# "Gentlemen" - Restroom behavior...WTF? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [January 14, 2014, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gentlemen-restroom-behavior-wtf/678808 "2014-01-14T20:07:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Airk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9de053/32.png) [@Airk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Airk)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2014, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gentlemen-restroom-behavior-wtf/678808/61 "2014-01-16T15:28:33Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > Flushing is optional, depending on water usage in your area. It is a huge waste of water, and even power. Yeah, I don’t really understand why most urinals need flushing. You’re basically peeing down a hole. It drains out as it comes in. Is it necessary to pour water down the urinal to wash out whatever urine might still be on the surface before someone else pees on it? Yeah, great, if for whatever reason there’s a puddle of pee at the bottom, that can get aromatic after a while, but I think that’s more the sign of a urinal that isn’t working properly. ---
**Author:** ![Living\_Well\_Is\_Best\_Revenge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/6bbea6/32.png) [@Living\_Well\_Is\_Best\_Revenge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Living_Well_Is_Best_Revenge)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2014, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gentlemen-restroom-behavior-wtf/678808/62 "2014-01-16T15:56:41Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > Flushing is optional, depending on water usage in your area. It is a huge waste of water, and even power. > > And like I said, it doesn’t splash on you. _You_ splash on _you_. Do what you want in your house. But it’s rude to not flush a toilet/urinal in public. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2014, 7:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gentlemen-restroom-behavior-wtf/678808/63 "2014-01-16T19:05:18Z")
> [@Living\_Well\_Is\_Best\_Revenge](#): > > Do what you want in your house. But it’s rude to not flush a toilet/urinal in public. It’s even ruder to waste water & energy. ---
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2014, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gentlemen-restroom-behavior-wtf/678808/64 "2014-01-16T20:06:24Z")
Here’s one I’ve seen at work recently. Guy walks in, grabs a paper towel, then heads over to the urinal. Apparently his junk is so filthy that he doesn’t want to touch it with his own bare hand! WTF? ---
**Author:** ![snowthx](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowthx/32/10660_2.png) [@snowthx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snowthx)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2014, 2:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gentlemen-restroom-behavior-wtf/678808/65 "2014-01-17T02:10:08Z")
> [@Shoeless](#): > > Here’s one I’ve seen at work recently. Guy walks in, grabs a paper towel, then heads over to the urinal. Apparently his junk is so filthy that he doesn’t want to touch it with his own bare hand! WTF? Either that or he is going to rub one out. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2014, 11:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gentlemen-restroom-behavior-wtf/678808/66 "2014-01-18T11:18:36Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > It’s even ruder to waste water & energy. Nope, not in any way shape or form. If it were a problem, you wouldn’t be allowed to flush the toilet yourself. Wasting something is only rude when you have a very limited supply. Making someone else clean up your mess is pretty much always rude. It’s going to get flushed anyways, as, otherwise, the urinal would be filthy. All you are doing is delegating responsibility to someone else. You aren’t saving the employer any money, (not that I’d understand why you’d care) and that monetary cost includes the effects on the environment. If it bothers you a lot, add an extra penny to your tip to pay for the water to be cleaned and reused. ---
**Author:** ![AncientHumanoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ancienthumanoid/32/278_2.png) [@AncientHumanoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AncientHumanoid)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2014, 11:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gentlemen-restroom-behavior-wtf/678808/67 "2014-01-18T11:47:50Z")
> [@Shoeless](#): > > Here’s one I’ve seen at work recently. Guy walks in, grabs a paper towel, then heads over to the urinal. Apparently his junk is so filthy that he doesn’t want to touch it with his own bare hand! WTF? Or he doesn’t want to touch the flush lever ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2014, 3:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gentlemen-restroom-behavior-wtf/678808/68 "2014-02-05T03:56:47Z")
Here’s one that I still haven’t gotten used to despite decades in Thailand. In some Thai-oriented places, men’s-room attendants will come up behind you and give you a shoulder rub while you’re pissing into the urinal. These are _not_ gay bars but normal Thai-oriented nightspots, and it’s just their job. (I’ve never seen this in any foreign/tourist-oriented spot, because it would likely freak them out.) They’ll expect something in the top basket as you’re leaving. I just don’t like it and will actually tell them to please go away. The first time I encountered this, I about jumped through the roof. It was completely unexpected. Talk about culture shock! Some farangs (Westerners) get all squicked out by female men’s-room janitors. These ladies will just be going about their business, mopping the floor, emptying trash etc. There’s nothing sexual, they’re always old crones, but I knew one South African who went ballistic in a KFC and lectured the staff on why ladies should not be allowed in the men’s room. ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2014, 7:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gentlemen-restroom-behavior-wtf/678808/69 "2014-02-05T07:51:11Z")
> [@Siam\_Sam](#): > > Here’s one that I still haven’t gotten used to despite decades in Thailand. In some Thai-oriented places, men’s-room attendants will come up behind you and give you a shoulder rub while you’re pissing into the urinal. These are _not_ gay bars but normal Thai-oriented nightspots, and it’s just their job. (I’ve never seen this in any foreign/tourist-oriented spot, because it would likely freak them out.) They’ll expect something in the top basket as you’re leaving. I just don’t like it and will actually tell them to please go away. The first time I encountered this, I about jumped through the roof. It was completely unexpected. Talk about culture shock! I hope they wear waterproof aprons, because I think I’d spin around in mid-stream if someone did that to me. ---
