# Life before toilet paper



## doodlemom (Apr 4, 2006)

Thank your lucky stars you live in the twentieth century, bucko. Let me tell you about â¦ corncobs. You may not believe this, but it was once common practice in rural America to leave a corncob hanging from a string in the outhouse for purposes of personal hygiene. The string, I gather, was to permit the cob to be reused. For those who were punctilious in these matters, or else blessed with an abundance of corncobs, a box of disposable cobs might be provided instead. In coastal regions, the cob might be replaced by a mussel shell.
http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/572/what-did-people-use-before-toilet-paper-was-invented


----------



## BurgerBoy (Mar 31, 2013)

A lot of folks used the pages from Sears Catalogs.


----------



## Ozarks Tom (May 27, 2011)

Although we've stocked bunches of cases of TP, we found a great deal on Al Gore's global warming harangue/book. They take up a lot less space.


----------



## doodlemom (Apr 4, 2006)

Finally the phone book has a purpose again lol.


----------



## Grumpy old man (Aug 6, 2013)

books I've read in an outhouse 

40 yards to the outhouse by Willie Makeit 

20 yards to go by Betty Dont 

Yellow river by IP Daily 

Brown streaks on the walls by Whoflung poo

Some people laugh but a few of those unused phone books may become a blessing


----------



## Explorer (Dec 2, 2003)

Do like the ancient Romans. Sponge on a stick and a bucket of water.


----------



## Pops2 (Jan 27, 2003)

Before TP most people used, washed & reused a rag if they wiped at all. The corn cob is make believe.


----------



## NamasteMama (Jul 24, 2009)

Lets do it like the Japanese.......


----------



## Fire-Man (Apr 30, 2005)

Pops2 said:


> The corn cob is make believe.


I promice you the corn cob was not make believe at my house. I would use a red cob then a white cob to see if I needed to use another red one. It was my job to go to the fields after the combine gathered the corn to pick up bags and bags of corn cobs. We to used the thick Sears cat.. When I was about 9 we moved into a house that did not even have a out house. I used the woods and wiped with big leaves. The girls used a "pi-s-pot" and did have some toliet paper. I was 16 before we had a indoor toilet.


----------



## Pops2 (Jan 27, 2003)

NamasteMama said:


> Lets do it like the Japanese.......


I lived in Japan for over a year, never saw a stick in anyone's toilet.


----------



## Pops2 (Jan 27, 2003)

Fire-Man said:


> I promice you the corn cob was not make believe at my house. I would use a red cob then a white cob to see if I needed to use another red one. It was my job to go to the fields after the combine gathered the corn to pick up bags and bags of corn cobs. We to used the thick Sears cat.. When I was about 9 we moved into a house that did not even have a out house. I used the woods and wiped with big leaves. The girls used a "pi-s-pot" and did have some toliet paper. I was 16 before we had a indoor toilet.


I'll take your word for it. But most folks used, washed & reused rags.


----------



## Shrek (May 1, 2002)

From the Toilet Paper Encyclopedia at Toiletpaper World


http://encyclopedia.toiletpaperworld.com/toilet-paper-history/history-of-toilet-paper





*Prior to toilet paper, what did civilizations/classes commonly use: *
- Wealthy Romans -Wool, rosewater
- Public Restrooms in Ancient Rome- A sponge soaked in salt water, on the end of a stick
- Wealthy French â lace, wool and hemp; bidet
- Middle Ages â hayballs, a scraper/gompf stick kept in a container in the privy
- Early Americans â rags, newsprint, paper from catalogs, corncobs, and leaves
- Viking Age/England- discarded sheep and lambs wool
- Hawaiians â coconut shells
- Eskimos â snow and Tundra moss
- India â your left hand and water
- Commoners â Defecating in the river is very common
- Sailors from Spain/Portugal â frayed end of an old anchor line
- Medieval Europe- Straw, hay, grass, gompf stick
- United States â Corn cobs, Sears Roebuck catalog, mussel shell, newspaper, l eaves, sand
- British Lords â pages from a book
- Elite citizens â Hemp & wool


----------



## davel745 (Feb 2, 2009)

The Arabs eat with one hand only because the other hand was used for cleaning duty.


