Hells Bells - it's happened!!

I'm a chatter too. Always have been. Many years ago before I had a car and had to take the children to town on the bus, I started chatting to a lady at the bus stop. During the journey home my 8yr old asked me if I knew that lady. When I answered no, she told me off for talking to a stranger, because I'd always told them not to!

I enjoy chatting with strangers don't worry about you could be making someone's day

Stay as you are Kittylester. I am sure you are a wonderful memoir to your mother. I am becoming my mother and I embrace it. I do wish more people would talk to me in queues and buses. Some people love it and join in the conversation, some look at me as if I am mad and others bristle as if I have invaded their space. If you smile and say good morning to people, you probably make their day!

I usually smile and say hello to strangers if they look friendly. I chat too on trains, buses etc, but only if I think someone is up for it. I always speak to dog owners and small children. I'm nothing like my mother!

OH and I got talking to a young couple opposite on a long train journey they were strangers to one another, after working our way through the usual stuff they asked how we had managed to stay married so long! A look of amazement followed but we then had the pleasure, for the rest of the journey, watching them get to know one another. We do wonder what happened, we got off first and I wanted to tell them to make sure they exchanged numbers.

A few weeks ago DH & I were visiting Lyme Regis and on our return along the (narrow) beach path from the west cliffs we passed the time of day with a lady in a wheelchair (waiting for her husband). This somehow turned into her telling us her (fascinating & funny) life story. We didn't rush off despite being concerned that we might miss our 2 hourly bus home. We were so pleased that we didn't because as we said goodbye she said that despite staying at the beach caravan for 3 days we were the first people to speak. Others had simply passed by, ignoring her existence.
It concerns me that one could easily spend a day in our city without speaking to a soul. Bus pass, bank machine, and the automatic checkouts all add to the feeling of isolation. I'm not a great talker but like to smile & politely greet others I encounter and this does often turn into a chat.

Paddyann reminded me of the time my mother struck up a conversation at the theatre with a young couple who had arrived in Glasgow that day. We gave them lots of suggestions about places to visit and things to do. At the end of the show my mother decided that we should give them a guided tour. At first they were hesitant but clearly decided they could trust us and two hours later we dropped them at their hotel having been driven round all the sights. They seemed mesmerised that anyone would have been so kind to complete strangers. My mother's explanation was "This is Glasgow, enjoy the rest of your stay"

Kittylester...you don't need to stop doing what you are doing, apart from the purse thing maybe. I hope I am just like my mother - she was kind and considerate and always talking to people.

This thread has also dredged up the negative memory of a checkout operator who couldn't read my clear discomfort while she persisted chatty conversation about the red roses I was buying for the house. The next day was Valentine's Day and also the day of my husband's funeral. She asked who they were for, what I had planned for Valentine's Day, what she was doing....it was endless drivel. It took every ounce of self control not to snap at her, tell her the truth, or drop the flowers and run but I made it to the car before I broke down.

My mother was the quintessential extrovert... had a gazillion friends, held court at every gathering and was the life of every party. Me? Not at all, but I do enjoy the occasional chat with my fellow 'queuers' at the local market or the other patients during long waits at my dentist's (doctor's) office. I guess that's how terms like 'patients' and 'waiting room' were born. My mom? I do have a few other traits to thank her for, but not her charisma. She was one of a kind.

Apparently I'm embarrassing according to my kids because everywhere I go I talk to people. Always have, always will! At bus stops, on planes, in a queue, on the tube, surely it's just human nature to chat to people. We all need to interact with each other or what's the point of being here. If people dont respond well that's their loss!

I love chatting to people, when I am in Liverpool everyone chats, I love it, also when I am in Cumbria everyone says Good Morning or whatever time of day it is, they are so friendly, in the Country where I live they do the opposite, when approaching anyone they look down as they pass. I really miss the friendliness in the UK

I am a member of a well known gym and it is amazing how when you try to strike up a conversation with some people how they stick their nose in the air and look as stiff as boards.
I can be bubbly and sometimes a bit dippy, but I can make others laugh, as I can laugh at myself. I get called mad Jen lol. ( all in jest)
I love it, I talk to anyone and cause a good giggle where ever I go.

My daughter chatted to a man she met on a train and they were married before the year was out!

Are people less likely to chat with strangers in different parts of the country. I was brought up in the Midlands where everyone is friendly but have settled in the Home counties( won't say where) but generally people are much more reserved.

Winifred1. If you are a good listener, open & aren't rushing about, it doesn't matter which part of the country. People think London is unfriendly but I've had the most amazing conversations sitting in the Parks and Trafalgar Square, in cafes to places in the suburbs. Try a south London bus for chatty locals.
The weirdest conversation I had recently was on a train to London. I soon discovered that the woman who sat down next to me owned our house 40 years ago and proudly told me how they restored it (while I kept quiet about all the bodged jobs and the fact her now ex husband, a local teacher, is now serving life for murder).

There's not much conversation on the Birmingham buses, but here in the Black Country everyone chats, including the driver. Is it something to do with small towns as opposed to big cities?

if your a Scouser like me ,It's the norm to talk to anyone and everyone.Why not?

After shopping in town with DD1 I said I'd catch the bus home so she left me at the bus stop and set off to collect her car. She was not in the least surprised when my bus passed her to see I was sitting chatting away to someone. Yes, I talk to everyone - well, not quite. One of my buses serves the university and the students at the bus stop and on the bus are usually incommunicado - they are glued to mobile phones or are listening to music. My local Coop is about 5 minutes walk away. When I get back half an hour later DH says 'Who did you meet this time?'

You are all so lucky to live in areas of the country that are so friendly. It is not like that where I am. I will speak to anyone who raises their eyes from the ground long enough for me to catch their eye! Talking to complete strangers is looked upon as some form of derangement around here and it makes me very sad. For twenty years we have lived in the same road and know only a very few people to actually talk to. If you don't have a dog or child with you, you may as well have two heads as people can barely even say 'good morning', although we always do. Same in supermarket queues. I notice the difference when we visit other places. Count your blessings and enjoy being like your Mum, Kitty. Human contact is a basic need for most people and totally natural.

I like to chat to all and sundry about general things,but I try not to let them know I am a retired nurse as the conversation then evolves around entire medical histories of themselves,partners,.in fact the whole family plus the cat and dog and next door neighbour etc etc.it's ok for a little while,but I would rather keep conversation generalised?

I should add it's ok for a little while to give a little advice if needed.but I don't want to hear all about uncle Tom Cobly and all ?

Absoulty steve jIm a scouser too and chat to all

I'm a scouser too and well used to chatting to strangers at bus stops, in shops etc.
When I was working as a volunteer in a charity shop, an elderly lady obviously wanted a chat and I was not busy so had quite a long natter with her. At the end she thanked me for talking to her and gave me £5 for the charity. That's sad isn't it and it has stuck in my mind.

I don't see the problem. I am moving from Spain back to England, just because I miss the being able to chat to all and everyone. Absence definitely makes the heart grow fonder.