So here is your morning laugh. . . at my expense and with permission

We had new neighbors move in across the street last month. We introduced ourselves and welcomed them to the neighborhood, and even lent a shovel a few weeks ago. 

The other day we found a card in our mailbox inviting us to their housewarming party in a couple of weeks. I thought that was so nice!  I started to think of an art gift to make them. I then added their contact info to my phone and sent a text to the wife accepting their invite. 

A few hours later I received a response saying I had texted the wrong number. I sent “sorry” back, and since it was late in the evening at this point, put my phone down and planned on fixing it the next day (yesterday).

I got up yesterday and at some point got around to fixing the phone number in my contacts, hit the “send a message” button on the contact page, and proceeded again to thank the wife (including my name, again, so she knew who was texting) for the invite and explaining I had accidentally texted the wrong number. 

Several hours later, as I’m driving my son to swim class, I get a response. At a stop light I look at the message and it says “stop fucking texting this number stupid!”  

I am utterly floored by this and start to stew; I can’t even focus on what my kid was rambling on about (usually that’s intentional because all he talks is video games, but this time I just couldn’t for real), because I can’t believe someone becoming so nasty over something so small. 

I mean seriously, how bad is your life that two short texts from a wrong number send you over the edge ‽ I get to the parking lot and I just can’t let it go. I know I should, but I can’t.  I give into my base instinct and send the following:

(**warning: very foul language, just owning my own actions here)

“Look cockface! It was an accident. If something so small makes you start flinging insults, you need some serious therapy. So go fuck yourself, and don’t forget the vaseline! 🖕🏻🖕🏻🖕🏻🖕🏻🖕🏻”

I sent it and then blocked the contact and deleted the message thread.  THEN it occurred to me that I had hit the message button from the contact page. The one where I had just corrected the phone number! 😳 It opened the already started exchange with the wrong number so I assumed it was going to the wrong number and not the neighbor’s number. But was it?  WAS IT ‽‽ 

OH GOD!!!!  Did I just send that to the nice new neighbor who invited us to their house warming party?‽‽!!!!!!!!

I had no idea if the number in my contacts for the wife was good or blocked or whatever. So I called the husband’s phone, I was too terrified and mortified to even  try texting at this point. I no longer trusted myself, and rightfully so. 

I left a voicemail explaining what I had done and apologizing. And then apologized for the awkwardly weird voicemail. 

I drove home, explaining to my son what I had done and deciding I needed to just walk across the street and straighten it all out face-to-face. My son wanted to witness my humiliation (of course 🙄), but I let him know it wouldn’t be appropriate in this situation. 

So I drop him off and go across the street preparing for some well deserved self-depreciated groveling. The husband answers the door and says he got my voicemail and spoke with his wife, and she said hadn’t gotten any texts at all. AND they both felt bad for me for all the confusion. Which just made me feel worse because they had no reason to feel bad. We chuckled and that was it. 

My son was disappointed that they hadn’t received the foul text because that would have been waaay funnier “drama” for him. I have to admit he is right on that point. Lol 

Needless to say, this is why I normally try and take the high road; because karma will slap your face if you give it a chance.