the weather, a daily occurance!
When I first arrived in the UK I learned pretty quick that most Brits have a thing about the weather. No matter what you are doing or where you are going, someone will always ask “what’s the weather like?” or “look at the weather” or “what miserable weather” or “it’s really miserable out” or “do you know the weather is for tomorrow?” or whatever……adinfinitum.
One day I decided to find out what the story is and why is weather such a hot topic of conversation. The answer to my question was “we talk about the weather because that is a fairly safe subject. It upsets no-one and doesn’t offend. We don’t talk about politics or religion so that leaves the weather.” This seems to me to be quite a shame!
There is nothing more enjoyable than a good debate on the merits of Politics or Religion, especially if the other person/s are passionate about their points of view. It is exceptionally enjoyable to sit on the fence and argue the points put forward.
So why don’t we discuss Politics and Religion more often. Or is weather just too safe.
Not Just a Granny 
I think the reason we talk about the weather is not because it is ‘safe’ but because it is changeable & unpredictable. We are blessed with a temperate climate here but the capricious nature of the weather affects people’s lives a lot. Probably because we have such a variety of weather here it makes it difficult to prepare or mitigate for everything. e.g. what to wear, where to go, how to get there, when to plan to come back. It’s harder to make plans and feel confident about things. In Florida or California for example, people don’t talk about the weather because it’s reliable. Here, if you want to plan a bbq for friends you are necessarily going to be talking about the weather because it might significantly jeopardise your plans for a lovely occasion.
hi Kathy! 🙂 Thanks for adding your reason we love to talk about the weather. Agree totally!!! I recall in South Africa, the weather was just there, either hot or cold and mostly sunny….ergo nothing to talk about! Either way I love that the weather is such a hot topic, and no matter what it looks like out the window, I never leave home without a brolly!! and that lesson was learned from experience!
Cindy, and what happens when you start a conversation about politics or religion in GB? Do the British respond?
yes they do! 🙂 but it can get incredibly heated, especially if you disagree with the other person’s point of view. which is probably why it’s not a popular choice of conversation! I guess I would probably find the same thing no matter which country I was in! 🙂
It’s so hot here in S.C. in the summer that our brains are fried and we can’t think of anything else.
😉
oh really!! I remember back in South Africa it gets that hot! awful, I cant bear it. prefer the cooler UK weather, but then a few years back it was terribly hot and I couldnt move, most unpleasant! today has been gorgeous!