It's nice to meet you! How do you like it here in Connecticut? 

Small talk is both the bane of our existence and essential in our existential quest to understand our place in the world.

Whether you like it or hate it may depend, in part, on whether you like speech that establishes and maintains relationships or speech that provides information. 

We talk to a humorist, writing teacher, meteorologist, and philosopher about small talk. And we want to hear about your small talk stories. 

GUESTS:

• Alexandra Petri - A columnist for The Washington Post, a punning champion, and the author of Nothing Is Wrong and Here Is Why
• Irene Papoulis - Teaches writing at Trinity College
• Garett Argianas - A forensic meteorologist and Connecticut Public Radio's weather forecaster
• Agnes Callard - Associate professor of philosophy at the University of Chicago, monthly columnist for The Point magazine, and a contributor to The New York Times

Join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter.

Colin McEnroe and Cat Pastor contributed to this show, which originally aired March 4, 2020.

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