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Post by Angry on Aug 20, 2004 17:24:26 GMT -5
I hate small talk, it is complete and utter meaningless drivel.
How's the weather? I don't know, do I look like a weatherman?
Did you go out last night? No I didn't because I have no friends, satisfied now?
Do you have a girlfriend? No, I don't, maybe my inability to talk to the female sex has something to do with it.
and blah blah blah...
Why do people continually torture me with this rubbish? If they have something to say then there should be a good reason for it.
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Post by Kitten on Aug 20, 2004 23:01:03 GMT -5
I hate it too, but it is a way of getting to know someone. It's a starting point, a time-killer, and the topics are usually safe enough so that you get a feel of what the person might be like without getting too personal.
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Post by Sweet Pea on Aug 21, 2004 4:08:28 GMT -5
I dunno, maybe the alternative is to have perfect strangers walk up to you and ask you the meaning of life? I think of small talk as a routinized method people use to try to connect with other people. It's meant to be a beginning to a process. Not an end in itself. Yeah, alot of it is meaningless, repetitive drivel, but if someone is trying to exchange smalltalk with you I think it means that they are reaching out to you as a person.
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Post by Reflection on Aug 21, 2004 19:03:53 GMT -5
Angry, I agree with you that certain small talk is just plain dumb - like anything involving the weather. I'd rather there be silence than talk about something so darn pointless.
But when people ask about your weekend or whatever, I think it's just natural and a way to start a conversation that could end up being somewhat meaningful. I mean, if you do certain things over the weekend and tell someone else about them, it conveys to them what your interests are. That's better than the weather. But you said in your post that you don't really go out so I guess I don't know what to say other than I don't think you should take people's questions so personally. The fact that they even ask you what you do over the weekend shows that they must think you're relatively normal. I mean, if they thought you seemed like the type of person who didn't do anything, why would they ask?! They're just trying to be friendly.
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hippo
New Member
Posts: 16
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Post by hippo on Aug 21, 2004 23:06:23 GMT -5
The only part that annoys me is telemarketers saying "How are u?" (As if they care!) and hairdressers tend to just say "Are u having a good one (day) so far?" or "Got anything planned for the weekend". I suppose they are told by their employers to stay on neutral topics.
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Post by tortuga on Aug 23, 2004 19:33:26 GMT -5
Some question that adults keep asking me are...
So, How's School?- Umm..You ask me that everytime we see each other.
What are you doing after high school- None of your fucking business.
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Post by CaryGrant on Aug 24, 2004 12:25:27 GMT -5
I used to think small talk was an idiotic waste of time that only demonstrated how shallow others were, because I only wanted to talk about "deep" things. In reality, I realised that I was rather naive - small talk is a way that socially aware people determine whether you're worth talking about deep things with (assuming they are capable themselves). Small talk helps you gauge another person's trustworthiness BEFORE you open up.
Small talk DOES serve a purpose, but it is subtle. How quickly you move through small talk to deeper things depends upon the connection (aka trust) between the two of you.
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