Dear Pee in a Cup

Dear Pee in a Cup,

Last week as I sat in Physiology the TA asked for volunteers to pee in a cup. For some reason, my hand shot up. I was the only girl in my section and the other 5 sections to volunteer, and I soon realized why.

This week I was handed a beaker. A 250mL plastic beaker. I was sent to the bathroom down the hall and around the corner with a pair of gloves. I found that it is much more difficult to realize where to position the pee beaker for a woman than it is for a man. I did get the pee to land in the beaker and the pent up urine filled the cup. Too much. Apparently if you drink the normal amount of water and hold it it is more than 250mL. I realized this as I heard drips hit the toilet bowl water. I brought the cup up and continued to pee. I wiped the urine off of the cup, my hands and the floor. All with a line of women waiting for the two stalls in the bathroom.

I picked up my very full beaker and opened the door. I brushed past the two women watching me and washed my hands. Then I put the glove over the opening of the beaker to prevent spillage. I then walked the decent distance back to my lab class. I took the beaker to the test station where all the guys made jokes about how full my pee cup was and wondered if I had been worried that it would overfill. I'm sure if I were watching it fill up like they had been I would have been worried. I laughed it off and said "yes" which really meant "it did."

Pee in a Cup, you were slightly acidic on the pH test I ran on you. You were the standard all the boys were comparing themselves to. You were the half way point in water content between the dehydrated and over hydrated boys. While it was a much more awkward process than I ever imagined, I am glad to have met you. You showed those boys.

Frankly,

Jessica