Location, location, location

Making conversation with various different people recently, I've asked what I have believed to be a pretty straightforward (although, I admit, entirely cliched and banal) question: where is it you work? In response, I have been hoping for the name of a company, probably followed by me looking blank, then the person providing a brief synopsis of what the organisation does, and me being able to glean a little insight into what kind of job they spend most of their waking hours doing. Eg:

"Where is it you work again?"
"Wonderland."
"Huh?"
"Well, they do a lot of tea parties and things, and I work in marketing."
"Sounds great. So did you see Spooks on Wednesday..."

Instead, on all these occasions, I have had to endure entire explanations pinpointing the actual physical location of their place of work, which serves no purpose: they work in Manchester, I work in Manchester, I live in Manchester, I know Manchester, they give me a huge long-winded frigging description of some place as if they're talking to their great aunt twice removed who's never been to Manchester. Fuck me, I know the question was boring, but what kind of dull conversation is that?

Last night, an acquaintance answered my question, "So where is it you work?", with: "Do you know Castlefield?" Er, yes. "Well, there's a bit where the canal kind of comes to an end, what do you call that?" A canal basin. So, Castlefield Basin, yes? "Yes, Castlefield Basin. It's just by there. There's an old building, kind of Victorian..." Another friend interjected with "Next to Dukes", which could have been said at the start, instead of going all round the houses (well, there aren't many houses round there apart from Lockkeeper's Cottage and a lot of fancy schmancy apartments, but you know what I mean), but I still didn't find out what he did. To be honest, I lost interest, and I went home soon after.