Observations about the differences between the women's room and the mens room

[Eva Marie]

So, now that I've had a chance to experience both restrooms here are some casual observations I've made about the restrooms in the building where I work.

1.  The ladies room smells a lot better. Guys - I don't know what you've been eating but judging from the chronic wall of horrible stench in your bathroom you might rethink that double bean enchilada and the beer.
2.  The ladies are much tidier. They even clean the water drips up from around the sink and that made me feel guilty so I've started to do that too. In the guys room there are huge lakes of water around each sink that no one ever cleans up - if you happen to lean up against the counter you risk soaking your pants.
3.  In the ladies room there are no used paper towels on the floor. In the guys room anywhere close to the trash can is good enough.
4.  The toilets are always flushed. In the men's room you sometimes find a "surprise" thoughtfully left by the previous occupant.
5.  Civility. People smile and talk to you in the ladies room instead of the strict rules of silence in force in the men's room.
6.  No toilet seats wet with pee. Enough said.

Of course I know that public restrooms are a completely different experience with lines and less tidiness and hovering. Still, it seems cleaner than what i've seen in the guys room.

What have you experienced?

Mods: Please move this if if is in the wrong place. Bathroom news didn't quite seem like the place for it.

[Danielle Emmalee]

I've gotta say I haven't found the same things as you.  There has been many toilets not flushed and pee on many seats, although probably for different reasons (not wanting to touch things in the washroom vs laziness/just not caring)

[Clhoe G]

Haha y'all need to see the ones at clubs broken seats, scribble on the walls n  it smells like spew       

[Jill F]

Shorter beer return line and nobody pisses in the sinks.

People try to bum tampons.

More tobacco smell, less pot.

Nothing to wade in.

Sorry, just came from Judas Priest show...

[Clhoe G]

Haha yeah I've herd some transgirls carry tampons around just Incase that happens, like lol I wouldn't, but no some people use em for tucking somehow.

[rosinstraya]

Fresh flowers in a vase?!

That surprised me.

[cathyrains]

I've found the state of bathrooms, both men and womens, varies greatly from country to country.

[Carrie Liz]

Here's the thing... in public women's rooms, no, they do tend to have a few of the same issues as public men's rooms... basically people trashing the place and not caring about cleaning up.

At work, though? A WORLD of difference. And yes to everything that you listed.

You don't want to know some of the s*** that I saw and heard going on in the men's rooms at work... namely people pooping at extremely loud volumes without giving a s*** about it, this constant smell of flatulence and stagnant pee lingering, pee splatter everywhere both in stalls and in urinals (I'm sorry, guys, but peeing standing up is freaking gross,) I've heard guys very clearly jerking off in the stalls, (again, they just seemed to completely not give a s*** who heard them,) toilets often not flushed... yeah... same deal.

The women's room at work, though? Aside from a very slight smell of feminine hygeine products, I've yet to have a single issue with unflushed toilets, pee anywhere, or unpleasant odors or noises that I really don't want to smell or hear. It's a completely different world.

[suzifrommd]

Actually, I've found about the same. There's grossness in ladies' as well as men's. Women do talk to each other more, but usually only when friends go in together.

[ImagineKate]

I once had to use the ladies at a remote site. Long story short, the men's was out of order and I really had to go.

I noted nearly everything you said except the social aspect because it was a single stall.

However at work, I've talked to people in the men's. Sometimes even with C level execs, reporters and on-air talent. There is a lot of the "just shut up and do your business" attitude though.

I also find it funny that a lot of guys in the mens would skip the urinals and head straight for the stalls, stand up and pee. We don't have dividers on the urinals, so maybe that's why. As for me, I don't really care what people see, but I usually go sit to pee anyway because I'm usually wearing panties and I don't want any comments.

[Beth Andrea]

Fresh flowers in a vase?!

That surprised me.

Yes! And pretty pictures on the wall. Someone obviously donated them (the company wouldn't, I'm sure LOL), but probably is akin to the "no socializing!" rule in the men's room...keep it utilatarian, in and out fast.

[Sydney_NYC]

Generally the women's rooms are cleaner and nicer. (Some malls both are equally dirty. For some reason malls seem to be the worst.) Some of the women's bathrooms in nicer establishments (like fancy restaurants, upscale department stores and even a Synagogue that our local PFLAG meeting is held in) have a lounge area with couches and end tables kind of like a lobby to the bathroom, sometimes with a separate counter and mirror for brushing hair, etc. You would never see anything like that in the mens room at the same establishments.

