Overheard at Work

[Basenji]

Before I got married, toilet paper was a cheaper alternative to tissue paper (I guess you pay extra to have them pre-cut the squares for you?).

Did they change the price for some reason after you got married?  Is there a marriage discount for Kleenex I never learned about?

When did toilet paper stop being tissue paper? I didn't get the memo. ; )

[shelivesthedream]

This is tissue paper: http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-lvgl0-xYNzM/TzguGbtgdxI/AAAAAAAAFq8/VDQHXAZi7NA/s1600/IMG_2880.JPG

It's what you use for crafts and wrapping presents nicely.

These are tissues: http://i.telegraph.co.uk/multimedia/archive/02049/tissue_2049564i.jpg

You blow your nose on them.

For quite some minutes I thought y'all used toilet paper as tissue paper...

[frugalnacho]

6-8 rolls of toilet paper, all premium branded. 

If they are using that much a week, just imagine what their food bills must be.

Maybe they have digestive issues?  I probably go through 4-6 rolls of tp per week just myself.  Maybe they are just wasteful, but how do you go through tp other than using it for it's designated purpose?

Before I got married, toilet paper was a cheaper alternative to tissue paper (I guess you pay extra to have them pre-cut the squares for you?).   Women also use it to wad up around tampons, possibly for makeup related things, etc. 

Anyways, how much do you poop?  1 roll per day implies like hourly pooping, right?

When I feel perfectly fine and normal, like 4-6 times per day.  If i'm having issues, maybe 10 or so. 

[Basenji]

LOL. Crazy English language.

Webster's has "tissue" as "a piece of soft absorbent tissue paper used especially as a handkerchief or for removing cosmetics."

Tissues, made of tissue paper, marketed in a colorful dispenser box are silly. We unroll some toilet paper to blow our noses. Or use a handkerchief.

[dragoncar]

Before I got married, toilet paper was a cheaper alternative to tissue paper (I guess you pay extra to have them pre-cut the squares for you?).

Did they change the price for some reason after you got married?  Is there a marriage discount for Kleenex I never learned about?

No, I was just informed that it is no longer an acceptable substitute

[Le Barbu]

Before I got married, toilet paper was a cheaper alternative to tissue paper (I guess you pay extra to have them pre-cut the squares for you?).

Did they change the price for some reason after you got married?  Is there a marriage discount for Kleenex I never learned about?

No, I was just informed that it is no longer an acceptable substitute

Before I got married, my own hand was a cheap alternative (I guess I didn't figured out the expensive collaterals)

[ohyonghao]

6-8 rolls of toilet paper, all premium branded. 

If they are using that much a week, just imagine what their food bills must be.

Maybe they have digestive issues?  I probably go through 4-6 rolls of tp per week just myself.  Maybe they are just wasteful, but how do you go through tp other than using it for it's designated purpose?

Before I got married, toilet paper was a cheaper alternative to tissue paper (I guess you pay extra to have them pre-cut the squares for you?).   Women also use it to wad up around tampons, possibly for makeup related things, etc. 

Anyways, how much do you poop?  1 roll per day implies like hourly pooping, right?

When I feel perfectly fine and normal, like 4-6 times per day.  If i'm having issues, maybe 10 or so.

With small kids, you can go through a load of TP if you don't set out the three-squares rule early on. Use three squares, wipe, fold in half, repeat. If there is still brown, get three more squares. Also, my first wife would grab the first square on the roll, then mummify her whole hand, tear it off the roll, wipe once, repeat.  I was forever buying TP and unclogging toilets. Technique matters as much as frequency!

I have a friend who does that too, we used to be roommates, but it would be for blowing his nose once.  He walks into the bathroom, wraps his hand around so there's no way he could get mucus on his hand, blows his nose, throws it in the toilet.  If he has to blow again, or wipe off whatever is left (for whatever reason he couldn't have folded it for that purpose), he rewraps his hand.  His Paper towel usage is similar, grabs three or for together, wipes one thing, throws away the bunch.

Now, to see how destructive this habit can be one day he was upstairs to take a shower in his house (now married with two kids), blows his nose with the bunch of toilet paper, throws it in the toilet and flushes, then goes to take a shower.  10 or 15 minutes later he feels cold water on his feet and finds that the wad of toilet paper had plugged his toilet and it has now flooded enough to come over the 3-4 inches of barrier for his shower and is making it's way down the walls, over the carpet, everywhere.  He had to file an insurance claim and get a lot of work done to his house.

