Flushable cleaning wipes and other Instructions.
INFORMATION: WARNING: CAUTION
So today in a moment of 'not sure what' (Lack of books to read when on the loo I think), anyway, I picked up the empty Flushable wipes packet and read the instructions.
What a relevation. I noticed a number of key things that might have prevented the blocked 'U' bend at the weekend had we read the instructions prior to the kids cleaning finger print marks and unseen germs off woodwork and door handles.

The point and the instructions or the lack of need thereof. ...Some would say that's a guy thing , but tell me please , do women really read all these instructions. I think not.

It seems that several errors were made on Saturday resulting in the two blocked toilets, one of which presented a problem through the following morning, where a combination of biodegradable technology and a little pushing and shoving and pumping with the plunger paid off.



The instructions were an education in themselves, and did point out a few things very clearly, once read. I wonder how many individuals sat around the at the Head Office of The Johnson Company(a family company, by the way so it says..and what does that mean?) and decided what to write.

I found that to skip over any part of the instructions, or fail to apply them fully, you are open to problems, further along the process. In the case of the weekend event the intent was to kill germs and to minimize the catching Hazels illness. Jonathan hence wiping door handles and probably anything he could find to wipe. Hazel is better today and after about 24 hours sleep is up and meandering around. Jonathan was never ill he has sinus and alaergies and a day off to recover. Yet I'm beginning to feel decidedly dodgy.

Anyway again back to the topic ..let me illustrate and explain my findings further.

My initial thoughts are these are my kind of wipes and the preferred choice of my children. No other wipe in the house promised anything close. In fact Nothing else I know of offers such a claim.
Clearly a good decision on whoever purchased them.
The effort they expend is decidedly limited though...

Bear in mind I also outsourced this task to the kids, so also they worked harder so I didn't have to.
For me it was a win win. The kids were also working hard so I didn't have to.

First realization on reading the instructions was that these wipes are meant for bathrooms, oops.
However, the wipes worked very well on all door handles and also erased finger prints from walls, and doors throughout the house it seems.
The house had a wonderful citrus, like chlorine type smell afterwards. (although the instructions inform me that is it Quarternary Ammonium which sounds lethal).


Encouraging to know that the kids did not use on the carpets or for personal hygene such as nasal wipes etc.

However, the CAUTION sign here is worth noting.

KEEP OUT OT REACH OF CHILDREN AND PETS.

Clearly this may have been a fundamental mistake on my part.
Instructions for pulling the wipe or wipes from the package was intuitive, a monkey could have done it, and the kids did it in handfulls.
The surfaces to use the wipes on are listed and I believe we successfully added several more to that listing.








The next Key instruction should have been under a WARNING section.

NEVER FLUSH MORE THAN ONE WIPE AT A TIME.

Never flush when other matter is present in the bowl is obviously also referring to any other wipe.
What is the level of contingency? Is it truely One wipe? or maybe Two wipes?, Three?, Several ?or 10 ? or 20 ? or so at the same time.
Whatever the threshhold for the actual number of wipes my kids exceeded it and I found out the consequences.
As for allowing to dry before you are sitting, one assumes that is not referring to the wipe ?
The moisture loss instructions ....a total oversight...

To anyone worried about all the loos being out of action for periods of time, we have three . (our contingency).
Well basically there endeth the lesson on the flushable wipes.
Im thinking of reading about kitchen cleaners at some point, should I be so inspired , or that uninspired to do anything else.....

LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES and LESSONS LEARNED:
a. Better than no instructions are some instructions,
b. Better than that is reading them before you do something
c. Better than that is applying them with some sceptisicm and creative thought.
d. Better than that is sharing the pain with someone else.
e. Better that that is delegating the task completely, and the resolution of any problems created.
f. Better than that is purchasing something already made, so you can go off for a well earned rest and a drink. (But beware of Frozen Margaritas)..

Who reads the instructions or labels on such packets. I certainly never had before. Something one does not need to do surely. I admit I've started reading lables on food. how much fiber in bread (or lack thereof in most of the popular brands) or sugar and salt in cereals or such items. In most cases all you need to know is how to buy it, open it and eat it. Most of which comes natrually, or at least should do as a result of some genetic imprint. Thus the principle is that for most individuals, most things are usually simple to use, consume, or construct by applying a little logic or common sense to a situation, so instructions in general terms are assumed to be redundant. ......but are they....a doubt arises....!

At this point is it worth mentioning the WARNING or CAUTION labels that are there for our protection. Or are they just to protect the Corporations from being sued by opportunists, with no sense of the obvious, or personal responsbility. Im referring to 'DANGER Hot liquid' on coffee cups. ( by the way have you ever picked up an empty cup and realized how redundant that warning can be? or 'do not consume internally' on bleach bottles etc, etc.


The most annoying WARNING SIGNS are those dangerous silly Yellow Triangle Or hinged signs in the stores. The ones you trip over and bump into, that are supposed to warn you of a WET FLOOR. So why not also put a WARNING sign somewhere alerting us to beware of randomly placed yellow obstacles in difficult to see places throughout the store. Or just dry the floor properly in the first place. There are certain situations where there are no warnings provided and maybe there shoud be, like one will get a brain freeze when I drink a frozen Margarita, and it will be unbearably painful..(never did I expect such pain at the moment of consumption of alchohol.One expects at least an overnight, delay). Or ......but.... thats for another day.. (See below for some other instruction, insights and lessons learned).

I now recall three situations relating to instructions and in summary here are my insights.
1. The construction of the basket ball hoop in the garden, Dont believe everything you read.(5 years ago- these things stick with me).
I followed the instructions to the letter, not once diverting my attention or applying any creative thought to the process.
Several hours after starting, in the heat and Humidity of a Houston summer and after numerous attempts at trying to force a metal pin through the holes in the base of the pole to keep it up .....I gave up in despair.
I did the ultimate and asked for Help. I called the Help Line on the instructions.
I was ready to pay for someone to fly in from their factory to explain how to do this final and simple step.
It was explained to me that the instructions were wrong and if I turned the pole round the other way and reversed the instructions it would fit. Not letting the lady leave the call until I tried this approach , within a minute everything was in its proper place.

2. The construction of the swing chair in the gdn.try try try again then read the instructions.( 2 or so years ago) Proven that instructions were wrong in the past I attempted to construct this from pure creative energy.
2-3 hours later, and following some help by a visiting neighbour we both sat down and decided now it was time to find the instructions. With them retrieved from the discaurded papers all around the garden the chair started to resemble something you could sit on.

(now experience dictates that once bitten twice shy).

The other swing chair still remains packaged up in the garage. Celebrating its second year unopened.

3. The Table Tennis Table. buy something different for Christmas. The third and most memorable event relates to the attempt at interpreting instructions for building of a Table Tennis Table.
It was the 10.00pm Christmas Day at commencement of construction of Timothys Christmas present (2005).
I'll say no more than it took over 2 hours to erect on Christmas Day when
everyone else in the world was surely watching TV , drinking, relaxing or going to bed.
I needed Jonathans help to prevent me having a complete over load.


Timothy captured the events on film. thanks for the help Tim...and when are you going to use it?



Finally we could relax we were done only to be confronted by the mixed emotions of finally constructing a working fully functional full sized table and finding a quick answer to the question posed to us by Hazel.

Where are you going to put it now ?

There were no easy solutions to that and no instructions on how to answer that question.
Back to creative thinking. An answer had to be found before people came over for Boxing day, and it was obvious, even to me that there was a problem.

I cleared the back screened porch out and there is resides to this day. Covered over awaiting further use.