**Author:** ![drewtwo99](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d07c76/32.png) [@drewtwo99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drewtwo99)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2014, 8:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gentlemen-restroom-behavior-wtf/678808/70 "2014-02-05T08:23:27Z")
A shoulder rub while you pee? Thailand really is a whole other universe. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2014, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gentlemen-restroom-behavior-wtf/678808/71 "2014-02-05T15:24:44Z")
And it’s true! The first time it happened, I was with a group of other farangs who knew the score, and they knew I didn’t know, so when I came back from the men’s room, they were all laughing. Completely out of left field. ---
**Author:** ![VinylTurnip](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b2d939/32.png) [@VinylTurnip](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VinylTurnip)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2014, 4:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gentlemen-restroom-behavior-wtf/678808/72 "2014-02-05T16:18:25Z")
I had a reaction when I walked with great urgency into the men’s room of a Bangkok shopping mall and found a hole in the center of a concrete floor and no toilet paper anywhere, but it wasn’t laughter. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2014, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gentlemen-restroom-behavior-wtf/678808/73 "2014-02-05T16:24:07Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > It’s going to get flushed anyways, as, otherwise, the urinal would be filthy. All you are doing is delegating responsibility to someone else. Ah, but a good manager learns to delegate responsibility. ---
**Author:** ![marshmallow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/df705f/32.png) [@marshmallow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/marshmallow)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2014, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gentlemen-restroom-behavior-wtf/678808/74 "2014-02-05T18:50:13Z")
> [@snowthx](#): > > At work we recently switched to automatic rollers - it dispenses about the right amount to dry-off, and use it on the door handle when exiting. You gotta have something for the door handle. If you don’t mind looking like a dork you can usually use your elbow. Unless it’s an actual doorknob instead of a handle. ---
**Author:** ![AncientHumanoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ancienthumanoid/32/278_2.png) [@AncientHumanoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AncientHumanoid)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2014, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gentlemen-restroom-behavior-wtf/678808/75 "2014-02-05T19:02:27Z")
I use my mouth ---
**Author:** ![handsomeharry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e9c0ed/32.png) [@handsomeharry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handsomeharry)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2014, 10:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gentlemen-restroom-behavior-wtf/678808/76 "2014-02-05T22:14:53Z")
> [@shiftless](#): > > You flush before you start so the huge puddle of piss that the last guy failed to flush won’t splash on you. You flush when you leave so the the next guy won’t have to. Quite simply, this is it. ---
**Author:** ![handsomeharry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e9c0ed/32.png) [@handsomeharry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handsomeharry)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2014, 10:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gentlemen-restroom-behavior-wtf/678808/77 "2014-02-05T22:19:13Z")
> [@Siam\_Sam](#): > > Here’s one that I still haven’t gotten used to despite decades in Thailand. In some Thai-oriented places, men’s-room attendants will come up behind you and give you a shoulder rub while you’re pissing into the urinal… They’ll expect something in the top basket as you’re leaving. Believe me, if somebody rubbed my shoulder while I was taking a whiz, they would most definitely get something in the top basket! ---
**Author:** ![Enright3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/enright3/32/2897_2.png) [@Enright3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enright3)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2014, 10:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gentlemen-restroom-behavior-wtf/678808/78 "2014-02-05T22:20:04Z")
> [@DrFidelius](#): > > I suppose going down the line, flushing each as I pass, is right out? Probably, but I made up for that in an empty restroom by pinching off the stream and pissing a little in every urinal in the restroom with a single pass. ---
**Author:** ![Enright3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/enright3/32/2897_2.png) [@Enright3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enright3)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2014, 10:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gentlemen-restroom-behavior-wtf/678808/79 "2014-02-05T22:23:30Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > Flushing is optional, depending on water usage in your area. It is a huge waste of water, and even power. > > And like I said, it doesn’t splash on you. _You_ splash on _you_. I don’t see flushing before I pee as wasting water. There an un-allocated flush waiting to be used if there’s someone else’s piss in the urinal. ---
**Author:** ![Lowdown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c57346/32.png) [@Lowdown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lowdown)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2014, 10:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gentlemen-restroom-behavior-wtf/678808/80 "2014-02-05T22:40:34Z")
I like this thread! Here’s two that baffle me: 1.) Talking on the phone, especially in the stall. Why would you do this?! 2.) Guys who walk up to the urinal and spit in it before they start. I see this all the time, everywhere. It’s not the powerful expulsion type spit either, it’s the foamy drip kind. What is the deal? Two of my coworkers do this, and I have never seen them spit at any other time. Ever. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gentlemen-restroom-behavior-wtf/678808.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gentlemen-restroom-behavior-wtf/678808.md?page=5)