His solution for this, though, was that he went and bought a toilet, I believe a Toto, that has youtube videos of being able to suck down tennis balls.

In contrast my wife and I go through maybe one roll of paper towels in a month, including hand washing all of our dishes and using paper towels to dry.  We get the style that are half sheets so you don't end up with more towel than you need.  We do have tissues in a box, but are equally as frugal with them.  Really, we buy a pack from Costco of each of them maybe once or twice a year.

[frugalnacho]

With small kids, you can go through a load of TP if you don't set out the three-squares rule early on. Use three squares, wipe, fold in half, repeat. If there is still brown, get three more squares. Also, my first wife would grab the first square on the roll, then mummify her whole hand, tear it off the roll, wipe once, repeat.  I was forever buying TP and unclogging toilets. Technique matters as much as frequency!

EDIT to add:  On days when I shit 10+ times, the consistency is not that of a normal shit, and the coverage area is not always that of a normal shit.  It could very well exceed the square area of 1.5 squares, and the tp penetration is more than 2 layers.  I try to exercise frugality in tp usage when applicable (and probably need to more than most), but some times it's just not practical.  Sometimes the only answer is a hot shower - but even then, if it's bad enough to require a shower, you can't go straight from the toilet to the shower.  You require at least a preliminary cleaning.

Probably TMI.

[beltim]

With small kids, you can go through a load of TP if you don't set out the three-squares rule early on. Use three squares, wipe, fold in half, repeat. If there is still brown, get three more squares. Also, my first wife would grab the first square on the roll, then mummify her whole hand, tear it off the roll, wipe once, repeat.  I was forever buying TP and unclogging toilets. Technique matters as much as frequency!

Maybe your nachos aren't so frugal after all.

;)

[frugalnacho]

FrugalNacho I agree, but that is not an every-poop experience, and if it is you should likely see a diet or health professional to help with that.

I dedicate this song to you: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vtq1XV6ZVOc

It's not an every-poop experience, but it's an almost every day experience.  I've been to multiple doctors and specialists and none of them know what's going on.  I'm not allergic to anything, and I have no known diseases.  I just poop a lot, and have stomach issues a lot.

Nachos tear me up about as much as anything else does, so I probably won't be giving them up.  Tonight is nacho night in fact.

[TravelJunkyQC]

A little background:
I gave my two-weeks notice a little over a week ago (I'm starting my last week today). I had initially decided to quit for personal reasons (throwing up on a Monday morning because my work is sucking the life out of me is a legit reason in my book), but in the week after my decision was made, before I gave my official notice, I received another super-exciting offer (which I have since happily accepted). The following conversation took place before I had signed the offer, however.

CW (50 year old warehouse supervisor): Do you have anything lined up?

Me: I have some options but nothing is official yet, I'll see.

CW: You're lucky you can allow yourself to do that since you have someone at home to pay for things. If I stopped working I would lose my house in a few months.

What I want to say: Your kids are out of the house, not on your dime, you don't pay alimony, you have a 2015 Jeep Cherokee in the parking lot, have been working for the past 25 years, and you would lose your house in a few months if you didn't get paid every two weeks?!?! I make less than you do and still have 4 years of living expenses put away. And by they way, my BF is starting his PhD and in NO WAY pays my living expenses. You can feel free to go f*** yourself for that assumption.*

What I said: Yeah, I'm lucky. «blank stare - please remove yourself from my office»

*My reaction may seem touchy here, but women and men are treated very differently in my office. Had I been a man, his reaction would have been more along the lines of «what will your partner do without your income?!» NOT «you can just live off your partner's income.»

[HairyUpperLip]

It's not an every-poop experience, but it's an almost every day experience.  I've been to multiple doctors and specialists and none of them know what's going on.  I'm not allergic to anything, and I have no known diseases.  I just poop a lot, and have stomach issues a lot.

Nachos tear me up about as much as anything else does, so I probably won't be giving them up.  Tonight is nacho night in fact.

Interesting, honestly.

I usually poop 2-3 times a day. Some days I can poop 4-5 times (but honestly if I just sat long enough does it count as one poop or two--- I just call it round 2 when I have to go again so soon)

I don't have any diseases either.

