Life Women: Lean In and Poop at the Office, Already - Page 2

siberian khatru · 05-01-2013, 07:32 AM

http://nymag.com/thecut/2013/04/lean...e-already.html

Lean In and Poop at the Office, Already
BY MAUREEN O'CONNOR

Public restrooms induce a certain low-level anxiety in users. There are etiquettes to observe; puddles to dodge; sounds to ignore; dilemmas surrounding flushing. But the anxieties of the public restroom need not induce shame, because they are also universal. We are all at the mercy of public restrooms — supermodels, world leaders, regular gals. Shared toilets are equalizers. Sit or squat, we do it in solidarity.

Nonetheless, the Daily Beast's Laura Dimon (daughter of Jamie) reports that "the last office taboo for women" is "doing your business at work." Really?

[W]omen report going to different floors, or walking roundabout routes from their desk to the bathroom. And some say they’ve experienced the “standoff,” when two or more women are in the bathroom, but all decline to do their business until the others leave — instead waiting awkwardly, in silence, writhing in emotional and physical discomfort, until someone surrenders.

These anxieties are not exclusive to females. In seminal guide "How to Poop at Work," Brian Moylan, a man, also describes the "unspoken shitting toilet" phenomenon. Still, women are widely believed to experience greater pooping anxiety than men. Dimon continues with the sad story of one such woman:

Jill, 28, a Vancouver native now working at an insurance company in New York City, said that if she absolutely can’t avoid the act entirely, she lifts her feet off the ground and props them up against the side of the stall to avoid the “chance that the person next to me would recognize my shoes and forever hold in their heads that I was the girl” defecating in the ladies’ room.

How is that even possible? Wouldn't the angle and leverage be all wrong? I'm picturing Jill pooping like a ping-pong show. Her effort is unnecessary: Nobody peeks under the edge of a stall to identify a pooping woman by her shoes. Nobody. (Several Cut staffers note actively avoiding identifying details in that context.) If anything, Jill's actions are counterproductive: If I had reason to believe a woman was pooping in a contorted pretzel position like Jill's, I would stick around to ask for yoga tips. But back to Dimon:

The office environment takes this anxiety and kicks it up a notch. “The workplace still remains men’s space. Women may be more hypervigilant of not breaking rules of gender by monitoring their femininity even more,” [sociologist Samantha] Kwan says. Harvard anthropologist Kimberly Theidon agrees. “Office space is already pre-determined as a masculine space and women enter it,” she says, adding that there is a “long history of women trying to manage their bodies in their workplace,” and a struggle to not be identified with or associated solely with their bodies.

This logic doesn't make a lot of sense, because the workplace that requires a woman to poop right in front of a man is pretty rare. (Ally McBeal's co-ed bathroom notwithstanding.) But since Dimon managed to find a few neurotic females terrified to the point of contortion at the prospect of pooping at work, let's make sure we make this really clear: It is okay to poop at work. Nobody is judging you. Nobody cares. Nobody gives a shit about your shits — we're too busy shitting in our own stalls.

Go poop in your office bathrooms, everyone. It's what our feminist foremothers would have wanted. Every woman deserves a poop of her own.

(more poop links at the original)

Frosty · 05-01-2013, 08:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dayze

Hell, in boot camp, there were about 5 stalls. In front of those stalls was a wall that was about waist high. We would be told ‘ok, Port side, ‘Pump and Dump’” etc.
The port side of the barracks would single file line into the the head. The line would snake around the waist high walls and you’d line up in front of the toilet.
No doors.

No doors on the stalls when I was in Basic either. I'd get up at 2 am to take a shit.

Dayze · 05-01-2013, 08:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rausch

I'm out.

Have I ever mentioned that I'm ONLY an interwebs badass?

Interwebs ONLY...

lol

after shitting in front of another dude 4' away, I no longer have any issues poopping away from home base.

....standing in front of another dude whilst he's dumping is another story.

mikey23545 · 05-01-2013, 08:09 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by siberian khatru

http://nymag.com/thecut/2013/04/lean...e-already.html
[W]omen report going to different floors, or walking roundabout routes from their desk to the bathroom. And some say they’ve experienced the “standoff,” when two or more women are in the bathroom, but all decline to do their business until the others leave — instead waiting awkwardly, in silence, writhing in emotional and physical discomfort, until someone surrenders.

