The Wonder of: Toilets

Quote of the day: "[There's] no use stewing over [something like] rock."

Word of the day: halcyon (pronounced "HAL-see-un")

Yes, the words "toilets" and "wonder" are used in the same title up there. I started wondering about stuff… But first, formalities:

I made up the quote while coming home; I was thinking about how I hold on to things--no matter how petty--for ages. Mom says I have a memory like an elephant; I never forget. Which is a misleading statement; I remember all trivial things and nothing important, but I digress.

I recalled a part of the book Forged by Fire that talked about the main character's great aunt or grandma, saying that she always faced challenges the same way: "first with a sigh, then a smile." And she said at some point that there's no use stewing over….erm, something. I took her attitude and tweaked her words a bit, and I decided to myself above motto.

Here's how I interpreted it: There is little to no purpose in stewing something like rock. Like, you can't stew rocks. You can, but there's really no point, unless you're getting minerals from them or something. Hehehe…So, there is no point in worrying about something that is set in stone or cannot be changed. *teehee*

The word came from my new unit 2 vocabulary. Haha. I had to do these assignments in my vocab book, and my fave word by far is "halcyon." It has multiple meanings. As an adjective, it is "of or relating to the halcyon; calm, peaceful; happy, golden; prosperous." A halcyon, however, is a mythical bird apparently similar to the kingfisher, "said by ancient writers to breed in a nest floating at sea at the winter solstice, charming the wind and waves into calm." So, yeah, it basically has to do with being calm. I like this word a lot. I think I'll use it in one of my many nonexistent stories…maybe there'll be a halcyon, or maybe it'll be a name…

A majority of this post is actually about me wondering about toilets, but the rest of my day follows up afterwards, if you want.


Um, yeah. Long story short, I was looking at a toilet with a plunger (called a "FORCE CUP" by whatever company produced it) in my hand, and as I waited for it (the bowl) to refill (and BOY, was it slow), I started delving into the subject of toilets.

Have you ever just sat there (or stood, I guess) and thought about them? I mean, most of us probably take them for granted, but, where did they come from, and how do they work (for most of us who don't know, didn't take the time to figure it out, and/or didn't want to take the time to research it)? I mean, you push the handle (*flush*), and the water in the bowl goes down the drain. But then the bowl refills, and eventually it stops. Even if it started with less water than normal, or if it had more water than usual, it knows to stop when it has reached the normal water level. Fascinating.

I'm pretty sure I know how the tank-flush thing works. I have looked in the tank quite a few times, after all. You push down the handle which is connected to a contraption that pulls up a plug from the bottom of the tank, releasing the water from the tank into the bowl. The bowl has some sort of pressure-sensing contraption or some science incorporated into it so that after a certain amount of water (or other liquid, I guess; I figured this part out years ago when my mom and I dumped paint-water into the toilet and it flushed without either of us touching it) is poured into the bowl, it automatically starts to drain. Unless, of course, something is blocking the flow of the water in the drain, which will eventually cause the toilet to overflow.

But here's my question:

Pondrance: How does the toilet know when to start and stop refilling itself? (Because I am simply too lazy to look it up; and too busy to try) I mean, I think the contraption connected to flush handle has something to do with it; like, once it gets to a certain level (a buoy-like part of it floats on the water in the tank), the water stops, but HOW does the thing know? I haven't the slightest idea how the bowl knows when to start and stop refilling.

Another thing (probably the first thing) I thought about was "who invented the toilet?". I mean, I'd expect it to be a woman, with females being obsessed with cleanliness and sanitization and hygiene and all that (generalization), but I don't expect there to be a lot of female scientists/inventors back then, so I thinks it must have been a man…But men generally wouldn't have cared about hygiene back then in olden times (no one did, really). Therefore, I'd reasoned that it could've been a neat-freak male inventor, or perhaps a feminine guy….just saying. ^-^ IDK. Take no offense, if you sense there is offense to take, plz.

Eh~ Did I really just talk about toilets? XD Yes, yes I did.

Nothing else to talk about, really. Oh! Stina found a penny today at lunch and proceeded to put in in the laces of my left shoe. I had 11¢ in my shoes...but they went into my fund...for school change...things.

So, I was 1¢ richer.

Random: HAPPY BIRTHDAY, PAULINA!!!

Good night.