By orangemango - 22/04/2014 06:18 - United States - Lahaina

Today, my 808 area code phone number has yet again been mistaken for a 1-800 number. I've been getting phone calls at three in the morning from people on the east coast who are trying to return their shoes. They want to speak to my supervisor because I "don't sound professional enough." FML
I agree, your life sucks 47 854
You deserved it 4 009

orangemango tells us more.

Hello! OP here! Nice little surprise when I woke up this morning! This happened to me about two months ago and my husband thought the situation was funny enough to post. I keep my phone on because my husband's 90-year-old grandmother lives in the same community as us and he's the first person she calls in case of emergencies. When he's off island on business trips, that responsibility falls on me. Since I'm a really heavy sleeper, I leave the ringer on pretty loud. And yes, I know there's a do not disturb function on my iPhone, but I never used it cause I've never gotten a phone call at such odd hours. I didn't check the number when I answered the first time cause I was already in a mad rush to wake up and find my phone without my glasses and freak out that something might've happened to grandma while my husbands away. I was pretty groggy when I answered and I guess the lady didn't appreciate the fact I kept saying "huh?" and "what?". She thought I was sleeping on the job or playing a prank on her and wanted to talk to my supervisor. I told her it was three in the morning and that she had dialed a Hawaiian residential number. There was a long pause and she just hung up. My phone rang a minute later from the same number, but it was a man this time. I told him the same thing and he gave me a half-assed apology and hung up. This happened for the next two nights (also rang during the day) and I found out from one of the calls that the shoe company had actually misprinted their 1-800 number on their packing slip (it was printed 1-808-XXX-XXXX). So I did start using the do not disturb function on my phone and I even changed my voice mail to tell people that this isn't the number they're trying to reach. However, some of them didn't even bother listening to my message and started leaving me voice mails. They were pretty funny. The shoe company specialized in plus-sized shoes for women, but I don't think they were very good. One lady got two left shoes and another was threatening to sue if she didn't get her refund. I already had to change my number back in December (a Samoan family somehow got my number and kept calling and intimidating me cause I apparently got beaten up by their son/brother/nephew/grandson and "it would be wise if you kept your mouth shut") and I was going to be charged $36 for a new number and I didn't want to deal with updating everyone my new number again. What I did end up doing was every time someone called, I'd start trolling them. Some highlights were Teniqua, angry black lady who was wondering why some woman is calling her baby daddy; Sugar **** Mandy, phone sex hotline; Rainbow Waterfall, hippie doomsday and conspiracy preacher; and my husband's, Dick Johnson, Swinging Salami Inc., every order gets you a free complimentary *****! The calls stopped coming about a week after we started trolling with a few stragglers here and there. Probably from people who dialed an 8 instead of a 0. We assumed either the shoe company finally fixed the mistake, changed their phone number, or went out of business. Happy to say I got my number back!

Top comments

Is this the shoe store? NO THIS IS PATRICK!!!

"Wrong number" *hang up* Problem solved!

Comments

if you can troll someone at 3 AM without messing up, then You, my friend, are the greatest. Hand Well played

Oh I would have so much fun with that every time someone called

Kauaian 1

OMG I have the same problem. mine is 808 and the rest is the same as a timeshare company

Hawaii ain't the "paradise" you thought it was is it? Eff that state

A lot of people are just born and raised in the state. Not move here because they see it as "paradise". It's expensive to live here, wish I had the paradise of a cheap home in the mainland.

808 Hawaii state!! Don't worry it happens to me all the time... :/

PandaBurst 10

My work number is one digit off from AARP and we CONSTANTLY get elderly people pissed about their AARP bill and don't understand when I try to tell them they dialed the wrong number. They just argue that I'm trying to charge them more money for something.

There is this great thing called an off button on phones! Haha but in all seriousness, maybe you should consider getting a new number and hoping no 1-800 number is similar. Good luck Op!

....she said she keeps it on in case something happens to her husband's grandmother.

MrZsDad 19

Set all unknown phone calls to be forwarded to a phone sex line.

Call the company and ask to speak to someone in charge. Explain the situation and have them fix it. Also, turn your phone on silent when you go to bed.