PLEASE! for the sake of basic hygiene and manners

amother

Seashell

Wed, Oct 03 2018, 11:58 am

amother wrote:

So youre saying that as long as people wash their hands with soap then its not gross to use the same towel. Thats not what OP is saying. She (and others) are grossed out by people using the same towel. I want to know what the difference is between a towel and a pitcher.

ETA I see ur OP. Ok...

There is a difference. Why don't people all share the same bath towel after a shower if everyone is clean and just washed themselves?

Most people don't wash their hands properly anyway, so even if I touch the serving fork or spoon, I'll try not to touch food with my hands after that and usually you're using a fork or spoon anyway so you're not touching your food.

clowny

Wed, Oct 03 2018, 11:59 am

amother wrote:

Honestly people (op, and the recent thread about the OP who's mother in law wasn't sanitary enough):
Chill out. Are people getting sick? The fear of the germs seems to be much stronger than the actual reality of contaminating someone with some horrible illness. Yes, hosts should do basic things like wash their hands before cutting up salad veggies. Are they scrubbing under their finger nails like you would? Don't look! Is it gross to pick out a pepper from the salad in the kitchen when no one is looking? I don't know, most hosts probably do it and nothing horrible happens. (obviously not talking about a host that has a cold/flu/something else). Kids eat off the floor all the time. People eat things a day or two past expiration. People forget to wash their hands. A lot. And more people than not are walking around perfectly healthy. It would be a different story if you were getting food poisoning or catching a cold from the host--but none of you are saying that, just that you are grossed out. So the solution to that is DON'T LOOK. If you need to bring your own towel, you are boarder line OCD. Germs don't hurt in the vast majority of cases, they build your immune system. Basic hygiene is showering every day or so, washing with soap after using the bathroom, rinsing produce/hands before prep, and not sneezing on your friends, and not leaving your house filthy (notice I did not say spic and span).

I couldn’t agree more with every single word in this post. Well said.
And if in any way someone disagrees with this or this post is just not you the my only advice to you is - stay home and don’t spend time at other peoples home. I would not appreciate having these kind of guests and I would definitely not feel too comfortable if my host was this way.

Amarante

Wed, Oct 03 2018, 11:59 am

Raisin wrote:

In catering kitchens health and safety standards demand that there should be a separate washing hands sink. (literally no idea why) So perhaps some people see it as more hygenic to wash hands in the bathroom sink before prepping food.

I don't know about catering standards but in terms of my own cooking, I would wash my hands several times prepping depending on what was being prepped and I wouldn't want to run to the bathroom.

I need to wash to avoid cross contamination when I work with chicken or meats and I use soap for that. I just rinse off the stuff on my hands that I get from chopping vegetables or baking cookies.

I would assume that separate sink washing area (if required) is because they want to avoid cross contamination. It's also far easier to have a sink for washing hands separate from prep sinks in a commercial kitchen.

amother

Blush

Wed, Oct 03 2018, 12:06 pm

amother wrote:

Practically speaking, it cannot really happen. There were 17 people in my house for a 2 day yomtov. Four meals... and where exactly am I keeping around 75 pieces of cut paper towels??? Do you think they won’t get wet from all the drippy hands reaching for a paper towel?? Who does that? I’m happy to provide a couple of fresh towels each time we wash.

Seventy pieces of paper towel is hardly a huge storage issue.

Many people keep paper guest towels in their guest baths and there is no problem of storage or paper towels becoming unusable from wet hands.

I think my roll of paper towels costs about $1 and has at least 75 squares so it's hardly a major financial investment.

This one is from Bed Bath and Beyond for $20

This one is $12.99

clowny

Wed, Oct 03 2018, 12:13 pm

amother wrote:

This one is from Bed Bath and Beyond for $20

This one is $12.99

With all the guest I sometimes I host, I can just picture my entire bathroom floor and vanity area full of used towel paper with these.

If any of my guest ever want separate hand towels, disposable hand towels or ever bring along their own, I would probably never invite them again.

Oh please - give me a break. I think some of you are over reacting.

amother

Jade

Wed, Oct 03 2018, 12:15 pm

amother wrote:

If you don't want to spring for the cost of actual paper hand towels which are a bit more elegant - PUT IN PAPER TOWELS.

Are people actually claiming they can't afford a roll of paper towels so people have something hygienic to use in the bathroom?

I find that to be a ridiculous argument.

And regarding the claim that children should be exposed to shmootz, no one is saying people should be OCD about hygiene because in the normal course of life children and people are going to be exposed to germs. The issue is whether you try to take normal precautions like washing hands with soap often or not deliberately exposing people potentially to bodily wastes on towels or feeding children from the floor. If you found a cookie on the floor would you feed it to your child or eat it yourself? That's no different than eating food fallen on the floor. And most people carry wipes with them so how hard is it to wipe off the pacifier if away from home or wash under the sink if home?

I'm curious - do you wipe down doorknobs before opening any door, or if you borrow someone else's phone? How about faucet handles, stove knobs, other people's toys or the actual bottle of the liquid soap itself? Those are the most contaminated objects that can be found in anyone's home.