----------



## davel745 (Feb 2, 2009)

Shrek said:


> From the Toilet Paper Encyclopedia at Toiletpaper World
> 
> 
> http://encyclopedia.toiletpaperworld.com/toilet-paper-history/history-of-toilet-paper
> ...


Don't forget the three seashells LOL


----------



## elkhound (May 30, 2006)

when they finally outlaw cutting down of trees everyone will have a bidet.

i always thought bathrooms needed to be solid tile with a drain in center and a faucet on wall for a garden hose.....roflmao


----------



## Tommyice (Dec 5, 2010)

elkhound said:


> i always thought bathrooms needed to be solid tile with a drain in center and a faucet on wall for a garden hose.....roflmao


LMAO I used one just like you described at a bar in the Cinque Terre in Italy. The tile work was beautiful--depicted scenes of life on the Mediterranean.


----------



## Ernie (Jul 22, 2007)

Have you ever spent much time around native peoples on their own diet? They don't wipe with ANYTHING. They just squat, crap, and then keep on moving.

I believe it's the unhealthy diet full of preservatives, binding agents, and gluten that causes poop to stick to your bum.


----------



## bluefish (Jan 27, 2006)

Ernie said:


> Have you ever spent much time around native peoples on their own diet? They don't wipe with ANYTHING. They just squat, crap, and then keep on moving.
> 
> I believe it's the unhealthy diet full of preservatives, binding agents, and gluten that causes poop to stick to your bum.



Actually, I think squatting is a big part of that. If you squat vs sit, everything is 'wide open' and there isn't much to stick to. I notice a big difference when squatting out in the woods vs toilet here at home. TMI?


----------



## brosil (Dec 15, 2003)

Please remember to boil your corncobs to soften them.


----------



## tkrabec (Mar 12, 2003)

davel745 said:


> Don't forget the three seashells LOL


*&%$,
*#$^@^#,
&#&*#^$^,
*#^#^
you have been fined 4 credits


----------



## Ardie/WI (May 10, 2002)

I remember Sears catalogs well. At the time, there were no phone books because we didn't have a phone!

When we moved to the city, flushing toilets indoors amazed me!


----------



## bowdonkey (Oct 6, 2007)

I use a cat. The beauty of this way is the cat gets himself cleaned up for the next round! One tomcat here has been used so much he no longer has any hair on his back! Be careful though some cats do take offense and bite.


----------



## Terri (May 10, 2002)

From what I have heard folks in the woods often used leaves. I presume they learned how to identify poison ivy and blackberries first!

And, folks elsewhere often used a basket of corncobs or last years Sear's & Roebuck catalogue.

Having cloths to wash makes perfect sense and I believe it, but I do not believe the corncob on string. All too soon it would be applying instead of removing, KWIM?


----------



## newfieannie (Dec 24, 2006)

when grandmother was a child there was no tp. 1850 or so. there might have been some but not where she was. she would use moss. the women would also use this for their sanitary pads. I've heard about the corncobs ever since I have been at HT. still can't figure out how they are used. ~Georgia.


----------



## Ernie (Jul 22, 2007)

I think the corncob thing is a myth. Or at least they weren't really used in Texas. 

It seems like out of all the methods used, the Arabic method is the most sustainable. Your hand and some water can go further than moss or wool. I'd have to get over the modern man's aversion to touching poop though. 

Funny story ... (maybe funny, depending on who you are).

When I first went to the Middle East, I knew nothing about local culture. When I would go into public bathrooms there, you would see a hole (drain) in the floor and a small bucket full of water next to it. I hadn't a clue what I was supposed to do.

I think I'd been there 3 months before someone explained that I wasn't supposed to urinate in the bucket. 

