Thursday, June 12, 2008

Potty Blogger goes all Willy Wonka on you

I have some difficult news. I, Potty Blogger, am taking a new job and will no longer be a regular visitor to 340 Brannan fifth floor men's room.

But this blog must continue in my absence! So I have hidden five golden tickets...

Well, not exactly. But, like Mr. Willy Wonka, I am looking for someone to whom I can pass the reins.

Wonka was looking for a child who could run his chocolate factory...I am looking for a man who wants to blog about a chocolate factory. (Sorry, I couldn't resist.)

If you think you might be that person, please leave a comment below and explain why you think you're qualified. If a suitable candidate is identified in the next week, I will pass over the password. All this could be yours.

Oompa Loompas not included.

If not, this blog will cease to publish. The choice, dear readers, is yours.

Worst urinal in the building

Fourth floor men's room. Hands down.

1. It's mounted on a portion of the wall that sticks out about a foot, so the "privacy screen" provides no privacy.

2. The urinal itself is super long...and not in a good way. (See point #1.) It's right next to the sink, but it sticks out so far, you're basically standing behind the guy at the sink who's trying to wash his hands. It's creepy.

3. It's too low to the ground. Seriously, it's like two inches off the ground--I can barely get my feet under there when I move in to do my business.

The combination of the location, the size of the urinal, and it's height make the experience feel like you're peeing into a cookie sheet that's sitting on the floor in the middle of the room.

It's not cool.

Monday, June 9, 2008

Overflowing toilet

Ah...Monday morning in fifth floor men's room.

Sombody conducted a pretty serious piece of business in the chamber this morning and there is now an overflowing toilet and an inch of water on the floor. (Good news: the drain does seem to be working.)

Did the offender try and use the plunger to prevent this overflow? Did he at least call the building manager and alert them to the problem?

I doubt it. While past performance is not an indication of future results, the users of fifth floor men's room are a notorious for their lack of responsibility.

Thursday, June 5, 2008

Man TP is back!

The hearty toilet paper, appropriate for man-sized business, is back in fifth floor men's room. And the facilities have never looked better! Coincidence? I think not.

Thursday, May 22, 2008

Are you kidding me?

9:16 a.m. Potty blogger notices that the plunger has been returned. Rejoice!

11:15 a.m. The toilet is clogged. Plunger sits helplessly next to clogged toilet.

Men, the plunger is back...use it! Sheesh.

Seriously, how does one clog a toilet, watch it nearly overflow and then blithely walk out of the stall? Grab the plunger and clear the bowl!

Remember, our fair fifth floor men's room toilet has a finicky digestive system. We need to help it along when needed.

You're need to be like those scientists who feed the birds with the eye-dropper! The plunger is the cotton swab that you may need to gently nudge the seed town the bird's throat.

For those not clear on the rest of the metaphor: The toilet is the bird. Your butt is the eye-dropper.

The plunger is back!

Long live the plunger!

Tuesday, May 20, 2008

This place is a mess

Fifth floor men's room is a mess today.

First of all, the toilet bowl looks like a bad Jackson Pollock painting. I once again found myself surveying the scene and thinking, "How is that even possible?" One of our users is just built different...that's all there is to it.

But the area AROUND the toilet is a mess today. There's crumpled up paper on the floor. Used tissues stuck behind the handicap help-me-up bar. Wadded up paper towels. It's gross.

But in terms of leaving garbage on or near the toilet, I guess it could be worse. (Thanks to a regular reader for sending this link.)

Friday, May 9, 2008

Three-dot update

A recap of the last two weeks...

He who shall remain nameless made another appearance last week; still don't understand how he does it...

On Monday, men's room smelled like it had been doused in men's cologne; a strange but not unwelcome development considering the alternatives...

Still no sign of the plunger...

Looks like the "man's toilet paper" is gone for good...

why does fifth floor men's room need TWO pepto bismol pink hand soap despensers? Can we trade one for a plunger?...

A quick calculation shows that there is one toilet stall for every four female residents of the fifth floor but there is just one toilet stall for every 25 men...

Why is the location of the men's and ladies' rooms not consistent from floor to floor? On some floors the men's is on the right and on others it's on the left...

Why is there a lock on the outer door of the fifth floor men's room? Does anybody ever use it?....

Seriously, dude, get yourself checked...

Wednesday, April 23, 2008

Welcome, new readers

The Potty Blogger intern recently did a little "site specific offline promotion" of this blog -- those flyers in the restrooms -- and as a result, our page visits are through the roof! (Well, that's not entirely true, but truth is a relative thing on the Internet.)