[coolistdude]

It's not an every-poop experience, but it's an almost every day experience.  I've been to multiple doctors and specialists and none of them know what's going on.  I'm not allergic to anything, and I have no known diseases.  I just poop a lot, and have stomach issues a lot.

Nachos tear me up about as much as anything else does, so I probably won't be giving them up.  Tonight is nacho night in fact.

Interesting, honestly.

I usually poop 2-3 times a day. Some days I can poop 4-5 times (but honestly if I just sat long enough does it count as one poop or two--- I just call it round 2 when I have to go again so soon)

I don't have any diseases either.

This is the first time I've seen poop foam.

[Clean Shaven]

This is the first time I've seen poop foam.

[HairyUpperLip]

This is the first time I've seen poop foam.

lol - there was a rate my poo website back in the day.

Maybe it's still up? I don't care to Google it from the work computer though.

[Jouer]

Before I got married, toilet paper was a cheaper alternative to tissue paper (I guess you pay extra to have them pre-cut the squares for you?).

Did they change the price for some reason after you got married?  Is there a marriage discount for Kleenex I never learned about?

No, I was just informed that it is no longer an acceptable substitute

I was provided the same information upon marriage as well.

[coolistdude]

This is the first time I've seen poop foam.

lol - there was a rate my poo website back in the day.

Maybe it's still up? I don't care to Google it from the work computer though.

There are just certain things you just don't Google, from work or anywhere.

[Hedge_87]

Before I got married, toilet paper was a cheaper alternative to tissue paper (I guess you pay extra to have them pre-cut the squares for you?).

Did they change the price for some reason after you got married?  Is there a marriage discount for Kleenex I never learned about?

No, I was just informed that it is no longer an acceptable substitute

I was provided the same information upon marriage as well.

Yep. When my girlfriend (now wife) first started staying over regularly, boxes of tissue paper magically started appearing in my house even though I had no idea where they came from. The one that still baffles me is the one on the back of toilet. It is literally 2 feet from a perfectly good roll of toilet paper. One could argue that toilet paper is actually superior to tissue paper since it is multi-purpose and designed to be flushed when you finish with it reducing the frequency of emptying waste baskets.

[ohyonghao]

Before I got married, toilet paper was a cheaper alternative to tissue paper (I guess you pay extra to have them pre-cut the squares for you?).

Did they change the price for some reason after you got married?  Is there a marriage discount for Kleenex I never learned about?

No, I was just informed that it is no longer an acceptable substitute

I was provided the same information upon marriage as well.

Yep. When my girlfriend (now wife) first started staying over regularly, boxes of tissue paper magically started appearing in my house even though I had no idea where they came from. The one that still baffles me is the one on the back of toilet. It is literally 2 feet from a perfectly good roll of toilet paper. One could argue that toilet paper is actually superior to tissue paper since it is multi-purpose and designed to be flushed when you finish with it reducing the frequency of emptying waste baskets.

Unless you're Asian, then it isn't suitable for flushing and goes in the waste basket which contents get emptied daily.  Source: 6 years of living in Taiwan.

There has been a general move towards flushing toilet paper, most public restrooms now work fine, but some businesses may have signs stating to not throw the toilet paper in the toilet.  I sometimes forget when I'm at my in-laws and throw it in anyway, which has caused problems, leading up to one point banning me from using their toilet :-D.

[zephyr911]

No, I was just informed that it is no longer an acceptable substitute

I was provided the same information upon marriage as well.

The tyrants you people marry!

[nanu]

No, I was just informed that it is no longer an acceptable substitute

I was provided the same information upon marriage as well.

The tyrants you people marry!

TP really isn't an acceptable substitute to Kleenex.
Then again, I personally have allergies and a year-round runny nose so using TP (or even low-quality Kleenex) makes my nose red and hurt quite a lot after a day or so.

[Giro]

A little background:
I gave my two-weeks notice a little over a week ago (I'm starting my last week today). I had initially decided to quit for personal reasons (throwing up on a Monday morning because my work is sucking the life out of me is a legit reason in my book), but in the week after my decision was made, before I gave my official notice, I received another super-exciting offer (which I have since happily accepted). The following conversation took place before I had signed the offer, however.

CW (50 year old warehouse supervisor): Do you have anything lined up?

