Toilet

ROBERT GARDNER EDITOR'S NOTE: The Daily Pilot has agreed to republish The Verdict, the ever-popular column written for many years by retired Corona Del Mar jurist and historian Robert Gardner, in exchange for donations to the Surfrider Foundation. This particular column was originally published in April 1993. When I was a small boy, there was a building at the corner of Washington Street and Bay Avenue in Balboa called a comfort station. It really was a public toilet.

Recently, I celebrated 15 years of answering your questions. Here are some favorites among the thousands I've received: Q: My cat got into my wine glass while I was away from the table. I caught him red-handed with the red wine. I noticed he enjoyed it. I don't think he got drunk but he sure did sleep well that night. I know that because he's so small even a few licks could be damaging. I don't think this will happen again, but I'm curious. Are there any alcoholic dogs or cats?

The other day, Rick Othmer, Seymour Beek and I took a nostalgic stroll through old Balboa and saw Balboa's justly famous comfort station, proud as ever, after almost 90 years of faithful service. As far as I know, it's the only comfort station in the country. It really is a public toilet, but the American people have a reluctance to call a toilet a toilet. I have never seen a set of house plans that mention toilets, just baths. Even with nothing but a toilet and wash basin, they call them half-baths.

This is a special message to the Costa Mesa Eight, the kids who were caught toilet-papering Mesa Verde Drive on the first day of school last week and cited for curfew violations. In a strict sense, or perhaps even a not-so-strict sense, decorating the trees along Mesa Verde Drive in Costa Mesa on the first day of school is vandalism. I’ve never thought of it that way, but some do and it is important for you to understand their position. You don’t have to agree — just understand.

The following is a guide of tips from my student to yours in choosing a bathroom at a high school or junior high school in this district: 1. Don't drink anything all day, so you won't have to use the bathroom at school. I know it is bad for your health, especially if you have a big workout in physical education, but better to be safe than sorry. 2. If you ignored Rule 1, don't wait until the last minute to try to find a bathroom. Many of the bathrooms are locked right after lunch, so forget about making that mad dash, as things get more desperate.

People who complain about water quality today don't know how good they have it compared to the early days of Newport. A comparison of our two piers is illustrative. The Balboa Pier was a tourist pier. Thus, the Balboa Pier had railings so that tourists could lean against them while admiring the beautiful blue Pacific Ocean. The Newport Pier had no railings. When ships tied up to load and unload, railings would have been a nuisance. Even when ships no longer tied up to it and trains no longer came out on the tracks, the Newport Pier had no railings.

We’ve all watched “This Old House” or similar shows on television where they go in and redo a house. It looks so easy. So when the wife and I discussed remodeling one of our bathrooms several months ago, we decided to take on the project ourselves. How hard could it be? A little tiling, putting in a new bathtub, toilet and sink, and a little paint. I remember a friend of mine telling me at the time “that’s what professionals are for.” Well, here’s the good news: My wife and I are not divorced, yet. Actually, our attempt at what we thought was going to be a fun project we would do and enjoy together has become a comedy of errors.

THE ENVIRONMENT "I have one main mandate: Clean the ocean." She emphasizes the economic and social importance of improving and protecting ocean water quality for Orange County. McKeon argues that the problem of building adequate sewage treatment facilities and systems for dealing with urban runoff should not be left to be paid for by property taxes but should be funded at least in part by state and federal money. "If you were in a house that had an overflowing toilet, what would be your first priority?

Oh, did we have to restrain ourselves on this one. When reporter Alan Blank broke the news Tuesday that the Newport Condominium Assn. was filing a claim against Costa Mesa, due to transients repeatedly breaking the chain-link fence at the Newport Terrace complex to urinate and defecate in the property’s common area, our minds immediately set to work thinking of clever headlines. Unfortunately, that proved to be difficult for a family newspaper. In the end, we settled on “Condos: We’re not a toilet, so pay up.” If we were the OC Weekly, there’s no telling what we would have come up with.

COSTA MESA — A group of high-school seniors brought home a national first-place title for creating an environmentally friendly business. "We're not supposed to be winning championships, but we do," said Business Academy teacher Mike Sciacca. "We don't have as much money as wealthier schools, but our kids just chose to win … I hope they realize success is a choice. " One of Costa Mesa High School's Virtual Enterprise classes created Sanatorius, a pollution-offset company that installs compost toilets in developing countries.

Recently, I celebrated 15 years of answering your questions. Here are some favorites among the thousands I've received: Q: My cat got into my wine glass while I was away from the table. I caught him red-handed with the red wine. I noticed he enjoyed it. I don't think he got drunk but he sure did sleep well that night. I know that because he's so small even a few licks could be damaging. I don't think this will happen again, but I'm curious. Are there any alcoholic dogs or cats?

Oh, did we have to restrain ourselves on this one. When reporter Alan Blank broke the news Tuesday that the Newport Condominium Assn. was filing a claim against Costa Mesa, due to transients repeatedly breaking the chain-link fence at the Newport Terrace complex to urinate and defecate in the property’s common area, our minds immediately set to work thinking of clever headlines. Unfortunately, that proved to be difficult for a family newspaper. In the end, we settled on “Condos: We’re not a toilet, so pay up.” If we were the OC Weekly, there’s no telling what we would have come up with.

Transients who have taken up residency at Canyon Park in Costa Mesa have repeatedly broken the fence separating the park from the Newport Terrace condominium complex “in order to use the complex’s common area as a bathroom,” according to a complaint that the complex’s lawyers filed with the city. The attorneys have submitted a stack of repair bills totaling $1,200 to the city that the complex’s owners want reimbursed. And to prevent it from happening again, the complaint forcefully asks that Costa Mesa either install bathrooms in the park or put up a more effective barricade, ensuring that the feces stay on the other side regardless of whether they are left in a toilet or the bushes.

Costa Mesa housing developer Steve Jones is all about recycling. He fashioned his business cards from a deck of playing cards with a sticker on one side advertising his housing business, Bettershelter. The eco-friendly landscaping for Bettershelter’s latest venture, a quasi-village of 12 bungalows in Eastside Costa Mesa, was just going into the ground Wednesday. Bettershelter is hosting a launch party at 6 tonight for 12@Elden, 2381 Elden Ave., a remodeled condominium complex targeted at the young, cool and environmentally conscious home buyer.

Estancia High School’s Class of ’09 is really on a roll. Denied the chance to carry on the annual tradition of toilet papering their school before the first day of classes, several seniors turned their focus to Fairview Park. “They think they’ll stop it, but they won’t,” said defiant, 17-year-old Estancia senior Natalie Plascencia. “[Seniors] will do it two days later, they’ll do it in November, in December. You never know. You just never know.

This is a special message to the Costa Mesa Eight, the kids who were caught toilet-papering Mesa Verde Drive on the first day of school last week and cited for curfew violations. In a strict sense, or perhaps even a not-so-strict sense, decorating the trees along Mesa Verde Drive in Costa Mesa on the first day of school is vandalism. I’ve never thought of it that way, but some do and it is important for you to understand their position. You don’t have to agree — just understand.