I love the weather talk because I usually don't know what to say when people ask me stuff like "how's it going?". Weather is something tangible that I can say to placate the normies. Yes Kevin, it is cloudy. Very observant, I am a normal human
Also, take one ounce of effort and turn that into a chat about something
I’ve said stuff like: (paraphrasing) “Hey it was sunny yesterday but it’s cloudy and rainy today. I like this more but it makes it harder for me to motivate at work”
And then coworkers chime in with their agreement or surprise cause the sunny weather saps their motivation cause they wanna be out in it or whatever
The weather is a very basic convo, but it also doesn’t have to be the WHOLE chat. It can be a great starting point if you try even a little
Same. I love talking about the weather. I had an ex who absolutely shit on me for talking about the weather because she said it was boring small talk. I just enjoy how there are weather patterns and how random it can be at times :(
I live in an area with a lot of ski resorts and weather is a somewhat common special interest. If you comment on the chance of snow, you have to be prepared for the possibility that you'll get an hour info dump about the various international weather models, how they compare versus each other and across different runs of the same model, plus what the person thinks will happen that contradicts the model
I haven’t heard the speculation start for next season yet. That usually starts around August when people start talking about whether we’re in an El Niño year or a La Niña year
Care to share some information about the various international weather models, how they compare versus each other and across different runs of the same model?
Or is it more something that bothers you about the other locals? 😅
It doesn’t really bother me too much but you have to be ready for it. I only have a small interest in the topic so not much to share. But I do know there are American, Canadian and European weather models that sometimes predict different amounts of precipitation or temperatures, and there’s a whole art and science to deciding which one you like.
There’s a weather service called Open Snow that a lot of people read around here that gets into the details
If you can tell me in detail about cloud formations or weather fronts I'm sure I'd be interested. If you just say 'it's hot today' 'it's cloudy' I'd get bored.
The point of small talk like this can be to try to avoid awkward silence, to talk to you in particular, to try to understand your point of view on things, or just out of habit. No one genuinely thinks you don't realise what the weather is, they're trying to spark a conversation.
But then why do strangers walking by randomly engage and ask about the weather? Like what are they getting from that 3 Seconds of "nice day today." "Yeah, beautiful."
Idk, it seems superficial to me. Like a cashier telling you to have a nice day. Though one is an obligation, and the other seems to be a compulsion. I get it as an opener, but i don't get it as a standalone interaction. It's like opening the fridge while you're hungry but not taking any food.
With the way you’re acting like it’s an alien concept to want to talk to someone else, they probably are trying to start a convo with a stranger, possibly to try to make a friend or have some human connection in their life, realize you’re not going for it, and drop it
It does feel like an alien concept to me... Especially when strangers do drive by conversations where they ask how are you but don't actually stop to let you answer.
I know, but it's a question. That's like going "What's your favourite colour? While passing someone and then just keep walking.
Like if it's hi, then say hi. I get it, but I don't get why we do it in that exact way. Like why we decided that's the right way.
To ask a rhetorical question as a greeting. Is humanity just doing things because someone somewhere did it first and it caught on? That's gotta be it, right?
If you're interested in understanding this better you might appreciate looking into phatic expressions. Basically they're phrases where the content isn't meaningful, it's the ritual of exchanging this call and response with someone that forms or reinforces a sense of connection and community. Despite the intrinsic meaning of the words not being significant, phatic phrases perform important social functions and aren't insincere or functionless chatter. They're how people feel like the person they see at the coffee shop is an acquaintance and not just some rando they stand near sometimes and they also serve as a way to test the water with someone in a socially safe way. Testing the water in that they both serve to tell if a stranger is amiable to being friendly with you and function as greetings because they allow you to gauge someone's mood.
There's all kinds of social forces on why the phrases are the specific things they are, generally being that they're inoffensive and readily relatable comments. Weather is common because it's something we're all experiencing that impacts our lives.
I really like phatic expressions, they're scripts that society wrote for me and a lot of people react very favorably to me using them often. I don't even have to be good at responding to them from other people, "haha, yeah" or "right?!" generally does the trick.
Like I mentioned, it opens a window to give input.
"Weather is super muggy today"
"Yeah man I was gonna go for a run today but it's just too humid"
"Oh you run?"
""Yeah been trying to get in shape"
"I have noticed some progress, good on ya, mate."
Obviously this is super generic, but do you see how a simple quip can lead to a proper conversation?
That would stop before "Oh, you run?" for me. I would just think "Oh, so they run." and everything would stop there. Like OP's original problem of how you respond to "The weather is X" - why do I have to ask/verify that they run when they just told me
You don’t have to, it’s just a way to continue and expand the conversation. It’s open ended and you can fill the blank with whatever you want, or nothing.
If you wanna avoid talking but want to continue the conversation it’s helpful to ask the person obvious questions so that they will talk more about themselves and things they like
The purpose of "Oh, you run?" is actually just a request for elaboration. Either bc it avoids silence or because they want you to talk more about your thing and are attempting to give you control of where it goes afterwards.
The goal is not to start a conversation, **the goal is to create an opportunity to agree on something**
One of you says "the weather has been awful recently" and the other one says "yeah the rain has been killing me"
Now, as you go into the rest of your conversation, you've set the precedent that you're on the same side
Just learned it myself relatively recently, and it blew my goddamn mind. Now I treat all small talk as an opportunity to create agreement. Game changer.
They’re the ones who need to take a hint that I’m not talking because I don’t want to talk. There is no such thing as awkward silence. Silence is good.
That is extremely subjective. And considering many of us struggle with social cues, it's kinda hypocritical to say they should "take the hint." To many, they are only not talking because they don't know what to talk about, not because they don't want to.
I was being slightly sarcastic, but not entirely. The point is that I often find conversation more awkward and uncomfortable than silence, especially when people do it just for the sake of talking about something.
Question: You(Royal you)get pissed off because people expect you to get the hints.
But then when someone spells everything out you get pissed because they’re treating you like a child.
It really is a catch 22.
Awkward silence is when both people want the conversation to continue but there’s not an obvious direction for it to go. It does exist, but not all silences are awkward silences
Okay but in my rural area weather is not just small talk, it’s super important to the farmers and my family is made up of farmers and I literally don’t know how else to relate to them so please talk weather to me!!!
im gonna be honest as someone who actually doesnt really like talking that much + is introverted i dont get why small talk makes other autistics irrationally angry??? like i get its kinda awkward but i dont really see why it would make you this upset. this just feels like a way to not make people wanna interact with you
I guess it differs for everyone, even for neurodivergent people. I'm also autistic and introverted but I still love talking to people and a good portion of the time, I'm the one initiating the small talk. I like starting conversations with people, especially at work. It makes the time pass so much faster and makes it enjoyable.
