On World Toilet Day, Squat for Human Dignity

Every day is some kind of commemorative or celebratory occasion nowadays. I mean, where would be we without International Talk Like a Pirate Day, St. Baldrick's Day and National Boss's Day? Well, today is no different, my friends — it's a day of awareness about one of the most important things in all of our lives: the loo.

Yes, today, November 19, is World Toilet Day. It's a day, to quote WaterAid, "to celebrate the humble, yet vitally important, toilet and to raise awareness of the global sanitation crisis."

A global sanitation crisis, you say? Why yes, 2.5 billion people live without toilets. The World Toilet Organization (who knew?) says that this is a situation that "risks their health, strips their dignity, and kills 1.8 million people, mostly children, a year." Pneumonia and diarrhea, two illnesses related to sanitation, kill more children than any others "by a landslide," says Water Advocates.

So what can you do on this most crappy holiday? (Sorry!) There are a surprisingly large number of events, including the Big Squat, which requires you to squat for a minute in a visible place to raise awareness. Or if you're just interested in knowing more about this problem (which is indeed a serious one despite my tongue-in-cheek attitude), read this article called "The Big Necessity," which features excerpts of Rose George's eponymous book released last year.

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