I’ve been a guy my whole life so I have not spent much time in the women’s restroom (though I cleaned them at my church growing up…women can definitely be messier than the fellas).
I can only speak for the men’s restroom on this one but it is the thing to write all over the walls. Growing up as a kid who had the urge to write and draw on anything I always wanted to get in on the graffiti action but never seemed to remember to carry a sharpie into the bathroom with me. Honestly, do these “graffiti artists” intentionally think, I may use a restroom today so I shall grab a black marker with which to write secrets and draw nastly pictures. Seriously. Is that not strange?
My friend Sean let me borrow this book PostSecret in which you find an actual collection of anonymous secrets which individuals have sent in to the author to be published. I believe that the motivation to mark up a bathroom stall is the same reason people send in their sectrets to the author of this book: They need to get it out.
For all of you dudes out there who have seen the bathroom art (and maybe have contributed to it yourself) you know exactly what I mean when I say that most of the stuff that you see in there are things which the author/artist would NEVER publically claim to. They let it out in the boysroom, however, simply because they can.
Here is a secret I found written in one restroom:
It reads: “I am not a virgin. I have had sex. I am 12″
What’s going through this kid’s mind? Is he torn up on the inside and this is a way in which he is dealing with it? Does he feel guilt? Does he want to confess it? Why does he confess it to the toilet paper dispenser and not his parents or, dare say, youth pastor?
Interesting stuff.
Maybe I’ll make this a little series, “Toilet Graffiti.” Tell you what, if you see any wall writings out there that interest you, send them to me and we’ll throw them up here and discuss it. Maybe…
2 Comments
May 20, 2008 at 5:54 pm
Hmm…
I’m not sure a blog dedicated to toilet graffiti would be an RSS feed I would subscribe to!
Another thought, what if the child was abused. Is he afraid to tell anyone so this is his way? Also, I wonder what the significance of the sqaure around 12 is.
May 22, 2008 at 1:05 am
no toilet graffiti RSS? you’re so prada.
The abuse idea isn’t one that popped in my mind but that could certainly be true. crying out for help.