Short(er) people of Lemmy--what are some lifehacks you figured out that've helped you out?

IonAddis@lemmy.world to Ask Lemmy@lemmy.world – 85 points –

Here's some of mine:

  • Camping tables are generally shorter than typical desks, and helped ease some posture issues I had sitting at a desk that was too high for me. (Even adjustable desks still were too high for me at their lowest setting.)
  • When a place I lived in had a washer that was too tall for me to reach the bottom in (from the top), I found I could use kitchen tongs to get things like socks out of the bottom.
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I'm in politics. I won't say who I am but you've probably heard of me.

Lately I've been wearing heel lifts inside some cowboy boots whenever I make a public appearance. I don't think anyone has noticed.

For a 2m giant, this is a fascinating glimpse into y'all's little world.

We both share the pain or poorly hung mirrors.

Agreed. And urinals where the top is lower than the hanging song.

The urinals at my work are terrible, even though I'm 5'10". One is so low that it's like pissing in a bucket. The other is so high it's like pissing straight ahead.

I need to stop doing this, but I'll just tip a tall glass off the shelf and catch it on the way down.

Thanks for the tip about camping tables! I'll be looking into that when it comes time to get a new desk

Just get adjustable legs for the table. Camping tables can't be used as a desk. It'd be flimsy and look terrible.

Funny thing...being short, I'm also not that strong. I buy furniture that I have the strength to put together/take apart and move solo, without helpers. Camping tables are lightweight and sturdy enough, and best thing--I can move them around with ease, I don't even break a sweat which is awesome.

I understand it if you're moving things about. Never really crossed my mind about moving things.

My feet don't touch the ground on chair height toilets. I don't know about you but it is very uncomfortable to try and use it while your feet are dangling. To solve this I've repurposed a single step stool that lives in the restroom at home.

For most other things I have a thing-grabber, tongs, and a tall person I can summon by pathetically crying out "tall person!"

I have a thing-grabber, tongs, and a tall person

is that all the same person?

I dramatically strain for something that's too high up for me to reach it. Pretend to try and weild the force to pull it towards me. And then wait until my very tall partner just comes along to grab it.

Don't forget the "nyeeeeeehhhhhhh" noise that accompanies the dramatised physical effort

8 more...

  • You can put small things like socks and undergarments in those mesh laundry bags so they are easier to get out of the washing machine.

  • You can buy phone cases that have mirrors on them which can be helpful if you find yourself in need of a mirror but the one in the restroom where you are is too high.

For people in need of a desk or table...

I'm an amateur woodworker and I could use the practice transitioning to furniture making. If you don't mind covering materials and shipping (from New York to you), feel free to message me and we can work something out. I'm not looking to make a killing here, but getting some practice while helping somebody out would be nice.

I’m not sure how to DM people on my Lemmy client Thunder but I might be interested depending on the deets! I’m located in Florida.

Hmm. I don't know either. Maybe I need an account on your instance? I'm posting from kbin anyway so heck if I know.

Tried a different client (Voyager) that did seem to have the ability to DM, so we’ll see if that works!

As a petite woman it's embarassing but buying kids clothes (especially if you're going for the basic look and no printed design). One is clothes can be expensive and two I just noticed that the quality of kids clothes are thicker and it feels right.

If you have small feet to match your stature like I do, there is no shame in buying way cheaper kids shoes too.

I forgot about the kid's shoes trick. It can be hit or miss...sometimes kid's shoes aren't made as well as they're expected to be outgrown. But sometimes the toe boxes are bigger, which I appreciate because it sucks looking for 5 wide women's. (And size 3 men's isn't always available.)

I have a nice aluminum stepladder. I discovered the handiest place to store it is behind the living room curtain. Much easier than in a closet. And much safer than climbing on chairs!

This is such a funny thread because I am only barely tall, only as tall as an average man and it always seems the world is designed for someone around 5'2". Kitchen counters just a little too low always. Mirrors too. Door handles, everything calibrated just a little shorter than I am. Except those stupid over the refrigerator cabinets, which are made for someone 7'5".

The tongs trick I have used though - no matter how long your reach, something is too far. And when my kids were short we had to arrange things for them, mostly just making sure there were stepstools around.

I stand on the wheels of cars when scraping the windshield or removing snow so I can reach the middle of the windshield. Doesn't work with every car though.

Somewhat related;

Recently saw a video where the presenter attended a press event, but ended up watching the thing from other attendees' phones being held in the air, because the presenter wasn't tall enough to see the stage 😢

I guess it could be a nice hack at concerts if you can't see the stage properly

I've never had problems for being short. Maybe I haven't been paying attention but there's nothing a stool or a chair can't fix. Also, climbing on furniture is easy but rare. 🤷‍♂️

Every single one of my kitchen cabinets is too high and I can only reach the bottom shelf. My kitchen tongs double as a grabby thing so I can reach stuff. I bought a rather large kitchen cart/portable island thing and that’s where the dishes live and it doubles as my cooking prep station since it’s slightly lower than my counters.

I bought a standing desk for my posture issues. It's also too low when at the lowest setting so I had to transfer my bath stool to my desk and now I need to go buy an actual squatty potty cause I hate not reaching the ground from the toilet.

It's perfect though because actual stools are too tall for sitting at a desk and a little bath stool like this has been perfect for my posture.

You can drop an egg on its side on a flat surface to get a perfect break.

Tell your kids the boogie man and witches are afraid of books and reading, so if we read, they won't come 😁.