Some places my wife an I frequent, we frequented them prior to transitioning, so I've been in both at those places.

[JenLotus]

Yeah, I think the broader scope of that list applies chiefly to my work restrooms. The women's restrooms here even has a functional automatic freshener on the wall and two cans of air freshener that sit on the counter. It's a generally nicer experience.

It's such a blindingly nicer experience that I forgot entirely that men's restroom lacks air freshener. I was actually asked the other day by a male co-worker, who I also consider a friend,  if we actually don't use the restroom - there's no reek in the hallway near our restroom.
I replied "just push the little button on the auto air freshener."
He asks "what's the automatic air freshener?"
I reply "it's that little box thing over the generic tampon and pad dispens--oh."

Surprisingly enough, no it's not been that long since starting to work as myself. 4 months now? Time flies.

[JustASeq]

Meh....A toilet is a toilet and the restroom is a place that doesn't differ much based on which one it is in my opinion. The only thing about the ladies room that is comforting, is that there are more stalls instead of urinals and you are way less likely to have to deal with guys while peeing ...

[Pikachu]

I tend to avoid public restrooms altogether if it's at all possible, and I pretty much never leave home unless I have to, so I don't have much experience one way or the other. This thread has been very educational for me. I hope any women's restrooms I use in the future are clean and have air fresheners in them. It sounds nice.

[ImagineKate]

So today I had to retrieve my daughter from the ladies at a Mickey D's. My wife told me let her in and she knows what to do. Suuuuure.

She locks herself in the stall and doesn't come out, and starts to cry. . So I had to go in. I am not presenting female (came back from a meeting at the school). Screw it, I have to go get her. We went to the men's.

Anyway, I noticed that at least at that restaurant, the ladies was only slightly cleaner than the men's. The key difference was the urinal in the men's vs the extra stall in the ladies.

[Aewin]

I think those are decent general observations, though they don't always hold true (nothing does, obviously; not a knock on your comments). Around here the ladies rooms are as prone as the mens rooms to random puddles of water, paper towels and toilet paper everywhere, and "surprises" in the toilets. For me personally I prefer the silence of the mens room, but I've never been big on small talk, so that's very much up to individual preference!

[Amy1988]

So, now that I've had a chance to experience both restrooms here are some casual observations I've made about the restrooms in the building where I work.

1.  The ladies room smells a lot better. Guys - I don't know what you've been eating but judging from the chronic wall of horrible stench in your bathroom you might rethink that double bean enchilada and the beer.
2.  The ladies are much tidier. They even clean the water drips up from around the sink and that made me feel guilty so I've started to do that too. In the guys room there are huge lakes of water around each sink that no one ever cleans up - if you happen to lean up against the counter you risk soaking your pants.
3.  In the ladies room there are no used paper towels on the floor. In the guys room anywhere close to the trash can is good enough.
4.  The toilets are always flushed. In the men's room you sometimes find a "surprise" thoughtfully left by the previous occupant.
5.  Civility. People smile and talk to you in the ladies room instead of the strict rules of silence in force in the men's room.
6.  No toilet seats wet with pee. Enough said.

Of course I know that public restrooms are a completely different experience with lines and less tidiness and hovering. Still, it seems cleaner than what i've seen in the guys room.

What have you experienced?

Mods: Please move this if if is in the wrong place. Bathroom news didn't quite seem like the place for it.

Tampon dispenser and the little box in the stall.  I love the ladies room.  I can wash my hands without having stand next to some fat disgusting dude doing his business and getting most of it ok himself.

[mm]

Amy1988, the tampon dispensers and little boxes in the stall are fine if the dispenser actually have tampons in them when you need one and the girls put there used items in the boxes completely so you don't see the bloody parts hanging out and blood spots on the floor or sides of the boxes.  I have seen many clean and very dirty restrooms on both sides.

[mac1]

Meh....A toilet is a toilet and the restroom is a place that doesn't differ much based on which one it is in my opinion. The only thing about the ladies room that is comforting, is that there are more stalls instead of urinals and you are way less likely to have to deal with guys while peeing ...

The urinals are disgusting and I never liked standing that close to another guy with penises out.

Many small men's rooms have only one stall and you frequently find some guy camped out in there.  Also, the stalls in some men's rooms lack adequate privacy. It would be nice to have more stalls (and no urinals) available. Separate facilities are really not necessary. One large multi-user unisex room with adequately privacy would be better overall and would eliminate the need for additional stall rooms.