Urinal etiquette explained
Strategic Withdrawal from a Pair of Unequally Intrusive Occupants
QUESTION 11/20
A cluster of occupied fixtures can make a nearby vacancy seem convenient while leaving a substantially better retreat at the opposite end. Convenience is not itself a clearance criterion.
The situation
The Stadium · Entrance: Lower right.
| Position | State |
|---|---|
| 1 | Available |
| 2 | Available |
| 3 | Large visitor |
| 4 | Available |
| 5 | Ordinary visitor |
| 6 | Available |
Recommended position: 1
The occupied cluster
The substantial visitor stands at three and the ordinary visitor at five. Position two adjoins the substantial visitor. Position four lies between both occupants. Position six directly adjoins the visitor at five. Each of these choices gives up a separation that remains available elsewhere.
The leftward retreat
Position one preserves position two as an unused interval before the substantial visitor. It is farther still from the ordinary visitor at five. Its terminal boundary and distance from the right-hand entrance support the decision, but the primary argument remains the avoided adjacency.
Conclusion
Position one is the appropriate withdrawal. The Institute’s use of the word retreat denotes a considered spatial adjustment, not a deficiency of personal courage.
In plain language
Go to one. The other free places put you beside the big bloke, beside the other bloke, or between both. This is not a bravery test.