We welcome our new readers. Leave a comment and make yourself known. What are your initial reactions to this blog? Valuable resource? Disgusting waste of time? Have a suggestion for a future topic? You tell us.

There is a rumor that a competing blog may be in the works--say "340brannan2ndfloorladiesroom.blogspot.com"--and potty blogger welcomes all additions to the 340 Brannan bathroom canon.

Just added the RSS feed (to the right) so you can now stay up to date on all new posts.

Wednesday, April 16, 2008

Seriously, we NEED a plunger

OK, this is ridiculous.

Yesterday, Potty Blogger came across a fairly typical scenario for fifth floor men's room: "the Easter basket was full of eggs." (Yes, that's a euphemism, but trust me, it's preferable to the stark truth.)

Anyhoo, there is STILL no plunger in the men's room. Potty Blogger had heard a rumor that the plunger had migrated to the fifth floor ladies' room (and really, who could blame it?) So, I asked a female colleague to go on a mission, search it out, and help me return it to its rightful place.

But after a thorough search (they have TWO stalls in there?!) the rogue plunger was nowhere to be found.

Building management, I appeal to you. This is a floor that needs a plunger. The suction power of 340 Brannan's fifth floor plumbing is equivalent to an asthmatic 6-year old girl sucking through a cocktail straw--it just doesn't do the job. Please, get us the equipment we require.

Monday, April 7, 2008

Venting about the venting

Notice a new sound in fifth floor men's room? That is the sound of the air fan working.

New? Yes. Apparently, rumor has it that during a recent visit from the building's HVAC specialist, he realized that the vent in fifth floor men's room had never been connected.

This explains A LOT.

It is now connected and operational. Potty blogger doubts this means an end to all orange and red alerts, but is hopeful that it will reduce the number.

Thursday, March 27, 2008

Bathroom miracle

The following post is from one this blog's lady correpondents:

I saw a rainbow yesterday morning. And while it's not as exciting as seeing Jesus' face in a pepperoni pizza, the fact that this rainbow was in the fifth floor women’s room--that’s right, the WOMEN'S ROOM--qualifies it as a minor miracle.

What made it especially meaningful was that the rainbow led directly to the newly purchased can of Lysol Disinfectant Spray (Professional Strength, of course) now situated in the "small stall."

I know that sometimes God works in mysterious ways; this time, I think he's being a little more direct.

Too much Easter candy

This has been a tough week, smell-wise, for fifth floor men's room.

On Monday, someone dropped a "three-senses bomb." (Named so because it assaulted three of the five senses.)

And, in an unfortunate coincidence, it was the same day that we ran out of Glade Air Infusions - Refreshing Springs. The offender could have maybe sought out a match or something...but no.

Crimes committed in fifth floor men's room fall into two categories. An "orange alert" is a crime that affects only the patrons of fifth floor men's room. A "red alert" is a crime that impacts visitors to the fifth floor as soon as the elevator doors open. Monday was a "red alert" day.

(Just FYI, a "double red" is an incident that affects multiple floors.)

Then yesterday, Wednesday, it seems that the offender hand not yet finished all the candy in his Easter basket, because he struck again. But after Monday's attack, potty blogger made sure the bathroom was stocked with Professional Strength Lysol (a hospital disinfectant-deodorant.) That was the difference between an "orange" and a "red" incident.

We must be vigilant, men. Take care of yourself. Eat well.

Friday, March 21, 2008

Limit your time in the saddle

A good reminder to all users of fifth floor men's room: limit your time in the saddle to under two years.

The memo comes down

About two weeks ago now, somebody finally took down the original potty blogger memo.

Frankly, it was time. I mean, a piece of paper taped to a wall next to a men's toilet really shouldn't be left there for four months. In some ways, the fact that it WAS pulled down is a testament to the strides that we, the users of the fifth floor men's room, have made since November.

Back in November, somebody probably could have left a decomposing body in the fifth floor men's room and nobody would have blinked. (Given some of the "work" guys were doing in there back then, I'm not sure anybody would have noticed.)

But we have banded together and demanded a higher standard of cleanliness. This is progress. I salute you, fellow users.

Tuesday, March 4, 2008

Day 29 and counting

Fifth floor men's room has now gone 29 days without a plunger.

We have TWO bottles of hand soap, but we can't get ONE plunger? I guess soap is nice and all, but trust me, fifth floor men's room needs a plunger MUCH more than hand soap. I'm just saying.

Wednesday, February 6, 2008

Who stole the plunger?

