When all else fails improvise

Culture shock

I grew up in a county where very few people had indoor plumbing but for 35 years after I moved every house I lived in and every home I visited had the metal or wooden apparatus nailed into the wall that held a roller where you put your toilet paper on. Imagine my surprise when my family moved to an older house that did not have a place for toilet paper. My daughter told me about the free standing bathroom toilet paper holders that you can purchase that are not attached to the wall. This was the first time I ever heard of or saw one.

I purchased the stand and it served me well but when I moved after my husband died it was left behind. I kept saying I would get another one but each time I went out I forgot. I became used to the toilet paper sitting on the back of the commode or in the cabinet underneath the sink and in my grief and starting over I did not think of a stand for months. On a few occasions, I did check in stores where I should have been able to purchase one but they were out. The ones on line did not suit me and sgain it slipped my mind until this morning.

A lightbulb goes off in my head

I was shopping for a George Foreman grill and as I walked down the aisle something caught my eye. It was a metal napkin holder but it resembled a small toilet paper rack and it was only $6.00 so I got it. I decided to hack this item and make it work in the short term. My old stand held five rolls of toilet paper and this one held three. The only issue is that there is nothing on it where you can simply roll the paper down. I have to pull it from the side but it's not difficult and works for me.

This is much better than reaching back on the commode lid or reaching underneath the cabinet while seated on the toilet. I will at some point just buy a stand and use my new item as it was intended. For now, I am getting so much pleasure out of this life hack. I find that sometimes improvising makes all the difference.

Why not?

Those who have always had the money to choose the best and never had to go without will not understand this. Others have struggled and had to make do with what they have. Some say this is a poverty mentality but I call it being frugal. I enjoy finding ways to make things work out that are not the norm and sharing them with others.

I love getting spur-of-the-moment ideas and who knows within a week or two I might just purchase a free-standing bathroom toilet paper holder online. I have found out in my 64 years of life that things are not always what they seem. I know people who make big bucks and shop at thrift stores and yard sales. I also know those who can barely make ends meet but they spend the last dime and max out credit cards trying to give the false impression they are living the high life.

You may assume someone has spent a lot of money on certain items in their home when they could have simply had a creative idea. Had the paper towel holder not worked out I would have used it for its intended purpose. But the second I saw it that lightbulb went off and I thought "Why not give it a try"?