Go back

Friends social distance by walking in giant “body walls” occupying whole sidewalk

Vancouverites block disease by blocking all living things from getting to their destinations

Written by Zach Siddiqui, Humour Editor

VANCOUVER, BC — An increasing number of Vancouverites are keeping contact to a minimum by forming “body walls” as they walk down the street, repelling others who might approach.

“No one will bother coming near us if we destroy all hope of pedestrian movement in this direction,” says Rudy Walker. 

Body walls are traditionally formed by assembling a group of friends to walk in a horizontal line, connecting the two sides of the sidewalk. The body wall phenomenon, according to health experts, can happen “anywhere infested with self-serving, Tindered-out millennials” and therefore especially in the Yaletown region of Vancouver. COVID-19 has only exacerbated the problem; the six-foot rule means that body walls can reach a breadth of 30 feet.

“Last week we actually had a stare-off with an opposing body wall,” said Tati Lespich, a member of Walker’s six-person unit. “Very Romeo and Juliet, or as Rudy put it, Red Rover: Pandemic Edition. We made it through all right, but we lost Ken to those bastards.”

Ken Cushion, the friend in question, told The Peak in an email interview that he was safely at home, recovering from a migraine. He had bumped into someone from the other friend group and fallen, hitting his head. He attributed his absence of mind, which led to the incident, to everyone else on the sidewalk being beneath his notice. 

In the meantime, Walker and his remaining friends have continued their circuit along Vancouver’s breeziest waterside walking paths. At press time, at least three joggers had been absorbed into the body wall, never to be seen again.

Was this article helpful?
0
0

Leave a Reply

Block title

SFU’s medical school prepares to open

By: Marie Jen Galilo, Staff Writer On June 5, SFU’s medical school was renamed the SFU Stephens Family School of Medicine to thank the Stephens family for their $40 million donation to the institution. According to SFU, Ratana and Arran Stephens are the co-founders of the breakfast company Nature’s Path and “longtime philanthropists.” This is their largest donation to date.  To learn more about SFU’s medical school, The Peak spoke with Dr. David J. Price, the founding dean.  After years of planning and preparation, SFU’s medical school will be welcoming its first cohort of 48 students in August 2026. Price said, “There’s no end of challenges in starting a school from scratch,” including designing the curriculum and recruiting and training instructors. Despite these challenges, Price shared, “We’re...

Read Next

Block title

SFU’s medical school prepares to open

By: Marie Jen Galilo, Staff Writer On June 5, SFU’s medical school was renamed the SFU Stephens Family School of Medicine to thank the Stephens family for their $40 million donation to the institution. According to SFU, Ratana and Arran Stephens are the co-founders of the breakfast company Nature’s Path and “longtime philanthropists.” This is their largest donation to date.  To learn more about SFU’s medical school, The Peak spoke with Dr. David J. Price, the founding dean.  After years of planning and preparation, SFU’s medical school will be welcoming its first cohort of 48 students in August 2026. Price said, “There’s no end of challenges in starting a school from scratch,” including designing the curriculum and recruiting and training instructors. Despite these challenges, Price shared, “We’re...

Block title

SFU’s medical school prepares to open

By: Marie Jen Galilo, Staff Writer On June 5, SFU’s medical school was renamed the SFU Stephens Family School of Medicine to thank the Stephens family for their $40 million donation to the institution. According to SFU, Ratana and Arran Stephens are the co-founders of the breakfast company Nature’s Path and “longtime philanthropists.” This is their largest donation to date.  To learn more about SFU’s medical school, The Peak spoke with Dr. David J. Price, the founding dean.  After years of planning and preparation, SFU’s medical school will be welcoming its first cohort of 48 students in August 2026. Price said, “There’s no end of challenges in starting a school from scratch,” including designing the curriculum and recruiting and training instructors. Despite these challenges, Price shared, “We’re...