Who wants to visit?

Toilet museum leaving Worcester after 20 years of flushing

WORCESTER, Mass.—Worcester's toilet museum is moving down the pipes.

After 20 years, the founder of the American Sanitary Plumbing Museum is turning over the collection of porcelain relics to the Plumbing-Heating-Cooling Contractors of Greater Boston.

In March, crews will crate up the museum's commodes, urinals, claw-foot bathtubs and plumbers tools to be shipped to Watertown, where a new museum should open in the spring.

Hugh Kelleher, executive director of the contractors association, says the Smithsonian offered to take the collection, but museum founder Russell Manoog, and his wife, Bettejane, wanted to keep it in New England.

The Manoogs have staffed the museum since 1988. Russell Manoog's father, who owned a plumbing supply business, started the collection when plumbers would give him old toilets.

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There is a new ad campaign for Charmin that has really gotten me thinking. The campaign focuses on trying to bring back customers who have "turned there back" on Charmin. How are they planning to do this? By having "stronger" toilet tissue. Some like it "soft" - and I guess others like it "strong."




My immediate reaction was, "Wow, I never buy Charmin because it is too soft. I wonder if this is as good as the stuff I use." I will admit - I like the cheap Scott toilet paper. It is almost like sandpaper. Wonderful.

If my marriage had not broken up for the obvious reasons, I think toilet paper would have done us in anyways. We needed two rolls in the bathroom. Charmin and Scott.

Why are we so serious about our toilet paper? It amazes me that almost subconsciously we all have such strong opinions about the type of paper that we use. I never really gave it a lot of thought until I saw the Charmin ads. I now know that I am not alone in my devotion to one type of toilet paper or another.

I hold very few strong opinions. Politics? Eh, who cares. Food? All great.

Toilet paper? Has to be Scott!

(How did toilet paper make that very elite list? (of which I can't think of anything else, but I know I must have some opinions.)

And this can only lead to one other very serious, very important discussion. Do you put your toilet paper on the roll hanging over or under?

(You may laugh at that one - when I am at your house next time, I will change it and see how quick you notice. It will be quick.)

The Toilet Trend

Imagine this: A woman at a bar is sipping a beer and tapping her foot to the music of a guitar player across the room. Two men come up to her on either side; both take out their cellphones. "Hi toiletmom. Wait til you see what we have," they both remark. All three giggle as pictures of toilets, urinals, sinks and faucets flash across their cellphone screens.

Another gentleman, seeing the commotion and knowing the three participants, grins sheepishly. His slightly confused expression says it all. "Well, I never knew about this pick-up line. All I need to do is show pictures of urinals?"

No way, mister. These are more than just pictures. 1) They are Kohlers. 2) They all have a story.

A light dawns in his eyes. After excusing himself to use the men's room, he returns triumphantly, holding his phone up. "This bar has Kohler toilets!"

Welcome to the club.

Well, toilet mom is finally going to join the club. I now have my own picture of a Kohler toilet in a public place. (I do not have a picture phone; mine are on my camera.)

I was with my mom and Isabel at Jordan's furniture when Isabel needed to use the bathroom. (No surprise there - I think she is on a mission to "go" everywhere we go.) We walked into this gorgeous bathroom and I could just feel it in my blood. This bathroom is big - it is beautiful - nothing would do but a Kohler.

And there it was in all its glory. My Kohler toilet. I left Isabel in one stall so I could go into the other and snap a picture. Then I took another picture to ensure that I had the angle right - this is important!

When Isabel was done, she needed help washing her hands. Behold! A Kohler sink as well! I was very excited to see this and snapped several pictures. A close-up of one sink, zoomed out to get the whole row.

What a find!

Once I can find the thing to upload pics, they will be posted to one of my favorite blogs:

http://kohlersitings.blogspot.com/

(No, I do not run this site! Andy is the machine behind it.)


(And yes, I will refrain from picking up women with my new pictures.)