Gary's Contribution, Guest Post

This is a photo of the urinal at a local business where my very good friend Vanessa's husband works. Thank you Gary and Vanessa for your support of my crazy bathroom blog. Very nice, clear photo, too, Gary. I really wasn't sure how to post this one or what to say about it. I had to think about it for a while. My blog was geared toward womens' restrooms up until this point. But this is a non-sexist blog! Mens' restrooms need love, too. And actually ladies, aren't you slightly curious about Mens' restrooms? Not since you were twelve? Yeah, me either, but now that we have the opportunity, if we have questions, lets get them out there! Here is my burning question: What kinds of things have my male blog viewers seen in the urinal that weren't necessarily supposed to be there? One of my first jobs out of high school was at a restaurant in Klamath Falls, The Lucky Steer. The staff all took turns with bathroom duty. In my experience cleaning the mens' restroom there, I noticed a few strange things in the urinal drain. Among these things were: a cigarette butt, a Lee press-on nail(how and why?), and (on more than one occasion) chew spit. Ew. These are things that you wouldn't typically find in the drain, basin, toilet or anywhere near a womens' restroom. Now this photo actually looks pretty decent. Not one scented urinal cake, but two! What's that green thing? Is it like a lint trap? Is there a problem with lint buildup in urinals? How do I rate this urinal? I guess it wouldn't be the tp roll system...maybe urinal cakes? On what basis? Something tells me a male's bathroom concerns differ somewhat from a female's. Probably more basic like, how cold the toilet seat is, how much pee is on the floor, etc. So since I cannot claim to be an expert on the preferences of the mens' restroom patrons, any advice is welcomed!

Chateaulin, Ashland, Oregon

This is the ladies' restroom at Chateaulin in Ashland, Oregon. Chateaulin is a fine dining French restaurant that has been around for quite some time. It is located in a very old building downtown, around the corner from the famous Oregon Shakespeare Festival. As a result of their location, they do alot of business during the tourist season. They have a very nice wait staff and delicious cuisine. I ordered bouillabaise and it was very good in a fishy, tentically sort of way. Some of my friends had a pastry mushroom dish that they said was filling and tasty. Another had an Ahi Tuna dish that apparently tasted as good as it looked. The wine was also delicious. The bathroom here was rather ordinary, though, except for a few nice touches that most women would appreciate. The decor did not stand out in anyway. This room could use a coat of fresh paint in a more interesting color than it's current "Ecru." The flooring was pretty outdated as well. I'd call it "institutional linoleum." The basin was a very pretty scalloped pedestal and there was a large mirror above the basin and a nice long shelf which housed a bottle of pomegranate lotion and a basket of potpourri. There is a hook on the door for your coat, purse, whatever. A 3 drawer wicker cabinet next to the toilet has some very useful items in it that all females everywhere would be grateful to see in a public "toilette." I will not mention the drawer items because I've included photos so that you may see for yourself. The room was a nice size for a "one seater." I would like to give props to my Dinner Club buddy, Danielle, for taking some additional photos of this restroom that I have included in this blog! In fact, thank you to all my Dinner Club friends for your interest in my new little blogging hobby! Your support means alot to me. All in all, I will give this restroom 2 1/2 rolls. 3/4 for cleanliness, 3/4 for decor, and 1 full roll for comfort. Merci beaucoup Chateaulin for a delicieux dining and powder room experience! Bon Appetit!

The Carriage House, Jacksonville, Oregon

This is a review of the restrooms in The Carriage House Restaurant in Jacksonville. I apologize for the poor image quality. I forgot my digital camera and had to use my camera phone.

:-( But what a place! The Carriage House is located adjacent to the historical Nunan House, aka, The Catalog House. This house is a mansion that was purchased out of a catalog(probably Sears) sometime around the turn of the century-ish. I'm not sure of the exact date but it was shipped in, plank by plank, via the railroad. It now serves as a B&B. Pretty interesting, huh? The restaurant used to be the storage/barn building. It was converted into a fine dining establishment not too long ago. It is a wonderful restaurant with exquisite food and excellent customer service. Our server was this super fun guy from New Jersey who we nick named "Fonzie." If you happen to find yourself dining at The Carriage House and being served by a cutie with an East coast accent, please give him a shout out from the Dinner Club Girls! Now, on to the bathrooms! This restaurant has 2 unisex restrooms. I, of course visited and took photos of both. And let me tell you, I looooooooooooved them! They were both virtually spotless. Beautiful floor tiles, gorgeous giant mirrors above the pedestal basins, warm paint tones on the walls and lovely artwork on the walls. Also some wall hangings with unique information about the local history. They had a special surprise which I have never encountered in a local restaurant that just made my day (believe me, it doesn't take much.) The simple pleasure of real, live, actual, cloth hand towels at my disposal! Wow! They were WARM and soft and absorbent and, and, and...hold on...I need to fan myself. Okay, I'm good. There was also a linen lined basket to toss your cloth hand towel into once you are finished with it. Obviously, you know where I am headed. These rooms definitely get 3 thumbs up, aka 3 full tp rolls! Perfect score for cleanliness, comfort, and looks! PS. As restaurant patrons we were welcomed by the staff to go check out the mansion. Very fun and interesting...and supposedly haunted...BOO!
Thanks for reading my posts! More to come soon....

