#BLACK LIVES MATTER
I was initially going to call this blog post “384 Trees” or “I Bidet Thee Farewell TP” or try to come up with something clever but given the current climate and situation, it only felt appropriate to say…BLACK LIVES MATTER. It has nothing to do with the topic of this blog post but everything to do with what is important and dire. It feels like it should just be thrown in and commented on wherever and whenever lest it fade into the collective wasteland of forgetfulness again and again and yet again until another horrific episode with no systemic change. I hope for change and healing.
There is no transition that feels appropriate so I won’t even try.
According to one statistic (the only one I could find so perhaps not accurate and don’t quote me on this), it takes about 384 trees to make the toilet paper that one man uses within his lifetime. Now multiply that by the amount of people that use toilet paper. Ouch. I had previously said that I would cover toilet paper and here we are. *This one is a bit longer and may be gross or TMI for some, so please note that you are warned and don’t read if you can’t tolerate mild (very mild) talk about bathroom and toileting behaviors.*
It seems that the panic-induced stockpiling of TP is not such an acute situation anymore but wow was it ever a “crisis” at the start of the pandemic. However, I still hear that it’s not always available wherever and whenever. TP is considered a dire necessity for some and although we may think that the majority of the world uses it, it actually doesn’t. A quick internet search indicates that anywhere from 70-75% of the world’s population doesn’t use it. I’m actually a little surprised by how high that number is. In the early days of the pandemic, it was the hottest commodity and the hardest thing to get. However, it is also true that many people made the realization that it’s not as necessary as previously thought as bidet sales skyrocketed. Most of us do not have, nor can afford, an actual proper bidet…as in an entire separate unit next to the toilet that is its own plumbing situation. But many people have/bought a toilet seat bidet. There are ones that easily connect to existing plumbing and then others that require some electrical work if you want the water slightly heated to avoid a cold shock. Then there are the hand bidets which also easily connect to existing plumbing. They are also generally cold. This is the kind I have.
I have pretty adaptable toileting behaviors due to a history and childhood of using outhouses, the natural forest, pots of water, and hand bidets. I’m generally not grossed out or disturbed by having to toilet without a flushing toilet or toilet paper. I know some people are though, so I know that this could be quite a sizeable learning and comfort curve. At some point, I personally realized that using water actually feels better and is way more hygienic. Once you get used to using water, paper just does not feel sufficient. I think most of us have heard that saying, “If you get poop on your hand, would you just wipe it off with toilet paper or would you use water to clean it?” So true, right?! And if you have kids you absolutely know how true this is. So about 10 years ago, after one of my trips to Indonesia (where they very often use pots of water or hand bidets), I got so used to it that I bought my first hand bidet as soon as I got home. Yes, I have gone through ups and downs of using it and not (mainly due to moving), but I think it is solidly here to stay and I much prefer it. It also came in VERY handy when I was cloth diapering (it’s not that easy to get poop off of cloth…I don’t know how people do it efficiently without one) AND it is great when you are menstruating to help with what can be a mess sometimes. I definitely vote for moving towards more bidet usage. And while I said I am pretty adaptable to toileting behaviors, I don’t think I would want to use the bare-hand-and-water method on a regular basis. I know people do it and some have no other options and when you wash with soap and water it is probably still more hygienic than toilet paper and I have done it when I have had to but…not my favorite. With bidets of any kind, you don’t have to worry about the hand part…unless you really want to. And since the beginning of the pandemic, I have only had to buy toilet paper twice. How nice is that? No TP panic in this house. But I have more than one bathroom and I have yet to get more than one bidet (ordering another) so I do still have TP in the house. Also, I am not going to force guests to use a bidet if they don’t feel comfortable so I will always have some available. So one more thing to check off the list as…good for the environment = good for the wallet.
But, but, butt…let’s talk a bit more about the How To. Do you wipe afterwards? Do you dry yourself? I know that this is a question that comes up. I have been in many situations where you are expected to use water but there is nothing for drying. Yes it can be a bit weird, but you can actually get used to it. But I, personally, like being able to dry a bit. So for my household, we use flannel wipes. They are actually the same wipes I still had from cloth diapering days. But if I didn’t have those, I would probably buy or make them because they work really well. They are essentially a one-ply flannel cloth. Theoretically, you clean yourself well with the bidet so the wipe is just used to dry. You are not actually wiping yourself as you do with TP; you are not getting poop or pee on the wipe…unless you didn’t clean yourself well enough. My household is yet to have that problem...I am telling you skeptics that bidets clean really well. For the setup, I made an IKEA-hack wiping station to hold the wipes and a bottle of air freshener and underneath is a bag for used wipes (see pic). I initially used a wet bag (again from cloth diapering days) but I wanted something more pleasing for the eye yet unassuming and also that could breathe…I didn’t want the moisture to turn the wipes funky as a wet bag does its job well and seals in the moisture. So I made a wipe bag out of a plain canvas bag and added a mesh “window” on the back for ventilation (see pics). Then I just put them in the laundry whenever it’s time. Since I have been switching over to cloth items in my household in general, I often can comprise a small load of unpaper towels, bamboo makeup remover pad, flannel wipes, and any other rags or towels or whites (since my cloth items are mainly white). I have in my mind to make some black flannel wipes that I would use when menstruating. It’s really just an aesthetic thing so that you can’t see any potential staining. While the wipes generally are used to dry and not clean, it can be a whole different story/mess when you are menstruating…ladies, you know what I mean.
As a final plug, for those that don’t already know this, bidets are considered beneficial for the following reasons:
Better personal hygiene and cleaning.
Reduce the impact you have on the environment.
Save money and reduce household waste.
Better skin care and more comfortable to use.
Reduce plumbing problems and prevent clogs.
Recommended for people with medical needs.