If someone asks, “How are you?” . . . no one is expecting a serious, elaborate response, especially on a Monday morning.  But you don’t HAVE to say, “good” and just hope that puts an end to it.

People on social media are talking about how they answer “How are you?” if they’re NOT good . . . and here are the best responses:

1.  “Not too bad.”

2.  “Can’t complain.”  One person says, “Can’t complain . . . no one listens.”

3.  “Ah, you know.”

4.  “Livin’ the dream.”

5.  “Another day in paradise.”  (Which MIGHT sound sarcastic.)

6.  “I’m alive.”

7.  “Tired.”

8.  “Hangin’ in there.”  Or “I’m gettin’ by.”

9.  “Meh.”

10.  “Present, and accounted for.”

11.  “The horror persists.”

12.  “Awful . . . why do you ask?”

13.  “Same panic, different disco.”  Or: “Same soup, just reheated.”

14.  One person said there aren’t usually any words . . . just crying. 

15.  And one person said, “You just say ‘fine.’  It’s a greeting, people are not actually interested in how you are doing.”