Little did I know the topic of urination has recently sprouted up a fierce debate in the walking world.
It all started with a little device called the "Go Girl". It retails for around $5 and 
promises to open the gates for women to enjoy the apparently innumerable joys of peeing from the upright position. The device looks like (and apparently has been confused for) a pink hat, but it's basically a funnel that improves a woman's ability to aim.
[Photo caption: The Go Girl device is shown next to the portable container it arrives in to customers.]
Seems reasonable. So where's the debate?
According to a few bloggers, the marketing folks of Go Girl were a tad overzealous at a recent blogging conference. The real debate though lies in whether or not people actually use this thing!
Because I know you're curious, there are instructions and several videos on the Go Girl site that explain how this device can be used. Basically, you make a seal between yourself and the funnel, aim, and pee. It's intended for people who are camping, totally grossed out by restrooms that are available, or completely unable to find a bathroom at all.
One of the marketing angles interested me because rumor has it that this entire ingenious idea was born from the needs of people with disabilities. Women recovering from hip/knee surgeries and those that had trouble using a traditional toilet were the target audience before Go Girl's founder took her products main...stream.
I suppose there are the lucky few that have certainly benefited from this contraption but I have my doubts for the rest of us with disabilities. For one 
thing, it would take some incredible balance to hunker down or hang on to something with one hand and hold onto the Go Girl with the other. Then there's the danger of "breaking the seal" or letting the funnel overflow. Both of which I hear have disastrous results! A pal of mine, Kate the Great, from Cincinnati Women's Bloggers gave her Go Girl a whirl in the shower. Not an option for me and while it has absolutely nothing to do with my disability, I'm also not comfortable washing it in the dishwasher (as the Go Girl site suggests)!
[Photo caption: The Go Girl device is shown with arrows indicating key points made by the company. The points include: mess free, medical grade silicone, unique tip design, and compact design.]
In the end, maybe I'm missing the point. Sure-I've had many a pee crisis. I grew up in Kentucky-home of farm parties, football games, and sometimes even outhouses, none of which are known for accessibility features. I'm a "find a way, make a way" kind of girl though. When given the choice-or even not-I generally prefer to do nearly 90% of my waking activities from a seated position. From what I've read and seen so far, Go Girl isn't about to change that!
What are your thoughts? Could Go Girl work for you? How have you survived some of life's most troublesome pee crises?
More on Disaboom:
You too can pee out of your bellybutton
The Middle of the Night Pee
On bathrooms II
