Monday, March 03, 2008

What Would You Have Done?

Yesterday, I pulled up to the parkway for my run in 40 degree heat!!! I was a bit overdressed, but heck I was more than ready to run in the nice weather. Before heading over to the jogging path I went over to the latrine to....well, pee. The latrine is about what you would expect in a park, being one step up from the port-o-pot. It is basically a little shelter with a toilet covering a big whole in the ground. I opened the door and stood over the toilet and something sort of startled me.....

A furry little rat scampered downwards from the top of the "latrine pile" into the dark, dank, depths of the hole that I was about to fill with a little liquid. I couldn't piss on the little rats head, so I started my run with a little bladder discomfort as I knew there was a latrine on the path after one mile. Rats are known to live in sewers, but latrines???

Now, I don't mean to frighten anyone who has to use a latrine from time to time. Don't you think that if rats were likely to attack asses and third legs while they hover over the top of the latrine we would have heard about an attack by now?? So, don't be scared, I just thought you might find it interesting that you don't really know what all is down in that stinky hole...and what you might be pissing (or worse) on.

On a psuedo-related note, I guess it is the year of the rat after all.

12 comments:

tracie said...

as if park 'bathrooms' weren't already....unique enough!

awfully nice gesture not to pee on his head though ;)

Brian said...

After probably having a heart attack and pooping on myself, I would have tried to hit him with the stream. Like battleship.

solarsquirrel said...

OMG - remember that story about the guy who was inside one of those things trying to spy on people?!? That just reminded me of it!

Jen said...

Latrines on the trails? Rats or not, you folks are so civilized in Ohio!

It was very nice of you not to pee on the rat's head :-)

Anonymous said...

What V*T said! I was like, never mind the rats, you have latrines?? We have miles and miles of road and trail with nothing but cacti and desert brush as far as the eye can see. And yet you can't NOT hydrate...

Mnowac said...

What I find really odd here is that you actually look in the hole! I do everything in my power NOT to gaze down the porta john!

B Bop said...

For the record, latrine's are located along the "jogging path" near the parking areas. The "jogging path" is quite crowded w/ walkers and joggers alike, is 5K's in each direction, has small rolling hills, and gets plowed & salted in the winter. The cold keeps out people with strollers. You won't see me there much once the weather breaks.

B Bop said...

And as for looking in the hole, it has to do with "aiming," but you ladies probably don't know much about that. Trust me, when you look down to "aim" and a furry thing moves in there, you look closer, and as Brian mentioned, nearly poop yourself.

triguyjt said...

sorry that you missed a chance to work on your....accuracy.

Anonymous said...

take aim!

Jen said...

Okay, PLOWED and SALTED? Running trails??? That's it. I'm packin' it up & moving to Ohio next winter.

GP said...

Isn't it funny how something so, umm, ungraceful, has such an innocuous sounding name? Latrine. And it doesn't at all sound like a place where you'd find a rat.

I'm not a rodent-fearer in general, but, I'm not going to lie to you, I would have cringed until I collapsed and ran while twitching for about two miles. I guess there's something about encountering a rat in my, umm, personal space that would give me the willies for at least 20 minutes.

He (or she) was grateful you didn't pee on him. I'm sure of it.