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What Ancient Romans Used Instead of Toilet Paper

nautil.us

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Re: What Ancient Romans Used Instead of Toilet Paper

#131

Post by gcb0 »

firekvz wrote: post #105

Funny story, as a Venezuelan and having toilet paper shortages I was forced to go water and soap. Never comming back, not even with all the toilet paper in the world The feeling is shared with alot of friends (we joke about this as a way to keep the good mood agains the crisis) but a lot of people have realized that toilet paper is not the correct way plus a huge waste of money (we have to pay around 0.5$ per roll no…

The legend goes that bidets where associated with whorehouses in literature from europe (as most literature not focusing on body fluids would not have reasons to mention bidets), so that when apartments started to be retrofitted for plumbing (initially for a kitchen!) in the USA, the extremely puritanical society left the bidets out.

Re: What Ancient Romans Used Instead of Toilet Paper

#132

Post by blub »

astazangasta wrote: post #14
rayiner wrote: post #3

When we moved from Bangladesh to the US in the late 1980s, there were a couple of things that made us go “WTF?” One was the taste of chicken. In Bangladesh, you go buy a scrawny live chicken from the market and butcher it. It took me the better part of a year to be able to stomach American chicken, which tastes like wet cardboard in comparison. The other “WTF” thing was toilet paper. In Bangladesh, you rinse with wat…

Seriously. Especially camping, where the choices are: carry around TP and then some used TP, or, just use water.

According to the book "How to shit in the woods", the most environmentally friendly thing to do when camping is to collect your poop and take it with you. So you can take your TP with you also.

Re: What Ancient Romans Used Instead of Toilet Paper

#133

Post by tasty_freeze »

I have read the glowing endorsements of bidets on reddit and HN for a long time. I've researched after-market bidets that would be suitable for my bathroom. I've bookmarked a few that seem suitable and have good reviews.

But there is one thing which stops me. I'm not sure of the exact details. Even in this thread, I don't know the brass tacks of using one. Do I turn on the sprayer and that is that? Or do I mechanically rub my ass with my hand during/after the anus gets wet? Then do I use toilet paper to dry? Just how much of my ass is going to get wet? Then of course I need to use soap and water to clean up my hands. But someone else below said they use soap and water on their butt. Too much is left to the imagination.

Does anyone want to provide a detailed, step-by-step process of what I should do once I install one?

Re: What Ancient Romans Used Instead of Toilet Paper

#134

Post by cortic »

rayiner wrote: post #113
cortic wrote: post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'll tell you the difference since you asked; If you wanted to eat a hamburger, and i handed it to you with my hand.. you would eat it... I really hope i don't need to finish that thought for you. I swear this is where the saying 'Don't know your arse from your elbow' comes from.

That makes no sense. Don’t you use your hands to scrub back there when you shower in the morning? If soap is good enough for that, why is it not enough for post toilet hand cleaning?

Edit; i just wanted to point out that i was answering the question whats the difference between your hand and your heiny not how to keep good hygiene for either. so with that in mind;

let me just, ahem, pass you a hamburger...

Re: What Ancient Romans Used Instead of Toilet Paper

#135

Post by itsfuckingwater »

tasty_freeze wrote: post #133

I have read the glowing endorsements of bidets on reddit and HN for a long time. I've researched after-market bidets that would be suitable for my bathroom. I've bookmarked a few that seem suitable and have good reviews. But there is one thing which stops me. I'm not sure of the exact details. Even in this thread, I don't know the brass tacks of using one. Do I turn on the sprayer and that is that? Or do I mechanical…

Just spray your fucking ass with the water, and then get it clean and dry with the other stuff. There are no rules.

Just make sure the shit goes away, and try not to stink.

Like taking a shower, but not as much shower. Just the asshole cleaning portion of bath time, isolated from the rest of bath time, and made readily available for when you need to take a shit, and don't want the whole body shower and change of clothes experience. That's it.

Re: What Ancient Romans Used Instead of Toilet Paper

#136

Post by blub »

pkd wrote: post #35

I'm still surprised how many people here get defensive when it gets pointed out that toilet paper is not the best solution for cleaning up. Everybody should try using a bidet sometime and see the difference for themselves.

It's not the best, but it works pretty great in the end: one is reasonably clean until one can properly clean themselves. It's available everywhere (not just at home), easy to carry and easy to dispose of.

Wet wipes are a nice upgrade for those that can't stand the thought of TP, although they're usually not that easy to dispose of when not at home.

Re: What Ancient Romans Used Instead of Toilet Paper

#137

Post by spurgu »

ravar wrote: post #128
microwavecamera wrote: post #52

Human urine is full of ammonia and other chemicals that are great natural detergents. If you worked in a Roman laundromat, your job was to stomp on clothes all day long—barefoot and ankle deep in colossal vats of human pee. It gets worse, the ancient Romans also used urine as a mouthwash to whiten their teeth.

wait, our urine doesn't contain ammonia, we convert nitrogen to urea as it is far less toxic than ammonia.

> Because urea in urine breaks down into ammonia, urine has been used for the cleaning properties of the ammonia therein. In pre-industrial times urine was used – in the form of lant or aged urine – as a cleaning fluid.[25] Urine was also used for whitening teeth in Ancient Rome.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Urine#Cleaning

Re: What Ancient Romans Used Instead of Toilet Paper

#138

Post by eevilspock »

dang wrote: post #127
eevilspock wrote: post #96

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why would tech people, who pride themselves on objectivity, find it insulting? Do tech people deny that they, AS A WHOLE, ON AVERAGE, have below average social skills and below average art skills? A lot of men in tech also deny that current tech culture is sexist, often misogynist. That's male objectivity for you. Perhaps a similar "biased objectivity" is at play here. It's all a bit ironic given that the two comment…

Would you please not take HN threads further into the weeds like this?

I apologize (sort of) dang. I believe social and cultural change is far more important than the technological. Even SV is belatedly starting to realize this in the Trump era. Gaining a broader perspective, and more honest self-perspective, are critical to our progress as a society, as a species.

You might tell me that even if true, it's not what Hacker News is for. But people in technology are having an outsized impact on our culture, and many people question whether this impact is ultimately good. Where else should people in tech be exposed to thoughts outside the SV bubble?

Note that when I made the comments above, the ones I was responding to where at the top of the page. I felt compelled to counter.

I'm not arguing with you. I barely post on HN anymore, since it is clear such discourse isn't really welcome.

Re: What Ancient Romans Used Instead of Toilet Paper

#140

Post by jseliger »

edoceo wrote: post #122
nobodyandproud wrote: post #86

Americans don't have a high ground here. The first time I used a modern bidet was eye-opening. It eliminates the funk. It's environmentally friendly. It's easier on the bum, if you have hemmaroids (I don't, but this is the report from friends and family that do suffer). And it just feels refreshing. The toilet paper is only needed to sanity check cleanliness and dry out. The American squeamishness over the bidet is i…

The hemroid thing 100%. For all us desk jockies, they'll happen! Paper hurts, bidet/water all the way.

For all us desk jockies, they'll happen

Sit-stand desk https://jakeseliger.com/2015/01/24/geekdesk-max-sit-stand-de...

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