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30 Crazy And Unexpected Things People In This Online Community Heard When Someone Forgot To End The Call
It seems that there are less and less people who enjoy phone calls and prefer the discussion to happen in text form, but in some cases it’s easier to just speak, especially in professional settings. What’s not so professional is to make commentary on what was just discussed before making sure that you hung up the phone and the call had ended.
Surprisingly, it happens quite often as redditors shared their own stories of hearing someone say rude things thinking they hung up, but they actually didn’t end the call. Some of the stories were quite wholesome, but the common denominator was that they were all unexpected as the other person didn’t know someone was listening.
More info: Reddit
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#1
My MIL had a new boss who hated her. She was about three years from retirement, and she felt like he was trying to push her out early so she’d lose part of her pension etc.
She asked me to check her answering machine while she was gone after her mother died and let her know if anything important came in, and to water her plants.
The third day or so I’d been there, there was a message from this boss giving his condolences. Then you could hear the click where he thought he’d hung up but must have placed the receiver just wrong and was still on the line. He ruthlessly made fun of her with his wife for the next five minutes before saying “Oh, s**t!” and hanging up.
She was at a really low point in her life, and I didn’t have the heart to tell her or leave the message on the machine. It would have absolutely crushed her. But I did record it, and then I deleted it from her machine.
Then I called that a*****e and told him what I had, why I wasn’t telling her RIGHT NOW (but absolutely would if needed in the future), and told him I’d better hear nothing but how wonderful work was going for her and how well she was treated until she retired. I told him I didn’t even understand what a piece of s**t you had to be to talk about someone like that behind their back, and especially at such a time in their life.
And that’s exactly what happened. She had a wonderful last few years and figured that her mother dying had opened him up to treat her kindly and with respect.
That was twenty years ago and I never told her and never will. I wouldn’t want to ever take those last few years there away from her.
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#2
called a tech support number for a work related issue during covid. guy was clearly at home and could hear a dog whining in the background. He got my error code straightened out we both said bye but before i could hang up my phone i heard whos a good boy! are you a good boy? i said quietly "I am" then just heard laughing and he said i am sooo sorry! then he hung up :( i wanted to hear his puppy.....
#3
My boyfriend, early on in our relationship, we would talk on the phone before going to sleep. He's terrible about hanging up first, so I got to hear him tell his cats about how cute I am
#4
I was leaving a message for a client about data conversion services. After I left the message I thought I had hung up (voip software on my work computer). I started singing the Mana Mana Doo Doo Dododo ( the Jim Henson song). Then noticed I hadn’t hung up. So I hang up. The next morning I come in to check the conversion voicemails and there is a very clear and professional message left from the client, he leaves contact number and says to have a nice day, there’s a short pause and then he sings the same song back in the message licking up where I hung up when I realized I was still on voicemail. It was hilarious and made my day.
#5
I have a friend that is awesome to hang out with but she can be super flakey. Her brother was dating another friend of ours, but they lived in Thailand together. The mutual friend was home for a bit, and was heading back the next morning, so we met up with a few other friends.
The flakey friend said they would be there, but flaked. When I called to see if we could get a hold of her, it went to voicemail and I thought I hung up. Instead, she got a voicemail of an exasperated me saying “She always f*****g does this. I don’t think she shows up more than a third of the times we make plans.”
She confided in me a year later that she’d got it, but thanked me because she said she hadn’t realized how bad she’d been about keeping plans. The voicemail had her reflecting, and she started making a point of keeping plans after that, said it helped improve her depression.
I was so embarrassed, but I’m glad there was a happy ending.
GoddessOdd 2 years ago
It's good she got the message, but it would have been nicer to just tell her to her face. I had friends like this, and They thought nothing of making really elaborate plans and canceling last minute after everyone else had done all the work. I finally told them that I wasn't going to have time wasted by them, because I didn't have much free time to begin with. I haven't made plans with them since, but I heard they've been better about showing up.
#6
Not really crazy, but my grandparents would always call me from 2 different phones in their house so we could all talk. When they'd get my voicemail and leave a message, instead of hanging up they'd talk to each other. Usually silly things like "what's for dinner" and stuff like that, but it always made me smile. I wish there had been a way to keep them back then.
Mary Rose Kent 2 years ago
I’m 66 years old and I still miss my grandparents so much! I think about them at least once a week.
