Choosing a Urinal

Awareness is not necessarily something you consciously think about; it is merely a state of mind. Awareness is noticing things around you as you move through life and consciously or subconsciously evaluating them as to whether or not they are possible dangers. For example, everyone has used a public restroom in such places as in airports, at concerts, or at sporting events. Being public facilities, it means all levels of society may be using them; some people may be rich, some poor, some homeless, some law abiding, or some may be criminals. When you enter a public restroom, you are faced with a choice; for males, it is which urinal to use.

Let us say as you are the first to enter a public restroom during the intermission of a movie, knowing that a crowd of guys will soon be coming in behind you. As you enter, you notice that:

• There are six empty urinals in a row along a wall.
• There are sinks with mirrors behind the first two urinals.
• There are stalls behind the last three urinals.
• The last urinal is next to the back wall. 

From a safety standpoint, which urinal would you choose to use? Let us analyze the situation.

 

If you select the first urinal:

• You may have one person standing next to you.
• A person at a sink behind you may watch you in the mirror and wait for an opportunity to accost you.
• You do not have a stall behind you where a person could wait for an opportunity to accost you.
• Everyone who enters or leaves the facility will pass behind you.
• You are surrounded by people and do not have clear view of the room.
• If something happens, you are nearest to the exit.

 

 

If you choose the second urinal:

• You may have two persons standing next to you.
• You have a sink behind you.
• You do not have a stall behind you.
• Everyone, except the person at urinal one, who enters or leaves the facility will pass behind you.
• You are surrounded by people and do not have clear view of the room.

 

 

If you choose the third urinal:

• You may have two persons standing next to you.
• You do not have a sink behind you.
• You do not have a stall behind you.
• Everyone, except the persons at urinals one and two, who enters or leaves the facility will pass behind you.
• You are surrounded by people and do not have clear view of the room.

 

If you choose the fourth or fifth urinal:

• You may have two persons standing next to you.
• You do not have a sink behind you.
• You have a stall behind you.
• Everyone, except the ones at urinals one, two, three, or four who enters or leaves the facility will pass behind you.
• You are surrounded by people and do not have clear view of the room.

If you choose the sixth urinal:

• You may have one person standing next to you.
• You do not have a sink behind you.
• You have a stall behind you.
• Only the person using the stall behind you will pass behind you.
• You are not surrounded by people and you have clear view of the room.
• If something happens, you are furthest from the exit.

After taking all this into consideration, which urinal would you choose?

Urinals one and six are good choices in that you only have one person standing next to you, but urinal one has a sink behind it and everyone passing behind it. Urinal six has the best observation of the room and a wall beside it so no one may approach from that side, but it has the poorest escape possibility. Urinal three does not have a sink or a stall behind it, it has less people passing behind you, and you have good escape possibilities, so urinal three would seem to be the better choice.

If there is already someone at some of the urinals, then your choice will be affected. To play a urinal game in which you choose the correct urinal given different sets of circumstances, click this link.

Is choosing a urinal something to think seriously about? It could be! If a criminal, who is intent on committing a crime, is present and evaluating which person to attack, your choice may affect the rest of your life.

We all make these types of choices everyday without really thinking about them or their consequences; they are made instantly with little thought. However, a martial artist has one advantage, he or she is aware that choices made in lif

e may be the difference between life and death. This does not mean that the martial artist stands in a restroom and consciously thinks through all the choices, it just means that, when faced with a choice, there is state of awareness in the martial artist's thought process. When you are aware, you have a better chance of survival in any situation than would a person who was not aware.

 

An example of a person who is totally unaware of his or her surroundings is a person talking on a cell phone. For a pickpocket or purse/bag/lap top computer snatcher, people talking on cell phones are sitting ducks; it may be hours before they even realize they have been robbed.

Contrary to what some “masters” may say, you cannot develop some sixth sense that allows you to “feel” or know when someone is behind you and is ready to attack you. However, you can develop a state of awareness where you consciously or subconsciously are always aware of your surroundings, always evaluating the information, and making choices accordingly.

Choose your urinal carefully!