From another board I belong to:
The atmosphere was very strange on public transport last night. I managed to get a bus from the fulham road after getting a lift to there and literally everyone on the bus was talking about it…and you know it’s serious when London commuters actually start > talking to one another!!!
I’m in the habit of starting up a friendly banter with cashiers at supermarkets and so on. This mortally embarrasses my two (grown-up) kids whenever they happen to be with me. Blimey, if you can’t add a bit of light to life…
Steve
It’s a running joke in my family that Anthea will know a complete stranger’s life history within five minutes of meeting them.
When I first arrived in England in 1974, one of the things I loved about the place was the fact that someone could get on the Tube with pink hair, Mohawk style, leading a violet poodle and nobody would take a blind bit of notice. Men in pin stripes who didn’t even take a sly peek from behind their Times or Telegraph. Wonderful.
No, I didn’t have pink hair nor a poodle of any shade.
You sure it wasn’t fuschia? 
I do that all the time. I also love talking to customer service reps on the phone. I ask where they’re located, local weather, if they’ve ever visited my area etc. Usually they seem to like it too-- a break from what would seem to me to be a boring job.
I’m not even that friendly, well…outgoing, but I do still talk to people–and when I’m with my kids (teenagers) they invariably are embarrassed and must rib me about my intonation and body language for the next half hour or so. They need a cyber-mom who speaks when spoken too, I guess.
A closely-related phenomenon, I think, does anyone else here find that complete strangers hand them cameras and ask to have their photo taken?
I’ve remarked on this, and the frequency with which people ask me for directions, many times. I’ve never worked out if it’s because I look friendly, harmless, confident (i.e. a local who knows his way around) or just not a fast runner.
The odd thing is that it happens not just in London, my hometown for most of my life, but in foreign towns and cities too.
I take it this is when you’re not wearing your helmet with the horns on it.
Sorry this is a little OT, but have you seen National Lampoon’s European Vacation?
And is the look on your face in your avatar the one you give them when they ask you to take their picture?
When I’ve recovered my composure, yes.
Of course, you do know that’s not really me in that picture, right Izz?
I just assume that everyone’s pictures are of them, MarMil…I mean, ALL of mine are of me. I especially think you look rather fetching when you look like Lambchop
They can’t be - there are two people in that avatar of yours for a start!
Steve
izz wrote:
“I just assume that everyone’s pictures are of them”
Like I said before - I’m the cute one… 
Clerks in my town have been instructed to ask the shopping customers, “Are you finding everything OK?”. If I happen to be in the mood for a little banter, there are many directions that you can go with that question. If I am in a hurry and not in the mood to talk, I will say without further thought simply, “yes”, and that pretty much ends the dialogue.
However, if I feel like talking, I might go down the direction that, yes, I have found some of the things that I was looking for, but I can’t be sure if they are OK until I get them home and try them out. Another avenue of divergence has to do with the word “everything”. It is an easy argument to suggest that, since you are still shoping in the store, it should be obvious that you had not found everything that you were looking for.
On a recent shopping trip, after a little of the above kind of dialogue, the young store clerk looked at me and said, “Wait a minute. I think I recognize you. Do you teach philosophy?” I said that I didn’t and went back to deciding which kitchen timer to buy. There are so many colors to choose from, and I had a hard time deciding whether I wanted a simple chime or a five second ring. I chose the 5 second ring, and now I nearly jumb through the ceiling whenever it goes off.
What’s weird is that this happened to me all over the UK too. It doesn’t here, but something about me must look open or non-threatening there, whereas I’m less approachable here.
Easy on the helmet with horn cracks. Some of us are told by a variety of ladies that we are quite cute and cuddley.
So I take it that, all things considered, you have not found everything OK.
You know, Nano, I have difficulty trying to consider all things. It makes my head spin, whenever I try. I am stumbling through life with incomplete information, not even knowing whether everything is OK, or not. 