Yes, we need to wash our hands before eating and after the bathroom, but no need to make it into an obsession where we can't enjoy being around other people unless they follow our personal strict protocols.

dankbar

Wed, Oct 03 2018, 12:17 pm

amother wrote:

You might not be aware of small amounts of contaminated stuff that is being brought into your home on the soles of shoes in the normal course of things.

For example, a dog poops and the owner picks up the deposit. However, they are not scrubbing down the sidewalk so that small amounts of fecal matter will remain on the sidewalk. People walk on the sidewalks and their soles will then pick up whatever is on the sidewalks and bring them into your house. Which is why most people don't make it a practice to eat from floors - most of the time you will not get sick by doing so but that doesn't mean that it is not potentially a dangerous source of germs.

Response to above: Is that's why some people don't allow their guests, to enter their homes with shoes on? Lol. I never thought of it that way! Always thought they don't want their shiny immaculate floors to get a speck of dust or turn black...those neat freaks!

amother

Hotpink

Wed, Oct 03 2018, 12:52 pm

I also didnt let him go among crowds or public places, if he ever went to a park we disinfected the swing the kid used. ( one time after a colored guy used the swing right before us, he was insulted that im wiping swing after him.....I explained to him that has nothing to do with him just my childs condition/health).Also money goes thru tons of hands so we didnt let our kid touch dollar bills either)

amother

Burgundy

Wed, Oct 03 2018, 12:55 pm

amother wrote:

For those people who are so grossed out at the idea of using the same hand towel as other people....why are you not grossed out at touching the same serving platter, pitcher, etc?
There are so many diseases and germs that can be spread via simple contact like that

The damp is a breeding ground for germs. The one towel per 15 guest people are not changing that towel between sudars either.

amother

Burgundy

Wed, Oct 03 2018, 12:57 pm

amother wrote:

Put out a new stack each time they wash.

amother

Burgundy

Wed, Oct 03 2018, 1:02 pm

amother wrote:

This one is from Bed Bath and Beyond for $20

This one is $12.99

Can someone please find the link to the first one. I would love to purchase it.

TY

amother

Burgundy

Wed, Oct 03 2018, 1:09 pm

amother wrote:

This one is from Bed Bath and Beyond for $20

This one is $12.99

I am disappointed. The first paper towel dispenser is not $20 at B, B, and B. It is a do it yourself project on Facebook and Pinterest. I don't have either. But I do have that crown molding. There should be a truth in posting law. LOL

amother

Hotpink

Wed, Oct 03 2018, 1:27 pm

all these extreme measures we took to avoid germs/bacteria/viruses for immuno compromised kid is only done in extreme cases like we did when we had no choice. Although those are the places that breed the most germs, most people do not take such precautionary measures on a reg daily basis. Yes there are people who will wash floors every day, bathrooms every day & keep home perfectly clean all the time, but still wont do above & you can't expect people to do these under reg circumstances

amother

Sienna

Wed, Oct 03 2018, 1:28 pm

amother wrote:

How about people Cleaning after their dogs. Brooklyn is loaded with dog p---. It is disgusting and not nice that someone has to step into dog p--- with brand new shoes.

This made me laugh. Are you too young to remember when there were no pooper scooper laws in NYC? You think it's bad NOW? It was beyond ridiculous when I was a kid. Gross, yes. But somehow we survived. Mostly by wiping our shoes in the grass before we walked into the house.

bigsis144

Wed, Oct 03 2018, 1:28 pm

Until houses start to come with bathroom/kitchen paper towel dispensers (it even *sounds* ridiculous to my ears...) the way toilet paper holders and cloth-towel bars/hooks come standard, I refuse to believe that this is typical, expected or necessary in a private home!

I have literally never seen paper towels/fancy disposable hand towels used for hand washing in a private home except for time-saving/convenience when hosting dozens of people for a simcha/party. Who are you people, where do you live and why have I gone thirty years without running into any of you???

I am a bit yucked out by the “seamless” towel (ends sewn/Velcro-d together to make a loop to keep rotating to get a dry section) I’ve seen at a shul next to the washing sink, because of (a) the uncertainty of how often it is changed and (b) the sheer volume of people using it, but I can’t compare a public restroom or cafeteria or restaurant or banquet hall to a private home!

(And yes, I have liquid soap in every bathroom even without a built in dispenser so don’t get clever with me 🙄)

InnerMe

Wed, Oct 03 2018, 1:35 pm

bigsis144 wrote:

I have also not seen this.
I have seen those baskets with little towels in some homes for when having a lot of guests. But certainly not in all homes. Most people I've been to have one hand towel, that doesn't get changed between users. I also don't get the yuck factor. For sure, it would be more pleasing for me to have my own fresh towel, or paper towel but I consider that a luxury not something I expect.

amother

Hotpink

Wed, Oct 03 2018, 1:36 pm

OP was grossed out, as a guest, from host not being up to her cleanliness standards.....well I was grossed out as a guest who the host probably had OCD.....The Mrs. was yelling at my dh when he came out of bathroom & washed his hand in sink there& didnt wipe out the sink bowl pat dry after washing his hands & wetting the sink.