gum, cracks, dog doo, puddle
If you come across a pile of poop on the sidewalk, it is important to avoid stepping in it and to notify the appropriate authorities, such as the local sanitation department, so that it can be cleaned up promptly.
Much like Americans (when in their youth) try to avoid stepping on cracks in the sidewalk to avoid breaking their mothers back, Japanese people feel that if their thumbs are exposed while passing a funeral, or a hearse drives by, that their parents will die young. So they keep their thumbs hidden. Although there are some adults that still practice this, (Japanese tend to hold on to childhood things much longer than Americans) it is a silly superstition, that for the most part is not practiced by too many adults. Do you still avoid stepping on cracks in the sidewalk? =)
personal space
Avoiding. As in stepping to one side in order to avoid something coming straight at a person or something the person is going straight toward.
Salt is added to avoid icing of roads.
When possible, pedestrians should walk: On the right side of the road to avoid oncoming cars.
to avoid stepping on their pants...
by stepping on stones and fragments of wood.
This saying is a childhood superstition that suggests stepping on cracks in the sidewalk will bring bad luck or harm to one's mother. It is meant to warn children to be cautious in their actions and to avoid tempting fate. However, there is no basis in reality for this belief.
Avoid stepping on an ant
I avoid stepping on lines because it creates a pattern and I feel comfortable. Also I have this feeling (it is not rational) that stepping on the line will somehow break the balance, it will disorganize things... it increases the entropy. If I step on a line, I will have the feeling (again, my rational mind knows it is not this way, but I have this terrible feeling) that everything that goes wrong is related to that incident. I also do other kinds of irrational things just to feel things are ok!
Buy a firearm and learn to use it well. Also you could help underprivileged children stay out of gangs. also just call emergency services if you see something suspicious.