Metric or Imperial? I like a healthy mix

[canuck grower]

Canadians are strange folk. Forget all the traditional ways we are different, one thing that I find absolutely hilarious is how we choose to use metric & imperial systems. For example we will make fun of the Americans for not jumping on the metric bandwagon (NASA is on board now though) but then we go and use pounds for weight and feet/inches for height, at least when we're talking about people. I don't know many Canadians who know their height in centimetres or their weight in kilos.

If I'm measuring things I will usually estimate feet and inches instinctively rather than using metres or cm.

Posting on this board has just improved my conversion skills. I am starting to be able to think in Fahrenheit as well as Celsius for temps and make a decent guess if I convert in my head.

So how do you all survive in this imperial world? I think being Canadian makes it easier because of things I mentioned like using feet and inches already. Plus I'm sure we hear more about Fahrenheit temps in Canada than in Europe and other places.

Americans: Do you guys end up learning more metric measurments posting here? It seems like you might, but a comment from latewood asking someone to convert their metric measurements because he was busy made me wonder. I know not everyone is as busy as latewood here though.

-canuck :jointsmile:

canuck grower Reviewed by canuck grower on 01-27-2007. Metric or Imperial? I like a healthy mix Canadians are strange folk. Forget all the traditional ways we are different, one thing that I find absolutely hilarious is how we choose to use metric & imperial systems. For example we will make fun of the Americans for not jumping on the metric bandwagon (NASA is on board now though) but then we go and use pounds for weight and feet/inches for height, at least when we're talking about people. I don't know many Canadians who know their height in centimetres or their weight in kilos. If I'm Rating: 5

[Chronic Chrissy]

lol I know what you mean, I flip flop all the time. I love how we all use grams and onces for small quantities the flip back to pounds instead of half kilos, then kilos when things get really big. I know outdoor temps in Celsius, but indoor grow temps in Farein(you know what I'm trying to spell) I can visualize inches and feet in my head but was taught in cm and meters(which I can also visualize), but if you ask me how many cmin 4.5 inches I'm lost, lol

Then it's funny because having just had a baby we had alot of doctors visits, all his scales and measuring devices are metric, then he takes the time to convert it to imperial. lol When he came to visit us in the hospital he yelled at the nurse because she gave him Kiana's weight in metric.

[canuck grower]

ha ha. Yeah it's really weird like that here in Canada. Like we can't decide which one we really want to use. I never even thought about grams & ounces, you'd think that would be most obvious. Well, on this board I haven't talked much about weights more about cab constuction & things like that I guess that's why.

[Chronic Chrissy]

LOL
Around here we use the obvious gram, then we use 1/4 1/2 and full ounces, then we jump to 1/4 pounds, then pounds, then Kilos but never half Kilos. lol it's just our everyday dealing language here in Winnipeg.

[canuck grower]

Yeah sometimes I wonder why we don't use kilos more since they divide so nicely. There's not even much difference between 1/2 P (224g) and 1/4 kg (250g) or 1 P (448g) and 1/2 kg (500g). I guess it's true that old habits die hard. Or maybe it's easier to say "one pound" than "half a kilo".