Dear John,
Thanks for your extensive list.
I think that it is probably completely impossible to live a non-metric
life (or even an anti-metric life) in the UK or the USA in 2009.
You might recall that I wrote a tongue-in-cheek article called, 'Don't
use metric' a year or two ago (See http://www.metricationmatters.com/docs/DontUseMetric.pdf
).
Since then, I have challenged several writers of anti-metric articles
to live their life without using the metric system at all using my
article as a basis for their efforts. So far, I have had no response
describing a successful outcome from their actual and real anti-metric
activities! The usual response is silence.
Cheers,
Pat Naughtin
Geelong, Australia
On 2009/04/06, at 3:39 AM, John Frewen-Lord wrote:
Regarding the recent discussions on dual marking/labelling in
respect of the UK, I just thought I'd do a quick check on various
items I have in my house. I have listed a total of 57 items (no
connection to Mr Heinz!), these I feel being somewhat representative
of our shopping and DIY activities. This is far, far from
exhaustive (we obviously have far too much stuff in our house!).
Some items are national name brands (e.g. Branston, makers of pickle
and other garnishes), and are shown in single quotes. Tesco, Asda
(owned by Wal-Mart), Morrisons, Somerfield and Waitrose are UK
supermarket chains, Tesco being the biggest. I couldn't find any
Sainsburys items, another supermarket chain, so I guess we don't
shop there much! B&Q, Wickes and Homebase are DIY chains.
I found just four items that had imperial marking as well as metric
- and for only one of them was the quantity a rational imperial
quantity (but shown as metric first). However, this is an item we
have had in our fridge for a long time, and it is quite likely to
have since been repackaged in a rational metric size. The
interesting thing is that I really had to hunt for ANYTHING that had
an imperial marking - everything IS metric.
That said, some of the metric sizes are a bit odd (740 mL, 340 g,
etc). But still metric, no imperial shown.
I have shown the quantity labelling EXACTLY as it appears on the
packaging, errors and all.
If you like metric (and we obviously all do, with the exception of
Stephen Humphreys), then enjoy!!
John F-L
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Garage/workshop
B&Q 'Zorbo' halogen light fixture - base 50 cm long, projection 70
cm long
Wickes quick drying varnish - 1 Litre
B&Q bevelled edge mirror - 600 mm x 600 mm (24" x 24" approx.) 4mm
thick 3.6kg weight
Wickes marking chalk - 50g/1.75oz
Homebase pine cladding - 94mm x 9mm, Length = 2.4metre
B&Q Plastic angle - 2400 x 12 x 12
B&Q Chamferred architrave [wood door trim in US-speak] - 15mm x 45mm
x 2.1M [that is an upper case M]
Wickes pine Scotia moulding - 15 x 15 x 2400
Wickes silicone sealant - 310 ml
B&Q foam/rubber draft excluder - 15mm x 5.1m
Halfords windscreen [windshield in US-speak] washer antifreeze
concentrate - 2 Litres (makes up to 5 Litres of washer fluid)
Food and kitchen
Specialty coffee for cafetierres, package of 8 boxes, each box - 75g/
2.65oz
Morrisons pre-packed bacon - 250 g
'Natures Best' cod liver oil - 300ml
'Pure' non-dairy soya spread - 500g
'Whole Foods' pear & apple spread - 227g/8oz
'Bay Tree' Christmas marmalade - 340g
Morrisons pre-wrapped individually priced broccoli - 0.370 kg [and
priced at 192p/kg]
Morrisons pre-packaged mozzarella cheese - 200g
Evian bottled water - 1l [cursive l]
Tesco bottled water - 5 Litres
Quaker instant porridge oats - 1 kg
Tesco grapefruit juice - 1 Litre
'Veggie Wash' fruit and vegetable wash - 500ml
Tesco frozen peas - 1 kg
'Julian Graves' rice crackers - 250g
Somerfield custard powder - 300 g
'Amoy' soy sauce - 250ml
'Young's' 5 Coley Fillets (frozen) - 500 g
'Branston' canned spaghetti Bolognese - 410 g
'Lindt' Dark Chocolate - 100 g
Tesco kitchen foil - 10 metres, 30cm wide approx.
Waitrose syrup - 740ml
'Birds Eye' petis pois - 750g
Cleaners/laundry
'Flash' cleaning spray - 500 ml
'Fairy' washing up liquid - 500ml
Tesco dishwasher powder - 3 kg
Tesco fabric conditioner - 1 Litre
'Finish' dishwasher salt - 2 kg
Asda dishwasher rinse aid - 250 ml
Boots [national chemist/drugstore chain] sterilising liquid - 600 ml
Somerfield bathroom spray cleaner - 500 ml
'Domestos' spray cleaner - 500ml
'Delta' carper cleaner refill - 500ml
'Ecover' ecological laundry detergent - 1,5 L
'Vanish' laundry spray treatment - 500ml
Asda toilet cleanser - 500ml
'Shower Shine' shower cleaner - Big 1 Litre Value for the price of
750ml
Bathroom
Tesco shaving foam - 250 ml
RightGuard stick deodorant - 50 g
'Nivea' face wash - 30 ml
L'Oreal shampoo/conditioner - 250ml
'Imperial Leather' 4-pack bar soap - 4 x 125g
'Wella' hair toner - 14ml
'Boots' SPF15 suntan lotion - 200 ml
'Nivea' spray deodorant - 92g/150ml
Tesco herbal shampoo - 750ml
Pat Naughtin
PO Box 305 Belmont 3216,
Geelong, Australia
Phone: 61 3 5241 2008
Metric system consultant, writer, and speaker, Pat Naughtin, has
helped thousands of people and hundreds of companies upgrade to the
modern metric system smoothly, quickly, and so economically that they
now save thousands each year when buying, processing, or selling for
their businesses. Pat provides services and resources for many
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and government metrication leaders in Asia, Europe, and in the USA.
Pat's clients include the Australian Government, Google, NASA, NIST,
and the metric associations of Canada, the UK, and the USA. See http://www.metricationmatters.com
for more metrication information, contact Pat at [email protected]
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