Toilet Talk

   ~ by Beverly Koski

Jim and Martha, John and Cheryl were sitting on holes cut into a stone platform, located in a decidedly airy room minus a roof, amongst the ruins of a very old city. The WC was used by Romans 2000 years ago in Ephesus, an important cultural and trade centre of old Turkey. The couples were four of our group of Western Canadians visiting this famous metropolis during the Fall of 2008. They were certainly talking, but that was all they were doing. In the days when this ancient city was alive and well, gathering at the toilets was a social occasion. Apart from its obvious practical function, it was commonly used as an opportunity for conversation. Slaves were engaged in making sure that the water two feet below the stone structures was freely running along its carved stone channel. A gravity feed system took the effluent away. An adequate volume of water was needed for the facility to act efficiently during peak capacity periods. Perhaps, after lunch when business men had enjoyed their lamb stew and wine?

I reflected back to my youth growing up in a small town in Alberta. Up the garden path was our outhouse, equipped with 2 openings and an Eaton's catalogue. The structure was built of wood and so was the platform. It was called a two-holer. Even then I wondered: why two? Was one meant to share giggles in this intimate situation? What better place to share secrets; however, my sister and I chose otherwise.

In the late 1950s, I walked along the Champs Elysee in Paris. At the edge of the curb was an outdoor urinal, modestly protecting the user's parts and purpose with a flimsy screen. Holding hands with his girlfriend at the edge of the barrier, an animated conversation was taking place. The couple was unperturbed that passersby might be curious. Indeed they were not - at least the French weren't. As for this Canadian, it wasn't the first time and wouldn't be the last that she had reason to consider the pervasive behaviour of toilet talk.


  ~ by Beverly Koski, January, 2009