These anxieties are not exclusive to females. In seminal guide "How to Poop at Work," Brian Moylan, a man, also describes the "unspoken shitting toilet" phenomenon. Still, women are widely believed to experience greater pooping anxiety than men. Dimon continues with the sad story of one such woman:

Jill, 28, a Vancouver native now working at an insurance company in New York City, said that if she absolutely can’t avoid the act entirely, she lifts her feet off the ground and props them up against the side of the stall to avoid the “chance that the person next to me would recognize my shoes and forever hold in their heads that I was the girl” defecating in the ladies’ room.

(more poop links at the original)

And we let these citizens vote...

Dayze · 05-01-2013, 08:09 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Frosty

No doors on the stalls when I was in Basic either. I'd get up at 2 am to take a shit.

Yuuuuuuuuuuuuup.
Me too when possible.

...won't evern go into the shower process lol.

It was Navy boot camp, so I'll tee that one up for you guys.

**Rausch** · 05-01-2013, 08:13 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dayze

lol

after shitting in front of another dude 4' away, I no longer have any issues poopping away from home base.

....standing in front of another dude whilst he's dumping is another story.

I'm ok with killing a man.

I don't think I could push one out in public though.

Nope.

I've consulted with myself and I'm sure of it.

I'm a no-go on the public grunt-n-push...

05-01-2013, 08:13 AM

I'll poop in front of anybody. Don't care. It's the wiping that gets to me. I can't do that in front of anybody.

**luv** · 05-01-2013, 08:17 AM

There are five of us at work. Three male attorneys and two female support staff. One men's room and one ladies' room. Neither of us females are shy. Coffee works as a laxative of sorts on both of us, and we both drink it every morning. However, ours never smells like the men's do, and we have to walk past theirs to get to the break room. GAG!

Anyway, the story is complete BS.

**luv** · 05-01-2013, 08:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rausch

'Eh, on a side note, I hate public $#itting.

After my 6th grade year there was an "incident" and they removed all the $#itter doors.

Really?

Pissing is one thing but, really, come on, I need my alone squat time...

They're just looking forward to walking in on you.

tooge · 05-01-2013, 08:20 AM

When I poop in public, I try to make as big a splash as possible. I'm talkin the sound of dumping a sack of potatoes into a toilet while yelling out "mother of all that is not holy!"
Usually gets a chuckle or two, especially if I'm in the women's restroom.

Molitoth · 05-01-2013, 08:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Phobia

I'm glad my wife doesn't poop. That's disgusting.

**Rausch** · 05-01-2013, 08:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by luv

They're just looking forward to walking in on you.

Guy, if you want to gaze at my pecker it's cool. It's not much to dwell on. My wife will swear on it.

Hell, most of my weigh-in's in grade school were nude just so I could cut weight.

But squat time, man, that's when you need to go.

There are two times I want no man around: dumping or shooting a load...

**Dartgod** · 05-01-2013, 08:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by luv

However, ours never smells like the men's do, and we have to walk past theirs to get to the break room. GAG!

Riiiiight.

Dayze · 05-01-2013, 08:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rausch

I'm ok with killing a man.

I don't think I could push one out in public though.

Nope.

I've consulted with myself and I'm sure of it.

I'm a no-go on the public grunt-n-push...

and there was no talking allowed.

....just awkward silence, sans the occasional 'plop' into the water, muffled grunts, and farts (with great accoustics).

Good Times.

**Rausch** · 05-01-2013, 08:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Phobia

I'll poop in front of anybody. Don't care. It's the wiping that gets to me. I can't do that in front of anybody.

You are one sick, sick twisted ****...

**ptlyon** · 05-01-2013, 08:26 AM

"You've sunk my Battleshit!"

