Toilet Paper Memories

I once had a guest who used three rolls of toilet paper a day to my one a week. It is not that I begrudge toilet paper to my guests nor do I belong to the Sheryl Crow school of one-sheetness, but I never understood how anyone could use so much, considering they she was out most of the day.

The opposite extreme was an uncle once who explained how to use toilet paper frugally and even sat on the closed toilet seat to explain how much to tear off and he held the paper on his knee as he shared his wisdom and until he could put it back on top of the roll for the next person, a true non wasteful New England Yankee.

When I was in fourth grade, a friend of my mother’s went to Europe. She made a presentation to my class with slides of war-torn Europe, telling us how lucky we were to live in such a rich place (now the standards of living are reversed). She had a roll of French toilet paper that reminded us of cardboard. For years I heard that about how much better American toilet paper was than that the Europeans had to suffer with.

In the early 60s as a new bride, living in a room in Stuttgart, our landlords provided newspaper in place of toilet paper. Although we wanted to use American paper bought from the PX, the said it would clog the toilet. Needless to say the toilet was clogged enough with the newspaper. My husband and I located a new place to live as soon as we could find one.

In Geneva my housemate and I use toilet paper as is needed, but when I returned home this week I discovered she had purchased some of the most unusual toilet paper that I have ever seen. The back ground is small light, light grey pinpoints of colour with white daisies embossed. Laura Ashley easily could have been the designer, if she were still alive. The paper would work as well for a wall paper in a room with a few red accessories perhaps. We will continue to use it however, for the purpose it is intended, rather than for redecoration.

However, it is strange to think of the pleasure looking at pretty toilet paper can give as well as give rise to memories of toilet paper long gone into unnamed sewers.