#7
I was working in a Callcenter for some time, so I'd be calling around 30-40 people per day, which is exhausting work.
There was this one particular call, I still remember very clearly. It wasn't crazy, but the situation was rather unexpected.
So, I'd be calling a woman about the end of her thirties, we'd have the usual chat and she was readily replying to my questions, sometimes giggling and doing conversation outside the topic at hand. She was in a room with her daughter.
When we ended the chat, I thanked her for her time and said my goodbye.
A few seconds after that, she apparently thought I had already hung up and said to her daughter "my goodness! He's got the most pleasant voice."
I was smiling beams for the rest of the day and did enjoy the work much more for the rest of the week.
#8
Back when I still worked in a 911 center, I got a call that was pretty obviously a swatting attempt. Describing a hellish situation feet from them but silent in the background, normal tone of voice, phone not showing remotely near the area they're describing. (Note: I started two calls, one where they said it was in case it was true and one where their phone was actually showing with all the details so we were CYA in case of real issues, but actually investigating what was likely happening)...
Anyway. After a bit they say they have to hang up because it's not safe to stay on the phone. Then I hear pocket rustling sounds and the same person talking in the background about how "that b***h Anna is gonna get what she deserves when them 'Poh-leece' show up and point them guns at her" and a bunch of laughing, clearly not meant to be heard by me.
So I add that all in too. Anyway, PD found them pretty quick, because the area they were actually calling from was very low density population. Hearing them panic when they saw PD outside of their house was a special kind of fun.
#9
I was the third party in this.
A coworker failed to hang up properly after a conversation with the boss and promptly went on a very creative expletive laden rant about the boss and what he should do with himself.
As this went on I received a text from the boss suggesting I should inform the coworker that she’d not hung up.
I got coworker’s attention and told them they hadn’t hung up.
Still in expletive mode I was asked what made me think that.
My response was ‘I got a text from boss’.
First time I ever saw color literally drain from someone’s face.
Henry Russell 2 years ago (edited)
i wouldnt of imformed him and just see where the conversation was going
#10
"Stupid f**k fell for it." This from a student's parent while I was excusing their kid from an assignment they missed because their grandmother just died. She hadn't. Still, the kid wouldn't pass the class under any circumstances because he was a complete knob. Once I talked to his parents I knew why. So he still failed the class even without the assignment. So I know one of us was the stupid f**k, just not sure it's the same person they think it is.
#11
Not a crazy story but I had just finished talking to a client over the phone, we say our goodbyes, then I hear her ask "are you wearing pants today?" I wasn't sure how to answer that but I figure she was jokingly asking because everyone just started working from home due to covid. I just replied "Yes". She then burst out laughing trying to explaining that she thought she had already hung up and she was actually asking her husband that question. We laughed about it for about 3 mins before we actually hung up.
GoddessOdd 2 years ago
I love that pants are totally optional now! My favorite thing about WFH, (besides everything).. was being able to roll out of bed at 5.59 and start work at 6... no shower, clothing, makeup, hair or teeth brushing... I could do that as the morning progressed.
#12
Found out I was single this way back when I was in the Army.
I got the chance to call my girlfriend and took it. It was a nice call; she told me what she'd been up to and all that. We made plans for some leave I would be getting soon, we said goodbye and she hung up
I still had a few minutes so I just sat there, holding the phone so the next guy wouldn't hassle me for it, when I hear from the line:
Male Voice: So when's he coming back?
Ex-Girlfriend: Not for a couple of weeks, we have plenty of time.
MV: You're going to break up with him before that, right?
Ex: Of course!
I hung up and felt like s**t, ghosted her when I went on leave, later found out she's been seeing the other guy for a while. Didn't see her for years and years, until one day, I was taking my kid to get pizza at a place in a strip mall and there she was, standing next to an SUV, staring at me like she'd seen a ghost. I waved, went inside and that was it.
#13
I had a job where I was in a position to write-off a substantial phone bill, which the customer said was because her mother was dying overseas and she had dementia and needed to hear things in her voice to believe anything, including doctor’s instructions. She was heartbroken and sobbing about how if she had the kind of money to pay this phone bill, she would have just gone back to her country because the flight would have cost less (she was right about that).
I wrote-off the entirety of the phone bill, she cried like a jilted lover in a rom-com and said people like me are angels from god etc.
