The Least-Used Bathroom Stall

Now onto a topic that crosses my mind so many times per day that it is probably second only to the 2008 NCAA Championship basketball game.

The least-used stall in the public restroom.

Let me just say, I haven’t engaged in too many conversations with people about this because, quite frankly, I don’t want to give away any strategy that has been carefully learned through the years, thus sabotaging my own efforts in this compulsion. Notwithstanding, as this is the stuff blogs are made of (maybe?), I want to initiate dialogue about this and hopefully, I won’t be caught in too many habitual public settings with the readership where this discussion and trading of secrets would backfire for all of us.

And obviously, almost 100% of my findings/observations come from experience in women’s restrooms, not to alienate any male readers. Your feedback is also welcome and eagerly anticipated.

When I was in high school, young and naïve, I assumed that the handicapped/”big” stall was the least-used, usually being farthest away from the door and all. Plus, there was all that room in there, which even made it more appealing.

I migrated toward the stall closest to the door once I figured out that most people like going in the biggest bathroom stall; it seemed if there was ever one person in the bathroom, said stall was always the one occupied. Yet then, during my very first in-person conversation about this topic, the person with whom I was speaking stated that she had read an article that said the stall closest to the door was the least-used. I do not see how this can be true. If you go into Target and there are 8 stalls to choose from, I almost ALWAYS see people choose the first one, while washing my hands or whatever... Are they maybe too lazy or scared to pick a more "random" stall because then they think maybe everyone else is doing the same thing?

(The three-stall bathrooms are really the hardest for me because you have a 33% chance that you’re using the most-used stall.)

Signs of an unused stall:
1. The seat is still up from the previous night’s cleaning (after years of research this is the clue of which I am most proud)
2. There is no debris or toilet paper scattered about
3. The water in the bowl is not rippling at all from a previous use

If this is TMI, sorry. But am I the only one who goes through this thought process? I have strongly determined my preferred bathroom stalls in each of the bathrooms at work, but I wonder if it’s just me who carefully considers these signs during the selection process.

Thoughts?