The Urinal Game

During a conversation with some cousins, the topic of men's room etiquette came up. Why that was the topic of conversation I can't entirely say, but it reminded me of the Urinal Game, a flash-based game I stumbled across about 8 years ago when I was in college. In those days the web didn't have a lot of Flash, so it was a downloadable game. Now you can play it right in your browser at any one of a dozen websites. The premise of the game is to choose the right urinal, according to the unwritten-but-rigidly-enforced rules of the men's room. If you haven't seen this game before, take a moment to play it through a few times. The wrong answers are often hilarious, especially if you are so crass as to pick a urinal that is already in use.

The first time I played the game through I got the first and sixth questions wrong, and I still maintain that I am right. On the first question, I think it's better to be at least one urinal away from the door, for a little more privacy from that direction. The game actually references this important piece of etiquette in problem 4, but it fails to take it into account in problem 1. My other disagreement is in problem 6 -- being in the corner can sometimes alleviate the awkwardness of being next to someone, particularly if you can sort of angle yourself away from your neighbor and pretend like he's not there. This could also come into play in problem 5, although that big dude probably negates the advantages of the corner.

Obviously, I've given this way too much thought. But these rules didn't get created by accident. They're actually very helpful social mores, and they help everyone get through an unpleasant experience with a minimum of awkwardness. Who says men aren't entirely civilized?