It was announced last week on the news that hugging is significantly on the up in the UK. A poll conducted by a skincare company last week found that we now hug each other 13 times a day, with the average hug lasting almost 10 seconds. We have apparently turned into serial huggers.
REALLY? What us Brits? Are you sure? If so who is doing all this hugging? I know it’s pretty popular amongst the teenagers but still – 13 times a day seems an awful lot of hugging. We all hug our children, of course, or our partners (if you’ve got them, which I haven’t at the moment so I am seriously missing hugs, which is probably why I’m writing about them, but anyway, getting off the point).
The survey suggests we are now hugging semi-strangers. How odd. It says the most popular hug is “handshake and lean”. I’ve never done one of those in my life. Have you?
The second most popular one is the bear hug, a proper full on clinch but again, I’m really not sure you do that to strangers do you? In fact generally speaking you only do that with the people you’re having sex with.
Or am I just deeply unfriendly?
Expat Mum
November 28, 2011Bear-hugging is huge in the States (at least in the mid-west). No one does the air kiss thing here, you go in for the full hug and I never know whether a kiss in involved or not. Sometimes I get hugged by people I barely know, which I makes me very uncomfortable, but then a hand shake would seem far too formal.
Family Affairs
November 28, 2011Yes i suppose we do more of the “mwaah” air kisses than you guys…..Lx