Thursday, January 20, 2011

TP(toilet paper) for the Visually Impaired (blind folks)

TP For The Blind
I really do not have a toilet fetish, but here is another tidbit. I think because going to the washroom is common to every person on earth, and different societies and cultures all approach the problem differently, it is interesting. As we all know, toilet paper comes in many different varieties. Single ply, two ply, soft and luxurious to coarse.. textured with flowers or plain, scented and unscented (but I really do not know anyone that sniffs toilet paper). Everybody has their own personal preferences. Well in Estonia, they have a little different type. The TP is single ply and rather coarse. Instead of the surface of the TP being textured with flowers or paisley or some artistic pattern, they have textured the surface with dots. So on the one side of the paper, are indentations or cavities. On the other side, the indentations are proud by a good millimeter, providing a truly rough surface. I am trying to figure out the logic behind it. Is the cavity side for collecting product as it is swiped? And the side with the protuberances, is it for grinding away at hard to reach spots? I am convinced it is Braille. You know, the dots on paper so the blind can read. The pattern of dots is big enough to be registered on a finger tip.. If it really is Braille, then the big question is what have they written in Braille? Perhaps “ I hope you are having a good day”? Or perhaps “Was it good?” Or maybe each roll of TP is a mini story. As you sit there you get to pull off a few sheets and read with your fingertips? Does the story repeat itself every 5 or 6 squares? Or is it a new story every 5 or 6 squares? Is a whole roll of TP one long story? What do you do when the job is ready for the paperwork and you have not finished the story? What happens if somebody else uses the roll, and you miss part of your story? Does each person have their own roll of TP, so you never get lost in the story?

1 comment:

  1. hey zeke,
    you still out there? tried to get you at rivermarine.com but i see it is no more.
    please shoot me an email at halbrindley@hotmail.com when you get a chance. thinking again about a journey in your direction,
    Hal

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