05-01-2013, 07:32 AM
siberian khatru 21st Century Schizoid Fan Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: The Gates of Delirium Casino cash: $2664950	Women: Lean In and Poop at the Office, Already http://nymag.com/thecut/2013/04/lean...e-already.html Lean In and Poop at the Office, Already BY MAUREEN O'CONNOR Public restrooms induce a certain low-level anxiety in users. There are etiquettes to observe; puddles to dodge; sounds to ignore; dilemmas surrounding flushing. But the anxieties of the public restroom need not induce shame, because they are also universal. We are all at the mercy of public restrooms — supermodels, world leaders, regular gals. Shared toilets are equalizers. Sit or squat, we do it in solidarity. Nonetheless, the Daily Beast's Laura Dimon (daughter of Jamie) reports that "the last office taboo for women" is "doing your business at work." Really? [W]omen report going to different floors, or walking roundabout routes from their desk to the bathroom. And some say they’ve experienced the “standoff,” when two or more women are in the bathroom, but all decline to do their business until the others leave — instead waiting awkwardly, in silence, writhing in emotional and physical discomfort, until someone surrenders. These anxieties are not exclusive to females. In seminal guide "How to Poop at Work," Brian Moylan, a man, also describes the "unspoken shitting toilet" phenomenon. Still, women are widely believed to experience greater pooping anxiety than men. Dimon continues with the sad story of one such woman: Jill, 28, a Vancouver native now working at an insurance company in New York City, said that if she absolutely can’t avoid the act entirely, she lifts her feet off the ground and props them up against the side of the stall to avoid the “chance that the person next to me would recognize my shoes and forever hold in their heads that I was the girl” defecating in the ladies’ room. How is that even possible? Wouldn't the angle and leverage be all wrong? I'm picturing Jill pooping like a ping-pong show. Her effort is unnecessary: Nobody peeks under the edge of a stall to identify a pooping woman by her shoes. Nobody. (Several Cut staffers note actively avoiding identifying details in that context.) If anything, Jill's actions are counterproductive: If I had reason to believe a woman was pooping in a contorted pretzel position like Jill's, I would stick around to ask for yoga tips. But back to Dimon: The office environment takes this anxiety and kicks it up a notch. “The workplace still remains men’s space. Women may be more hypervigilant of not breaking rules of gender by monitoring their femininity even more,” [sociologist Samantha] Kwan says. Harvard anthropologist Kimberly Theidon agrees. “Office space is already pre-determined as a masculine space and women enter it,” she says, adding that there is a “long history of women trying to manage their bodies in their workplace,” and a struggle to not be identified with or associated solely with their bodies. This logic doesn't make a lot of sense, because the workplace that requires a woman to poop right in front of a man is pretty rare. (Ally McBeal's co-ed bathroom notwithstanding.) But since Dimon managed to find a few neurotic females terrified to the point of contortion at the prospect of pooping at work, let's make sure we make this really clear: It is okay to poop at work. Nobody is judging you. Nobody cares. Nobody gives a shit about your shits — we're too busy shitting in our own stalls. Go poop in your office bathrooms, everyone. It's what our feminist foremothers would have wanted. Every woman deserves a poop of her own. (more poop links at the original)
Posts: 69,106

05-01-2013, 08:13 AM	#21
Phobia Guest Casino cash: $	I'll poop in front of anybody. Don't care. It's the wiping that gets to me. I can't do that in front of anybody.
Posts: n/a

05-01-2013, 08:17 AM	#22
luv MY LITTLE #15 Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Springfield, MO Casino cash: $6319600	There are five of us at work. Three male attorneys and two female support staff. One men's room and one ladies' room. Neither of us females are shy. Coffee works as a laxative of sorts on both of us, and we both drink it every morning. However, ours never smells like the men's do, and we have to walk past theirs to get to the break room. GAG! Anyway, the story is complete BS.
Posts: 63,424

05-01-2013, 08:20 AM	#24
tooge MVP Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Liberty, MO Casino cash: $4044112	When I poop in public, I try to make as big a splash as possible. I'm talkin the sound of dumping a sack of potatoes into a toilet while yelling out "mother of all that is not holy!" Usually gets a chuckle or two, especially if I'm in the women's restroom.
Posts: 14,949

05-01-2013, 08:26 AM	#30
ptlyon Bono & Grbac wasn't enough Join Date: Oct 2000 Location: Sioux City, IA Casino cash: $13203829	"You've sunk my Battleshit!" __________________ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Advertise here: $19.99 a month
Posts: 33,413

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