<p>It is worth pointing out that because of cultural differences between the USA and the UK, something which is considered “normal speech” in the USA can be considered “bragging” in the UK. I would imagine Canadians might have the same problem. It is something that people visiting or living in the UK need to be aware of. And people in the UK tend to a bit insular (living on an island and all) so often they don’t realize that there are these cultural differences, and they think that foreigners are intentionally “bragging” or otherwise being rude, when they are just behaving normally according to their own culture.</p>