Everyday Life: The Little Things We All Do, Say and Think

There are some things about everyday British life that don’t really need explaining.

You just do them.

You say certain things without thinking. You have little routines that you’ve probably never discussed with anyone. You get irrationally annoyed by things that aren’t really important. And you somehow end up having conversations about exactly the same subjects as everyone else.

Perhaps that’s one of the things that makes everyday life so relatable.

You might think you’re the only person who does something.

Then you mention it to a friend and hear:

“Yes! I do that too.”

Here are some of those everyday habits, little frustrations and conversation starters that seem to unite us.

The things you check before leaving the house

Keys.

Wallet.

Phone.

Sometimes you pat your pockets in a very specific order.

Then you get halfway down the road and wonder whether you actually locked the front door.

So you go back.

Check it.

Walk away.

And five minutes later you’re wondering again.

It’s almost a British ritual.

The drawer full of random things

Every home seems to have one.

The drawer containing batteries, old takeaway menus, screws, pens, rubber bands, keys nobody can identify and approximately seven charging cables for devices you no longer own.

Nobody knows what’s in there.

But when something breaks, that’s the first place you look.

There’s always a chance you’ll find exactly what you need.

“I’ll just have a quick look”

You go into a shop for one thing.

You don’t need anything else.

Then you see something interesting.

“I’ll just have a quick look.”

Twenty minutes later you’re carrying something you didn’t know existed when you walked through the door.

And you’ve still forgotten the thing you originally went in for.

The things we keep meaning to do

There is always a list.

Sort that cupboard out.

Book that appointment.

Clear out the loft.

Put those photographs into an album.

Finally get around to fixing that slightly wonky cupboard door.

None of these jobs are particularly difficult.

But somehow they remain on the list for months.

Sometimes years.

The British “sorry”

Someone walks into you.

You say sorry.

Someone blocks your way.

You say sorry.

Someone else is clearly in your way, but somehow you apologise for existing in the same general area.

It’s one of those British habits that becomes particularly obvious when you notice someone else doing it.

The queue

We have an almost instinctive understanding of queues.

If you aren’t sure where the queue starts, you look around.

If someone tries to push in, everyone notices.

Nobody necessarily says anything.

But they notice.

There’s a very particular British tension that develops when someone casually walks towards the front and pretends they haven’t seen the line.

The weather

You can meet someone you’ve known for 30 years and still start with:

“Bit warm today.”

Or:

“Not bad out there.”

Or:

“Looks like rain.”

It doesn’t matter whether you’re discussing a heatwave, snow, rain or completely unremarkable sunshine.

The weather is always available.

And if you’ve got nothing else to talk about, it will do.

The supermarket trolley test

You have finished shopping.

You have unloaded the trolley.

Now comes the decision.

Do you take it all the way back to the trolley bay?

Of course you do.

But there is always someone who leaves theirs in the parking space next to their car.

And somehow that bothers you far more than it probably should.

The favourite mug

Most households have one.

It isn’t necessarily the nicest mug.

It might not even be particularly attractive.

But it’s your mug.

You know which one it is.

And if somebody else uses it, there’s a tiny moment of irritation.

You may not say anything.

But you notice.

The thermostat debate

Someone is cold.

Someone else is hot.

Someone wants the heating on.

Someone else thinks the house is already warm enough.

And suddenly the thermostat has become the most controversial object in the house.

There is no universally acceptable temperature.

Apparently.

Losing something while holding it

We’ve all done it.

You put something down.

You immediately forget where.

You search the kitchen.

Then the living room.

Then the kitchen again.

Eventually someone asks what you’re looking for.

You explain.

They point directly at the thing.

It’s been in your hand.

The “while I’m here” job

You go upstairs to get something.

While you’re there, you notice something else that needs doing.

So you do that.

Then you remember why you went upstairs.

Then you forget what you were doing.

Suddenly you’ve been upstairs for 15 minutes and still haven’t brought down the thing you went up for.

The familiar local route

Most of us have routes we know almost without thinking.

The quickest way to the supermarket.

The back road that avoids traffic.

The shortcut through town.

The road you take when you don’t want to use the main route.

And if someone suggests a different way, you immediately become a part-time traffic expert.

“I wouldn’t go that way.”

Why?

You just know.

“Give us a ring”

We have smartphones capable of video calls, instant messaging and just about everything else.

Yet people still say:

“Give us a ring.”

There’s something very British about it.

You don’t say “call me on my mobile”.

You give someone a ring.

Even if the phone is nowhere near a ring.

The things everyone has an opinion about

Tea.

Driving.

Queues.

Supermarket layouts.

Parking.

Weather.

The correct way to load a dishwasher.

Whether the toilet roll should go over or under.

Everyone has an opinion.

And quite a few people are willing to defend it surprisingly passionately.

We are all creatures of habit

Perhaps that’s the real reason these little things are so familiar.

Everyday life is built around routines.

The way we make tea.

The route we drive.

Where we keep the keys.

Which seat we sit in.

What we say when we answer the phone.

Most of these things happen without us thinking about them.

Until somebody does them differently.

Then suddenly we’re experts.

The best conversations are often about nothing

You don’t always need a major subject to start a conversation.

Sometimes it’s:

“Have you seen the price of that?”

“What’s happened to the traffic?”

“Do you remember when…?”

“Does anyone know what this cable is for?”

“Why does the supermarket keep moving everything?”

“Is it just me, or is everyone driving badly today?”

And that’s often how proper conversations begin.

Because everyday life gives us endless things to talk about.

The funny thing is, you might read this list and recognise yourself in several of them.

Or perhaps you’ve got your own little habits that you assume nobody else shares.

What’s the most ordinary thing you do that you’d be surprised to discover other people do too?