I know there are lots of screwed up things going on in the world, but here's one small thing we can easily fix by simply not doing something. Perfume is bad for the environment in many, many ways and will soon become illegal to manufacture. But until that day people should still use some common sense on where to but these artificial scents. Public restrooms CERTAINLY shouldn't be one of them.

I'm at a conference at ASU and in the restrooms here they use some raspberry flavored soap. So after I use the restroom and wash my hands, instead of having hands that smell clean (i.e. smell like nothing) I have hands that smell like I've been kneading raspberry sherbet or something like that. Just plain stupid.

The first problem is that I, like many people, am very sensitive to artificial scents. So the stench of that crap is actually a deterrent for using soap. That's not good. And it's directly in conflict with their sign "It's flu season so wash your hands in warm water for 10 seconds". I couldn't take the smell that long.

The second problem is that most people don't want to smell like raspberries (or whatever else). People who want to smell like something besides themselves already added that smell to themselves. People who wash their hands probably want their hands to seem clean afterwards and smelling like some fruit is not smelling clean.

There are other problems with this practice, many others, but that's enough for now. If you have a bathroom that lots of people use (e.g. a cafe or restaurant) or you manage some place with a public restroom then please do the world a favor and just use fragrance free soap and cleaning products. They are readily available, cost less, are better for the environment, better for people, and nobody is going to complain about not smelling some weird way.