Public Bathrooms are Gross

I may be a bit of a germaphobe. When I use a public washroom, I don't like to touch anything. I always use the paper towel to turn off the taps unless there is no paper towel available, in which case I shudder as I touch the taps with my clean hands. I know those taps aren't clean because I just turned them on with my unwashed hands!

I hate air dryers in public washrooms. Who knows who might have touched the power button? With what on their hands? I use my elbow to turn it on. Same thing for paper towel dispensers that have that stupid little lever you're supposed to push with your fingers: I push it with my elbow.

And don't expect me to touch the door to get out either. I use the paper towel here again. I refuse to touch the door with my freshly washed clean hands. I know that not everyone washes their hands after they use the toilet, and that's fine for them, but then they touched that door! So I'm not going to touch it. Yuck.

Where I work, we have "automatic" paper towel dispensers. They're not those cool electric ones, though. See picture? As long as the towel is hanging out, you don't have to touch anything. But often it isn't hanging out, and then you have to turn the thingy on the side to make it come out. I used to think these things were just glitchy, but then I saw someone actually lift up and tear on the towel, so they purposely left it not hanging out! Then I saw several other people do the same thing. Why would you do that?! Now I have to turn the thingy on the side, then wash my hands again before I can dry them!

I always always make sure to leave the towel hanging out for the next person. Courtesy, Golden Rule, good karma, you know?

On the bright side, I haven't gotten a flu shot in years, but haven't caught the flu. I must be doing something right. :)

What do you think? Am I a germaphobe?

The Other Washroom is Better

My husband likes to joke that public washrooms aren't fair because the men have only a hole in the floor for a toilet and only cold water in the sinks while the women have couches and lotions and a hottub. On the other hand, I've heard some women say that they've heard that men's washrooms are often cleaner than women's. Now, I once worked as a housekeeper at a summer camp, and I also worked at a McDonald's restaurant. In both of these jobs, I was required to clean all the bathrooms. In my experience, while the ladies' room isn't as nice as my husband jokes, it is usually a lot cleaner than the men's room. This is especially true when teenage or younger boys have been using it.

Have any of you had experience with both washrooms? What have you seen?