Even Towels Can't Find Work in This Economy

The gym locker room is a fragile place, an intersection of the public and private domains and thus a potentially awkward setting for otherwise common activities.

Showering. Changing clothes. Looking in the mirror to make sure your eyes are still aligned properly.

Normal stuff.

It could be considered a hub of efficiency, and there's usually a certain standard of decorum that reigns in the locker room -- at least on the men's side, to make a gross generalization. Conversations, if they exist, are short. So are the showers. For whatever reason, that's usually how it goes.

But not everyone subscribes to these unwritten rules.

Case in point: After a 30-minute battle against the treadmill earlier this week, I walked into the locker room at a 24 Hour Fitness gym to use the bathroom. I then moved into the main room (where the sinks are) and found an elderly man standing in front of an electric hand dryer. His hands, however, were not under the air duct; they were holding a gray towel around his presumably unclothed waistline, creating a makeshift dormitory for his Congressman Anthony.

The situation induced mental head-scratching as I proceeded to wash my hands. There were six sinks, three soap dispensers and two hand dryers, meaning the one not being used by Dr. Breezy was suddenly a hot commodity. I rinsed hastily.

More striking than my own scenario, though, was the logistical conundrum: How could this behavior be considered acceptable? It wasn't just that this man was hogging the clean air -- he already had unimpeded access to a towel (which, despite our technological advances, is still considered a drying device)!

I felt kind of sad as I walked out of the locker room, hands mostly dry. The towel basically got laid off and still had to kiss its former employer's behind.