Knock on the door and COBE and wife (my old group overseer) standing in the cold.
Bollocks! ...I consider for about 1 second leaving them out there and just talking holding the door... but think better of it as it was cold an so invited them to step inside.
Just passing thru and doing some calls he says, ... i know why he's here and after the preliminaries (how are you, we miss you etc), I preempted him and sped things right along.
"I can guess why you are here" I said, "it being memorial season and all." He makes a jokey point about nothing gets past me does it.
He looks uncomfortable, then does the invite manouver and says "You are welcome to come" followed by "we'd like to see you there."
I reply "duly noted." Then let him do more talking repeating the same points again.
I reply a second time, "duly noted." His wife presses for an answer... "He'll be there." she says optimistically to her husband, "you'll be there won't you?" she says to me directly. I ignore it completely and say nothing.
He repeats the offer and that they would like to see me there. Again I say, "thanks for the invite, it's been duly noted."
He makes a comment about my stubborn personality into the air, I dont respond. We say our good byes.
They know I wont be going, but blind themselves with hope.