# Do you bring reading material into the bathroom when using the toilet? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [April 24, 2010, 1:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-bring-reading-material-into-the-bathroom-when-using-the-toilet/537197 "2010-04-24T13:16:44Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![gwendee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/35a633/32.png) [@gwendee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gwendee)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2010, 10:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-bring-reading-material-into-the-bathroom-when-using-the-toilet/537197/41 "2010-04-24T22:27:48Z")
[quote=“OpalCat, post:36, topic:537197”] I do read in the bathroom, but I also wash my hands and am careful about things. I’ve been in enough public restrooms to realize that there are great hordes of people out there who do not wash their hands after using the bathroom… \*\*This is one of the primary reasons why I don’t like library books.[/\*\*QUOTE] Gee, thanks. You may have just ruined a formerly very pleasant aspect of my life. Bleargh. > [@Darryl\_Lict](#): > > How the hell do you read in the shower? Waterproof Kindle? > > **I’m a superfast shiiter** , and I just cancelled my subscription to the L.A. Times, so no, I don’t read on the can. Is this a self-conferred title? Compared to whom? Nevermind. I don’t want to know. Really. ---
**Author:** ![VarlosZ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/d78d45/32.png) [@VarlosZ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VarlosZ)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2010, 10:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-bring-reading-material-into-the-bathroom-when-using-the-toilet/537197/42 "2010-04-24T22:28:40Z")
> [@Broomstick](#): > > You said your reaction wasn’t rational… well, why should I accommodate something I see as neurotic at best? Where and by whom are you being asked to accommodate anything? It’s sort of a silly and irrational thing to be squicked out by, but when the squicked-out party acknowledges as much, I don’t see how there’s any room for disagreement, let alone contention. ---
**Author:** ![Teacake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Teacake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Teacake)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2010, 10:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-bring-reading-material-into-the-bathroom-when-using-the-toilet/537197/43 "2010-04-24T22:30:28Z")
> [@Broomstick](#): > > Well, maybe where YOU come from your attitude is considered healthy… to me it’s utterly bizarre to regard the bathroom with such horror. Everyone in my family keeps reading material in the bathroom. Most of my friends do. I’ve been a guest in houses where the host/ess offers to update the bathroom reading material if there is none presently there to my liking… > > But thank you for informing me that if I should ever visit you that this is not your culture and I will refrain from mentioning “reading” and “toilet” in the same sentence. > > I’ll file it under Middle Eastern loathing of shoes/soles of feet, Asian dislike of knives at the dinner table, celibacy of clergy in the Roman church, and other customs I don’t share but need to respect in other locations.’ > > Just for future reference - is this a common European custom, or limited to the UK or just London? I never said that I regard the bathroom with horror. I regard it as a room in my house. Yes, reading a proper book actually on the toilet does feel wrong to me, and I’ve never bothered to think about why. Maybe gross wasn’t the right emotion to assign to it. I don’t think it has anything to do with germs. As I said before, in my bathroom, they’re my germs, they’re not going to hurt me. I’ve probably had a more intimate relationship with my own (and my partner’s) shit than most people, having lived in a motorhome (RV) for over a year, with a chemical toilet that half the time we couldn’t afford chemicals for, which I had to empty every couple of days. Anyway, if I was germophobic, I would hardly have chosen a career working with children. But how is it an unhealthy attitude to be aware that germs exist and that they are unlikely to do any major damage to me, with obvious provisos, which is basically what I’ve said? Maybe it’s more to do with feeling a certain respect towards books. This may also be illogical, but I was brought up to take care of books, particularly as several of the children’s books in my parents’ house had belonged to them or even their parents as children and were therefore old, delicate and/or valuable. I’m not, for instance, the kind of person who ever throws a book away. I don’t fold down pages: I use bookmarks. Bathrooms are filled with things that could hurt books, like soap and water. I also don’t generally take books into the kitchen. If I’m using a recipe, I’ll look at it first. I don’t take books I like into the bath with me. Is it illogical not to want to damage something you paid for, or is beautiful, or which has value either monetary or sentimental? If so, then have at it: I’m illogical in a whole new way. Mock on. Although I still maintain that I’m not any sort of idiot, incompetent, child or hysteric (and didn’t deserve to be addressed as such), I don’t claim to speak for anyone but myself. I have already pointed out, however, that there is reading material specifically provided by the toilet. It’s just not books. ---
**Author:** ![VarlosZ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/d78d45/32.png) [@VarlosZ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VarlosZ)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2010, 10:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-bring-reading-material-into-the-bathroom-when-using-the-toilet/537197/44 "2010-04-24T22:33:16Z")
Oh, and to anyone who is bothered by the thought of bringing reading materials into the bathroom during bowel movements, let me just point out (in a playful effort to increase your neurotic discomfort) that every time you go to take a dump, you’re bringing _your clothes_ into the bathroom with you. They’ve got the taint. ---