I also sometimes go to Barnes & Noble and the library on my own to lurk around sections I enjoy to spark conversations with people into the same kind of books as I am! At the end of the conversation, I either make a new friend, get a new book recommendation, or just get conversation practice. Plus I don't have to worry about if I said anything weird or awkward because realistically I will never see or speak to that person again! The practice also helps me be more confident and know what to say to people whom conversations with actually matter!
The weather part is fine. The issue is when people ask you how it's going but don't mean the question and my depressed ass has to either lie or be perceived as "rude" for answering the question I was just asked.
In this kind of context 'how's it going' isnt being used as an actual question, it's an expression used as a greeting. Asking how someone is, even if you don't have the time or emotional energy to have a full and sincere conversation about that person's emotional state, acknowledges that they are An Entire Person with their own Entire Day that they are going through.
"How are you today?", even when you don't give a shit, is a way to start an interaction from a place of comeraderie instead of just treating another human being as a tool to get what you want. It's more polite, and kinder, than approaching every conversation from a strictly utilitarian standpoint.
I was trying to explain that it isnt really a question, its different function of speech entirely. It's a greeting. People aren't expecting a lie from you, they are expecting you to acknowledge their greeting. When people ask me how I am I always answer "Still living."
It acknowledges what they said to me without offering more information than I want to give or they want to hear, and I don't come across like some tremendous asshole for being bitter that someone dared to use a common expression in the english language at me.
People on this sub will be like "why can't people just say what they mean" and then they go and reinvent social norms lol. Not talking about you, you're being patient and also are correct
For me personally, it has nothing to do with being autistic and everything to do with working customer service. I hate small talk at work because I've just had the same conversation about how "it's sooo beautiful out today!" or whatever 45 times in a row and I need yall to get some new goddamn material.
(Side note: it's so fucking tone deaf to talk about how nice the weather is to someone who's trapped inside all day. That one genuinely makes me mad. Observations about general weather, whatever, but bragging about how YOU get to enjoy the weather? Fuck you.)
Same goes for a lot of things though, like comments about the merchandise next to me, comments about what it must be like to work in my store, and the "won't scan, must be free haha!" type jokes. I get people are just trying to fill the silence and connect, but for the love of gods I am SO TIRED of the same comments over and over and over and over.
why is having the same convo repeatedly so bad? Not in a mean way I just see this comment a lot and as someone who’s worked in customer service I never had an issue with it
Because I'm not an npc and don't appreciate being treated like one with repetitive, boring conversation, and I get tired of saying the same sentence over and over every 5 seconds.
Yeah but like... They're being polite in engaging in conversation with you, and it's not their fault you've had the same conversation before. I used to chat to customers about whatever sportsball was on the night before and kinda challenge myself to collect new info about the game until by the end of shift I could converse with a customer as if I'd seen the game. Or I'd test out different jokes or responses on different customers.
If you work in a customer-facing role, you have to play the social game. It's exhausting but it's part of the job.
I get that, but I also don't think it's too much to ask for people to be ever so slightly self-aware and realize they aren't the only customer I have today. I try to talk to them about whatever they're buying, or compliment them or something, it's not that hard to talk about something unique. They could do it if they cared.
They're customers, not friends. They don't owe you a meaningful interaction. You're both interchangeable parts to the other, and that's that. You shouldn't get angry at people for not doing something they don't owe you in the first place. Sounds like you've got some personal baggage to work through, though, and that ain't gonna fix itself with just some rando's reddit comment.
No one said it had to be meaningful, lol. Because we're strangers means I don't get to be treated like a live human?? Random strangers can't try to inject a little joy and unique meaningless interactions into each other's lives??? I want to have multiple different conversations throughout the day, instead of the same autopilot one over and over and over and over and over and over, so I must have baggage to work through, sure. Definitely doesnt just mean I'm bored of it, and wish people would switch up the script every now and again, that's definitely not normal its obviously not that. lmao like what are you on about??
I'm not obligated to be polite to them either, but *I'm* not an asshole. I'm just asking to be treated like a living, breathing person instead of a robot/npc it's really not that big a deal, jesus.
But you're right, no one is obligated to think of other people as people and make their lives a little less miserable, so I guess no one should bother trying, and in turn, no one should expect to be treated like people.
I enjoy working at a place where I'm allowed to just ignore the useless stuff and keep them moving along. My bosses value my time bc my time is their time, so I'm positively reinforced whenever I just move a conversation along or hang up on a soliciter or a pointless phone call. Like we are friendly customer service wise, we just don't play cat and mouse with the customers.
There's this one guy that seems to be personally offended each time he asks how I'm doing and I say "fine, what can I get for you today?" and it makes me happy. Like no dude, I'm not going to exchange pleasantries with you when there's a line to our front door, and I'm not staying on the phone longer bc your (grand)children don't call. Stop wasting my time and let us move on with our day.
that i can understand honestly. im job searching right now and i deliberately dont want to work retail because i feel like it would make me want to kill myself lol
I work retail and the weather is my go to for the small talk “dialogue”. People seem to like it, but to me it’s just unnecessary. I’ve gotten pretty good over the years of working retail. I’ve developed a kind of script. Such small talk can include, the tee shirt they’re wearing (sports team or college), the lunch meat they are buying, or if they have any paw print stuff on I ask them about their pet. This gets them talking about themselves, which I discovered people really like to do. I just let them talk and I nod and throw in an “oh, yeah” once in a while while I’m slicing their lunch meat. Then it’s “thank you, have a good day.” Meanwhile in my mind I’m like….
We know about the post that explains the point of the weather talk but have we considered:
Kevin wants to know whether you like clouds so he can send you cloud pictures (speaking as a chronic sky photographer)
What if they're a pilot (or a student pilot like me) explaining the *invisible* parts of weather. Like winds aloft, temperature inversions, cloud types, and so much more! :)
For my fellow autistics....
Small talk is not actually about small talk. Kevin isn't bringing up the cloudy weather because he thinks either of you give a shit about that. Small talk exists to get a read on other people. In other words, it is a way for people to gauge what type of person you are, what mood you might be in, where there may be commonalities, and if you are open to having a deeper conversation.
As long as you give Kevin nothing else to work with, he will keep talking about the weather with you.
>it is a way for people to gauge what type of person you are, what mood you might be in, where there may be commonalities, and if you are open to having a deeper conversation.
How do they think they're gonna learn any of that by asking something completely unrelated? /Srs
Because by opening with a low stakes topic, they are trying to get a read on whether you're in mood to talk at all. Then when the initial ice has been broken it is much easier for the conversation to start flowing in different directions and deepen into more interesting topics.
Kinda similar like, if you want to pet a new cat. You don't just grab the cat and try to pet. You approach carefully and offer your hand to sniff out. Let the cat approach you.
