Our Golden Rule
Whether it's choosing which Peetimes to use from our notes, wording the Cue so there are no spoilers, deciding what goes in the Synopsis, or tweaking the app itself, we keep one Golden Rule in mind:
Imagine you're in a movie theater, rewatching a film with a good friend who hasn't seen it yet. Your friend leans over and asks, "When's the best time to pee in this movie?"
What would you tell them?
It's as simple as that. We've measured every Peetime against it since 2008.
The rule turns vague questions into concrete ones. "Is this stretch important?" is hard to answer. "Would I tell my friend it's safe to step out now?" You know that answer immediately.
Writing the Cue
The Cue is how you recognize "now" in the dark.
Run it through the rule: how would you describe this moment so your friend will recognize it, without spoiling anything? You wouldn't say "go once that guy gets killed." You'd pick a line or an image that's memorable and noticeable, but gives nothing away.
Writing "What You'll Miss"
Under each Cue is a short note about the kind of scenes coming up. For that one, we picture our friend already half out of the seat, asking, "Hey, I have to pee. What sort of scenes happen for the next few minutes?"
And we answer the way you would: "Nothing important, just some dialogue." Or, "Some kissy scenes, then a little morning-after conversation." Your friend isn't asking for the plot. They want to know whether to hold it a bit longer.
We pick stretches that are easy to sum up, so you won't be lost when you sit back down.
Writing the Synopsis
The Synopsis is what your friend reads on the way back. Here we play a mental game of tug-of-war:
- Enough detail that you're caught up with the movie when you sit down, with no questions left.
- Short enough to read in about 30 seconds while you run to the restroom, grab a drink or whatever else you need to do.
Those two pull against each other every single time. Where we land comes back to the same question: if this were your friend, how much would you tell them? We've been doing this since 2008, back in the Pleistocene of the web, so we think we're pretty good at it.
About the "Run" in RunPee
Peetimes usually run 2½ to 5 minutes. That's enough for anyone to get there and back, as long as they don't dally. No dawdling, a brisk walk. Hence the Run part of RunPee.
And no, the humor is not lost on us that RunPee has a Golden Rule. :-)
Read Next
- What Is a Peetime?
- How Peetimes Are Found: what the rule looks like in a theater seat