Me: I have some options but nothing is official yet, I'll see.

CW: You're lucky you can allow yourself to do that since you have someone at home to pay for things. If I stopped working I would lose my house in a few months.

What I want to say: Your kids are out of the house, not on your dime, you don't pay alimony, you have a 2015 Jeep Cherokee in the parking lot, have been working for the past 25 years, and you would lose your house in a few months if you didn't get paid every two weeks?!?! I make less than you do and still have 4 years of living expenses put away. And by they way, my BF is starting his PhD and in NO WAY pays my living expenses. You can feel free to go f*** yourself for that assumption.*

What I said: Yeah, I'm lucky. «blank stare - please remove yourself from my office»

*My reaction may seem touchy here, but women and men are treated very differently in my office. Had I been a man, his reaction would have been more along the lines of «what will your partner do without your income?!» NOT «you can just live off your partner's income.»

Yep!  I've had people say very similar things to me and I was their boss!!  Ridiculous.  I saved ever penny of my retirement fund myself.  We just got married a few years ago.  He doesn't take care of me, hell I make more than he does.  It can be very annoying. 

[MgoSam]

A little background:
I gave my two-weeks notice a little over a week ago (I'm starting my last week today). I had initially decided to quit for personal reasons (throwing up on a Monday morning because my work is sucking the life out of me is a legit reason in my book), but in the week after my decision was made, before I gave my official notice, I received another super-exciting offer (which I have since happily accepted). The following conversation took place before I had signed the offer, however.

CW (50 year old warehouse supervisor): Do you have anything lined up?

Me: I have some options but nothing is official yet, I'll see.

CW: You're lucky you can allow yourself to do that since you have someone at home to pay for things. If I stopped working I would lose my house in a few months.

What I want to say: Your kids are out of the house, not on your dime, you don't pay alimony, you have a 2015 Jeep Cherokee in the parking lot, have been working for the past 25 years, and you would lose your house in a few months if you didn't get paid every two weeks?!?! I make less than you do and still have 4 years of living expenses put away. And by they way, my BF is starting his PhD and in NO WAY pays my living expenses. You can feel free to go f*** yourself for that assumption.*

What I said: Yeah, I'm lucky. «blank stare - please remove yourself from my office»

*My reaction may seem touchy here, but women and men are treated very differently in my office. Had I been a man, his reaction would have been more along the lines of «what will your partner do without your income?!» NOT «you can just live off your partner's income.»

Yep!  I've had people say very similar things to me and I was their boss!!  Ridiculous.  I saved ever penny of my retirement fund myself.  We just got married a few years ago.  He doesn't take care of me, hell I make more than he does.  It can be very annoying.

In your experience, have these comments been universally said by men, or have they also been said by women?

[Cressida]

CW: You're lucky you can allow yourself to do that since you have someone at home to pay for things.

Is there an emoticon for "are you fucking kidding me?"

In your experience, have these comments been universally said by men, or have they also been said by women?

Not sure why that matters?

[Megma]

No, I was just informed that it is no longer an acceptable substitute

I was provided the same information upon marriage as well.

The tyrants you people marry!

TP really isn't an acceptable substitute to Kleenex.
Then again, I personally have allergies and a year-round runny nose so using TP (or even low-quality Kleenex) makes my nose red and hurt quite a lot after a day or so.

Speaking as a female, buying Kleenex is a waste of time, to works just fine. Just have to say that since the wives seem to be dictating this purchase! I might buy actual Kleenex if I have a cold  requiring lots of tissues because it is softer and your nose does get sore over time but I'd have to have a bad enough cold that I went to the store for multiple illness related supplies.


Traveljunkyqc, I'm impressed you did not say anything to that rude comment. I'd have definitely said something snarky in response to that comment, especially if I was leaving already. Something like "yeah because this is the 1950s and I'm only working as a hobby until I get pregnant."

[MgoSam]

In your experience, have these comments been universally said by men, or have they also been said by women?

Not sure why that matters?

More curiosity than any practical purpose. My working life has been with small companies and little gossip or idle talk about personal life.

[nnls]

A little background:
I gave my two-weeks notice a little over a week ago (I'm starting my last week today). I had initially decided to quit for personal reasons (throwing up on a Monday morning because my work is sucking the life out of me is a legit reason in my book), but in the week after my decision was made, before I gave my official notice, I received another super-exciting offer (which I have since happily accepted). The following conversation took place before I had signed the offer, however.