Whoops!


----------



## newfieannie (Dec 24, 2006)

funny thing how some of us can dig in horse, cow, pig etc manure all day(I've wallowed in my pig pen in bare feet) but we have an aversion to human waste(some of us) I have looked after 2 bed ridden husbands. all alone. ~Georgia.


----------



## Ernie (Jul 22, 2007)

newfieannie said:


> funny thing how some of us can dig in horse, cow, pig etc manure all day(I've wallowed in my pig pen in bare feet) but we have an aversion to human waste(some of us) I have looked after 2 bed ridden husbands. all alone. ~Georgia.


Yeah. It's part of the song of Mother Culture to get us to buy stuff and live apart from the land, nature, and our own bodies.

Once I became part of the Fourth World I started seeing things differently. I haven't yet been able to clear my mind of all of the negative influences of Mother Culture, but I'm getting to where I can recognize them now that I see them.


----------



## Jim-mi (May 15, 2002)

Darn good thing I didn't have something liquid in my hand when I first read the thread title . . . lol


Please Oh please where can I get a good deal on copys of Algorp's wonderful **book**

I have heard reading that book really helps enlighten your day........
So there for if things aren't coming out the way you wish, reading that book should help the process.


----------



## NamasteMama (Jul 24, 2009)

Pops2 said:


> I lived in Japan for over a year, never saw a stick in anyone's toilet.


 Its what they uses hundreds of years ago.... it was a joke..... ound:


----------



## AngieM2 (May 10, 2002)

bowdonkey said:


> I use a cat. The beauty of this way is the cat gets himself cleaned up for the next round! One tomcat here has been used so much he no longer has any hair on his back! Be careful though some cats do take offense and bite.


 
Oh my - Oggie needs to see this one! :heh:


----------



## elkhound (May 30, 2006)

ernie...its all the healthy eating blah blah blah we are told.....the folks that eat a meat based diet dont need toilet paper....they just need a golf club ...who says we need all that fiber....lets eat ribeyes....roflmao


have any of you read the humanure handbook ?


----------



## elkhound (May 30, 2006)

Tommyice said:


> LMAO I used one just like you described at a bar in the Cinque Terre in Italy. The tile work was beautiful--depicted scenes of life on the Mediterranean.



this thread needs to merge with my enema thread for hydration....they go hand in hand....lol....:shrug:


you know...i knew a garden hose would make a good enema hose...just be careful with the water pressure...or your face might look like this...roflmao

:trollface :teehee:


----------



## elkhound (May 30, 2006)

[YOUTUBE]4putIxHsNCk[/YOUTUBE]


----------



## Ernie (Jul 22, 2007)

elkhound said:


> ernie...its all the healthy eating blah blah blah we are told.....the folks that eat a meat based diet dont need toilet paper....they just need a golf club ...who says we need all that fiber....lets eat ribeyes....roflmao
> 
> 
> have any of you read the humanure handbook ?


Read it? I LIVE by it.


----------



## bluefish (Jan 27, 2006)

Just so you know, mullein has little tiny hairs on it that can lodge in your skin. That is NOT one of the best places to have invisible, tiny hairs stuck! BTDT. :grit:


----------



## bowdonkey (Oct 6, 2007)

NamasteMama said:


> Lets do it like the Japanese.......


I believe this is where the term " Don't end up holding the ------ end of the stick " came from!:gaptooth:


----------



## Bellyman (Jul 6, 2013)

Shrek said:


> From the Toilet Paper Encyclopedia at Toiletpaper World
> 
> 
> http://encyclopedia.toiletpaperworld.com/toilet-paper-history/history-of-toilet-paper
> ...


Thanks, Shrek!

You summed that up very well.

I was going to mention that in the days of the Roman empire, 2,000 years ago or so, in the time before Scott 400 grit, a Roman soldier, in addition to the supplies and equipment given him, was issued a sponge for just such a purpose as this thread is about.


