My Polish driving instructor has clearly been here too long.
I ask how he is and a cheery, non-committal and very British "not bad" is his usual response.

Once he stretched to "alright" but never ventures beyond that.
( Moey, Fri 5 Mar 2010, 14:44, 2 replies)

He probably knows what to say.
If I ask any of my Polish relatives how they are I can expect at least a 10 minute conversation.

Going back to the British topic, there's a brilliant book called "The Xenophobe's Guide to the English". I will give a small extract:

"If someone asks 'How are you?' when you meet, you must not speak about your bad back, high blood pressure, or imminent open heart surgery. The correct response is "Mustn't grumble", which will be approvingly interpreted as 'bloody awful, but I'm not going to bore you with the details'. If your listener at any point says "How interesting", you will know that he finds you as fascinating as watching paint dry. If he says "We must meet again soon", you will know he would rather go over Niagra Falls in a barrel than do so. Learn the lesson now: the English speak in code."
( TIAL Four capital letters, written in gold., Fri 5 Mar 2010, 15:02, closed)

I got chastised by a supermarket till monkey
for replying "not bad" when he asked me how I was. went off on one about how if I was "not bad" then I was surely "good"
( Vipros. clever got me this far, then tricky got me in, Fri 5 Mar 2010, 15:18, closed)

I find
"not bad" to be far more accurate... I'm no pessimist, but unless I'm not in work, the sun is shining and I'm surrounded by people I want to be surrounded by I'm far more likely to be "not bad" than I am to be "good".
( Moey, Fri 5 Mar 2010, 16:18, closed)