Once upon a time products in the American grocery store were larger and less expensive. Sugar came in a five pound bag, coffee was one pound and toilet paper filled up the holder width wise.
Now and days sugar has shrunk to four pounds, coffee is around 12 ounces and toilet paper...well it just isn’t as big as it used to be.
Are Americans shrinking? Are cakes and candies smaller? Are fewer people having a cup of joe each morning?
No.
Sure the American consumer can kick the sugar and coffee habits, but what about toilet paper????
That is one product that every person needs daily. Americans are not getting smaller we are getting bigger. (If we are shrinking like the products on grocery isles why are there so many weight loss products and programs out there? ) We eat more junk and drink more calorie rich beverages, consequently we are expanding all over. With this increase in our sizes, do we go to the bathroom more often?
Hmmm...
Growing up I never cared about the size of the roll. It was just there on the holder waiting to be put to use. Now that I am an adult with two teenagers, the size of the roll bugs me.
Nothing is worse than completing my business then looking at the holder to see only one square left on the roll. One square won’t finish the job.
Sure, my teens could have set a new roll beside the holder for anyone with future need of the product, but that would have required consideration for others. Instead, I’m left on the throne
with one square for a job that requires more than a single sheet.
I don’t blame my kids completely for the lack of necessary paper work to do the job. I get mad at the fact I changed the stupid roll two days ago and it is out now!
Growing up mom would change the roll and it would last at least a week. (Yes, I see the connection.) I rarely had to swap out the empty tube for a full one because there was more product on the roll!
Now I’m left walking like a criminal in leg shackles to the cabinet where the spares are kept to finish what I started. Imagine my surprise when I open the door and find only the plastic wrapper of the 6 pack I bought last week. (A fountain of colorful adjectives spring from my mouth and sends the dog into a barking frenzy outside the bathroom door.) Looking around for something to use as a replacement my eyes land on the box of lotion infused tissues and a container of cotton balls. I consider the cotton balls for about a second then hobble over and grab the box of tissue.
Tissues are not made for the specific job I need them for, but they work. (Plus my bum felt softer and moisturized.) The tissue is far more expensive than toilet paper and is used far less frequently than t.p. ergo, it is more expensive.
We are not a super fancy, uber quilted, three ply bum wipes kind of family. We use plain old two ply from the grocery store. I buy that product because my mom bought plain old two ply growing up. It worked then, it should work now.
Not so much.
Looking at a roll of toilet paper on the roll holder in my mom’s 30 year old home made me realize the product of today isn’t the same as as it used to be. Back in the day the roll nearly took up all the space on the holder. Today, you could almost fit two rolls side by side on the spring loaded thing.
What has happened people????
I would love to see the person responsible for the shrinking of the roll get stuck in the bathroom with only one square, a case of Irritable Bowel Syndrome and a piece of sandpaper. Maybe then they would regret shrinking the sheet!
It is doubtful any corporate head will read this rant and decide to change back to the size toilet paper roll of my youth. (Sigh.) Or that products on grocery store shelves will stop shrinking in efforts to boost profits.(Double sigh.)
However, one thing that will change is me.
I will check the roll before sitting down.
👍
ReplyDeleteHahahaha! pretty funny stuff!
ReplyDelete