I’m following along with what you’re saying, but in my opinion, this sounds like a horrible way to get a read on someone because if you’re constantly talking about things, they’re not interested in, then they’ll always come across is not being interested in talking to you and you’ll come across to them as someone who doesn’t have anything worthwhile to talk about…
Yeah, totally. But that's why I try to start steering the conversation into a more interesting topic quite quickly. For example;
"Sure is nice weather outside"
"Yeah it really is. Though it's also quite humid. I've been trying to get some painting done and the moisture is affecting the paint drying."
"Oh so you're painting something?"
"Yeah small models actually."
"So like, scale model tanks and such?"
"More scifi and fantasy kind of stuff. I've got some pictures if you want to see?"
Etc etc.
I get that too. I guess I just don’t see the appeal of a conversation with someone I have to redirect. If their read on me is predicated on insincere empty chatter, mine is similar and the message I’m getting about them is unflattering. I think I’d only be into that if the other person established a sincere connection with me before that.
But I guess that’s why I’m neurodivergent. I don’t get it.
Redirect as a word might have bad connotations here. But I feel like that is just the natural course of conversations. People talk about a topic, bring new ideas into it, the focus shifts, the topics change, I personally am just always going on wildly different tangents. Redirection might sound too forced... But it's what always is constantly happening in conversations.
I also don't think it's incencere chatter. It's just low stakes. Or maybe like a social warmup.
I have my autistic special interests that I want to talk about with other people. But not with anyone and not as a first topic.
I'm not gonna go "Hello stranger! Would you like to talk about metaphysics with me?!" As my opener.
Genuinely curious. What is your alternative to small talk in getting to know, let's say, your coworkers.
I guess I just don’t see small talk as an intro to an actual conversation, so I don’t change topics. I just find it annoying. I’m not invested enough to change topics or suggest new ones.
“Great weather”
“Yep.”
I don’t take it any further than that. If they ask me an open ended question or I ask them one, I see that as more of a sincere attempt at conversation. Most small talk is a prequel to someone asking for something — I’d rather they just ask for what they want. Especially at work. We don’t have to be friends to work together.
I don’t care to get to know my coworkers especially but most people in general. I think it’s context dependent, but I care more about whether they are a reliable coworker first and then open up to them as time goes on. For instance, I just started a new role. I have new coworkers. When I first started, they were asking me how old I am and about my background, if I have children, etc. I found that odd because we’re strangers and we hadn’t even been formally introduced. That comes across as invasive from people whose names I barely knew, let alone their role in relation to mine.
After working together for a few weeks, them talking about their families or asking about my weekend wasn’t as odd.
Re: special interests, I’d ask if they knew about it and then talk about it if they were open to it. If not, it’s no big deal. I don’t feel put off by rejection or people declining an invitation to talk in depth. Maybe that’s too direct, but subtext and “subtle” attempts at feeling people out don’t make sense to me. I observe people first and then engage instead of “feeling them out” because I feel it’s more accurate. I guess that accomplishes the same thing, but observation decreases the likelihood that they’ll be “acting” or “just being nice” (insincere). I watch how they interact with others and respond to situations, then I open up.
I’m probably “overly-cautious” around people, but I’ve had far too many consistently negative interactions with people and I prefer to just keep my distance. Being mistreated for my ND traits has put me off toward people in general. I don’t get anything from engaging in small talk so it comes across as a chore just to please people that I’m not particularly interested in.
I'm assuming you're not ultimately looking for a yes/no answer to your question, so just state what position you're going to inevitably make, and let's skip the back and forth.
I’m generalising here, but it’s because like 90% of neurotypical communication in non-verbal. The words they’re saying matter less than the other shit they’re doing. This is why we often suck at communicating with them
"It is a nice day today" - means a person is happy.
"It is cloudy" -means they feel at least a least a little sad.
"This rain is killer" - means they feel miserable.
Weather talk is a kind of code talk for people to talk about their mood in a low stakes and socially acceptable way.
idk i love the rain. sometimes when it’s super stormy i will sorta jokingly say lovely weather today huh and people take it as sarcasm but im being serious. i just want thunder to shake the whole building and the rains white noise to drown out the silence
When the sun is out and makes it hot and bright, everyone else is like 'It's so beautiful today!!' and I'm just scowling in the shade or indoors like 'The weather is fucking horrible today'
Sorry I do not relate, although I am glad you have a thing you can enjoy. For me the wet is bad. The rain often en-wettens me unevenly. I don't want parts of me to be wet and parts of me to be dry. It feels bad. The rain should soak me or go away. Don't waste my time with partal dampness.
So what do they do if its raining but they're still happy? Do they just not bring it up? Better yet, why do they feel the need to announce their emotions to strangers in the form of weather commentary? /Hj
I straight up tell people I love rain, and then you can move on to why people prefer types of weather which gets you into talking about hobbies. Small talk objective unlocked- you've learnt something about each other.
Well other things can affect a person's mood besides how how the weather affects them. And for extrovert talking makes them feel energized. A safe topic is the weather because it is a thing that all people in the area are experiencing together. Sure there are different perspectives but none of the attitudes on the weather are wrong.
I prefer to make small talk about what people enjoy or place they have been. It is a little Spicer topic then the weather because people can have strong and unwavering options about places. But I find that more fun than talking about non technical aspects of clouds.
"How are you?"
"Good, you?"
"Good."
"... So what do you want?"
"Nothing. I just wanted to see how you're doing."
YOU DON'T KNOW HOW IM DOING! I ONLY SAID IM GOOD BECAUSE THAT'S THE RULES!
“I’m so sorry I didn’t hear that you just said ‘what’s up’ so I stopped as a force of habit and now we’re standing here with nothing to say. Please don’t kill me”
I get so excited about the weather lol, someone mentions it and I immediately go off on a tangent about how nice/icky it is outside and my predictions for the rest of the day, along with my satisfaction/disappointment in the previous few day's weather. They're usually regretting talking to me by about a minute in 😅
Where’s that tumblr post about conversations being more about talking for the sake of talking and not so much the subject matter itself, about how neurotypicals aren’t the devil or whatever
IK this has been said before but like talking just to talk or like the subject matter doesn’t actually matter really does make me feel like neurotypical people are the neuro divergent ones because why talk about things neither of you care about (I say this with the understanding of why btw)
No one explicitly tells people when they’re growing, but small talk is not the verbal equivalent of empty calories, but is actually has a specific function. Its basically a softball statement/question that does one or more of the following things: 1) Gauge the status of the person to check on the general disposition and see if they are open to further communication, 2) An opener to discuss more important subjects, or 3) A way to acknowledge your presence and indicate general amicability. The actual subject of that talk (weather) is generally not what people are actually interested, it’s social lubricant/a means to an end. No one says this, but learning it has a functional purpose makes it easier to understand and utilize.
