At Howell High School, bathrooms have become the new hit hangout spot during school hours. Students crowd the bathrooms to meet friends, have dance parties, braid hair, and eat food. Not only is this completely unsanitary but bathrooms are left in ruins for the custodians to clean.

First off, why bathrooms? What in the world persuades someone to think, “oh, yes! What a great idea, let’s go hang out in the school bathrooms.” There really is nothing that appealing about them, I promise; there are plenty of other places throughout the school that you can quickly have a friend-to-friend counseling session.

Yet, overtime your DIY guidance office turns into a picnic in the bathroom with ten other people. Blankets, lunches, and the whole nine yards fill the bathroom floors. Party-goers end up with a new, free hairdo while they eat their PB&J.

No.

The school bathroom is not a five-star restaurant for you to sit back and enjoy your lunch surrounded by the fresh scent of feces, that’s what the cafeteria is for; and it for sure isn’t a hair salon for you to bask in the glory of dim lighting and dirty floors.

Apparently, people these days also have forgotten manners and just toss their half-eaten turkey sandwich in the toilet and call it good. Not only is leaving your trash for the custodians to pick up just rude, but it’s also rude to other bathroom-users. No one, and I mean no one, wants to fish your entire lunch out of the toilet just to go pee. Take pride in your school and clean up after yourselves, it’s the respectful and sensible thing to do. The HHS student and parent handbook says, “Students will be held responsible for the proper use and protection of any equipment or facility they are permitted to use.” So please, just put your banana peel in the trash-can and not next to the toilet, it’s literally on the way out the door.

Speaking of other bathroom-users, during one of these so called “bathroom bangers”, there are still plenty of students out there who just want to use the restroom. It’s extremely awkward to walk into a bathroom filled with people dancing and laughing who suddenly come to a complete halt and death-stare you as you basically run to find a stall before their eyes drill holes in your skin. Speaking from first hand, it’s even more uncomfortable when you walk back out to wash your hands. Sure, it’s inevitable to run into other people in the bathroom, but having eight people watch your every move as you walk maybe two feet towards the stall is extremely vexatious and unpleasant.

For the sake of our student-bodies wellbeing, please, no more bathroom hangouts.

For the sake of your health, please, no more bathroom hangouts.

Finally, for the sake of saying it once again, just to make sure everyone understands the memo, please, no more bathroom hangouts.