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Opinion: A Christmas gift to get the potty started

Arnold Cohen poses for a photo with his line of bidets, starting on the left with the original model Aug. 26, 2007, at his Weston, Fla. showroom/warehouse. Cohen held the patent on for the "American Bidet" since the early 1960s. /AP photo by J. Pat Carter Arnold Cohen poses for a photo with his line of bidets, starting on the left with the original model Aug. 26, 2007, at his Weston, Fla. showroom/warehouse. Cohen held the patent on for the "American Bidet" since the early 1960s. /AP photo by J. Pat Carter

By David Cook December 18, 2021 5 min read

Need a unique Christmas gift?

Something that makes a little, ahem, splash?

Some 20 months ago, I stood in an aisle at Publix, surrounded by hundreds of panicked shoppers. COVID-19 was coming, and there on Aisle 7, the toilet paper aisle, not a single roll remained.

My anxiety – a mix of Chicken Little and the Little Red Hen – kicked in. The sky is falling, but, dammit, I’ll take care of things myself. If I couldn’t rely on toilet paper, I’d better find something else.

But what?