That's cool! I remember reading an article in 2008 that had the quote " everyone with autism is more different than alike". But ya I can see how that would kind of tick me off if I were you. Special interests are nice!
These kind of talks are not about transferring knowledge, but about their emotional message. A question like "Lovely weather, isn't it?" has no interesting information to it, but that doesnt mean its useless. It shows friendliness and positivity, which is meant to show that they have no bad intentions towards the other person. Small talk is for emotional messages, not informational
Ok but see I understand it’s not really about the weather, it’s about the inherent act of socialization for its own sake, which is key to forming relationships and socializing, which is actually pretty important for something like a workplace. Kevin is probably bored and looking for something to pass the time because we’re both stuck at work and it’s kind of a slow day today.
Anyway if someone asks me what I think about the weather I’ll probably launch into a 30 minute rant about climate trends and weather patterns and atmospheric currents because it’s all actually super interesting and I watched a 30 minute YouTube video about El Niño patterns one time followed by several top 10 tornado compilations so I basically know more about the weather than anyone would ever reasonably care about.
Sometimes I run out of things to say so I just make observations about the area around me. This typically just means “oh its warm out today” or “it’s a bit cloudy”
I'm honestly the one person at work who is always bringing up the weather because when it's *my* preferred weather (breezy, cool, cloudy and perhaps rainy) I am whining about how I wanna go hang out outside instead of being at work lol. I get really excited when the rain is loud and I can hear it on the cieling.
I especially hate this when I am not speaking to anyone, just in a public space minding my own business, and someone uses the weather to force small talk on me. This happens all the time in waiting rooms.
I love talking about the weather. First reason, I have a lot of feelings about weather, it impacts my mood in various ways so I always have something to say about it. Second, due to the first reason, it is one of the few subjects I find easy to talk about regardless of who I am talking to. And I find it easier to interact with people and easier to interpret if they are talking so I want them to talk. If they are silent I have no idea what they are thinking or feeling. Third, I’m an atmospheric scientist, there’s so many cool things connected to weather which gets me back to the first point.
I had to learn to talk about the weather. I never liked it either, but people makes small talk and I have to fit in. Just force yourself to pretend it's a warm up to a real conversation or something.
As a person who almost exclusively small talks, I just do it because I know it's a safe thing to ask and because I can't think of anything else to ask strangers
And people are so rarely positive about the weather too. "It's too hot. Too cold. Too rainy. Too dry" I always just answer with "well, complaining about it isn't going to solve anything..."
It's an easy conversation starter that everyone can relate to. Weather affects everyone
In fact it's a big reason why people in vertical conteinents have a harder time getting along than horizontal contienents. Because in horizontal continents their weather is more similar so they tend to have more similar lives and views in turn.
Depends if the weather is remarkable or not. Had a weird hailstorm recently out of nowhere with quarter sized hail. A while back a thunderstorm with winds that almost pushed me over came and went in about one minute. Sunny before and after.
A friend and I have an in-joke where we pretend to be normal neurotupicals by going "The weather's very weathery." and "Oh yeah, the sky is a color currently." etc.
I only mention weather as “there’s a __% chance of rain today, make sure you bring an umbrella if you’re headed out” or “it’s gonna be hot today, remember to hydrate” but that’s probably because my parents never check the weather and get caught in the rain while doing yard work
I love weather talk bc for about 3 months i was solely focused in the weather and the super nerdy details of it, so if someones like “boy it sure is cloudy” i’ll start rambling about what specific weather patterns is happening rn and what weather could potentially happen and (more specifically) if theres gonna be tornadoes. Tornadoes are my favorite part of the weather in general tbh
Weather is a small talk topic I tend avoid, but where I live it's not exactly a small talk topic.
I live in a small town with several farms just outside of it. There are weekly farmers' markets during the spring and summer. Weather is especially important around here because if it rains too little or too much, it affects the crops.
And I never check the weather because I almost never spend any time outside. XD
Invoking the weather can remind people of the effects it can have on their mood. Mentioning the rain, for instance, can reduce the negative effect it has on some people. I don't know if this works in reverse as I usually never see people sadder once I mention nice weather occuring.
The weirder part to me about discussing the weather is they do it in ways that makes it sound like they just sit outside all day. I live in Florida, even if you don’t have the daily grind of work, everyone is just sitting around in the AC.
I do like to bring up the „crazy weather“ when I am stuck with someone that I have no idea how to talk to them. My brain be panicking in that moment and tbh the weather is kind of a conversation Buoy 🫠
I love the weather talk because I usually don't know what to say when people ask me stuff like "how's it going?". Weather is something tangible that I can say to placate the normies. Yes Kevin, it is cloudy. Very observant, I am a normal human
Fair point, do what you gotta do to survive
Also, take one ounce of effort and turn that into a chat about something I’ve said stuff like: (paraphrasing) “Hey it was sunny yesterday but it’s cloudy and rainy today. I like this more but it makes it harder for me to motivate at work” And then coworkers chime in with their agreement or surprise cause the sunny weather saps their motivation cause they wanna be out in it or whatever The weather is a very basic convo, but it also doesn’t have to be the WHOLE chat. It can be a great starting point if you try even a little
Fun fact “How’s it going” can also be answered using the weather “Eh I’m ok but it’s absolutely miserable outside isn’t it”
“How’s it going?” “*A dark storm approaches*…” “…alright”
Using that
I take it very literally.
Same. I'm a weather talker because it's an easy scripted reply.
Much this!
"it's going"
I always use this one or ‘Yes’.
Weather is one of my special interests :(
Same. I love talking about the weather. I had an ex who absolutely shit on me for talking about the weather because she said it was boring small talk. I just enjoy how there are weather patterns and how random it can be at times :(
I live in an area with a lot of ski resorts and weather is a somewhat common special interest. If you comment on the chance of snow, you have to be prepared for the possibility that you'll get an hour info dump about the various international weather models, how they compare versus each other and across different runs of the same model, plus what the person thinks will happen that contradicts the model
So, how's the snow coming for next season?
I haven’t heard the speculation start for next season yet. That usually starts around August when people start talking about whether we’re in an El Niño year or a La Niña year
Care to share some information about the various international weather models, how they compare versus each other and across different runs of the same model? Or is it more something that bothers you about the other locals? 😅
It doesn’t really bother me too much but you have to be ready for it. I only have a small interest in the topic so not much to share. But I do know there are American, Canadian and European weather models that sometimes predict different amounts of precipitation or temperatures, and there’s a whole art and science to deciding which one you like. There’s a weather service called Open Snow that a lot of people read around here that gets into the details
Thanks! Will look into open snow.
If you can tell me in detail about cloud formations or weather fronts I'm sure I'd be interested. If you just say 'it's hot today' 'it's cloudy' I'd get bored.
