Do You Sit or Squat? (Very Serious Question)

When was the last time you were out and about in some public arena or possibly traveling in an unfamiliar locale and someone in your party desperately needed to make a pit stop? It really doesn't matter where you are it is bound to happen at some point to all of us.

Let's face it. Humans pee. And some of us way more frequently than others.

But despite this universal characteristic it seems public bathrooms are often tough to come by. And those that are readily available and easy to find- well, it's safe to say most people probably know about them which can mean all sorts of not fun things such as long lines and really nasty facilities.

In my opinion, personally, the only situation worse than no bathrooms in sight in that time of need is that hope crushing instance where that single solitary restroom you wasted 20 minutes trying to find turns out to be either completely inaccessible (see: locked, un-stocked, no door -who knows) or worse yet so filthy and repulsive you make the prompt decision to not use it anyway. Maybe that's extreme, but some of you know what I'm talking about.

I mean, okay. I realize that using the lavatorial facilities is not exactly a topic you want to ramble about with just anyone. But this stuff happens. These scenarios come up for all of us in our lives at one time or another. It's a fact of life and I'm fairly certain just about everyone who has ever used a public toilet has an opinion on it.

Which is all the more reason why I suspect the Sit or Squat website and cell phone application is really going to take off. What is Sit or Squat you ask? SitorSquat.com, which is sponsored by Charmin toilet paper, is a brilliant new service created by Danika Landers and Jonathon Glanz that allows you to find bathrooms in any geographic area of the world that are open and suitable (or not) for public use.

It sounds kind of funny, for sure. But this website and cell phone application are going to come in handy for a lot of people, I presume.

Basically, it works like this: The Sit or Squat website and public toilet locator service maintains a database of public toilets all over the world, their whereabouts charted by Google Maps. Each toilet listing includes a variety of information (which I must say can get fascinatingly extensive) regarding the toilet characteristics.

The characteristics, which include such details as hours of operation, whether or not a condom machine or tampon dispenser is present and whether or not it is recommended to sit or squat on the particular commode. The information featured in a public toilet listing is entered and continually updated by users of the site according to their toilet location impressions.

The hope is that eventually over time, as more users enter new public toilet location listings and continue to record their experiences on the Sit or Squat public toilet locator website, the accumulated assessment of each toilet will be more accurate.

You might be thinking, "But hang on, Sit or Squat- is the status of a public restroom not highly subjective and unique to each individual's personal standards?"

I thought the same thing at the time of my initial Sit or Squat discovery. But I'm pleased to report that the Sit or Squat creators already have that one covered. You can visit SitorSquat.com, put in your current location address and the results will provide you with a delightful array of nearby public toilets with the default information that was derived from user reports.

However, if you want to really get down and dirty with the Sit or Squat website and cell phone application (I know I know, bad joke, but I couldn't resist) you can sign up for a free account and save favorite toilet listings with your own personalized specs.

SitorSquat.com is still in its growing stages but the site owners have great plans in the works to really expand on the awesome services that are already provided now.

Currently there are two ways one can tap into the Sit or Squat public toilet location database. One is through the website with a simple search. The other, which I personally must say is the most convenient and relevant way to take advantage of this toilet finder service, is through your cell phone.

Please note that Sit or Squat is working at a rapid pace to improve the functionality of this service application through cell phones. As updates are made, the following information may change accordingly. However, the current applications available for cell phones are as follows:

To get the Sit or Squat application on your IPhone or IPod Touch, you may either download the link from the Mobile section of SitorSquat.com or you can type SitOrSquat to find it in the iTunes Store.

If you have a Blackberry Platform 4.2 or newer you can download the SitOrSquat application from SitorSquat.com as well.

Or alternatively, if you have a more basic phone, you can request info via SMS text messaging. Simply send a text message reading "sitorsquat" to DOTCOM (368266) and they will give you directions to the nearest lavatory.

Sit or Squat is a newer company but it really has remarkable potential. I strongly encourage you to take a look at Sit or Squat and consider book marking it in your web browser or through your cell phone for easy reference at a later date. You really never know when you're gonna have to go.