Michelle Grand's Apartment

Some might call it cramped, but I would call it cozy. Small but warm.
The paintings were a warm touch, and the only bit of cold in the room
was the blue marbled sink. This was a nice place to visit, for a
little while at least, and I give this a pleasent 4/5.

Sam Eklow's Apartment

My sister runs a tight ship. This was a clean bathroom, and because it
was my sister's, I almost felt at home. My one complaint is that the
sink and mirror were actually in a separate room. I suppose that isn't
actually really good or bad, but it seemed a little wrong that I
couldn't wash my hands before I touched the doorknob on my way out.
Maybe I'm just weird. That's probably it, so I'll give this room a 3/5
for being perfectly adequate.

Katie Hargrave's Apartment

Clean, and surprisingly large. It seemed like it might be small when I
first entered, but the full tub and size of the room was quite
surprising. I didn't notice too terribly much to write about while I
was in there, so I will likely rate this about average, but nothing
really stood out.  A standard 3/5.

Studio Arts - North End

Floor mounted is a not a style I see often these days and it is
certainly not one I prefer, especially without privacy walls. It is
strange that there is such a lack of privacy in the urinal area, when
the stalls offer full, real walls and wooden doors, and you are so at
home that you almost want to move in. The dim lighting adds to this
effect, avoiding the normal over-sterile feeling of white flourescent
light, but perhaps too much so. I still prefer the other bathroom in
Studio arts to this one, but it is interesting enough to warrant a
3/5.

Continuing Education Facility

How appropriate this bathroom is for the Continuing Education
Facility. Children, or perhaps short men, can use the lower of the
two, continuing their urinary education, eventually graduating to the
standard wall unit. Nice and secluded, but otherwise average, this was
a solid 3/5 experience.

Subway

This bathroom is totally appropriate for a Subway. Just like the sandwich shop, this bathroom offers choices, all of which are slightly unclean and only kind of appetizing. You'd think with all that footlong money, they could at least keep this as nice as a McDonald's, but I guess that letting their customers "pee fresh" isn't on the menu. Sorry Jared, but I have to rate this a 2/5.

Senior Center - 1st Floor

I never like bathrooms that feel like a locker room, but this bathroom
actually has lockers. So it kind of IS a locker room. Other than that,
it's pretty much identical to the bathroom upstairs. It is nice to see
a changing table in the mens' room, but does that make up for the
locker room feeling? Almost, but I'll still have to rate this a 2/5.

Prairie Lights

Really? I mean, what is this? I obviously don't want blame Prairie Lights for this, but who else would do this? It's not so weird or funny that someone would sneak in cardboard to do this, but why would any employee do this, condemning themselves to fishing soggy cardboard
out of the urinal later. Needless to say, I did not follow the
instructions, and left, rating this experience a quizzical 2/5.

Somewhere in the IMU

The one thing I like about this bathroom is that it is so secluded
that it feels like my own personal room. I've never seen another soul
anywhere near this one. Actually, I'm not sure I even want to say
where it is. I'll say only this: it's in the IMU and the handicapped
sign on the door is reversed, which is another thing I like about it.
So that's two things. An otherwise average bathroom, these two things
warrant a 4/5.

Jenny Oh's Apartment

The bathroom in a girls' apartment is usually fairly stereotypical,
and this is no exception. Hair styling tools out, candles, and a trash
can filled with maxipad wrappers. This room smelled fine and was not
amazingly large or small. The experience was on the good side of
average, and I will rate it a fairly forgettable 3/5.

Blue Moose Taphouse

Slaughterhouse chic? Perhaps that was the goal, but the bathroom at
the Blue Moose Taphouse may be one of the worst I've ever used. The
urinals, if you can call them that, maintain the steel look of the
rest of the room, and offer literally no privacy. Two things that
aren't visible in this picture are the smell and the tacky beer
posters featuring half-naked shills, both of which were overwhelming.
With no redeeming qualities, other than the actual presence of toilet
paper (a rarity in bar bathrooms for men), I have to give this
bathroom a 1/5.