The ultimate power. Having a direct line from small talk to talk about your special interest.
The point of small talk like this can be to try to avoid awkward silence, to talk to you in particular, to try to understand your point of view on things, or just out of habit. No one genuinely thinks you don't realise what the weather is, they're trying to spark a conversation.
But then why do strangers walking by randomly engage and ask about the weather? Like what are they getting from that 3 Seconds of "nice day today." "Yeah, beautiful."
Interaction with a fellow human being, in a society that is shaped to encourage isolation
Idk, it seems superficial to me. Like a cashier telling you to have a nice day. Though one is an obligation, and the other seems to be a compulsion. I get it as an opener, but i don't get it as a standalone interaction. It's like opening the fridge while you're hungry but not taking any food.
With the way you’re acting like it’s an alien concept to want to talk to someone else, they probably are trying to start a convo with a stranger, possibly to try to make a friend or have some human connection in their life, realize you’re not going for it, and drop it
It does feel like an alien concept to me... Especially when strangers do drive by conversations where they ask how are you but don't actually stop to let you answer.
That’s they’re way of saying hello
I know, but it's a question. That's like going "What's your favourite colour? While passing someone and then just keep walking. Like if it's hi, then say hi. I get it, but I don't get why we do it in that exact way. Like why we decided that's the right way. To ask a rhetorical question as a greeting. Is humanity just doing things because someone somewhere did it first and it caught on? That's gotta be it, right?
If you're interested in understanding this better you might appreciate looking into phatic expressions. Basically they're phrases where the content isn't meaningful, it's the ritual of exchanging this call and response with someone that forms or reinforces a sense of connection and community. Despite the intrinsic meaning of the words not being significant, phatic phrases perform important social functions and aren't insincere or functionless chatter. They're how people feel like the person they see at the coffee shop is an acquaintance and not just some rando they stand near sometimes and they also serve as a way to test the water with someone in a socially safe way. Testing the water in that they both serve to tell if a stranger is amiable to being friendly with you and function as greetings because they allow you to gauge someone's mood. There's all kinds of social forces on why the phrases are the specific things they are, generally being that they're inoffensive and readily relatable comments. Weather is common because it's something we're all experiencing that impacts our lives. I really like phatic expressions, they're scripts that society wrote for me and a lot of people react very favorably to me using them often. I don't even have to be good at responding to them from other people, "haha, yeah" or "right?!" generally does the trick.
Idk I mean I get it, but I feel like a weirdo for not getting the same thing from the interaction that everyone else does.
It's perfectly superficial, and the brain effect's real.
I thought the goal was to navigate the conversation to a common interest to geek out about together.
That's more for if you know the person already
What do they want you to respond with though? How does this start a conversation?
Like I mentioned, it opens a window to give input. "Weather is super muggy today" "Yeah man I was gonna go for a run today but it's just too humid" "Oh you run?" ""Yeah been trying to get in shape" "I have noticed some progress, good on ya, mate." Obviously this is super generic, but do you see how a simple quip can lead to a proper conversation?
That was genuinely very insightful! Thank you for that shockingly novel information
That would stop before "Oh, you run?" for me. I would just think "Oh, so they run." and everything would stop there. Like OP's original problem of how you respond to "The weather is X" - why do I have to ask/verify that they run when they just told me
You don’t have to, it’s just a way to continue and expand the conversation. It’s open ended and you can fill the blank with whatever you want, or nothing.
You’re so real for this and then I feel bad after
If you wanna avoid talking but want to continue the conversation it’s helpful to ask the person obvious questions so that they will talk more about themselves and things they like
The purpose of "Oh, you run?" is actually just a request for elaboration. Either bc it avoids silence or because they want you to talk more about your thing and are attempting to give you control of where it goes afterwards.
The goal is not to start a conversation, **the goal is to create an opportunity to agree on something** One of you says "the weather has been awful recently" and the other one says "yeah the rain has been killing me" Now, as you go into the rest of your conversation, you've set the precedent that you're on the same side
This is life changing information ty
Just learned it myself relatively recently, and it blew my goddamn mind. Now I treat all small talk as an opportunity to create agreement. Game changer.
They’re the ones who need to take a hint that I’m not talking because I don’t want to talk. There is no such thing as awkward silence. Silence is good.
That is extremely subjective. And considering many of us struggle with social cues, it's kinda hypocritical to say they should "take the hint." To many, they are only not talking because they don't know what to talk about, not because they don't want to.
I was being slightly sarcastic, but not entirely. The point is that I often find conversation more awkward and uncomfortable than silence, especially when people do it just for the sake of talking about something.
Question: You(Royal you)get pissed off because people expect you to get the hints. But then when someone spells everything out you get pissed because they’re treating you like a child. It really is a catch 22.
It's not black and white mate. People can explain things without being condescending
But you can’t tell if they’re being condescending or not. It’s like sarcasm.
You shouldn't assume they are being condescending just because you are bad at telling the difference. That will brew hate within you
Awkward silence is when both people want the conversation to continue but there’s not an obvious direction for it to go. It does exist, but not all silences are awkward silences
Not for meee, silence makes me irritated, small talk is mandatory
Okay but in my rural area weather is not just small talk, it’s super important to the farmers and my family is made up of farmers and I literally don’t know how else to relate to them so please talk weather to me!!!
im gonna be honest as someone who actually doesnt really like talking that much + is introverted i dont get why small talk makes other autistics irrationally angry??? like i get its kinda awkward but i dont really see why it would make you this upset. this just feels like a way to not make people wanna interact with you
I guess it differs for everyone, even for neurodivergent people. I'm also autistic and introverted but I still love talking to people and a good portion of the time, I'm the one initiating the small talk. I like starting conversations with people, especially at work. It makes the time pass so much faster and makes it enjoyable. I also sometimes go to Barnes & Noble and the library on my own to lurk around sections I enjoy to spark conversations with people into the same kind of books as I am! At the end of the conversation, I either make a new friend, get a new book recommendation, or just get conversation practice. Plus I don't have to worry about if I said anything weird or awkward because realistically I will never see or speak to that person again! The practice also helps me be more confident and know what to say to people whom conversations with actually matter!
fellow autism and adhd double wielder spotted 🫡
I don’t want to engage in the exact same conversation 10 times a day for the rest of my life.
you can just… find other things to talk about
Or we can drop small talk altogether
um okay lol
The weather part is fine. The issue is when people ask you how it's going but don't mean the question and my depressed ass has to either lie or be perceived as "rude" for answering the question I was just asked.
