What's up

I see someone I know and they say, "What's up?" WHY DO THEY SAY THAT? If we don't know each other very well then really we are only acknowledging each other. Maybe they actually want to start a short conversation but "what's up" is a horrible way to go about it. When people say, "Hey, how's it going," I can

make the conversation short and sweet. This is especially handy if I am passing people in the hallway. When they ask "how's it going," I can say "good," and we can all move on. If we are walking in the same general direction I can elaborate on my answer and we can have a conversation. It works great! If they ask "What's up," they have just made the conversation awkward for both of us. I feel the need to answer the question but I know that they don't actually want to know what has been going on in my life. They want a general feeling, like "swell," or, the classic, "good." So, the best way I have found to answer "what's up," (after I have swallowed the urge to say "the sky") is with, "nothing much." Of course, then I feel like I'm lying because usually I am on my way to something or coming back from another. So, then I correct myself and tell them what I was just doing or am going to do, they don't care, I feel annoyed and you are reading the result. Not to mention they have to tatnd there and listen to me for longer than they planned. So, the moral of this rant be, please don't ask acquaintances "what's up?" unless you really enjoy awkward situations. Friends are fine because you actually care about what is going on in their life, acquaintances, not so much.