Do you actually care when people tell you about their family/partner etc.?

[AmITooTired]

I’m starting to think I must be horrible person, but I don’t really care when they tell me, usually pretty damn mundane stuff, about their parents, kids, partners.
Or recap what their other friend have done.

I obviously can’t ask about this IRL.

YABU = I do care / like

YANBU = I don’t really care either

Depends on the person and what they're telling me. It's not a one-size-fits-all question really. Some people will bore me to death but with others it might just be a normal, interesting chat about what's going on in their lives.

It's grooming talk.

Grooming as in monkeys picking fleas off each other, not as in sexual predators. It's to bond friendships. It's filler.

But also can be super boring.

However it can be a way for people to say what's on their mind so that they can then move on to something more interesting.

If you have more interesting things to talk about, then do.

If they're an interesting person, yes. Some people could talk about anything and I'm just enthralled by it.

If it's an interesting anecdote, yes.

Droning on about your cousin's holiday... no thanks, I'll probably avoid you in future.

It's just general chit chat, that most people have with colleagues or acquaintances. It fills a bit of time when there isn't enough time for deep meaningful conversation or acts as a kick start to further conversation

It does depend on the person and asking about family especially children I feel is often appreciated. I try to remember rough ages of children for example of work colleagues.

I like hearing about people's lives but then I am quite a curious person

yes, but then i'm a nosey cow

I think it entirely depends on who is doing the talking.
If it's a friend & they're filling me in on something that's going on in their lives - grand!
If it's my mother talking for 20 minutes to relay some pointless story about her hairdressers mothers holiday - no thanks ! (But I still listen with lots oh hmmmm, yeah, oh yes, really etc because I know she's just enjoying talking really )

I am always amazed when people ask about my dch and what they're up to, especially if they don't know them. It's an effort to ask in return, and I find it hard to remember which kid is at which uni and studying what. I'm interested in talking about other stuff though, and do sometimes have pretty deep conversations with a couple of my friends.

Depends on whether or not they're friends. Friends, yes it's nice to hear, usually because I know the children and family members. People at work, don't care, it's just noise, something to talk about. I think it's more a woman thing though as OH says that mostly 'tearoom' talk tends to be on sport, cars and general rubbish, talking about family in other than general terms with people he doesn't class as good friends is a no-no.

Yes, I care about my friends and families partners and children.

Co workers and randoms, don't give a fuck.

Depends on the person. If its someone who drones on and on about themselves/their partner/kids/great aunts hemorrhoids constantly and is not interested in anything you have to say , then no, I would certainly be tried hard to extricate myself from the convo.

If its a good friend and you have lots in common, yes you would care about them x

Yup. It helps me build pictures of people I think. Also I came from a very dysfunctional family so I find other peoples interesting also I am really bloody nosey.

I am nosey, so I like to hear about people’s lives.

Bit some people are complete bores that drone on. I only want a snippet!

I'm always concerned if my friends are struggling and I think they see me as a good listener.

I'm completely uninterested in their jobs though. I really couldn't tell you what any of my friends do beyond maybe what industry they work in.

I don't mind if it's someone I know too or very close to them but I struggle when they tell me details of things happening to a distant friend, colleague or the sister or their brother in law, going on and on about their issue. I don't know them and I really don't care.

I don’t care, but make the right noises and don’t talk about myself and my family too much in return.

It's just chat. They don't expect you to care.

No. Find it boring.

Yes I love it. I want to hear about whatever is important to people.

I'm quite good at telling a long-winded story but I really do try and keep it interesting. I feel I'm quite a good story teller, dropping in little bits that are interesting/funny etc but I'm also aware of the audience. My running partner and I basically tell each other what we've been up to over the past week which could be anything really just to take our minds off running!

Generally I love finding out about people but if it's just mundane stuff about distant friends/family it can be boring

Depends on the person.

Unless there is either juicy information to be heard or I genuinely just care about the other person, I don't care really. Boring information about people I don't really know doesn't interest me but I go along with it to be polite.

I care if it's at least mildly interesting or seems to be important to someone I already care about. Well, I try to care if it's important to someone I like. Sometimes my attention might wander, if it's too long or repetitive.

Otherwise? No, I don't really care. I'd view it as idle chat, which isn't meant to be particularly important. It's just something to fill the silence.

Probably only interested in their partner and kids. Couldn't care less to hear about grannies, cousins and friend issues.