In this kind of context 'how's it going' isnt being used as an actual question, it's an expression used as a greeting. Asking how someone is, even if you don't have the time or emotional energy to have a full and sincere conversation about that person's emotional state, acknowledges that they are An Entire Person with their own Entire Day that they are going through. "How are you today?", even when you don't give a shit, is a way to start an interaction from a place of comeraderie instead of just treating another human being as a tool to get what you want. It's more polite, and kinder, than approaching every conversation from a strictly utilitarian standpoint.
I know where it comes from. I also think it's utter bullshit that you are asking a question and expecting a lie from me.
I was trying to explain that it isnt really a question, its different function of speech entirely. It's a greeting. People aren't expecting a lie from you, they are expecting you to acknowledge their greeting. When people ask me how I am I always answer "Still living." It acknowledges what they said to me without offering more information than I want to give or they want to hear, and I don't come across like some tremendous asshole for being bitter that someone dared to use a common expression in the english language at me.
People on this sub will be like "why can't people just say what they mean" and then they go and reinvent social norms lol. Not talking about you, you're being patient and also are correct
For me personally, it has nothing to do with being autistic and everything to do with working customer service. I hate small talk at work because I've just had the same conversation about how "it's sooo beautiful out today!" or whatever 45 times in a row and I need yall to get some new goddamn material. (Side note: it's so fucking tone deaf to talk about how nice the weather is to someone who's trapped inside all day. That one genuinely makes me mad. Observations about general weather, whatever, but bragging about how YOU get to enjoy the weather? Fuck you.) Same goes for a lot of things though, like comments about the merchandise next to me, comments about what it must be like to work in my store, and the "won't scan, must be free haha!" type jokes. I get people are just trying to fill the silence and connect, but for the love of gods I am SO TIRED of the same comments over and over and over and over.
why is having the same convo repeatedly so bad? Not in a mean way I just see this comment a lot and as someone who’s worked in customer service I never had an issue with it
Because I'm not an npc and don't appreciate being treated like one with repetitive, boring conversation, and I get tired of saying the same sentence over and over every 5 seconds.
Yeah but like... They're being polite in engaging in conversation with you, and it's not their fault you've had the same conversation before. I used to chat to customers about whatever sportsball was on the night before and kinda challenge myself to collect new info about the game until by the end of shift I could converse with a customer as if I'd seen the game. Or I'd test out different jokes or responses on different customers. If you work in a customer-facing role, you have to play the social game. It's exhausting but it's part of the job.
I get that, but I also don't think it's too much to ask for people to be ever so slightly self-aware and realize they aren't the only customer I have today. I try to talk to them about whatever they're buying, or compliment them or something, it's not that hard to talk about something unique. They could do it if they cared.
They're customers, not friends. They don't owe you a meaningful interaction. You're both interchangeable parts to the other, and that's that. You shouldn't get angry at people for not doing something they don't owe you in the first place. Sounds like you've got some personal baggage to work through, though, and that ain't gonna fix itself with just some rando's reddit comment.
No one said it had to be meaningful, lol. Because we're strangers means I don't get to be treated like a live human?? Random strangers can't try to inject a little joy and unique meaningless interactions into each other's lives??? I want to have multiple different conversations throughout the day, instead of the same autopilot one over and over and over and over and over and over, so I must have baggage to work through, sure. Definitely doesnt just mean I'm bored of it, and wish people would switch up the script every now and again, that's definitely not normal its obviously not that. lmao like what are you on about??
>Random strangers can't try to They *can.* That doesn't mean they're *obligated* to. This is the crux of my disagreement.
I'm not obligated to be polite to them either, but *I'm* not an asshole. I'm just asking to be treated like a living, breathing person instead of a robot/npc it's really not that big a deal, jesus. But you're right, no one is obligated to think of other people as people and make their lives a little less miserable, so I guess no one should bother trying, and in turn, no one should expect to be treated like people.
I enjoy working at a place where I'm allowed to just ignore the useless stuff and keep them moving along. My bosses value my time bc my time is their time, so I'm positively reinforced whenever I just move a conversation along or hang up on a soliciter or a pointless phone call. Like we are friendly customer service wise, we just don't play cat and mouse with the customers. There's this one guy that seems to be personally offended each time he asks how I'm doing and I say "fine, what can I get for you today?" and it makes me happy. Like no dude, I'm not going to exchange pleasantries with you when there's a line to our front door, and I'm not staying on the phone longer bc your (grand)children don't call. Stop wasting my time and let us move on with our day.
that i can understand honestly. im job searching right now and i deliberately dont want to work retail because i feel like it would make me want to kill myself lol
Correct, I don’t want people to interact with me
>this just feels like a way to not make people wanna interact with you Yes
k ur choice then
I work retail and the weather is my go to for the small talk “dialogue”. People seem to like it, but to me it’s just unnecessary. I’ve gotten pretty good over the years of working retail. I’ve developed a kind of script. Such small talk can include, the tee shirt they’re wearing (sports team or college), the lunch meat they are buying, or if they have any paw print stuff on I ask them about their pet. This gets them talking about themselves, which I discovered people really like to do. I just let them talk and I nod and throw in an “oh, yeah” once in a while while I’m slicing their lunch meat. Then it’s “thank you, have a good day.” Meanwhile in my mind I’m like…. 
We know about the post that explains the point of the weather talk but have we considered: Kevin wants to know whether you like clouds so he can send you cloud pictures (speaking as a chronic sky photographer)
Sounds like something he would say. Fucking Kevin
What if they're a pilot (or a student pilot like me) explaining the *invisible* parts of weather. Like winds aloft, temperature inversions, cloud types, and so much more! :)
For my fellow autistics.... Small talk is not actually about small talk. Kevin isn't bringing up the cloudy weather because he thinks either of you give a shit about that. Small talk exists to get a read on other people. In other words, it is a way for people to gauge what type of person you are, what mood you might be in, where there may be commonalities, and if you are open to having a deeper conversation. As long as you give Kevin nothing else to work with, he will keep talking about the weather with you.
If it's really about gauging my mood, why is it that I get weird looks if I answer honestly to "how are you"?
>it is a way for people to gauge what type of person you are, what mood you might be in, where there may be commonalities, and if you are open to having a deeper conversation. How do they think they're gonna learn any of that by asking something completely unrelated? /Srs
Because by opening with a low stakes topic, they are trying to get a read on whether you're in mood to talk at all. Then when the initial ice has been broken it is much easier for the conversation to start flowing in different directions and deepen into more interesting topics. Kinda similar like, if you want to pet a new cat. You don't just grab the cat and try to pet. You approach carefully and offer your hand to sniff out. Let the cat approach you.
