Stand in the Bathroom Line

Bathroom graffiti has always fascinated me. There are so many variables. Why deface a public restroom, and why write that?

First are the logistical questions: Do you, writer, just happen to have a pen with you, or do you keep it on your person for a moment like this? Is this guerrilla literature spontaneous or meticulously prepared? And, most perplexing, why take the time to write — do you really want to stay in here longer than you have to?

The content is what I most wonder about. Scratching in websites and plastering band stickers makes sense — it’s free publicity with a captive audience. Even the classics are ubiquitous enough to become accepted cliches — the baudy (”For a Good Time Call…”), the angry “____ is a bitch”, and the loving “M.H. + A.J. 4-Eva” (a high school standard). But I’ve seen detailed sketches and poignant confessions on grimy stall doors. Is this really the best place for a philosophical declaration? Why argue with a comment and chastise the writer — do you assume they’ll come back and see it, or that someone will declare you the winner in this silent battle of wits?

I have, admittedly, never written on a bathroom stall, and the act remains an enigma. Who are the people that begin a dialogue on a pristine stall door? Or bolder, a thick declaration of love or hate in Sharpie?

It is the unique that fascinate me the most, and that is the focus of this blog. The verbose, the hilarious, the artistic toilet compositions are scrutinized and encouraged. The Bathroom Line is about the intelligent, the ridiculous, and the absolutely inexplicable.

Send your photos to bathroomline@gmail.com.