© irene waters 2014 New Zealand
Since I was a tiny child, or so my mother tells me, I have had a bathroom fetish. She tells me that as a child when we went to someone’s place for morning tea or a visit of any kind as soon as I had my foot in the door I was demanding to look at the bathroom. “You’ve just been Irene you don’t need to go again.”
“But mummy I want to look at the toilet.”
This embarrassing behaviour continued into my adult life with me carrying out surveys on way in which the toilet paper was hung. Do you hang so it goes over or under, is there a gender difference in the toilet roll hanging behaviour?
I read books on the history of toilets and friends gave me anything they could find regarding Thomas Crapper. Although he did not invent the flush toilet he certainly made the toilet popular and for this I was eternally grateful. The ballcock was his invention and having grown up in my early days with the pan and the stench of it I could certainly also see the value in this.
I have largely left my undesirable behaviour behind but I can’t resist on occasion snapping toilets and their surrounds that for some reason appeal to me. Such as the toilet we came across in a paddock in New Zealand. Unexpected but a welcome relief. I’m getting to old for the squatting behind a tree caper.
The Swiss toilet is the type that you would expect to see in Australia and seemed so totally out of place in the ordered setting of Switzerland.
The Swedish toilet – I just loved the flushing system. It was so different to that which we have in Australia and it always seemed to work unlike our Aussie models. The French toilet was in a camping ground that we stayed in. I found the toilets in the camping grounds so different from what I was used to as most of them are unisex. Not being used to showering with unknown men it was strange to walk out of the shower to have a conversation with an unknown man with shaving lather all over his face. The elevated aspect of these toilet blocks I also found quite intriguing.
Naturally our Australian models are totally normal taking advantage of the dual flushing system to conserve water. Though even here there is the odd delight.
© irene waters 2014
Australia
http://ceenphotography.com/2014/02/27/cees-odd-ball-photo-challenge-week-1/
Reflections and Nightmares- Irene A Waters (writer and memoirist) 
I absolutely love these photos!!! Thanks for playing!
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It was fun. Thanks for the new challenge Cee
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Man! – you are weird!!! [grin]
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Mmmmm 🙂
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Irene, You are so funny! I was wondering if your experiences in nursing informed your interests in elimination? I appreciate where you turn your camera to share the common, the unusual and the beautiful. Sue
womenlivinglifeafter50.com
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Thanks Sue. Maybe that was why I went into nursing??? No I think not. I was always very appreciative of my rhinitis taking away my sense of smell though.
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Thats one helluva toilet roll holder lol. Love it.
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It’s great isn’t it. Cheers Irene
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Pingback: Cee’s Odd Ball Photo Challenge: Week 2 | Cee's Photography
Congratulations!! You have been chosen as a featured blogger on my Odd Ball Challenge!
http://ceenphotography.com/2014/03/06/cees-odd-ball-photo-challenge-week-2/
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Thank you Cee. That is a real honour.
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Cangratulations on receiving Cee’s award. I can appreciate your interest in toilet. I once took a shot of the interior of a toilet in Yosemite National Park and my wife almost divorced me. She says she doesn’t understand me!
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I know what you mean spouses have no imagination at times but we know and appreciate how much diversity there is in the simple toilet. Ah… I should have used these perhaps for the Eses Shoot and Quote diversity challenge. Thanks for visiting. 🙂
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Pingback: 99 word flash fiction: Toilets | Reflections and Nightmares- Irene A Waters (writer and memoirist)
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