----------



## Harry Chickpea (Dec 19, 2008)

Note to self - put off that visit to Eskimos, inspect chopsticks carefully.


----------



## plowhand (Aug 14, 2005)

Old fella round here always had 4 corncobs in his overall back pocket, 2 reds and 2 whites. He even had them in his pochet when he went to church.
My Dad was born in 1933, and they, like alot a neighbors, didn't have an out house/privy till the WPA came through building them. They went in the woods and cornfields!


----------



## Dixie Bee Acres (Jul 22, 2013)

This thread is amusing, and somehow disturbingly educational. Much like FBBs I got it thread. I hope this thread lasts as long.


----------



## elkhound (May 30, 2006)

Dixie Bee Acres said:


> This thread is amusing, and somehow disturbingly educational. Much like FBBs I got it thread. I hope this thread lasts as long.


:teehee: :nono: :shrug: :whistlin:

ready set go....roflmao


i am still debating on posting a video i found....lol


the world we live in right now is so crazy we need to cut up and laugh as often as we can.


----------



## elkhound (May 30, 2006)

if i was rich i would have one of these....it has everything...it flushes,scrubs,heated seat ...it even has windshield washer on it...even a air freshener....just like a cadillac.


this thing even gives a mild enema wash....that way you wont get dehydrated.everyone loved my enema hydration thread here....lol

i bet i could find a wife knowing she would never sit on a cold seat again

in all seriousness i would own this ....


[YOUTUBE]z4MHdDGiYGs[/YOUTUBE]


----------



## sherry in Maine (Nov 22, 2007)

elkhound, for some reason, the picture you posted looks vaguely pornographic....

during my time in Korea (early 80s) the toilet was a hole, sometimes with foot pads, or foot 'grips' (so your feet wouldn't slip) and a big chain over the hole. 
The bathrooms in the bars weren't heated, so in the winter, it was kinda scary to position yourself over the hole! The chain was for flushing, but sometimes, I felt insecure enough to grasp it gently while I hunkered and 'wee wee'd'


----------



## elkhound (May 30, 2006)

sherry in Maine said:


> elkhound, for some reason, the picture you posted looks vaguely pornographic....
> 
> during my time in Korea (early 80s) the toilet was a hole, sometimes with foot pads, or foot 'grips' (so your feet wouldn't slip) and a big chain over the hole.
> The bathrooms in the bars weren't heated, so in the winter, it was kinda scary to position yourself over the hole! The chain was for flushing, but sometimes, I felt insecure enough to grasp it gently while I hunkered and 'wee wee'd'



thats not a picture...its a video....i dont know why youtube picked that section of film to freeze on the screen.

watch the video....being in maine you will appreciate the timer on the heated seat...you can set it to warm it before you get up from a nights sleep....imagine a warm seat when you get up every morning.


----------



## elkhound (May 30, 2006)

this is kinda cool....it could be made easy too.

p.s. i seen all these videos while looking at bidets last night.

[YOUTUBE]uG0-3TuAIBQ[/YOUTUBE]


----------



## beaglebiz (Aug 5, 2008)

Pulsating massage feature??? hmmmmmm
just thought I'd point it out (it was in the video)


----------



## elkhound (May 30, 2006)

[YOUTUBE]H8KcCfw25Xs[/YOUTUBE]


----------



## Dixie Bee Acres (Jul 22, 2013)

Thinking about whatever culture was mentioned that wipes with their hand.....makes you wanna think twice before shaking hands with strangers.


----------



## Jim-mi (May 15, 2002)

Gotta be curious about the price tag on that Clean-Butt thingy.........


----------



## Astrid (Nov 13, 2010)

bowdonkey said:


> I use a cat. The beauty of this way is the cat gets himself cleaned up for the next round! One tomcat here has been used so much he no longer has any hair on his back! Be careful though some cats do take offense and bite.



