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Such a tall young man!

(35 Posts)
CanadianGran Fri 29-Sept-23 22:39:59

I went into my local jeweller's the other day and was greeted by a young man new to the business. I know he is the son of the owners, and is now working in the shop.

My goodness, he is very tall, and it is very hard not to remark on it! In fact, I just looked him up since I know he played basketball. He is 6'10"

I wonder how many times a day he hears remarks about his height? And I wonder if it can be very frustrating at times; fitting into cars, having counter-tops at uncomfortably low levels, ducking through doors, etc.

Do you know many extraordinarily tall people, and how do they cope with live amongst the average?

JackyB Tue 03-Oct-23 07:11:39

I am not tall, but was above average height at age 7-8. My father told me I was tall (he was quite tall himself and his nephews were tall, too).

This made me feel like a freak and I have walked with a stoop ever since, even though I only grew to about 5'5" in the end.

watermeadow Mon 02-Oct-23 13:29:20

I worked at a public school where the average height of pupils was probably 6” above most teenagers. I thought it was because their wealthy fathers could pick the most desirable partners, who would be tall, slim and beautiful.

grannysyb Sun 01-Oct-23 08:43:36

My mother and sister, 5 foot 10 as is my DD and DG1, DG2 is about 5 foot 8. My DGS us 6 foot 4 like his father. I'm the short one at 5 foot 5. However my sister's partner is 6 foot 11, and makes her look quite small! When I first met him my dog barked every time he stood up from a chair, I think it was because he was so tall!

HowVeryDareYou2 Sat 30-Sept-23 22:16:35

Lots of very tall people! My eldest son is 6ft 2, which seems very tall to me - I'm 5ft 1, a bit shorter than my 12 year old Granddaughter. People have often commented om my height, as though I'm now aware of being short grin

Katek Sat 30-Sept-23 22:08:04

We have a friend who is 6'8 - he ducks under door frames automatically and drives a pick up as opposed to a car. I wonder though if any of these very tall people have undiagnosed Marfan syndrome

Witzend Sat 30-Sept-23 22:03:30

We used to have a friend of 6’ 8” - sadly no longer with us.

When dd2 at barely 4 years old first met him, her first words were, ‘Hey! You’re high!’

Yes, he had trouble with beds, baths and all sorts - had to order special sizes. Plus of course with economy seats on planes.

LovesBach Sat 30-Sept-23 21:56:03

My youngest Ddil is tall; not exceptionally so, but tall for a woman. She is beautiful, and has physical grace, but sadly she stoops a little because of unkind remarks made about her height all through the school years. I would so like to see her lift that lovely head up, throw her shoulders back and 'walk tall', but she is too self concious.

Sago Sat 30-Sept-23 17:14:01

Our SIL is 6 9”.
People do remark and stare as our daughter is only 5 foot so it makes him appear taller.
He is generally very athletic and has to have his suits custom made, his shoes are a 15.
He was a professional athlete.

Visgir1 Sat 30-Sept-23 17:05:23

Hope he's been checked out for Marfans syndrome?

joannapiano Sat 30-Sept-23 16:50:08

When my grandson was 3 my daughter phoned in a bit of a panic as her GP said that her son was abnormally small for his age. He is now 20 and 6’2”. His sister is just under 6’. Our 17 year old grandson is 6’3”. My mum, born 1920, was always considered tall as she was a slim 5’7” and took size 7 shoes as a teenager.

JaneJudge Sat 30-Sept-23 15:40:03

My son gets told he is tall almost every 5 minutes. I think he'd be delighted to meet someone 6ft 10! smile

AreWeThereYet Sat 30-Sept-23 15:30:49

Nowhere near that height but all my family apart from my mother are over 6 foot. I'm the shortie at 5 ft 9in but even I used to get the 'what's the weather like up there' remarks. In my heels I was 6 ft 4in. I was lucky to have a father who would always remind me not to stoop but it was hard. I had to stoop even to hear a conversation amongst friends unless we were sitting down somewhere quiet. Clothes have never fitted properly. Most of my young life I was 'Beanpole' or 'Lanky', not that it ever bothered me. In a world of hot pants and mini skirts I had long legs that could stop traffic. There were few men tall enough to dance with easily - one of the reasons I gave up dance lessons. I was always quite shy and would have given a lot to be able to sink into the background but towering over most people gave me nowhere to hide. Still, everyone has a cross to bear and being tall is probably way down the scale of things you have to live with 😁

Callistemon21 Sat 30-Sept-23 15:19:45

I wish I was taller (5' 4" now because I've shrunk an inch).
DGS is well over 6' at 15 and still growing.
My MIL was 5'9" which was very tall for a young woman in the 1930s and I think she got teased a lot.