CW (50 year old warehouse supervisor): Do you have anything lined up?

Me: I have some options but nothing is official yet, I'll see.

CW: You're lucky you can allow yourself to do that since you have someone at home to pay for things. If I stopped working I would lose my house in a few months.

What I want to say: Your kids are out of the house, not on your dime, you don't pay alimony, you have a 2015 Jeep Cherokee in the parking lot, have been working for the past 25 years, and you would lose your house in a few months if you didn't get paid every two weeks?!?! I make less than you do and still have 4 years of living expenses put away. And by they way, my BF is starting his PhD and in NO WAY pays my living expenses. You can feel free to go f*** yourself for that assumption.*

What I said: Yeah, I'm lucky. «blank stare - please remove yourself from my office»

*My reaction may seem touchy here, but women and men are treated very differently in my office. Had I been a man, his reaction would have been more along the lines of «what will your partner do without your income?!» NOT «you can just live off your partner's income.»

Yep!  I've had people say very similar things to me and I was their boss!!  Ridiculous.  I saved ever penny of my retirement fund myself.  We just got married a few years ago.  He doesn't take care of me, hell I make more than he does.  It can be very annoying.

I would have got very annoyed, I am not sure I would have been able to hold my tongue like you did

[Goldielocks]

I think I would have laughed out loud when he said it....

[JustTrying]

All the chat of TSPs reminded me of this: When I started a job with the government, the HR person was reviewing TSP options with us. She then told us that she had just realized a few months prior to our training that all of her TSP savings were set to essentially go to a savings account, she hadn't set them to invest anything at all! She was pretty upset about it, realizing that none of her money was growing during her 5+ years working for the government. This was before I had any inkling of early retirement, and was my first job after graduate school, and I still remember being horrified thinking, "If the HR person made a mistake like that, who is supposed to answer my questions about the TSP???" I knew I'd have to figure out a way to get answers to TSP questions on my own, because the person paid to help had no clue.

RE: the TP/Poop foam: I'm with frugalnacho. It's just me and my spouse and we go through 3-4 TP rolls per week. I poop at least 5x/day but often more, plus I stay well-hydrated so I pee a lot too. I have seen physicians about the pooping, and they've either been completely unconcerned about it, or suggested that I take immodium if I'm going to be somewhere where in would be difficult to get to a restroom. In other words: Pooping excessively is just my norm, and the docs don't care. My husband used to get upset about my excessive TP use, but as he lived with me more he realized that it's nothing to with me being wasteful and a lot to do with my wacky GI system.

[agent_clone]

With small kids, you can go through a load of TP if you don't set out the three-squares rule early on. Use three squares, wipe, fold in half, repeat. If there is still brown, get three more squares. Also, my first wife would grab the first square on the roll, then mummify her whole hand, tear it off the roll, wipe once, repeat.  I was forever buying TP and unclogging toilets. Technique matters as much as frequency!

EDIT to add:  On days when I shit 10+ times, the consistency is not that of a normal shit, and the coverage area is not always that of a normal shit.  It could very well exceed the square area of 1.5 squares, and the tp penetration is more than 2 layers.  I try to exercise frugality in tp usage when applicable (and probably need to more than most), but some times it's just not practical.  Sometimes the only answer is a hot shower - but even then, if it's bad enough to require a shower, you can't go straight from the toilet to the shower.  You require at least a preliminary cleaning.

Probably TMI.

Have you considered adding bidet functionality to your toilet?  It may help with cleaning (not sure how much area of effect they have though).

[shelivesthedream]

FrugalNacho I agree, but that is not an every-poop experience, and if it is you should likely see a diet or health professional to help with that.

I dedicate this song to you: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vtq1XV6ZVOc

It's not an every-poop experience, but it's an almost every day experience.  I've been to multiple doctors and specialists and none of them know what's going on.  I'm not allergic to anything, and I have no known diseases.  I just poop a lot, and have stomach issues a lot.

Nachos tear me up about as much as anything else does, so I probably won't be giving them up.  Tonight is nacho night in fact.