Formosa

I haven't paged through a Kohler catalog in a while, but I recognize
their touch in the lovely sinks at Formosa. The rest of the room
didn't quite meet the high expectations set by the wash station. The
rest of the room was fairly dirty and privacy was a joke: the front
door was propped open. There was also no permanent soap dispensor,
which seems odd considering the great design of the faucet. With a few
changes, this room could rank much higher, but for now it will have to
be a 3/5.

Public Space One

It is not surprising that this underground gallery has an interesting
bathroom. One of the roomiest I've been in, the stalls are actually up
a small flight of stairs within the room, allowing one to look back
down, viewing the room in all its splendor. Well, splendor may be
overstating it. Character in a bathroom is important, but it is not
the only important thing. What good is the privacy wall, I must ask,
when there is six feet of open space on the other side? Still, it was
clean enough and the experience rates a solid 3/5.

The Sanctuary

The illusion of high class (pronounce: snobby) that permeates The
Sanctuary is shattered as soon as one enters the bathroom. Quite small
for what is evidently a two-seater, my experience was pretty much
ruined when a man entered, used the toilet behind me, belched loudly,
and then left without washing his hands. The actual location doesn't
help its cause, and I'll be giving this one a 2/5.

The Union Bar - Upstairs

I knew going in that it wouldn't be good. You might be surprised
however, when I say that it was actually better than I had expected.
There was no real noticeable smell in there, good or bad, and the
floor was wet, but in this weather, I'm going to give them the benefit
of the doubt and assume it was a result of the ice-covered shoes. The
lack of any toilet paper is the first documentation of a bathroom bias
against men in Iowa City. It served the purpose of being a place to
go, but just barely, so I will give this one a 2/5.

Studio Arts Building South End

Darkness. I walk into the black void, unsure if I should, but I must.
I must go and just as if my deity decreed it, there was light! Motion
sensor light switch, neato. I find my personal favorite style of
urinal, and am pleased to find paper towels with which to dry my hands
after a nice wash. The checkerboard pattern is a nice touch and I give
the room a 4/5, turning the lights back off as I leave, so as to
conserve both energy and the surprise for the next visitor.

Iowa City Senior Center 2nd Floor

What it lacks in style, this room makes up for in accesibility. With an automatic door and wheelchair-level door button, I rest easy with the knowledge that no one will be kept from going in here. Though I normally loathe bathrooms that only offer airdryers, the city has installed an XLerator hand dryer at the center, and there will be no
need to wipe your hands on your pants after about only 10 seconds
drying! Still, I was less than pumped to see the protruding-style
urinal and the room really has no character, so my rating will be a
3/5, but a dry one.

PATV

What seemed at first to be a simple sterile white bathroom, such as
one might find in a small town optometrist's office, surprised me with
several small personal touches that made me feel more at home, my
favorite being the listing of the 7 Deadly Sins of shooting video.
Education during a bio-break is always welcome. The room was quite
clean and roomy. My one complaint is that there was waterless hand
sanitizer on the sink that looked deceptively like hand soap, which
was also available. While I am a great fan of hand sanitizer, I have
mistaken it for soap before, and if one attempts to use it as one
would use soap, with water, the results can be quite off-putting.
Still, the experience was a good one, and I would certainly go there
again. For many reasons, including the Monet painting above the
toilet, I give this room a 4/5.

Pappajohn Business Building - West 4th Floor

I was at the Pappajohn building for an award ceremony, during which I
had a great deal of iced tea and lemonade. Afterwards, I went through
a lovely purple door to find this bathroom. The protruding style of
urinal is not my favorite and it looks like they installed the
smallest privacy divder they could. The tile walls made it feel like a
locker room, and a cramped one at that. It was clean enough, but
overall I would have to give a rating of 2/5.

324 E. Davenport Street Apartment 2

If I am going to rate every bathroom I visit in Iowa City, it seems
only fair to start with my own bathroom. First of all, it's not very
clean, but I have only myself to blame for that. It's also kind of
small for my liking, but I really dig the decor, so my rating is a 3/5.