**Author:** ![Frank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Frank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frank)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2010, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-bring-reading-material-into-the-bathroom-when-using-the-toilet/537197/45 "2010-04-24T22:39:14Z")
The bathroom is where I read the comics section of my newspaper. If I’m caught up on the comics, I usually just stare at the wallpaper. ---
**Author:** ![Teacake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Teacake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Teacake)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2010, 10:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-bring-reading-material-into-the-bathroom-when-using-the-toilet/537197/46 "2010-04-24T22:41:13Z")
Everything has all kinds of dirt and germs on it all the time. For most of us (without compromised immune systems, e.g.) it’s not a problem, and I never said it was. My comment about my bathroom being clean was in response to **Broomstick** insinuating that it wasn’t (or something like that). I am no kind of clean freak. Hannelore would probably hyperventilate if she saw my house. ---
**Author:** ![Acid\_Lamp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@Acid\_Lamp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acid_Lamp)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2010, 11:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-bring-reading-material-into-the-bathroom-when-using-the-toilet/537197/47 "2010-04-24T23:01:18Z")
> [@Teacake](#): > > Hm. I don’t think I said I was a germophobe. I illustrated, in fact, that I have a fairly healthy attitude towards germs, and that fear of becoming ill was not what motivated the ick. I pointed out that thinking something was gross may not have anything to do with that, and yes, I did point out that it’s not a “brain” reaction. We all have gut reactions to things, some of which may be illogical; I didn’t realise that on that basis, by your reckoning, there isn’t a living being who deserves respect. Being illogical is not the same as being dirty or an idiot, which is what **Broomstick** said, or indeed the same as not being able to read. If you’ll excuse me, I’ll just go and weep over having lost your respect. It was so clearly worth having. Touchy aren’t we? I never said I didn’t respect YOU, just your silly pseudo-justification for your dislike of reading material in the bathroom. ---
**Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2010, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-bring-reading-material-into-the-bathroom-when-using-the-toilet/537197/48 "2010-04-24T23:08:34Z")
> [@Frank](#): > > The bathroom is where I read the comics section of my newspaper. If I’m caught up on the comics, I usually just stare at the wallpaper. This is where it’s helpful to have either a lot of catalogs, or a lot of unread magazines, or a complicated wallpaper design. ---
**Author:** ![kapri](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/4491bb/32.png) [@kapri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kapri)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2010, 11:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-bring-reading-material-into-the-bathroom-when-using-the-toilet/537197/49 "2010-04-24T23:18:06Z")
If you don’t bring something to read in there when you think it might, um, take a little longer than usual, what **do** you do while you’re sitting there? Sometimes I bring my laptop in and set it on the top of the wastebasket so I can read it while I sit. ---
**Author:** ![Fake\_Tales\_of\_San\_Francisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8491ac/32.png) [@Fake\_Tales\_of\_San\_Francisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fake_Tales_of_San_Francisco)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2010, 12:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-bring-reading-material-into-the-bathroom-when-using-the-toilet/537197/50 "2010-04-25T00:02:54Z")
> [@Broomstick](#): > > Just for future reference - is this a common European custom, or limited to the UK or just London? It’s just the UK. Everybody in the UK is a germaphobe. That’s why we all put carpets in there, to trap the little buggers so we can stamp all over them with our great British boots. Just like the custom of insulting people by attempting to insult their nation/place of residence is limited to the USA. I’m fairly certain that doesn’t happen anywhere else - I read that in a book. On the toilet. ---
**Author:** ![Pushkin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ee59a6/32.png) [@Pushkin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pushkin)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2010, 12:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-bring-reading-material-into-the-bathroom-when-using-the-toilet/537197/51 "2010-04-25T00:12:52Z")
> [@VarlosZ](#): > > Why would it be gross to bring a book (or a phone) into the can? Yeah, I mean, aren’t we breathing in a fine mist of poop in there anyway? ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2010, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-bring-reading-material-into-the-bathroom-when-using-the-toilet/537197/52 "2010-04-25T00:33:23Z")