If there is one essential tool for fifth floor men's room, it is the plunger.

Who would steal it? Did someone take it back to their office? How did they sneak it out of the building? In their coat?

Perhaps it's absence is related to the "incident" in fifth floor LADIES room the other day. Potty Blogger is on the case...

Tuesday, February 5, 2008

One for the ladies

It's been a quiet couple of weeks in fifth floor men's room. Sure, the "How-The-Heck-Does-He-Do-That Bomber" struck again last week, but for the most part, we've had a run of good luck.

Yesterday, however, there were rumblings about an "event" in the fifth floor LADIES room. Apparently, one of the stalls (they have TWO stalls in there? Where do I sign up?) was "out of commission"...and not in a good way.

I have contacted several women who saw the crime scene, but none have been willing to go on the record as the official "lady correspondent" for this blog. Stay tuned.

Then this morning, Potty Blogger got on the elevator and...well, it smelled like fart. In what sort of topsy-turvey world do we live when fifth floor men's room is a refuge from the elevator? It's a world gone mad.

Friday, January 25, 2008

Top of the world, ma!

Google "340 Brannan."

We have arrived.

Friday, January 18, 2008

What the...!?

One of the challenges of writing this blog is to fully cover the topic without getting too scatological or vulgar. (It is a workplace, after all.)

But some of the scenarios presented by fifth floor men's room defy euphemism. I shall try my best...

Yesterday, one of the visitors to the business chamber did some work that I have a hard time wrapping my brain around. While he had clearly flushed and even lit a match (thank you!) there were still significant...remnants...three inches above the water line.

Three...inches...ABOVE...the water line.

I found myself thinking, where the hell is that guy's "exit?" Given my anatomy (which I assume to be standard issue) I would have to contort myself into some pretty interesting shapes to...paint on that portion of the canvas.

So I return to the original premise that caused me to start this blog: some of the men using 340 Brannan fifth floor men's room are NOT RIGHT. Get yourself checked, fellas.

Tuesday, January 15, 2008

New toilet paper

Anybody else notice the new toilet paper?

Instead of the quilted, flowery stuff, it has a more a modern, basket-weave texture.

I like it. It's easier to spin off the roll AND it's hearty--built for man-sized business. What more could you want?

Saturday, January 12, 2008

Feedback from a dedicated reader

One of our readers just posted this note "offline" (scribbled it on the original memo/manifesto that is still posted in fifth floor men's room):

I honestly thought this blog would get more traction…

Isn’t it ___________* that most blogs are about a bunch of boring crap and this blog is literally about ABOBC?

(*someone with imagination and a thesaurus fill in the blank.)

- A dedicated reader

First off, the staff here at 340brannan5thfloormensroom.blogspot.com wants to thank "dedicated reader" for his support of this blog from day one.

He is right. This is not MY blog...I am a servant of you, the people, helping put forth YOUR hopes and dreams for fifth floor men's room.

How would you fill in the blank above? Post your answer in the comments to this post.

Friday, January 11, 2008

Self-cleaning toilet seat

Users of fifth floor men's room, let us unite for a common purpose!

Let's come together and ask building management to install one of these self-cleaning toilet seats.

Monday, January 7, 2008

Making a contribution

Potty Blogger took measures into his own hands today.

I purchased a new can of air freshener for fifth floor men's room. It is Glade Air Infusions - Refreshing Springs.

One of the reasons that I selected it is because it uses UltraLast® technology to infuse the air with fragrance that lasts up to one hour.

The other reason is that it was on sale at Walgreens.

If it can truly make fifth floor men's room smell "inviting and fresh" (as claimed on its website) it really will have been worth the $1.99 I shelled out from my own pocket.

I have labeled the can too: "DO NOT REMOVE FROM FIFTH FLOOR MENS ROOM." Hopefully, the air freshener klepto that stole the last can has been apprehended.

Men, let us pledge together to use this miracle air infuser.

Thursday, January 3, 2008

Hopes dashed

So much for New Year's optimism.

"Somebody" has returned from holiday break with a vengeance and just left a late Christmas present in fifth floor men's room. The entire floor has been declared a bio-hazard area.

It's a little like closing the barn door after the horses are out, but I'm going to the store after work and purchasing a new can of spray for the men's room. Something must be done.

Wednesday, January 2, 2008

Happy New Year

A new year, a new beginning for fifth floor men's room.

As we return from the holiday break, the can of air freshener is gone (maybe Santa took it?) but I am still optimistic about this bathroom in 2008.

Men, let us resolve to flush. To spray. To care.