Bathroom Stall Confessions

Remember back in high school how you couldn’t walk into a school bathroom stall without seeing some sort of hand-written nonsense? Usually about how much school sucks or some eloquent thoughts on bathroom functions, usually accompanied by an expletive. I must admit, I was tempted more than once to add a line or two to the ever growing stall poetry, but refrained because, well, when I stopped to think about it, I thought it was just a silly, chicken way of vandalizing school property. I mean if you’re going to graffiti, go big or go home.

Anyway…

I figured that going to college would have me seeing an inverse relationship between graffiti and the student population, being that as the age and level of maturity of students at a state university is increased, the level of bathroom graffiti present would decrease to practically non-existent.

Yeah, not so much.

What did change, for the most part at least (there will always be people getting a laugh from excretory functions), was the content of the stall writings. Gone are the repetitive exclamations of school sucking, and surprisingly, even a good portion of the frequent swear words so common in a high school stall. What instead is most often found as one locks the stall door are words that could either be (and if  I were saying this out loud may be accompanied by air quotes) “uplifting,” or calls for a bump in self-confidence.

For example, I’ve seen, written at eye level, phrases along the lines of “You’re beautiful!” or “You can do it!” (As a quick side-note, I firmly believe we should all take a moment to giggle at the multitude of meanings that could be associated with the latter.)  And while words of encouragement are always appreciated, what I find more, shall we say, interesting, are the writings that, if serious, seem to be a call for an ego boost/a friend/etc. Many times I’ve seen “I feel so alone,” “Will it ever get better?” “*insert something about guys/love here.*”

Although it isn’t the time, or the place, being in the bathroom, reading these words just makes me want to give whoever wrote them a hug. After everyone has washed hands and whatnot, of course. But I suppose the anonymity could easily be cathartic, because in a way, you are talking about your problems to everyone who comes in and out of the restroom. So, buck up sad bathroom poets, because you aren’t alone, and it could very easily get better.

*Obvious Disclaimer: As a female, I have not ventured into the men’s room to do more research. So gentlemen, feel free to share any interesting tidbits found behind your side of the door.