The other day, my roommate accused me of being cheap. You see, we take turns buying certain things for the apartment – dish detergent, coffee, toilet paper. The stuff we both use regularly. There’s no set rule on brands or anything, though if I went and bought 18 rolls of toilet paper, she couldn’t go buy a 4 roll pack when it was her turn. (Well, she could, but then her turn would repeat.) These are, of course, unspoken rules.
Turns out we have very different opinions on toilet paper. I had no idea. She prefers the soft, plush, triple-ply, whereas I always buy Scott One-Ply.
Growing up, we lived just far enough in the country to not be connected to the city sewage system, which meant we had septic tanks in the backyard. For those of you not familiar with septic tanks, I won’t go into great detail, but it meant we had to be careful about everything that went down the drains. That meant that certain toilet papers were a no-go. It also meant not flushing feminine hygiene products and putting hair catchers in the shower and on the washing machine, because all of those things can get tangled up in the motor and jam it or break it. And let me tell you, while a septic tank doesn’t smell at all when it’s working properly, when things stop moving, you’ll know. Nevermind the loud alarm that your neighbors will hear. The whole neighborhood will be able to smell it.
So to me, the cheap toilet paper is the norm. It works fine and it’s cheap. And, as it turns out, it’s even more eco-friendly. (While it would save money, I don’t expect to ever go completely TP-free.) Apparently, my cheapness with the toilet paper has been bothering my roommate quite a bit lately, and she decided to bring it up this weekend because it’s just about my turn to purchase. I told her that I understood her concerns, but well, for me, the cheap stuff works just fine (and the rolls last so much longer), so maybe it’s time we buy our own toilet paper (we have two bathrooms). Realizing she’d have to shell out, she decided to go with my way instead.
After getting used to the cheap stuff they’d supply in college dorms, the cheap stuff never really bothered me. Who are these delicate-assed people who can only use the super soft stuff?
I like the super soft stuff. I find that I use more of cheap stuff at a time than the more expensive stuff. I’m not sure how much it is per roll for the brands you buy, but I usually go for Charmin or Cottonelle when they are on sale and combine with a coupon. I generally get them for less than 50 cents a roll. It’s sad that they’re not environmentally friendly, but I’ll make up for it in other ways.
I do love the super soft too, but 2 ply will do just fine for me. I usually buy the store brand though so that I can get an even better deal. I got a 20 pack from target for $10. Yup, I’m pretty sure it will be around until next year since I spend most of my time outside of the house.
That’s very interesting that you guys have two separate bathrooms but cooperatively buy toiletries.
But clearly that is the way to get your way: just bring up separate ways!
If you ever have hemorrhoids, you will never use the cheap stuff again. Also, cheap may be a misnomer as the last toilet paper I bought was a 12 pack of Charmin double size rolls for $4.99.