How long do you need to wash your hands in order to kill germs that cause coronavirus and other illnesses? With the answer's prevelence in the media these days, you probably answered “At least twenty seconds, or as long as it takes to sing ‘Happy Birthday’ two times.”
But a lot of us may be getting sick of singing that same old song. If you’re looking for a different tune to wash your hands to, a new site has got you covered.
Created by 17-year-old(!) William Gibson, the site Wash Your Lyrics.com lets you enter the title and artist of a song, or a custom text (including a copy-pasted poem or other text – I tried out “The Raven”). Then, it adds the equivalent of a twenty-second portion to a handwashing instructions poster from the UK’s National Health Service.
The result is a printable poster that guides you in properly washing your hands along with your favorite lyrics or text.
Naturally, the poster(s) you create can also be shared on social media (use the hashtag #WashYourLyrics). Even stars like Miley Cyrus have gotten in on the act, sharing the handwashing instructions set to the lyrics of her hit song “The Climb” on Twitter, with the message “wash your damn hands.”
Read on to learn more about fighting the spread of coronavirus through lyrics and some laughs.
Contact Our Writer – Alysa Salzberg