On our recent trip I clearly heard the cabin crew member tell us that the lavatories were located at the rear of the aircraft cabin. Lavatories. Really? I hadn't heard or used that word since I was about five. My family were familiar with the word lavatory but were more likely to shorten it to lavvy or lav and Mum called it the la-la.
Much later it was called the toilet - perhaps it was thought more polite. I was born too late for the outside dunny (the outhouse?) although the house we live in now has a lane down the back where the dunny man came to empty the dunny can.
Then of course there were rest rooms and even last week in Brisbane I came across the use of the term washrooms.
I learnt the word 'loo' in my twenties from a colleague and it seemed to have taken off. Don't even get me started on euphemism. eg needing to go and 'powder my nose' from my strapping son in law, or needing to go and see a man about a dog.
But what really gets me is when people ask to use the bathroom. Sure. I can point them in the direction of the bathroom but they won't find the necessary flushing receptacle there....
They really are in la-la land - or perhpas not.
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