I think the French author Rabelais wrote a book about this...

http://www.kirjasto.sci.fi/rabela.htm


----------



## cjean (May 1, 2007)

Grumpy old man said:


> books I've read in an outhouse
> 
> 40 yards to the outhouse by Willie Makeit
> 
> ...


:spinsmiley:

One more:

Under the Outhouse, by Seymour Butts


----------



## Pinetop Hunting (Aug 1, 2013)

I heard a tale of having the forefinger shoved thru a piece of corn husk and digging at the bootyhole with the finger and then taking the other hand and grasping the husk around the finger and in one swift motion pulling and cleaning the poo finger. Graphic I know but what troubles me more would be later in the day using that finger to get a pinch of snuff. Awful indeed


----------



## backwoods (Sep 12, 2004)

Y'all NEVER cease to entertain me... laughing my hiney off, here!
This must be why the Europeans make fun of us over our "obsession" with normal bodily functions, & why I stockpile baby wipes! ;D


----------



## stick (Apr 3, 2005)

I was thinking of using my kindle, it has a lot of books on it.


----------



## Jim-mi (May 15, 2002)

Step right up and be the first in your neighborhood to be the proud owner of a Clean-Butt seat........................

Eagan Supply will make you the happy owner for a measley $750.

Get rid of those stinky old 17th century saw-dust buckets.....

End forever those late night COLD trips to the stinky outhouse.....

You will say Ahhhh to a nice warm heated seat


----------



## NamasteMama (Jul 24, 2009)

elkhound said:


> if i was rich i would have one of these....it has everything...it flushes,scrubs,heated seat ...it even has windshield washer on it...even a air freshener....just like a cadillac.
> 
> 
> this thing even gives a mild enema wash....that way you wont get dehydrated.everyone loved my enema hydration thread here....lol
> ...


 These are a must have, beats toilet paper any day. Although the blow dryer on your butt takes some getting used to!


----------



## Guest (Sep 11, 2013)

Gramps comes back in the house from his morning trip to the outhouse
Says , granny I've got to do something , the outhouse hole is full
Granny scratches her head & says , That nice young man that moved in 
down the road is college educated , why not go ask him
Gramps takes off down the road & asks the neighbor what to do
The neighbor scratches his head & says , I've figured it out
Go down to the hardware store & buy 2 sticks of dynamite
One with a long fuse & one with a short fuse
Go home & light them & throw them down the outhouse hole
The one with the short fuse will go off first & blow the outhouse about
30 feet into the air , then the one with the long fuse will go off & blow
everything out of the hole 
The outhouse will come down over a now empty hole
Gramps bought the dynamite , went home & lit them & threw them
down the hole & ran & hid behind a nearby tree
Granny comes trotting out of the house & goes into the outhouse
Boom , the first stick goes off & blows the outhouse into the air
Boom , the second stick goes off & blows all the crap out of the hole
The outhouse settles right back down over the hole
Gramps runs over , yanks the door open & says
Granny are you alright & granny says 
I sure am glad I didn't fart in the kitchen


----------



## Jim-mi (May 15, 2002)

Nothing like some good ol potty humor to lighten up this insane world.....LOL


----------



## bowdonkey (Oct 6, 2007)

Astrid said:


> I think the French author Rabelais wrote a book about this...
> 
> http://www.kirjasto.sci.fi/rabela.htm


WOW, that guy was a true master. I especially liked his using of an attorneys bag. If he were alive today, I would humbley bow to him. But from a safe distance.


----------



## arcticow (Oct 8, 2006)

Ummmm, no... actually, both my folks used 'em as kids. Easier on one than corn shucks, so they said.


----------



## Grumpy old man (Aug 6, 2013)

50 something posts on this subject ? I think some of you need a new hobby .


----------



## Jim-mi (May 15, 2002)

Now don't be a spoil-sport Grumpy.......

Perhaps you would not be so grumpy if you could get in on some of this potty-humor..