Yes, it I beyond our control but I notice that very short people get comments too.

Iam64 Sat 30-Sept-23 14:32:14

I’m 5’8”, tall for my generation. I was this height by 14, got teased and called long tall sally. I stooped briefly then decided I’d have to get on with it.
Mr i was 6’6”, a typical gentle giant. I was shocked when we first got together by the endless comments like - cold up there? Also the way some men tried to goad or provoke him. He was skilled at avoiding, defusing, he helped my 16 year old 6’4” nephew deal with similar stuff.
Height is beyond our control. It’s one of those mysteries as to why some people enjoy making derogatory comments or ‘jokes’ about it. Peter Crouch says the bulk of abuse during his football career were about his height

Skydancer Sat 30-Sept-23 14:05:40

Theexwife I agree with you. Many (most?) people have physical characteristics they would rather not have. The worst thing is when people make a comment. We can all be sensitive.

B9exchange Sat 30-Sept-23 13:22:27

I have been very short all my life, just about touching 5' and believe me, people do comment a great deal on my lack of height, with nicknames like 'Lofty' and 'good things come in small parcels'. We consider it rude to comment on width, so why is it acceptable to make fun of height or lack of it?

Stansgran Sat 30-Sept-23 12:37:57

I was 5'8 but am shrinking. I was one of the taller ones in school- we went into prayers by height at school but there were two or three others behind me at age 10 or 11. My two friends out of school were the same height and this was in the Fifties. My friends mother said we were so lucky to be tall and that we would end up as super models! I did tell people who commented on my height that in my friendship group I was average and really that I thought they were short. I have tall grandchildren( tall daughters and sons in law) but have a sister in law and brother in law who have a complex about their height. I blame my mother in law as she never stopped talking about the” problems” of being tall for clothes. I made all my own in those days mainly because I loved fashion as in Vogue fashion but when she started on my children and about how awful it was to be tall I had to tell her that if she mentioned it to them ever she would find she had lost two grandchildren .

Kalu Sat 30-Sept-23 12:28:01

We often visited the Netherlands where my 6ft 2in DH was met by many taller individuals.

A friend’s son was accepted for a tennis college in the US. After his first year he was considerably much taller which according to my friend was due to certain supplements in his diet. I have no proof of course.

Jaxjacky Sat 30-Sept-23 11:58:44

I remember feeling odd at school, I’m 5’11’ unusual then as a girl, I got all the jibes ‘what’s the weather like up there’ etc. I’m glad my parents constantly reminded me not to slouch, my son is 6’3”.

Theexwife Sat 30-Sept-23 11:45:16

My daughter had a tall friend, almost everyone she met would comment, most just saying “You are so tall” as though she hadn’t noticed.

It seems to some that it is okay to comment on a person's height, imagine if people started saying, “You are so fat’.

I think it is rude to comment on all aspects of personal appearance

Dee1012 Sat 30-Sept-23 11:32:54

MayBee70

I knew a lovely lad who was very tall. I made a remark about his height one day and he said to me that people wouldn’t dream of commenting on someone being short, unless they wanted to upset them, but that people thought it was ok to say something about someone being tall. He looked so sad when he said it and I’ve never commented on someone’s height since.

My son is 6"8 and often said the same, he was 6"4 by the age of 14 and dealt with many insensitive comments - quite often by teachers at that age!
His partner is 5"0 which also leads to various remarks.... usually from those who believe they are being funny!

Oreo Sat 30-Sept-23 09:29:02

Being considered too tall must be just as bad, maybe worse as being considered too short!

grandMattie Sat 30-Sept-23 05:13:47

I’m 75 and am 5’10” tall, a giantess for my generation. It is amusing to relate that I’m the shortest in the family, although my sons are nowhere near 6’10” tall.
The worst when growing up was dancing with “dwarves”…. Mortifying! 😂

Rosie51 Sat 30-Sept-23 01:49:24

It used to be said boys definitely stop growing by 21, but my husband grew 3 inches after 21 so who knows? I just hope my 19 year old grandson who is already 6'6" has stopped. He hasn't grown since he was 17 so fingers firmly crossed.

Litterpicker Sat 30-Sept-23 01:27:27

My grandson is over 6ft at 15 and size 12 in shoes. I’m not sure when boys reach their full height?

I was reading just this morning about the ‘giant’, Angus MacAskill, born on Berneray in The Western Isles in 1825. His family left Scotland for Canada when he was 6 years old. He grew to be 7’9”. He apparently had no underlying medical condition. There is a museum about his life in Dunvegan, Isle of Skye.