I am American, that means I like inches, feet, yards, miles, and Fahrenheit. The whole thing with millimeters, centimeters, meters, kilometers, and Celsius really throws me off.
Let’s see some practical examples:
How warm or cold is it outside? Well, normally you would look at the thermometer. And the thermometer says: 13°. What? That is freezing!!!! Oh, wait – that would be 13° C… which means…ummm…. 0° C is freezing… 100° C is boiling (I think)… meaning 13° C is……….. I have no idea, let me just step outside for a moment. That way I will know if I need a coat. The answer: at 13° C you still need a coat.
How big is something? You want to use the printer to print out something from the computer. You would like to print it on a special piece of paper. Microsoft Word needs to know how big the paper is. The package says 222mm x 158mm. Ok, it’s in millimeters. MS Word doesn’t accept measurements in millimeters. I have learned that it will take sizes in centimeters however. So that means (lucky me, this is just simple math here) add a decimal point and you have centimeters! 22.2cm x 15.8cm! The print job was successful! If you were to ask me later how big 22.2cm x 15.8cm was I really couldn’t tell you. I would have to go get a ruler. Or ask Google.
What size of mattress do we need? Well, I would say a Queen or King size would be nice. BUT, in Germany that is not how beds are measured. You have 90cm x 190cm, 90cm x 200cm, 140cm x 200cm, 160cm x 200cm, 180cm x 200cm, 140cm x 220cm, 160cm x 220cm… Ummm, what? I have NO IDEA how big 200cm is! Queen or King size… this whole centimeter thing is confusing me… Could you maybe show it in inches? I know how big those are…. Whatever. And bedding to go with these confusing bed sizes is a whole other story.
How about baking? No cups or half-cups here. Try grams. You want to add flour? You weigh it, you don’t measure it. Something to drink? It’s in liters, not gallons. Going for a run? Think in terms of kilometers, not miles.
Uggg, I am still trying to figure it all out. For now, I am just plain confused.
~Erin
Let’s see some practical examples:
How warm or cold is it outside? Well, normally you would look at the thermometer. And the thermometer says: 13°. What? That is freezing!!!! Oh, wait – that would be 13° C… which means…ummm…. 0° C is freezing… 100° C is boiling (I think)… meaning 13° C is……….. I have no idea, let me just step outside for a moment. That way I will know if I need a coat. The answer: at 13° C you still need a coat.
How big is something? You want to use the printer to print out something from the computer. You would like to print it on a special piece of paper. Microsoft Word needs to know how big the paper is. The package says 222mm x 158mm. Ok, it’s in millimeters. MS Word doesn’t accept measurements in millimeters. I have learned that it will take sizes in centimeters however. So that means (lucky me, this is just simple math here) add a decimal point and you have centimeters! 22.2cm x 15.8cm! The print job was successful! If you were to ask me later how big 22.2cm x 15.8cm was I really couldn’t tell you. I would have to go get a ruler. Or ask Google.
What size of mattress do we need? Well, I would say a Queen or King size would be nice. BUT, in Germany that is not how beds are measured. You have 90cm x 190cm, 90cm x 200cm, 140cm x 200cm, 160cm x 200cm, 180cm x 200cm, 140cm x 220cm, 160cm x 220cm… Ummm, what? I have NO IDEA how big 200cm is! Queen or King size… this whole centimeter thing is confusing me… Could you maybe show it in inches? I know how big those are…. Whatever. And bedding to go with these confusing bed sizes is a whole other story.
How about baking? No cups or half-cups here. Try grams. You want to add flour? You weigh it, you don’t measure it. Something to drink? It’s in liters, not gallons. Going for a run? Think in terms of kilometers, not miles.
Uggg, I am still trying to figure it all out. For now, I am just plain confused.
~Erin
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