LOL


----------



## doodlemom (Apr 4, 2006)

In 1935, Northern Tissue advertised "splinter-free" toilet paper. Yep, you read that right; early paper production techniques sometimes left splinters embedded in the paper. And you thought you had it tough!
http://nobodys-perfect.com/vtpm/exhibithall/informational/tphistory.html


----------



## Harry Chickpea (Dec 19, 2008)

doodlemom said:


> In 1935, Northern Tissue advertised "splinter-free" toilet paper. Yep, you read that right; early paper production techniques sometimes left splinters embedded in the paper. And you thought you had it tough!
> http://nobodys-perfect.com/vtpm/exhibithall/informational/tphistory.html



...


Pokeman...


...


----------



## Appalachia (Jul 11, 2012)

I believe people used to use corn cobs....

"As rough as a cob" is a common saying around here.


----------



## doodlemom (Apr 4, 2006)

Harry Chickpea said:


> ...
> 
> 
> Pokeman...
> ...


I can just picture an old man picking the splinters out of his toilet paper in anticipation of using it exclaiming "Gotta catch them all!"


----------



## hippygirl (Apr 3, 2010)

Corncobs aren't a myth...my GGM used them, as did I and any family who visited. They were kept in sack inside a covered box in the outhouse.

When we had it, we also used newspaper...if you crumple/unfold/crumple/unfold several times, it gets quite soft.

As for "corncob on a string"...have never heard of that one.


----------



## bowdonkey (Oct 6, 2007)

Appalachia said:


> I believe people used to use corn cobs....
> 
> "As rough as a cob" is a common saying around here.


Or calling someone or something a "dirty cob". When you think of it, there's lots of expressions where the origins and meanings have been lost in time.


----------



## lmrose (Sep 24, 2009)

My Grandma was born in 1880 and raised me. The toilet paper question came up and she told me when she was young corn husks were used for both wiping and sanitary pads. Later rags when available and paper catalog pages when catalogs became into being.

I remember being so poor when we first had our farm and no money accept for the house payment and electric. We only ate what we grew and there was no toilet paper all one winter. I cut up old cloths into small rags which if soiled too badly were burned in the stove. Otherwise they were rinsed and washed to reuse.

That experience really made me paranoid about running low on toilet tissue. I make sure there is enough stored to last at least six months at a time! Still I only buy it when on sale!


----------



## hippygirl (Apr 3, 2010)

lmrose said:


> _*My Grandma was born in 1880 and raised me*_. The toilet paper question came up and she told me when she was young corn husks were used for both wiping and sanitary pads. Later rags when available and paper catalog pages when catalogs became into being.
> 
> I remember being so poor when we first had our farm and no money accept for the house payment and electric. We only ate what we grew and there was no toilet paper all one winter. I cut up old cloths into small rags which if soiled too badly were burned in the stove. Otherwise they were rinsed and washed to reuse.
> 
> That experience really made me paranoid about running low on toilet tissue. I make sure there is enough stored to last at least six months at a time! Still I only buy it when on sale!


My GGM was born in 1880 as well...she raised me by herself until I was 9.

I wouldn't trade the experience for anything!


----------



## Jaclynne (May 14, 2002)

elkhound said:


> if i was rich i would have one of these....it has everything...it flushes,scrubs,heated seat ...it even has windshield washer on it...even a air freshener....just like a cadillac.
> 
> 
> this thing even gives a mild enema wash....that way you wont get dehydrated.everyone loved my enema hydration thread here....lol
> ...


 
I don't own this brand, but I do have a Toto brand bidet seat that has most of those features - heated wash & dry, heated seat, energy saver so the seat only comes on when used. 

The Toto brand has a remote control panel that I have mounted on the side of the wash basin cabinet. You can easily reach the controls or remove the panel and hold it. That seat mounted control looks uncomfortable for some that has trouble twisting or bending, how can you see what button you are pushing?

The Toto bidet seat is fabulous and it was expensive 8yrs ago when I purchased it. I bought it during a health crisis, when twisting and bending was very painful for my back. Got thru that before finding the bidet, but bought it just in case. It's only been installed a couple of yrs since I moved to my 'new' house. 

