I also think there’s little point in showering at the gym, taking the tube and sitting on dirty seats, and then going home. I’m not too fussy about germs, but I do think that when you get in from outside, you should change your clothes before going into the bedroom or sitting on the couch.
A gym shower is not a substitute for a properly thorough wash, because you’re rushing. You can’t get into all the usual cracks you can at home, because you’re conscious of the other people around
Ok, fatty.
The bedroom is where people usually keep their clothes, so how do I change my clothes before I go into the bedroom?
Jgh – you don’t have a walk-in closet near the indoor pool?
Glad I’m not standing next to her on the Tube
From the article:
‘Maybe it’s because of my Caribbean background, but my mum always stressed the difference between “outside” and “indoor” clothes.’
Sure. West Indians are a lot cleaner than most Brits. Obviously we all knew, but thanks for reminding us. I remember a piece in the Guardian on some scientific study on how flushing shit down the toilet filled the bathroom with tiny shit-droplets. A couple of weeks later, there was an article on how Indians (you know, India, that country where shitting in the street is ubiquitous) found the western W.C. to be a dirty contraption.
And this:
‘Marek disagrees. When we first got together, I told him off for lying on my fresh sheets with his “outdoor clothes” that he wore on our date, and he laughed at me.’
Sure. London is full of Czech guys dating West Indian women. They’re everywhere you look.
“When we first got together, I told him off for lying on my fresh sheets with his “outdoor clothes” that he wore on our date, and he laughed at me.’
He’d still got his clothes on? Unusual for an Island Gurl. That’s what reading the Guardian does for you petal. Sick to de Gleaner.
Stick!!!
What’s wrong with gym showers? And who the fuck changes their clothes before sitting on a sofa? I change my wellies, sometimes.
Actually, having spent a lot of time in gyms, I came to realise eventually that anyone who goes to a gym – for any reason other than to pick up women (or blokes, I suppose) – is mad.
Get a bike, get some cheap free weights, do some press ups and walk up some hills. Beyond the initial outlay it’s free, and it’s better for you.
“‘Maybe it’s because of my Caribbean background, but my mum always stressed the difference between “outside” and “indoor” clothes.’”
So did mine: you don’t wear an overcoat indoors. The thing is, I suspect you would rarely wear an overcoat at all in the West Indies. So perhaps it does make sense to change out of sweaty clothes when you get in out of the heat over there. But in Britain, we just take the top layer off. Different climate, see?
“I remember a piece in the Guardian on some scientific study on how flushing shit down the toilet filled the bathroom with tiny shit-droplets.”
Hmm. That might be why it has a lid.
I have never used a gym for “working out”. Horrible bloody idea. A gym is for five-a-side football and, if the ceiling is suitable, badminton.
People nowadays seem to be so self-absorbed that those options aren’t popular. Isn’t it odd: you’d think that all the mobile phones and social media would make it easier than ever to assemble ten football kickers or four, or eight, or more shuttlecockers?
To be fair, I agree with Sam Vara. I’ve seen enough Caribbean homes in the UK to know they’re much cleaner than Brits. It’s something that’s common right the way down S.America as well. I live with constantly having the house cleaned in front of me & behind me, whether it needs it or not. It’s part of the culture. We may much have much but we’ll do the very best with what we have.* They shower several times a day. Even in freezing water. Clothes get worn once & washed. And they’re virtually paranoid about dirt. They’ll wash a cut with bleach if they have nothing else. My maternal grandmother & that side of the family were very much the same. Poor family out the East End. Paternal side, rather grubby middle class. Bathed according to the calender. They’re the exact opposite of the eastern enrichment who despite all the rituals live like pigs in shit.
So I can well see the case for lively debates. We get enough of them here.
*Seems to apply to the first generation & maybe the second. From there, cultural appropriation of whining about injustice & deprivation whilst doing little for yourself, seems to take over. UK anyway.
