today, the wwftd master wrote:
the worthless word for the day is: jakes

[origin uncertain, perhaps from F. Jacques]
chiefly British : a privy

"He kicked open the crazy door of the jakes."
- James Joyce, Ulysses (1922)

"In particular he feared dying in some undignified
way, on the jakes or with his face in the porridge."
- Michael Chabon, The Final Solution (2004)

-tsuwm

to which a faithful reader replied:
Hi - about a half century ago I had a classical lit professor who attributed the term Jakes to stories about Ajax in the Iliad or in one of Shakespeare's plays (Troilus and Cressida?). Ajax was portrayed as real dirtbag and his name became identified with toilets - hence Ajax cleanser and the Brit term Jakes. I have no proof and am passing this along only because I also have no life :-)

Gabe.