The Belleview Bathroom Incident

I had to pee. I wasn’t going to make it to cousin Mike’s house, who lives in another town along our path to head home. We were in a shopping area and had been in Daiso for a while. I realized I needed to use the bathroom but they didn’t have one open to the public. Cousin Kat had to go to the sporting goods store find something for her mother. She also had to use the bathroom but I was pretty sure if I got out of the car I would need a short path to the toilet. I didn’t want to get all the way into the store only to have to book it back to the car because the bathroom was closed or not open to customers. It’s a movement issue. If I stay put, I can hold a little longer and hang in there on the superfast- almost run (I don’t run) waddle to the toilet. But…

Something has happened in our society. We don’t seem to care when others need to use the bathroom. I understand no one wants to clean up after a homeless person because they may or may not trash the facilities or use drugs. I understand covid has also made it so people don’t want to open bathrooms to the public. But when a person needs to pee. Let them fucking pee!

Anyway, so, we waited for Kat. She was fast. Things were beginning to get a little painful for me and she reported that the distance to the bathroom was far. So, I decided, I’ll just drive to the Starbucks just down the street. This Starbucks… firstly, since when do coffee shops close at 4pm on a Sunday afternoon? They all used to be open until at least 8 pm if not later. But I digress, I parked, I got out of the car and speed waddled my fat ass into the store. I was almost to the bathroom when the manager and an employee walked out. She said to me “I’m sorry we close at 4.” I was confused but brushed it off and said. “Okay, can I just use the bathroom really fast?” I had wallet in hand, was nicely dressed, looked clean and was planning to buy something for using their facilities. Her response, “no, we close at 4.”  And she was bitchy about it. I didn’t have time for it, so I hurried out of the store. The kid behind the counter called after me, “have a nice day”. 

But it gets better. I hurried over to the Mc. Donald’s except their lobby wasn’t open. So, then I hurried to Subway just a hop away. The employee let me get all the way to the bathrooms and never said a damn thing, let me see the sign he’d put up about the bathrooms being out of service. I actually turned around, glared at him and said “Are you fucking serious, this is the 3^rd damn place!” And now I was about to pee myself, it was getting really painful, and I booked it to my car and hurried to a gas station and guess what?! Their bathroom was closed for remodeling. By this time, I knew for sure if I got out of the car again, I was going to pee and wouldn’t be able to stop it. And I was in tears and trying to decide if it was better to get arrested for pissing in public behind a bush or pee the driver’s seat and sit in it for the 4-5 hour long drive home.

Selene suggested the little Grocery Outlet next to the gas station and I told her I wasn’t getting out of the car just to have to it closed and not make it. She went in to check for me and then I booked it into the store and finally, finally, I got to pee. I was still so upset about all the other places, all of them so close together, in a well to do area, that I didn’t say anything to the employees on the way out of Grocery Outlet. I’m probably going to write them a thank you letter. I know it’s not really necessary, but I really think they need to know how much I appreciated them having an open bathroom.

As for that Starbucks, they didn’t have their door locked and I literally walked into their lobby at 4. I know this because my car clock in a few minutes fast and when I got back in the car, my clock said 2 minutes after 4. They will not be getting a good review from me.  I know people don’t owe me shit and I am not running around with some self-imposed sense of entitlement. However, when you gotta go, you gotta go no matter who or what you are, and public bathrooms are public for a reason. And if you’re a willing paying customer, it’s a no brainer. Hell, I would have cleaned the damn bathroom after me, for them if they had let me use it. No, really, I would have and I would have been quick about it and still bought coffee or a muffin or something.  

Now, will this stop me from shopping at Starbucks? No, just that location.