38 Central, Medford, Oregon

Greetings! I am back with yet another bathroom critique. This post is about the restroom at 38 Central, one of the finer restaurants in the Medford area. 38 Central is a fun restaurant with a full bar. The cuisine and drinks always exceed my expectations. If you get a chance, try their s'mores dessert. It is the bomb! And their bathroom is also top notch, as far as public restrooms go. It is a very charming powder room. It has a neat but deceiving door, as it has a frosted window in it. I wasn't sure I'd like using a public bathroom with a window in it, frosted or not, but once you are inside it feels and looks completely private and secure. We don't need our privates going public, thank you very much! This restroom is a one seater. It has beautiful tile flooring and a gorgeous basin and cabinet, matching the wicker chair and other furnishings in the room. Big kudos to 38 Central for including the rattan chair. Love the beautiful and large mirror above the basin. The basket of paper towels is nice because it is easy access and less messy that reaching across the room for a wall mounted papertowel dispenser. Not to mention much nicer looking. The high end hand soap and hand lotion are also a very nice touch. It is always thoughtful of a public establishment to include these extra touches. It shows that they have put some thought into the needs and wants of their female patrons. Very good business practice! This room was very clean and appeared to be well kept. The wall hangings are cool. I took a close up photo of one in particular because it reminded me of my friend Breeze. I am pretty sure she would like it, in fact she was probably the one quoted for this saying. It says, "It's never too late to be a cowgirl." Or a roller derby queen...For this restroom, I think 38 Central goes above and beyond. I award 3 rolls: 1 full roll for cleanliness, 1 full roll for comfort, and one full roll for aesthetics.

Cafe Dejeuner, Medford, Oregon

Cafe Dejeuner is the first restaurant that our dinner club met at in the history of our dinner club meetings! I hadn't conceived the idea of my bathroom blog until we were about 6 restaurants into the dinner club meetings. So, a couple great friends came with me last week on a "round about" in an effort to take photos of the restrooms I had missed. We were able to hit 3 places and had an absolute blast doing it. Thank you Vanessa & Katie! You are great sports. Okay, I have alot to say about this powder room. It is one of my faves for a few very important reasons. It is very nice and spacious, though it is only a one seater. There is a cute little bakers rack with plenty of shelf space for your purse(I know you needed to see my Juicy Couter bag that I have so graciously displayed for you here in a photo), your jacket, cell phone or whatever. There is a basket with a choice of 3 different scented lotions available. So accomodating! Then...there is the full length standing mirror...this is very important ladies...are you listening? This mirror is a skinny mirror! Uh-huh, you know what I'm talking about. We've all seen fat mirrors and can therefore appreciate a good skinny mirror when we come across one. If you need a self esteem boost, go check yourself out in this mirror! And as if that isn't enough to make us so happy we are suddenly compelled to tip the server double, they have gone and added a booty bonus! Yes, you read it right, a booty bonus. Let me explain. If you scroll up a bit you will notice a photo of me taking a photo of a mirror that reflects the full length mirror. This photo displays a view of the booty bonus: if you look in the mirror above the basin into the full length mirror you get a very flattering view of your tushy. Since I happen to be one of those girls who doesn't have a lot of junk in the trunk, you know, no bubble in back, not alot of heft in the hiney, no cushion for the...well, you get the idea. Anyway, this mirror enhances the bootylicious factor, baby! The only negative thing I can really say about this restroom is that the mauve wall color is a bit tired and needs to be put to bed along with the sad little heart shaped wicker wall hanging that they probably bought from my mom's yard sale back in 1987. Now for scoring: This restroom gets a full roll for cleanliness, a full roll for comfort, and 3/4 of a roll for aesthetics. Thanks Cafe Dejeuner for making such an inviting restroom available to your female patrons!

Elements Tapas Bar, Medford, Oregon

This post is of the restrooms at Elements Tapas Bar located in downtown Medford. That's tapas, not topless! Ha! Anyway, Elements is one of my favorite hang outs in Medford. They have great food, really fun atmosphere, and THE BEST Pomegranate Martini in town. I could swear they include a little complimentary roofie in my drinks on a regular basis. But that's another story for another time...Elements has really hit the mark when designing their restrooms. There are 2 unisex restrooms at Elements and they are cleverly designed with elements in mind. One is "Fire" & the other is "Water." Here is the sad thing: I have gone to Elements multiple times and just now, this minute, realized why one bathroom was red with volcanic accessories and a portrait of fire and the other has waves and bubbles painted on the walls. Elements, duh! Lets start with my favorite, Water. It is a very commodious commode, always clean and smells fresh, and has a very stylish basin shaped like a clear glass bowl. And when the water is running it is oddly phallic. Maybe that's just how my mind works...hmmm. The handpainted walls look like sea water and are a very nice touch. The ceilings are a bit low in the restrooms and kind of give you an "Alice down the rabbit hole" feeling, if you know what I mean. If you have had a couple or five Pomegranate Roofie Martinis this could be an issue. The Fire restroom is comfortable and has a warm feel to it. I noticed a pleasant cinnamony fragrance immediately. For some reason several orbs appear in my photos of this restroom. Since this isn't the haunted bathrooms blog, we will assume my camera lense just needed cleaned. I rebuke thee, freaky bathroom specters! Anyway, back on topic, I give the Water bathroom 3 tp rolls. It was clean, comfy, and very aesthetically pleasing. Fire gets 2 rolls. A half roll for comfort ( no place to set purse, etc) and half for cleanliness ( basin was clogged and floor was wet and messy), and a full roll for design. All in all, Elements is home of two of the most stylish, sexiest public restrooms in town.