Now that I live in foreign where it is hot and moist for much of the year, I often whip what I’ve had on outside off when I get in and also shower more. But then the same applied in the UK when I was doing summer farmwork or labouring as a student.
I can’t comment on Caribbean homes but I wouldn’t say it was at all possible to generalise about the cleanliness or otherwise of British homes, regardless of region or class. I’ve been in obsessively clean homes and candidates for that TV show with the two nutty women.
@dearime – lots of people use the gym socially, eg women who do classes together. I know plenty who have an extra circle of gym friends. When I used to go to the gym and lift weights, most of the time I went with friends, because it’s better with a spotter and someone to encourage you.
Fans of the “Big Bang Theory” will know that the main character, Sheldon, is also a germophobe, who wears special “bus pants” when taking public transit!
I wouldn’t say it was at all possible to generalise about the cleanliness or otherwise of British homes, regardless of region or class.
Maybe the prevalence of fitted carpets? UK’s the only country I’ve been to they seem the rule rather than the exception. If you’ve ever had to lift them & seen what’s underneath… (Personally haven’t had them for years, anywhere)
As far as I’m aware, they actually started in commercial premises. As a lot more economic solution than properly cleaning floors. Just run a powervac over them rather than the labour in involved in sweeping then washing. What you don’t see you don’t know about. Moved into homes for much the same reason. Of course now they build homes have to have them because the flooring’s unsuitable for much else.
My boyfriend, Marek, and I have vastly different stances on hygiene etiquette. We go to the gym together, and I believe that even if you shower there, you still need another shower when you get home, because you’re not really clean.
Oh Marek, my boy… If you’re not running for the hills already, you should be.
This is why I always travel on the Tube naked.
. If you’ve ever had to lift them & seen what’s underneath…
In the house where I grew up it was mostly old copies of the News of the World.
Nearly all West Indians I’ve met have been quite fastidious about cleanliness and the mums very house proud. They often buy home stuff at John Lewis.
‘Oh Marek, my boy… If you’re not running for the hills already, you should be.’
Yes Dennis. If I tried to shower that often, my skin couldn’t stand it.
PS. Y’know, I hadn’t thought of this before, but maybe that’s why I’m living alone!!
Yes Dennis. If I tried to shower that often, my skin couldn’t stand it.
My comment had nothing to do with the amount of showering and everything to do with the amount of crazy.
bloke in spain said:
“Glad I’m not standing next to her on the Tube”
Yes, that was what struck me – the utter selfishness of her comment that “there’s little point in showering at the gym, taking the tube and sitting on dirty seats, and then going home”.
You’re not doing it for yourself, dear, you’re doing it for the strangers who have to be around you.
But then, she’s a Guardian writer, so being self-centred isn’t surprising.
Marek says he showers for ten minutes at home, while Candice takes 45 minutes. Maybe they should read https://www.theguardian.com/fashion/2023/jan/09/the-four-minute-shower-how-to-wash-to-save-money-water-and-stay-stink-free and get a sense of perspective.
Thanks Charles But I read that & thought; what sort of showers have these people got?
A normal shower dispenses between nine and 10 litres per minute,
I lived in London. Combi boiler so mains pressure. Since it was pop-up waste I’d often leave the plug in. Even a good shower I’d be lucky to be standing in an inch of water. To run a bath through the shower head would take at least 20 minutes.
Pressure here is actually considerably higher than London. Since the plumbing’s up to local the standards, the shower outlet often blocks. Even a ten minute shower doesn’t overflow the 2″deep shower tray. If I’m minded to go camp in there with the side massage jets on it tends to be painful on delicate parts but uses less than half the water.
Sounds like some people should pay more than £3:99 for their shower heads.
Incidentally, if you’re unfortunate enough to be trying to shower on a gravity fed system with little head behind it, you’re actually better off getting an overhead shower head mounted as high as possible. The water free-falling for 2-3 feet picks up enough energy for a proper shower. You can always fit a splitter with a tap for the washing hair handset.