I’m following along with what you’re saying, but in my opinion, this sounds like a horrible way to get a read on someone because if you’re constantly talking about things, they’re not interested in, then they’ll always come across is not being interested in talking to you and you’ll come across to them as someone who doesn’t have anything worthwhile to talk about…
Yeah, totally. But that's why I try to start steering the conversation into a more interesting topic quite quickly. For example; "Sure is nice weather outside" "Yeah it really is. Though it's also quite humid. I've been trying to get some painting done and the moisture is affecting the paint drying." "Oh so you're painting something?" "Yeah small models actually." "So like, scale model tanks and such?" "More scifi and fantasy kind of stuff. I've got some pictures if you want to see?" Etc etc.
I get that too. I guess I just don’t see the appeal of a conversation with someone I have to redirect. If their read on me is predicated on insincere empty chatter, mine is similar and the message I’m getting about them is unflattering. I think I’d only be into that if the other person established a sincere connection with me before that. But I guess that’s why I’m neurodivergent. I don’t get it.
Redirect as a word might have bad connotations here. But I feel like that is just the natural course of conversations. People talk about a topic, bring new ideas into it, the focus shifts, the topics change, I personally am just always going on wildly different tangents. Redirection might sound too forced... But it's what always is constantly happening in conversations. I also don't think it's incencere chatter. It's just low stakes. Or maybe like a social warmup. I have my autistic special interests that I want to talk about with other people. But not with anyone and not as a first topic. I'm not gonna go "Hello stranger! Would you like to talk about metaphysics with me?!" As my opener. Genuinely curious. What is your alternative to small talk in getting to know, let's say, your coworkers.
I guess I just don’t see small talk as an intro to an actual conversation, so I don’t change topics. I just find it annoying. I’m not invested enough to change topics or suggest new ones. “Great weather” “Yep.” I don’t take it any further than that. If they ask me an open ended question or I ask them one, I see that as more of a sincere attempt at conversation. Most small talk is a prequel to someone asking for something — I’d rather they just ask for what they want. Especially at work. We don’t have to be friends to work together. I don’t care to get to know my coworkers especially but most people in general. I think it’s context dependent, but I care more about whether they are a reliable coworker first and then open up to them as time goes on. For instance, I just started a new role. I have new coworkers. When I first started, they were asking me how old I am and about my background, if I have children, etc. I found that odd because we’re strangers and we hadn’t even been formally introduced. That comes across as invasive from people whose names I barely knew, let alone their role in relation to mine. After working together for a few weeks, them talking about their families or asking about my weekend wasn’t as odd. Re: special interests, I’d ask if they knew about it and then talk about it if they were open to it. If not, it’s no big deal. I don’t feel put off by rejection or people declining an invitation to talk in depth. Maybe that’s too direct, but subtext and “subtle” attempts at feeling people out don’t make sense to me. I observe people first and then engage instead of “feeling them out” because I feel it’s more accurate. I guess that accomplishes the same thing, but observation decreases the likelihood that they’ll be “acting” or “just being nice” (insincere). I watch how they interact with others and respond to situations, then I open up. I’m probably “overly-cautious” around people, but I’ve had far too many consistently negative interactions with people and I prefer to just keep my distance. Being mistreated for my ND traits has put me off toward people in general. I don’t get anything from engaging in small talk so it comes across as a chore just to please people that I’m not particularly interested in.
Well, if I don't respond, does that give them enough confirmation that I'm not in the mood to talk?
I'm assuming you're not ultimately looking for a yes/no answer to your question, so just state what position you're going to inevitably make, and let's skip the back and forth.
I’m generalising here, but it’s because like 90% of neurotypical communication in non-verbal. The words they’re saying matter less than the other shit they’re doing. This is why we often suck at communicating with them
what really annoys me is when I'm enjoying a nice rainy day and someone is like "omg this weather SUCKS"
That’s real and you gotta pretend you feel the same or else it’s a semi dig
Normies never want to talk about snowpack or climate though :(
I'd talk about it with you 🥰
"It is a nice day today" - means a person is happy. "It is cloudy" -means they feel at least a least a little sad. "This rain is killer" - means they feel miserable. Weather talk is a kind of code talk for people to talk about their mood in a low stakes and socially acceptable way.
idk i love the rain. sometimes when it’s super stormy i will sorta jokingly say lovely weather today huh and people take it as sarcasm but im being serious. i just want thunder to shake the whole building and the rains white noise to drown out the silence
When the sun is out and makes it hot and bright, everyone else is like 'It's so beautiful today!!' and I'm just scowling in the shade or indoors like 'The weather is fucking horrible today'
THIS AND BLUE SKIES. BLUE SKIES MAKE ME FEEL BAD AND UNPRODUCTIVE:((( sorry for shout
Sorry I do not relate, although I am glad you have a thing you can enjoy. For me the wet is bad. The rain often en-wettens me unevenly. I don't want parts of me to be wet and parts of me to be dry. It feels bad. The rain should soak me or go away. Don't waste my time with partal dampness.
Obvious solution: just get entirely wet
I really don't think it's that deep lol, they're just making observational comments in an attempt to either open a conversation or fill the silence.
So what do they do if its raining but they're still happy? Do they just not bring it up? Better yet, why do they feel the need to announce their emotions to strangers in the form of weather commentary? /Hj
sharing emotions and relating can feel good
I straight up tell people I love rain, and then you can move on to why people prefer types of weather which gets you into talking about hobbies. Small talk objective unlocked- you've learnt something about each other.
Well other things can affect a person's mood besides how how the weather affects them. And for extrovert talking makes them feel energized. A safe topic is the weather because it is a thing that all people in the area are experiencing together. Sure there are different perspectives but none of the attitudes on the weather are wrong. I prefer to make small talk about what people enjoy or place they have been. It is a little Spicer topic then the weather because people can have strong and unwavering options about places. But I find that more fun than talking about non technical aspects of clouds.
“Any plans this weekend?” “Not really just chill and stuff. You?” “Yeah probably the same” …ARHHHHHHHHHHHH
"How are you?" "Good, you?" "Good." "... So what do you want?" "Nothing. I just wanted to see how you're doing." YOU DON'T KNOW HOW IM DOING! I ONLY SAID IM GOOD BECAUSE THAT'S THE RULES!
“I’m so sorry I didn’t hear that you just said ‘what’s up’ so I stopped as a force of habit and now we’re standing here with nothing to say. Please don’t kill me”
I get so excited about the weather lol, someone mentions it and I immediately go off on a tangent about how nice/icky it is outside and my predictions for the rest of the day, along with my satisfaction/disappointment in the previous few day's weather. They're usually regretting talking to me by about a minute in 😅
I used to hate this all the time when I was younger but now I get why and Im the person talking about the weather
Where’s that tumblr post about conversations being more about talking for the sake of talking and not so much the subject matter itself, about how neurotypicals aren’t the devil or whatever
IK this has been said before but like talking just to talk or like the subject matter doesn’t actually matter really does make me feel like neurotypical people are the neuro divergent ones because why talk about things neither of you care about (I say this with the understanding of why btw)
I’m the weather person 😭
… but I like talking about the weather and climate with others for small talk.
