Fun Ways to Estimate Six Feet

Liz_V

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My housemate, who is not a champion at estimating distance, worked out that she's within a handful of inches of six feet tall. So she can look at someone and imagine, if she fell over, would she bump into them on the way down? If yes, they're too close.

More vertically challenged folks might want to imagine they're wearing a top hat as they topple.

One of our pet stores is doing curbside pick-up, but customers are also welcome to come inside as long as they maintain a distance of "two Labradors or six cats".

What about you? Heard any amusing reference points for those who don't have a tape measure in their heads?
 

Maryn

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The town where I lived until quite recently has a very tall leader. Mr. Moehle is 6'8" and frequently seen walking around town, visiting local restaurants, stopping at the library to read the paper or check out the bulletin board, walking the Brickyard Trail or the Erie Canal towpath, and generally making himself quite accessible to those who recognize him, which is pretty easy because how many people that tall are there in a town that size?

Apparently someone in town produced a few dozen signs asking everyone to remember to stay one Moehle away from each other, and the idea has caught on, with more homemade signs added to yards and public areas like walking trails, local ponds, and now they're cropping up in the nearby city.

Cute.
 

Chris P

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How about "Awkward Conference Distance"? (Recognizing this differs based on sex and culture) I figure if someone is as close as another male would be if introduced by a mutual friend at a professional mixer, the person about a foot too close.

The distance is about right if either one of us needs to step forward to shake hands.
 

Kat M

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Before school closed, I told kids to keep "helicopter space" from everyone. They had to pretend they were helicopters with their propellers spinning in all directions and could not get tangled up in anyone else's propellers. Far from six feet, which is why I am reservedly glad we have gone to distance learning. But they really started to understand it that day.

I also saw, on Facebook, that an adult sturgeon is about six feet long, so if you carry one around with you, you should be all set.
 

mccardey

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:roll:

But seriously - how you doing, kids? Isolation becoming an issue?

I'm off to find me a sturgeon.
 

Maryn

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One of the "delights" of my new home is the annual Sturgeon Spearing competition. Apparently Lake Winnebago is one of three lakes that has an overabundance of the prehistoric brutes, and their population is controlled by ice fishing, in which people haul a shack and a good bit of beer out onto the ice over relatively shallow water, chop a hole, and watch and wait. This year the ice was thinner than some, and there were also tents to limit weight loads. When a certain number of sturgeon have been taken, the event ends and that's it for another year.

And the winner this year took a 122-pounder a hair over six feet long. 30-second video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GdAxxyESrvU

So yeah, get yourself a sturgeon!
 

Sage

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That's what I told our admin assistant when CA first went into "shelter in place" and we all showed up to work (as an essential business). "That's not six feet. Imagine me, lying down between us, wearing a hat."
 
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frimble3

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Six feet is, I think, 3 feet each - so, if you and the person you are talking to each have a cane, and are waving it at each other, you'd be six feet apart. Or, fishing rods.
If you were each walking a big dog, stand far enough apart so that the dogs can't fight.

Also, wider than technically needed, but easy to visualize - a standard car-parking space is 8-9 feet apart. Or, imagine there is a car between the speakers. (Not one of those minis, though.)
 

MaryMumsy

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One county in FL has signs posted around. On either side is an outline of a person, in between is an outline of an alligator. Below it says "stay one alligator apart".

MM
 

Kat M

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I like this! Especially if you're using an alligator and I'm using a sturgeon. While the alligator eats my sturgeon, I run posthaste in the other direction. Exercise AND distance!
 

neandermagnon

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I like the ice hockey method, seeing as I used to play back in the day. It's simple. If I could swing my hockey stick and whack you in the head, you're too close.
 

neandermagnon

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In the UK it's 2 meters, not six feet.

My ability to estimate metres is terrible. A few years back I realised that this was because when I imagined ten metres, I thought of when I was 6 years old having swimming lessons and what 10m looked like when I was trying to get my 10m swimming badge. So for years I visualised 10m as something that more resembles an Olympic swimming pool than the 10m long 80cm deep kiddie pool at the local swimming pools. :ROFL: Should help with social distancing... keeping 20m away instead of 2m lol.
 

Chasing the Horizon

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My husband’s work is using pool noodles (they were all stocked up for spring and now nobody’s buying them, so they have a stupid amount of pool noodles). Now my husband gets to walk around holding a bright pink noodle reminding people to stay one noodle-length apart.
 

Snitchcat

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Has anyone tried to use piano keyboards? An octave (8 white keys) is approximately 7 inches. So figure most of the keyboard (88 ish in total) is approximately six feet, ergo, the length of a piano would give you more than a good six feet.

Guess this means we all need to tow a piano around?
 

Kat M

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Has anyone tried to use piano keyboards? An octave (8 white keys) is approximately 7 inches. So figure most of the keyboard (88 ish in total) is approximately six feet, ergo, the length of a piano would give you more than a good six feet.

Guess this means we all need to tow a piano around?

I shall be giving up my sturgeon because I like this idea so much better! If no one's around I can play it. I'll wash my hands after, of course.
 

Liz_V

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I like the sturgeons -- then if somebody gets too close, we can do the Fish-Slapping Dance! Piano-towers can give us something good to dance to. :)
 

jjdebenedictis

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If you were to slash your sword at their throat, they should still be alive afterward.
 

Bufty

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Stand nose to nose, then each take a long step backwards. Hmm... that sounds like 'closing stable door after horse has bolted' situation.

Or pretend you're constantly shadow boxing - folk who see you coming ought to give you a wide berth.
 

Maryn

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That reminds me of a guy I used to see almost every day. He was mentally ill, clearly seeing people not visible to anyone else and conversing with them, sometimes disagreeing or defensive, his voice raised, other times greeting them as they arrived and asking how they were, then just chatting. He walked a great many hours a day, including in bad weather, and other than the conversations, didn't do anything out of the ordinary. Nevertheless, the employees at a lot of the local stores were scared of him. He moved through stores with a six- to eight-foot space around him like he was dangerous.


This was a learning opportunity for our kids, who saw how mental illness didn't make you a crazy murderer like in the movies, just alone and probably lonesome, and unable to work. They were fascinated by him and dubbed him Mr. Talkin'-Walkin'.

Then electronics got smaller. One day I saw him with one of those earbud things that hooks around the whole ear, doing his usual, but everybody assumed he was on the phone. He no longer moved through empty spaces in stores.

Maryn, wondering how he's doing
 

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How about a 6' long stick. It can triple as a walking stick, a distance measurer, and something to whack obnoxious people with. You could also tie a string to it and go fishing, put a sharp thing on the end for a spear or pike, use it as a vaulting stick... Lots of things you can use a nice stick for.
 

Maryn

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Wait. I'm allowed to whack people with a stick? Why was I not informed of this?

Maryn, always the last to know
 

Cat's-Paw

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Only if they really deserve it, of course. But when they do deserve it, it's pretty fun.:evil
 

Maryn

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I've moved recently and part of my lot is wooded. Let's define our terms. How large can a stick be before it becomes a branch? Or maybe a limb, because some people richly deserve a whack with something the size of my leg.

Maryn, not naming names
 

Cat's-Paw

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Hmmm... I've looked around on the internet a bit and from what I now understand, a branch is more unrefined and/or has branches, while a stick is more refined and easy to hold. Also, a log is something that you can't easily grasp with your hand. So you'd maybe want a fat stick or a small log... I mean unless they really need a good crushing or something.