I know what you own but not who you are

[OphiC]

Hello everyone, I was wondering if someone can explain me something about the culture I’m surrounded with. I was born and raised abroad and living in SW by a few years. I have met countless of people here that before introducing themselves they keep telling me about their loft extensions, pay rise in their husband’s jobs and exotic holidays before I have even asked. They do ask on which road I live, if I own the house and if I have houses abroad. Is it part of the English culture or is it confined to SW to be so focused on belongings? I genuinely don’t understand why I should know what they own but nothing of who they are. Please reveal to me this mistery.

Also now cringing about how often I've moaned about building work, yikes! But I think PP are right, if it's the "biggest" thing in your life at that moment, you're naturally going to talk about it. But mentioning husband's pay rise, and asking outright about your wealth... not cool and definitely not my experience in the UK, thankfully.

Oh my experience is that they love to know everything about you. Put you in a little ticked box of cliches. They may use it against you from there on. I take this less from my neighbours and more from awful insecure school mothers but sometimes neighbours too. It is also a way for them to measure their own standing. I avoid them quite a bit tbh.

Exact same thing has happened to me. Not SW but London. I just put it down to English people being nosy.

I live in the south west (moved here from elsewhere) and can think of a couple of areas where this might happen, usually affluent areas populated by people who have moved from more expensive areas of the country. My experience has been quite different. I've been struck by how little interest people take in material possessions. There are always a few but where I live bragging about wealth tends to result in a polite change of topic or a brief embarrassed silence.

Please search on YouTube for Harry Enfield sketches ' I am considerably richer than you'. I think you will relate and will make you smile when you are socialising with these people 😂