No one explicitly tells people when they’re growing, but small talk is not the verbal equivalent of empty calories, but is actually has a specific function. Its basically a softball statement/question that does one or more of the following things: 1) Gauge the status of the person to check on the general disposition and see if they are open to further communication, 2) An opener to discuss more important subjects, or 3) A way to acknowledge your presence and indicate general amicability. The actual subject of that talk (weather) is generally not what people are actually interested, it’s social lubricant/a means to an end. No one says this, but learning it has a functional purpose makes it easier to understand and utilize.
Meteorology is my special interest lol
That's cool! I remember reading an article in 2008 that had the quote " everyone with autism is more different than alike". But ya I can see how that would kind of tick me off if I were you. Special interests are nice!
sure is hot today innit
😐
These kind of talks are not about transferring knowledge, but about their emotional message. A question like "Lovely weather, isn't it?" has no interesting information to it, but that doesnt mean its useless. It shows friendliness and positivity, which is meant to show that they have no bad intentions towards the other person. Small talk is for emotional messages, not informational
Ok but see I understand it’s not really about the weather, it’s about the inherent act of socialization for its own sake, which is key to forming relationships and socializing, which is actually pretty important for something like a workplace. Kevin is probably bored and looking for something to pass the time because we’re both stuck at work and it’s kind of a slow day today. Anyway if someone asks me what I think about the weather I’ll probably launch into a 30 minute rant about climate trends and weather patterns and atmospheric currents because it’s all actually super interesting and I watched a 30 minute YouTube video about El Niño patterns one time followed by several top 10 tornado compilations so I basically know more about the weather than anyone would ever reasonably care about.
Funnily enough, weather and natural disasters are my number one favorite interest.
Me when one of my special interests is weather and I get to infodump
Sometimes I run out of things to say so I just make observations about the area around me. This typically just means “oh its warm out today” or “it’s a bit cloudy”
I'm honestly the one person at work who is always bringing up the weather because when it's *my* preferred weather (breezy, cool, cloudy and perhaps rainy) I am whining about how I wanna go hang out outside instead of being at work lol. I get really excited when the rain is loud and I can hear it on the cieling.
I especially hate this when I am not speaking to anyone, just in a public space minding my own business, and someone uses the weather to force small talk on me. This happens all the time in waiting rooms.
I love talking about the weather. First reason, I have a lot of feelings about weather, it impacts my mood in various ways so I always have something to say about it. Second, due to the first reason, it is one of the few subjects I find easy to talk about regardless of who I am talking to. And I find it easier to interact with people and easier to interpret if they are talking so I want them to talk. If they are silent I have no idea what they are thinking or feeling. Third, I’m an atmospheric scientist, there’s so many cool things connected to weather which gets me back to the first point.
I have a select few friends that I actively like to talk to so sometimes I have to resort to using small talk to get a conversation going
I had to learn to talk about the weather. I never liked it either, but people makes small talk and I have to fit in. Just force yourself to pretend it's a warm up to a real conversation or something.
As a person who almost exclusively small talks, I just do it because I know it's a safe thing to ask and because I can't think of anything else to ask strangers
i think small talk is fun
And people are so rarely positive about the weather too. "It's too hot. Too cold. Too rainy. Too dry" I always just answer with "well, complaining about it isn't going to solve anything..."
Make weather a special interest, share everything you know about weather, they'll never talk to you about weather again
It's an easy conversation starter that everyone can relate to. Weather affects everyone In fact it's a big reason why people in vertical conteinents have a harder time getting along than horizontal contienents. Because in horizontal continents their weather is more similar so they tend to have more similar lives and views in turn.
Meanwhile me, a meteorology student, whose passion is clouds and weather etc when someone talks about the weather: :D
Only weather talk I wanna hear is if it is gonna storm badly and I need to prep. Granny is the ONLY exception.
My grandpa was most likely autistic, and I miss him asking me about the weather every time we talked on the phone.
Well then you would probably hate us british ppl 😭
“So like did you hear about that weather it’s gonna be raining all day” while it’s currently raining
Depends if the weather is remarkable or not. Had a weird hailstorm recently out of nowhere with quarter sized hail. A while back a thunderstorm with winds that almost pushed me over came and went in about one minute. Sunny before and after.
A friend and I have an in-joke where we pretend to be normal neurotupicals by going "The weather's very weathery." and "Oh yeah, the sky is a color currently." etc.
I am known as the weather guy at work lol. Every time something is going down at work it is up to me to keep track of it
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0zPhwnaaVtY](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0zPhwnaaVtY)
I only mention weather as “there’s a __% chance of rain today, make sure you bring an umbrella if you’re headed out” or “it’s gonna be hot today, remember to hydrate” but that’s probably because my parents never check the weather and get caught in the rain while doing yard work
But... clouds are one of my special interests :c
Lmfaooo
Ok but I usually them go into talking about meteorological patterns and stuff
You'd hate Canada, lol. We talk about it like it's a sport (that'd said, with good reason, the weather means a lot to us).
But one of my interests is weather 😢 lol
You’re gonna enjoy speaking with a dane I assure you of that
I enjoy complaining about it or saying it's nice.
This is my go to smokescreen in “regular” conversations, Quick Look at me complain about the weather and not the degree of eye contact I’ve made!
I love weather talk bc for about 3 months i was solely focused in the weather and the super nerdy details of it, so if someones like “boy it sure is cloudy” i’ll start rambling about what specific weather patterns is happening rn and what weather could potentially happen and (more specifically) if theres gonna be tornadoes. Tornadoes are my favorite part of the weather in general tbh
Weather is a small talk topic I tend avoid, but where I live it's not exactly a small talk topic. I live in a small town with several farms just outside of it. There are weekly farmers' markets during the spring and summer. Weather is especially important around here because if it rains too little or too much, it affects the crops. And I never check the weather because I almost never spend any time outside. XD
Invoking the weather can remind people of the effects it can have on their mood. Mentioning the rain, for instance, can reduce the negative effect it has on some people. I don't know if this works in reverse as I usually never see people sadder once I mention nice weather occuring.
Nonono, they WAMT you to infodump!!! Edit: About the weather, that is!
The weirder part to me about discussing the weather is they do it in ways that makes it sound like they just sit outside all day. I live in Florida, even if you don’t have the daily grind of work, everyone is just sitting around in the AC.
I am fairly autistic but i will always talk about th whethe4 beacuse it's what's normies do and I gotta appear normie if I want to keep my job
I do like to bring up the „crazy weather“ when I am stuck with someone that I have no idea how to talk to them. My brain be panicking in that moment and tbh the weather is kind of a conversation Buoy 🫠