My partner is a magnet for people’s life stories and problems wherever she goes, and doesn’t seem to be able to turn it off. She is Irish, which I think doesn’t help with this – people interpret her accent and easy way with a chat as license to get involved. I, on the other hand, seem to have an innate ability to signal disinterest and invisibility and thus not get sucked into such interactions – I don’t think I can teach it though.