I will say I seldom use the drier feature, that hot air can get a little uncomfortable before you are dry. Its just easier to use a soft flannel for drying. I can hardly tolerate toilet paper without irritation now. 

On a cold night, you want to make sure that heat feature is on, a blast of ice cold well water is quite shocking!


----------



## Jim-mi (May 15, 2002)

You mean to tell me they don't warm the wash water . . . ???

Absolutely . . The thought of spraying one's bottom with ice water is shocking . . . . . . .

My hopes are dashed . . . . .I started saving my pennies and dimes to go buy one.

Ice water......................


----------



## Jaclynne (May 14, 2002)

Its a choice Jim-mi, in summer its rather refreshing to have cold water, but you can chose to heat it to quite warm (almost too warm).
​


----------



## doodlemom (Apr 4, 2006)

Being the big spender I am I'd go with a dish soap squeeze bottle full of warm water instead of buying a new toilet set up.


----------



## lmrose (Sep 24, 2009)

hippygirl said:


> My GGM was born in 1880 as well...she raised me by herself until I was 9.
> 
> I wouldn't trade the experience for anything!


 
hippygirl I too feel blessed to have been raised by my Grandma. I learned first hand so much about life that otherwise I would have only learned from reading books. She is the reason I knew how to survive when I was young and alone. She left us when I was 13 yrs and she was 80 yrs. She went to live with her daughter and lived another five years. I learned survival skills from her and my Dad who she taught also. I think about her everyday still.


----------



## Bret (Oct 3, 2003)

This may seem obvious, but cats that are scented with turpentine should not be used.


----------



## doodlemom (Apr 4, 2006)

Bret said:


> This may seem obvious, but cats that are scented with turpentine should not be used.


Sounds like an old pioneer line referring to brothels and lice.


----------



## Bret (Oct 3, 2003)

...oh no...I swear, I was not going there. But I'm convulsing with suppressed laughter anyway.


----------



## elkhound (May 30, 2006)

bump for educational purposes !!!!!!!


----------



## unregistered358967 (Jul 17, 2013)

Lol. Why did I not discover this section sooner?


----------



## unregistered358967 (Jul 17, 2013)

In the UP outhouses, playboy magazines seemed to be used.


----------



## littlejoe (Jan 17, 2007)

Jax-mom said:


> In the UP outhouses, playboy magazines seemed to be used.


Many mechanics/construction restrooms in central USA has many playboy magazines as well. Although well used...it's not for bung fodder!


----------



## mnn2501 (Apr 2, 2008)

elkhound said:


> i always thought bathrooms needed to be solid tile with a drain in center and a faucet on wall for a garden hose.....roflmao


I know this is an old thread but I just got back from Panama where my sil's condo has a small hose coming out of the wall by the toilet that is presumably used for that, squeeze the trigger and a small spray of water comes out.

Being American transplants they still buy toilet paper (which is expensive there). I did not ask any natives about their habits however.


----------



## sdnapier (Aug 13, 2010)

davel745 said:


> Don't forget the three seashells LOL


No no! Not the 3 seashells!


----------



## Debbie in Wa (Dec 28, 2007)

Here is something to use in the bathroom

http://www.homecrux.com/2013/01/31/...our-toilet-seat-for-complete-elimination.html


----------



## PrettyPaisley (May 18, 2007)

Let me tell you something. I bought a Squatty Potty this past winter and I LOVE it. TMI, I'm sure .... But it makes a world of difference ! I never did have issues with eliminations but did some reading about that muscle that doesn't completely relax unless your knees are up higher ... So I tried a few times squatting on the seat. Without much more info, let's just say girls aren't meant to pee with their knees near their ears. 

So I spent the $50 after figuring out I didn't want to try a DIY stool that wrapped around the toilet and I'm so glad I did. The difference is so subtle - but so worth it !!!


----------

