#200 or The Princess and the Potty

It was such a dilemma. What to tell! What not to tell! The princess was in a bit of a quandary. It was her 200th post and she could not decide! It was a momentous occasion. It should be marked with a thoughtful, or spiritual or uplifting message. But....

She had information to share, but was afraid that it was not princess-like.

She wanted to tell all her friends, but didn't want to sully her ladylike image.

At last, she came to a decision. It would be to the greater good of the people to tell the story and to heck with the image!

After all, everyone has one. A garderobe. A water closet. A public convenience. A loo. The john. A powder room. An outhouse. A lavatory. A toilet. A bathroom.

Everyone is faced with the same dilemma. Since people quit tossing the contents of the chamber pot out the upper story window into the street (look out below!), it's been a problem! From the time the outhouse came into the house and you were no longer able to just dig a new hole when one filled up, there's been this same dilemma!

By the way, because the princess always wants you to expand your mind, did you know that flush toilets were first in use in the Indus Valley civilization in the 26th century BC? And that Thomas Crapper really is a name on the long list of entrepreneurial people who helped make the potty what it is today? You can read more about that here if you're interested.

Because along with the toilet and the drain and the curvy pipe and the other stuff involved in the indoor bathroom, sometimes what should go down, just doesn't. And then someone came up with the brilliant idea of a water saver toilet...

The princess occasionally had to deal with a clogged potty. Although she lived in a castle, she preferred the moat outside with swans swimming in it, not inside with....

Ahem.

And there was that plunger problem. Should she use the red rubber kind that doesn't seem to work (cause red is her favorite color), or the black one with the bell shape that holds 'water' after removal from the toilet (black matches everything, but the water inside is NOT an accessory!). And neither one seemed to work very well anyway.

A clogged toilet can be a problem. An icky problem. A big problem.

So the princess called up her fairy godmother, the internet, and researched a solution for this not-so-fairy-tale like problem! And this is what she found: The solution is HOT water.

The secret to unclogging the Necessary is found in the bathtub right next to it!

Now the princess does not want to visually offend her readers so she has opted not to post pictures of the process.

You're welcome.

Follow these steps and soon you will have a free flowing stool so you can toss that nasty plunger right into the garbage and never see it again!

Upon discovering the clog, take off the lid of the tank and lift the float or whatever is in your tank that stops the water flow. That is, if you happen to be in the bathroom at the time.

If you're not in the bathroom and you hear the cry for help (Hark!) grab an armload of towels and drop them on the floor, THEN take off the tank lid, etc....

This is the part where the princess is always praying that she can avoid soaking the carpet and a major disinfectant job.

Feel free to ad lib here with all the gloves/bleach/disinfectant/protective eye wear--you can figure it out yourself and if not, you've got other problems besides a clogged toilet!

So once you stop the flow of water and things have calmed down in the bowl, go get a bucket (or better yet, the bathroom trashcan works great and you can wash it out at the same time!). Fill the bucket/trashcan with HOT water from the tub. Use one that holds 2-3 gallons--no more than the bowl will hold! No need to measure, just eyeball it!

Hold it a few feet above the toilet and pour it in.
Let it set a bit. Some water will probably go out of the toilet (seeping around the clog).
As the water level in the bowl goes down, pour in more HOT water.
Repeat until the clog goes down.
You do not need to flush the toilet. Remember, flushing brings in a lot of uncontrolled water from the tank and you will have to grab that float again to prevent an overflow!
If needed, add a bit of dish soap to the bucket. It helps everything slide on down....

The force of the water from the bucket being held high and the hot water should loosen the clog and it will go away!

Now, really, for such a icky subject--isn't that great to know? No more yucky plunger, no more flushing and praying and grabbing and mopping--just you and a bucket of hot water! And you won't have to worry about tossing the chamber pot contents out of the window!

And wash up when you're finished!

Aren't you glad the princess was willing to put her vanity on the line and share this information?

And if everyone knew this but the princess--just be all polite and leave her in ignorant bliss!

So now, because the princess hates to post without a picture, she presents this video for your edification.....




Sorry mom!