Oblivious

I try to remember my friends preferences when they come to my house with any regularity. But alas, I cannot remember everything, and usually end up forgetting big stuff. But I try. Then again, maybe remembering the trivial stuff isn’t all that important. Nonetheless, the saga of the coffee last night was a little surprising. 

Last night we went to my parents’ house for dinner. It was us (including Babka), my parents and my uncle. We enjoyed a wonderful meal, and with dessert my mother offered everyone espresso. Four of us enjoyed a cup. As we were sipping away, my uncle looks at my father, and down at his place setting and says “Why aren’t you having coffee?”

It was that movie-moment where the music comes to a screeching halt and everyone looks on in shock. The conversation went something like this:

Dad: I don’t drink coffee.

Uncle: Never???

Me (to my uncle): How long have you known my father? It has got to be close to fifty years, right?

Dad: Right.

Me (to my uncle): …and in those fifty years, how many times have you seen my dad drink coffee? I’m going to go with never. 

Mom (from the kitchen): He tried it once. 

Uncle: No coffee. Hmmmm. I never noticed. 

Uncle: Really, you never drink coffee? 

Me: Perhaps next time we have dinner the answer will be different, but is seems pretty unlikely.

I think it is pretty easy to forget the small stuff, or things that have just cropped up recently. But if you have known someone for a while, and see them frequently, it is probably time to start paying attention to their likes and dislikes.