Pee on the seats

I have to admit that I was surprised by the response I got from one tiny email to my boss...

When I got back from FLETC I found that my women's restroom had been taken over by the guys. They'd made a sign to hang on the outside of the door warning that men were using my shower. That's right, mine. The guys have an identical shower in their men's restroom, but they wanted to use mine. Why? Because the men's restroom smells like pee. Of course they don't want to shower in there!

I was gone for 8 months and I guess they felt they could walk all over poor Tracey by invading the bathroom she was using. Imagine my surprise when I came back. I was a bit affronted and I asked Steve what was wrong with the men's shower? Steve explained that the guys who were showering didn't like rubbing elbows with all the men who'd come in to use the toilets and urinals. I could see Steve's point and I decided I didn't mind. They wanted privacy while they showered and with only two women to inconvenience it wasn't a big deal. I honestly didn't mind them using my shower. They don't get in my hair anyway, I work nights. The guys that shower are the dayshift, mostly. Except for the time Ed left the sign up long after he was done showering and I waited... and waited, it hasn't bothered me.

But the pee on the seats...

First I noticed that my bathroom smelled like pee. One day I walked in and my poor nose was assaulted by the rank smell of stale urine. With just two of us, the women's restroom doesn't see a lot of use. So when someone doesn't flush, it may sit there for several days. The water in this old building is kind of yellowish anyway, so it's hard to see pee in the bowl. But I could smell it and when I looked I could tell which toilet it was in. And there wasn't any toilet paper in there with it. So it wasn't Tracey and it wasn't me. Some man had peed in my toilet and hadn't flushed. Very rude, but I was willing to overlook it.

Then Tracey told me about finding pee on the toilet seats on several occasions. Not only that, but she'd brought in a bottle of cleaning stuff and it had been stolen from our bathroom. And the thief couldn't even be bothered to clean the toilet seats first!

Tracey wasn't going to complain, but I had no problem doing so. I wrote a polite email to my boss. I told him the guys using my shower is fine, but I'd like my toilets (I have three) to be left alone.

The very next time I saw my boss he told me that not only would no men be using my toilets, they wouldn't be using my shower anymore either. Not only that, a contractor was scheduled to come in and clean both restrooms. They've also earmarked some money for expansion of the men's room so the guys can have a little more room during the high traffic times.

Wow! All for a little pee on the seats! If they'd put the seats up before they peed, they'd still be merrily showering away in the women's room. I feel a little guilty to have caused a bigger reaction than I ever intended. However, I also think it's nice that they're going to all this trouble (the contractors even painted the stalls) so appease the women who work here. I guess that's the kind of thing bosses worry about. Not that I would know, but I think we've come a long way. I am very far from feeling that I am discriminated against in the workplace, in fact, I think they over-reacted. I wonder if it's just the Park Service? I'm not complaining, of course. The guys at work are much more disgusting than the two guys I share a bathroom with at home. And now that the women's shower is clean and free of man germs, I might just use it now and then after I work out. ;)