I promise not to bang on about this, but if you do want to try something, check out the FODMAPS plan. Three months of eliminating all potential trouble foods (which contain certain compounds that can cause mild to severe GI issues) and reintroducing them one at a time, and my life (and bowels) has changed forever. I can't eat onions or garlic but I almost poop like a normal person!

[theadvicist]

I promise not to bang on about this, but if you do want to try something, check out the FODMAPS plan. Three months of eliminating all potential trouble foods (which contain certain compounds that can cause mild to severe GI issues) and reintroducing them one at a time, and my life (and bowels) has changed forever. I can't eat onions or garlic but I almost poop like a normal person!

I will only mention it once too, but this: http://www.tmswiki.org/ppd/An_Introduction_to_Tension_Myositis_Syndrome_(TMS) sorted out my myriad and long-standing (10+ years) GI issues for good.

[LennStar]

Speaking as a female, buying Kleenex is a waste of time, to works just fine.
I might buy actual Kleenex if I have a cold  requiring lots of tissues because it is softer and your nose does get sore over time

Lady, you are still doing it wrong.
The one or two free packages of Kleenex (if they are build the same as our german Taschentücher) you get at the apothecary are for emergency on-the-road usage and last the whole year or even longer.
For all uses at home ESPECIALLY for a flu you use the paper for wiping your face clean of cosmetics etc. (german Kosmetiktücher)
It is way cheaper and way more softer (flu nose will say thank you) then kleenex. And easier to dispose without touching the stuff.


Speaking as a male who poops only one or twice a day my toilet paper rolls last for longer then a month.

[GuitarStv]

Speaking as a female, buying Kleenex is a waste of time, to works just fine.
I might buy actual Kleenex if I have a cold  requiring lots of tissues because it is softer and your nose does get sore over time

Lady, you are still doing it wrong.
The one or two free packages of Kleenex (if they are build the same as our german Taschentücher) you get at the apothecary are for emergency on-the-road usage and last the whole year or even longer.
For all uses at home ESPECIALLY for a flu you use the paper for wiping your face clean of cosmetics etc. (german Kosmetiktücher)
It is way cheaper and way more softer (flu nose will say thank you) then kleenex. And easier to dispose without touching the stuff.


Speaking as a male who poops only one or twice a day my toilet paper rolls last for longer then a month.

If your nose is getting sore, you're using the tissue wrong . . . regardless of Kleenex or TP.  Take your right finger and place it against your right nostril, pushing it towards the nose until it's blocked.  Blow hard into tissue held below the nose.  Repeat on the left side.  Gently dab the nose once to remove excess in extreme cases.

Now you know how to blow your nose properly.  This technique works fine with burlap, I think you'll be OK with TP.

[Malaysia41]

A little background:
I gave my two-weeks notice a little over a week ago (I'm starting my last week today). I had initially decided to quit for personal reasons (throwing up on a Monday morning because my work is sucking the life out of me is a legit reason in my book), but in the week after my decision was made, before I gave my official notice, I received another super-exciting offer (which I have since happily accepted). The following conversation took place before I had signed the offer, however.

CW (50 year old warehouse supervisor): Do you have anything lined up?

Me: I have some options but nothing is official yet, I'll see.

CW: You're lucky you can allow yourself to do that since you have someone at home to pay for things. If I stopped working I would lose my house in a few months.

What I want to say: Your kids are out of the house, not on your dime, you don't pay alimony, you have a 2015 Jeep Cherokee in the parking lot, have been working for the past 25 years, and you would lose your house in a few months if you didn't get paid every two weeks?!?! I make less than you do and still have 4 years of living expenses put away. And by they way, my BF is starting his PhD and in NO WAY pays my living expenses. You can feel free to go f*** yourself for that assumption.*

What I said: Yeah, I'm lucky. «blank stare - please remove yourself from my office»

*My reaction may seem touchy here, but women and men are treated very differently in my office. Had I been a man, his reaction would have been more along the lines of «what will your partner do without your income?!» NOT «you can just live off your partner's income.»

Wow I sure had to wade through a lot of shit to get to this on-topic comment.

Next time - please don't hold back. No need for profanity, but maybe let the guy know that you pay for yourself and have 4 years of living expenses lined up. That dickhead needs to know.

Carry on, you lil turds.