**Teacake** : Is your name pronounced ‘teh-AH-kah-keh’? ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2010, 12:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-bring-reading-material-into-the-bathroom-when-using-the-toilet/537197/53 "2010-04-25T00:43:06Z")
> [@Teacake](#): > > Maybe it’s more to do with feeling a certain respect towards books. This may also be illogical, but I was brought up to take care of books, particularly as several of the children’s books in my parents’ house had belonged to them or even their parents as children and were therefore old, delicate and/or valuable. I’m not, for instance, the kind of person who ever throws a book away. I don’t fold down pages: I use bookmarks. Bathrooms are filled with things that could hurt books, like soap and water. I suppose I could get all offended by your implication that somehow I don’t respect books (despite my rather large collection of same, including one volume dating back to 1856 that is a family heirloom… ) but I won’t. Because I won’t get my panties in a twist over some thin-skinned stranger half a world away. Look, if you don’t feel right reading in the bathroom, fine, but you’re the one who said it was gross, thereby implying there’s something wrong with those of us who do. Which, by the poll, is over 90% of respondents. To each their own. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2010, 12:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-bring-reading-material-into-the-bathroom-when-using-the-toilet/537197/54 "2010-04-25T00:47:35Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > **Teacake** : Is your name pronounced ‘teh-AH-kah-keh’? Um… I admit I’ve only skimmed this thread. There seems to be a little tension. I would like to assure **Teacake** that I was not taking a jab; only when I see the name I think of Pratchett’s Mr. Teatime and I didn’t feel like starting a new thread about comical interpretations of usernames. ---
**Author:** ![Ostrya](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/35a633/32.png) [@Ostrya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ostrya)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2010, 2:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-bring-reading-material-into-the-bathroom-when-using-the-toilet/537197/55 "2010-04-25T02:39:09Z")
Never for me. I have wondered if those that do are either eating too much, or not getting enough H20 in their diets. Reading while sitting on the toilet has never made sense to me. What are people indulging in that they are spending enough time taking a crap that they’re in there reading… when reading in a regular chair, on the couch, or in bed is so much more comfy. ? (I guess I have never understood why anyone would spend more time in the can than they absolutely have to.) ---
**Author:** ![C3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/c3/32/3108_2.png) [@C3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/C3)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2010, 2:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-bring-reading-material-into-the-bathroom-when-using-the-toilet/537197/56 "2010-04-25T02:56:14Z")
I have subscriptions to three magazines and I get a whole bunch of different catalogs. They go directly from the mailbox to the back of the toilet. That’s where they live, until I clean the bathroom and throw out the older issues. I also have a library book that’s been living in there for the past couple weeks! :eek: ---
**Author:** ![Waenara](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/50afbb/32.png) [@Waenara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Waenara)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2010, 6:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-bring-reading-material-into-the-bathroom-when-using-the-toilet/537197/57 "2010-04-25T06:05:05Z")
> [@chorpler](#): > > Inspired by **Freudian Slit** ’s comment about how it only takes her a minute to poop (although she’s also a reader, so these obviously aren’t hard and fast guidelines) – it takes me at least 20 minutes. It usually takes you at least 20 minutes?! I’ve had medical issues the last couple years that makes pooping fast, if not supersonic. But prior to that when everything was functioning normally it usually took 10-30 seconds, or maybe a minute or two at the longest. Obviously, this might change in very unusual circumstances like when I had surgery and didn’t have a poop for four days (morphine and tylenol will do that) - felt like I was giving birth and it took 45 minutes. For people who regularly take 20 minutes, does it actually take that long? Or is the reading in the bathroom just a good time to take a break and relax and read for 15 minutes after you finish the dump? I can’t imagine the poop actually taking 20 minutes unless you’re constipated. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2010, 6:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-bring-reading-material-into-the-bathroom-when-using-the-toilet/537197/58 "2010-04-25T06:24:43Z")
I’ve got a book of NY Times crossword puzzles which I keep in the bathroom. It’s been keeping me occupied for a couple of years now. ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Poster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/c89c15/32.png) [@Happy\_Poster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Poster)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2010, 7:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-bring-reading-material-into-the-bathroom-when-using-the-toilet/537197/59 "2010-04-25T07:49:15Z")
> [@Fake\_Tales\_of\_San\_Francisco](#): > > It’s just the UK. Everybody in the UK is a germaphobe. That’s why we all put carpets in there, to trap the little buggers so we can stamp all over them with our great British boots. > > Just like the custom of insulting people by attempting to insult their nation/place of residence is limited to the USA. I’m fairly certain that doesn’t happen anywhere else - I read that in a book. > > On the toilet. [As this will fly over a typical septic’s head](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irony) I should probably point out that reading material is perfectly common in toilets here as well. ---
**Author:** ![Teacake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Teacake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Teacake)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2010, 10:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-bring-reading-material-into-the-bathroom-when-using-the-toilet/537197/60 "2010-04-25T10:42:06Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > **Teacake** : Is your name pronounced ‘teh-AH-kah-keh’? 😃 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-bring-reading-material-into-the-bathroom-when-using-the-toilet/537197.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-bring-reading-material-into-the-bathroom-when-using-the-toilet/537197.md?page=4)