(Photos: Dick Cooper; Toon Illustration: Paul Coker Jr.)

Water Conservation Takes Offbeat Path

Potty humor is generally held in low esteem and very rightly so. Yet, when put to good use, say, in promoting water conservation, potty humor acquires some class and distinction. Its purpose becomes a timely, sensible message not a nervous chuckle. Potty humor comes out of the water closet.

At right are examples of potty humor that have taken on the worthy cause. By participating in the Path of the Painted Potty, a contest sponsored by the Santa Fe Rotary Club, these colorful commodes helped promote water conservation.

With water-conscience folks replacing their full-flow toilets by the low-flow kind, the city of Santa Fe had a number of full-flow toilets to discard. What to do? What some people viewed as an object best left at the land fill, some Santa Fe folks saw as a blank canvas, awaiting transformation through art and imagination.

The Path of the Painted Potty contest was born, with the stated purpose “to build public awareness about the importance of water conservation while raising funds for Santa Fe area water conservation projects.”

The public was able to view the completed works displayed at various Santa Fe locations. The contest ended Aug. 2 with a Grand Potty Pageant. Awards were presented and the potties auctioned off to highest bidders. The grand prize was a water-saving washing machine.

An entry of special note was a fourth-grade group project. They created a water library. The back of the toilet was a bookshelf, and each student designed a book cover to be displayed on the shelf. Padded and graced with a lamp, the seat became a desktop. Each student wrote a poem about water conservation on a sheet of muslin toilet paper that was included as part of the exhibit. The project was displayed at the public library and was purchased by the New Mexico School for the Deaf in Santa Fe as a permanent installation in its library.

A book about water issues for use in middle schools is to be produced using funds from the $50 entry fee, proceeds from the sale of the potties and support from matching grants. For information about the contest check the web site: http://www.thepathofpaintedpotties.com/

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