[JordanOfGilead]

The amount of TP you guys go through is insane. I poop 3-4 times a day and my wife and I still only use 2, maybe 3 rolls a week. (The trick is to poop at work).
And when DW and I were dating in college and she moved in with me, she asked where my tissues were one day and I told her "I just use toilet paper. It's cheaper and softer than all but the expensive brands of tissues" and she shrugged and went into the bathroom to blow her nose. End of discussion.

[TravelJunkyQC]

To answer the various questions/comments:
- Comments and behaviour like this are actually rather split between men and women. I've never had a woman here at my office actually make a comment directly like this to me, but as an office with 75% women, most of whom are between 22 and 35, it actually IS almost like «well, I'm just going to get pregnant anyway». The higher ups don't exactly treat us like respected professionals (THE reason I'm leaving), so it's sort of a cyclical problem (I was considered «aggressive» because I asked for a raise to go with my promotion...).
- I held my tongue because I could care less what he thinks, and because I don't see the point in trying to educate someone who doesn't want to be. He's a nice person, he just has a very archaic mentality. This is unfortunately very commen in Québec City (or the province in general), where almost everyone is white and Catholic and has never stepped outside his or her own province (this is not a jab at white or Catholics, but rather a jab at cultural homogeneity).
- I've tried to speak to those my own age here about finances (when they asked), but even with the social structure and free or almost-free education and health services, nobody seems to think getting ahead is possible. The fact that my BF and I spend 50% of what we make baffles my colleagues. «But we make so little?!?!» they say (which is true, we are severely underpaid for what we do, see my first point), but we're still almost all at or above Quebec's average. I've stopped trying.

Side note of celebration: My new work will be 25% work from home, with a bunch of programmers and developers (science and tech people are my spirit animals), mostly young, who all either bike to work (which I will now be able to do) or take 1.5 hr lunches to bike around the river, no time-sheets, with a «as long as you get your work done well and efficiently, we don't care when you're in the office», who have been known to shut the office on slow afternoons to go mountain biking when the whether is nice. During my second interview I was told that I was going to show everyone how to rock-climb and they would show me how to mountain bike. I'm psyched!

[Kashmani]

Speaking as a female, buying Kleenex is a waste of time, to works just fine.
I might buy actual Kleenex if I have a cold  requiring lots of tissues because it is softer and your nose does get sore over time

Lady, you are still doing it wrong.
The one or two free packages of Kleenex (if they are build the same as our german Taschentücher) you get at the apothecary are for emergency on-the-road usage and last the whole year or even longer.
For all uses at home ESPECIALLY for a flu you use the paper for wiping your face clean of cosmetics etc. (german Kosmetiktücher)
It is way cheaper and way more softer (flu nose will say thank you) then kleenex. And easier to dispose without touching the stuff.


Speaking as a male who poops only one or twice a day my toilet paper rolls last for longer then a month.

Alas, 3-layer Taschentücher do not exist in North America. In the days when I still visited relatives in Europe twice a year, I always come back with all my shoes and any items with cavities being stuffed with packages of Solo Talent. Now that I don't travel anymore, I have acquiesced to using Kleenex or the no-name knockoffs and wiping the fibers and snot off my shirt afterwards after the thing disintegrates under my forceful gale. But the last time I was in Europe two years ago I almost cried as blew my nose in a beautifully constructed Zewa Softi. They are a marvel of rhinal engineering.

[Ebrat]

No, I was just informed that it is no longer an acceptable substitute

I was provided the same information upon marriage as well.

The tyrants you people marry!

TP really isn't an acceptable substitute to Kleenex.
Then again, I personally have allergies and a year-round runny nose so using TP (or even low-quality Kleenex) makes my nose red and hurt quite a lot after a day or so.

Speaking as a female, buying Kleenex is a waste of time, to works just fine. Just have to say that since the wives seem to be dictating this purchase! I might buy actual Kleenex if I have a cold  requiring lots of tissues because it is softer and your nose does get sore over time but I'd have to have a bad enough cold that I went to the store for multiple illness related supplies.


Traveljunkyqc, I'm impressed you did not say anything to that rude comment. I'd have definitely said something snarky in response to that comment, especially if I was leaving already. Something like "yeah because this is the 1950s and I'm only working as a hobby until I get pregnant."

I'm female, and my husband insists on buying Kleenex.  I'll admit it's nice when I have a cold or allergies.  But otherwise I just use TP.

