A Plea to the Males

By 3-6 months the average baby is capable of holding a small object in their hand using this wonderful thing called motor skills (“Children’s Hospital of Richmond at VCU”)! From there that baby grows and refines their motor skills and they grow to begin to write with the most beautiful penmanship, play complex musical pieces where their hands look like they're just dancing along their instrument, or outshine others in a sport! 

You’re probably thinking “Wow! whoever this baby guy is, is pretty talented.” The truth is, the baby is probably you! 

 And knowing that most of you guys are capable of these amazing applications of motor skills, I must ask: “Why is there urine on the floor?!”

This is a question I ask myself often when I go to the Town Hall restrooms and Library restroom, and unfortunately it’s not a rhetorical question. I don’t think it’s too difficult to ensure your stream lands in a specific point, especially if that target area is at least 13.5 inches wide (“Dimesions”) and you’re standing right in front of it. 

I understand that the Town Hall restrooms are not in tip-top shape–I too fear the fact that urinals fight back by splashing back at you when you flush them– but that doesn’t mean contribute to the splash back puddle and it doesn’t mean it’s appropriate to just leave paper towels on the floor because you think “it’s already nasty.”

The boy’s library  restroom is a realm I pray you don’t find yourself in often. I know for a fact that the urinal there does not splash back yet what I see beneath the urinal seems to go against that fact.

I simply ask for you guys to use the same motor skills you use throughout your daily life to treat the restrooms the way you (hopefully) treat your own bathroom. It’s disappointing and disgusting when you go in and see unflushed urinals (and sometimes unflushed toilets) and trash just thrown around. 

Please be the change you want to see and aim when you pee.

Tidman, Sallie, et al. “Fine Motor Skills: Birth to 2 Years.” Children’s Hospital of Richmond at VCU, www.chrichmond.org/services/therapy-services/developmental-milestones/fine-motor-skills-birth-to-2-years/. Accessed 23 Sept. 2025

Maddock, Bryan. “Kohler Dexter Urinal Dimensions & Drawings.” Dimensions, www.dimensions.com/element/kohler-dexter-urinal. Accessed 23 Sept. 2025.