German Cafe Employs Unique Tool To Promote Social Distancing

                First it was gloves and then it was masks. And now…pool noodles? Ja! A café in Germany has asked customers to wear pool noodles on their heads to ensure social distancing is maintained. The Café Rothe in the town of Schwerin handed out straw hats-- with two pool noodles attached crosswise at the top-- to customers upon reopening after coronavirus restrictions were lifted.

                Instead of utilizing boring old floor markings and other such trite measures, the café’s owners decided to employ the colorful, 56-inch-long pool toys to discourage people from getting too close to each other. Jaqueline Rothe told CNN that her customers were enjoying the company and the sunshine while partaking of coffee, cake or beer. She said the café’s current motto is “Keep the social distance.”  The café’s Facebook page contains a photo of customers sporting the unusual headgear while happily seated at outdoor tables. (See below.)

              What’s next in the effort to keep us apart? Jousting lances? Actual 10-foot poles?

  There is one thing we do know with certainty: it is a wacky world in which we’re living.