[frugalnacho]

I also use tp for blowing my nose, which I have to do about 10 times after every shower, and occasionally throughout the day.  I find kleenex are too large, I need to tear them in half.  If I have a cold/flu I prefer kleenex so my nose doesn't get raw, but for normal day to day operations tp is fine.  My wife insists on buying kleenex though.  She uses about 95% of the kleenex. The damn dog eats the other 5%.  No idea what it is about loose kleenex and napkins but my dog will eat them every chance she gets.

[dragoncar]

The Kleenex has an advantage that if you need to keep it out for some reason, say on the kitchen counter, it looks nicer to guests than a roll of TP.  Maybe there's a market for decorative TP holders that dispense it upwards and slice it when you pull out a certain amount. 

[frugalnacho]

The Kleenex has an advantage that if you need to keep it out for some reason, say on the kitchen counter, it looks nicer to guests than a roll of TP.  Maybe there's a market for decorative TP holders that dispense it upwards and slice it when you pull out a certain amount.

I make my guests go to the bathroom to blow their nose.

[Hedge_87]

The Kleenex has an advantage that if you need to keep it out for some reason, say on the kitchen counter, it looks nicer to guests than a roll of TP.  Maybe there's a market for decorative TP holders that dispense it upwards and slice it when you pull out a certain amount.

with voice activation. every time you pull one that says "Gesundheit".

[Pooperman]

The Kleenex has an advantage that if you need to keep it out for some reason, say on the kitchen counter, it looks nicer to guests than a roll of TP.  Maybe there's a market for decorative TP holders that dispense it upwards and slice it when you pull out a certain amount.

That was the first thought I had when then whole TP vs TB (tissue box) came up. They do exist but not to the same quality/usefulness that one would like.

[TheGrimSqueaker]

The Kleenex has an advantage that if you need to keep it out for some reason, say on the kitchen counter, it looks nicer to guests than a roll of TP.  Maybe there's a market for decorative TP holders that dispense it upwards and slice it when you pull out a certain amount.

Until someone's TP-attacking cat, child, or spouse sticks a paw into the dispenser and gets it sliced off.

[Hedge_87]

The Kleenex has an advantage that if you need to keep it out for some reason, say on the kitchen counter, it looks nicer to guests than a roll of TP.  Maybe there's a market for decorative TP holders that dispense it upwards and slice it when you pull out a certain amount.

Until someone's TP-attacking cat, child, or spouse sticks a paw into the dispenser and gets it sliced off.

bet they only do it once

[JLee]

But all 'highway miles' so that makes it OK, right???   :)

lol - I love when I see a car for sale in any major city - ALL HIGHWAY MILES.

ooooh so the car spent it's life in stop and go traffic and constantly idling so there is probably way more wear and tear than the miles actually indicate.... lol

Highway miles generally indicate much less wear. Most highways in the US aren't gridlocked.

[JordanOfGilead]

The Kleenex has an advantage that if you need to keep it out for some reason, say on the kitchen counter, it looks nicer to guests than a roll of TP.  Maybe there's a market for decorative TP holders that dispense it upwards and slice it when you pull out a certain amount.

Until someone's TP-attacking cat, child, or spouse sticks a paw into the dispenser and gets it sliced off.

The simple solution to this would be a clamp that grabs the paper firmly enough to tear it when you pull, but not tight enough to hurt anybody.

[frugalnacho]

I was serious about sending my guests to the bathroom to blow their nose.  I don't want any type of dispenser (TP or kleenex) on my counter.  Don't do that in my kitchen.  Or my living room. Seriously, go to the fucking bathroom to do that shit, and wash your hands when you are done.

[APowers]

This is tissue paper: http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-lvgl0-xYNzM/TzguGbtgdxI/AAAAAAAAFq8/VDQHXAZi7NA/s1600/IMG_2880.JPG

It's what you use for crafts and wrapping presents nicely.

These are tissues: http://i.telegraph.co.uk/multimedia/archive/02049/tissue_2049564i.jpg

You blow your nose on them.

For quite some minutes I thought y'all used toilet paper as tissue paper...

I grew up using TP as tissue paper to keep birthday presents and such from rattling around in their boxes. So there's that. We also used it exclusively instead of kleenex-style tissues, and to this day I find Kleenex tissues to be too thin and yet oversized to really work most effectively.