The One with the Potty Humor

Written April 10

Alas, my first ever business trip to Ghana (conference-expat-heaven) has come to an end. We have been cruising along back to Togo for quite some time when I lock eyes with my friend Whitney. She motions for me to pull my headphones out of my ears.

“What’s up Whit?”

“Do you have to pee?”

“Yeah, I guess.”

“Umm, will you ask the driver to pull over?”

For some reason we both start cracking up at her request. The trip from Accra to Lomé is not a long one, but it is a while to hold a pee.

“I just don’t wanna ask!” she adds between laughs.

I crack up again. “Yeah, no problem.”

I compose myself, swallowing the slew of giggles bubbling in my throat. Then I hesitantly, over-politely lean forward and tap the guy sitting in front of me.

“Excuse me, sir.” Nothing. I whisper a little louder. “Um, excuse me, sir.” He looks over his shoulder. “Could you please ask the driver to stop a moment?”

He whips around and hollers at the driver in a local language. The driver doesn’t understand. So the man yells in English:

“The WHITE LADY has to URINATE. Will you STOP for her?”

Well, that’s one way to put it.

The driver promptly pulls over. Whitney and I squeeze past the other passengers and scurry over to the side of the road to pop a squat. We are again dying with laughter. But at least we’re not dying of the need to pee.