One of the stories my Aunt and my mother used to tell me went a little something like this:
On long road trips when we would stop at places to use the restroom, your mother and I would rate the restrooms. We would get little sheets of paper and rate the restrooms on presentability, cleanliness, functionality, and general atmosphere. After we finished critiquing the restrooms, we left the graded sheet of paper on the counter of the restroom in order to let the people of the restaurant or convenience store know how their restroom did on our rating sheet.
Well... sadly, I have never done this. But, I feel the need to alert everyone to the fact that the most interesting (and arguably, greatest) restrooms that I know of are located in the Museum of Science and Industry in downtown Chicago.
First let me grade the restroom on the scales that my aunt and mother used:
Presentability: B
The only reason that the presentability grade is a B is that the restroom was a little too futuristic for me. There was a little too much chrome everywhere and just black and white paint. If there was a little more thought put into the decorations, the grade would go way up. But I see that the main focus of this bathroom is functionality so I don't give it a C.
Cleanliness: A+++
With the solo waterless urinals (that bring me back to my high-school days), and the coolest hand-washing station I have ever seen the possibility of this bathroom becoming dirty is significantly less than a traditional bathroom. With hardly any liquid on the ground (courtesy of the crazy hand-washing station), the restroom looks spick and span. Now let me try to describe these "hand-washing stations." They are these large trough-like sinks that span about 3 feet long and are connected to each other to form a large row of "troughs." These metallic "troughs" are lined by a faux granite counter-top to mask the extra chrome of the sink. Now above the sinks are mirrors that act like medicine cabinets which holds the faucet and the soap dispenser AND the HAND DRYER! This contained allllll the liquid from the sink, IN THE SINK! The motion detected faucet, soap, and hand-dryer create this "hands free" hand-washing experience that defies all laws of nature. Did I mention that these were the kind of hand dryers that push the skin on your hand so hard that it creates a ripple like wave pattern of skin on your hand?
Functionality: A+
The way the walls are placed and how the sink is made, one can go into, use, wash their hands, and leave the restroom without touching anything in the restroom. WHAT A CONCEPT!
General atmosphere: A
I left this futuristic restroom with a satisfied feeling.
No... it was not like the normal satisfied feeling that I have when I leave any particular restroom.
I used the restroom in an environmentally friendly manner. I cleaned my hands using only a certain amount of water that the motion of my hands dictated. I used only my single allotted squirt of foamy soap to clean my hands (which was plenty). I had my hands blown dry by a super charged dryer that took less than 10 seconds (which is amazing if you have been dealing with poor hand-dryers in your dorm bathrooms). This was a great place for doing business. It was a quick, easy, clean process and that is why they get an A.
Thank you, Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago. You have shown me one of the coolest restrooms I will ever experience.
p.s. The toilet seats in the guglielmino athletics complex are the best at ND.
This has been the first, of many, "My Blog Rates."
Ideas for other things I can rate can be submitted through comments.
Happy Thanksgiving! (I now welcome Christmas music.)
