathroom, so we do have to share. Fortunately our work schedules are offset by an hour, so that helps some.

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  21. Danielle: Differing work schedules must make bathroom access a lot easier. As Jenny and I are now both retired, we can use the bathroom any old time, so no problem!

    It seems to me the only reason someone would check their emails in the bathroom is because they have something to hide.

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