| thoughts from a cunning linguist | |
I have lived now with 5 male rooommates. And I have a question, perhaps the inverse of the "why do women use so much toilet tissue?" question. Here it is: why is that most men (a) not clean the bathroom on a regular basis and (b) when they do, do a half-assed job? My current roommate is the worst: I have had to issue him an "invitation" to clean the bathroom every time he has cleaned it since he moved in. So some weeks ago now, I decided: let's see how long it will take him to realize it's his turn. I have now cleaned the bathroom four times in a row--including the morning after one of his friends showed up here drunk after the bar and vomited all over the bathroom. The roommate showed up here shortly after and gave the bathroom what I call "a lick and a promise," but I still had to clean the thing before I could use it the next morning. Before he moved in, I said to him: "I'm not a neat freak, but I do want the bathroom to be cleaned every week." Not only has ne not done this, but he has no idea what it means to clean the bathroom. He uses paper towel, never washes the floor and usually leaves dirt behind him. My theory is that his mother has cleaned up after him all his life. But still, he's an adult. A wash cloth, a bucket of water, and a mop should not be foreign objects to him.
I left him a very frustrated note last night after I noticed yet another half-assed bathroom job and some paper towel in the waste basket. I feel like a real bitch pointing out how that the bathroom is not clean and listing all the things that have to be cleaned in a bathroom, but I'm not sure what else I could have done. (Then, just cuz I used to be Catholic, I felt guilty about it all not and didn't sleep very well!)
Even though this roommate has been the worst, all my other male roommates, as well as my brothers, have had versions of the same disease. Given that men seem to make bigger messes of toilets than women, why is it that they can go on without noticing the level of dirt? Or, if they notice it, why not do something about it!?
Posted by Bush Whacker at May 24, 2003 05:50 PMI honestly don't know. Speaking as a guy who really hates cleaning, I think there's a lot of rationalization along the lines of "It's not really that dirty, is it?"
Posted by: Maurice on May 24, 2003 06:06 PMWe walk in. We piss. We walk out. Usually, we're so lost in thought on something else, we just aren't paying any attention. The bathroom is an appliance - not really a "room". It's not a place we want to spend any time. As long as it doesn't stink & we can't see anything major growing, we just aren't concerned.
Posted by: kevin on May 25, 2003 03:15 AMdirty bathrooms -- blech
i can deal with two weeks of dirty dishes in the kitchen
i can handle not having vaccumed for a month
a heaping pile of laundry does not scare me
i'm no neat freak either
but i promise you
promise
on any day of any week
you could safely eat out of my tub
or if you prefer smaller portions
my bathroom sink
admittedly
the floor may be in want of a sweeping
but i do not stand for dirty bathrooms
and have never understood how anyone can
my thoughts and prayers are with thee bw
-bluegirl
I haven't had that much experience living with males...or females for that matter, but the one male roommate I had was nice and tidy. He also spent most of his time at his boyfriend's place so it worked out nicely.
I think you did the right thing by bringing it up to your roommate. Especially since it's a bathroom that you have to share with this person. Maybe you could start charging him more for cleaning up after him and his drunk friends? If he doesn't get the hint after your note you might want to get one of these for your toilet - http://www.funforalltoys.com/products/pranks_and_gags_10/bog_monster/bog_monster.html
Okay so, I just wanted an excuse to post a link to the bog monster!
Posted by: Stephanie on May 26, 2003 10:29 PMI cleaned my washroom today, albeit only partially, so it wouldn't meet your high standards. However, as I was doing so, I was thinking that I wouldn't mind being "reminded" that it's my turn to clean it if I were in a roommate situation. But I can understand why asking is a pain.
Posted by: Maurice on May 30, 2003 03:26 AMYou could always get a bathroom monkey. Like this -
http://lomojunkie.com/movies/monkey.mpg - takes a few minutes to download
Posted by: Stephanie on May 30, 2003 01:11 PM