After I wished her a good evening and she thought the call was ended, she says to someone in a perfectly normal voice ‘Well, that worked!’
#14
A former colleague of mine said something in the line of ”god I hate that m**********r” after he hung up on our largest client, problem is he didnt hang up.
Not the worst I heard, but we lost our biggest client, our reputation and in the end all our business. Some 25 people lost their jobs.
Pro tip: don’t tie up 80% of your sales to one customer, also don’t tell that customer that you hate that m**********r.
GoddessOdd 2 years ago
And hire people with better judgement. No one should say that kind of thing out loud, no matter what they think of the client.
#15
I left a client a voicemail and thought I hung up but in fact I proceeded to talk baby talk to my roommates cat for several minutes while it was recording.
#16
I have a "not muted" story
Webex, 500 people on the call, right when everyone was getting used to working remotely. Whoever set it up didn't mute the audience by default.
The chaos was amazing. Dozens of people simultaneously unmuted and going about their lives. Dogs barking, kids crying, kitchen utensils clanging, the call leaders PLEADING for people to mute themselves.
My favorite part was when they had things mostly quiet, about 5 people were still unmuted, including one guy who thought he was muted who yelled "JESUS F*****G CHRIST PEOPLE, MUTE YOUR F*****G PHONES" before realizing he was not on mute.
They threw in the towel and ended the 1.5 hour meeting after 15 minutes
Stardust 2 years ago
I also had a not muted mic experience. I was the one unmuted unfortunately. The teacher asked a question and I told the answer but she said it was wrong even though I was correct. Since I was having a terrible day I cursed a lot without realizing my mic was not muted. Thankfully nobody heard it properly.
#18
I was FaceTiming my parents shortly after I started dating my now wife. I’d had quite a dry spell and hadn’t dated anyone for a couple years. So I mentioned we were dating on the call and they were happy for me. We ended it and I just put my phone down to grab something without ending the call. Apparently my mom did too because after a few seconds I heard her say “Well I’m glad he’s having sex now!” Awkward but also I’m glad my mom is looking out for me!
#19
I called a service provider who was supposed to order certificates of good standing from a state and they were late in sending them over. They told me there was a delay at the state’s office and gave me a new estimate. They forgot to hang up, and I heard them telling their coworker that they’d completely forgot to send in the time sensitive request in the first place. Never used them again 😂
#20
I work at a children's hospital, and anything serious like a Code Blue is called out hospital-wide over the loudspeakers by dialing a specific phone extension. There's been a few times where someone hit the hold button instead of end call, and the whole hospital gets to listen to the hold music until someone catches it.
The worst/funniest though was a couple weeks ago. Every single employee, parent, and child in my world renowned children's hospital heard this poor guy scream "F**K" when he realized he was still on.
GoddessOdd 2 years ago
I would have said it three more times while I was trying to hang up... panic does that.
#21
I'm a debt collector. A debtor owed a $15,000 balance but the original creditor was willing to take $5,000 to settle the account. I was processing the debtor's payment and I placed them on mute but they must have thought that I placed them on hold. The person starts talking to a friend in the same room and basically the debtor was trying to buy a house and needed to resolve this account to start trying to get a loan. The debtor planned on settling for $5k, taking their receipt to the bank to apply for the loan, then they thought they could issue a chargeback on their card and essentially close the account out and still have a receipt saying that they paid. I could have told the debtor how stupid that was or got a manager involved but that 5k payment put me at way over goal and I received a nice bonus check that month. Fast forward a few months later and I'm notified of the charge back back by a manager. When I call the debtor he was acting really smug until he realized that as soon as the chargeback went through we updated his credit report to reflect the delinquent status so now his loan with the bank for his house was in jeopardy of not going through. At the point all he wanted to was pay the $5k to get this over with. Unfortunately for him the creditor was no longer offering a settlement so he had to pay the full $15k and I got an even bigger bonus check that month.
#22
Business conference call, the other side had asked some pretty stupid questions but was still poised to do >$1M worth of business with us. Thinking the call had ended, one guy in the room started calling them f*****g idiots and talking about how what they were trying to do was never going to work, etc. They didn't say anything else, but we all heard the sound of the other side disconnecting and they later reached out and said they were going to go in another direction.
#23
Not sure if this fits
I sat in on a remote interview. We were in the conference room with 2 screens - 1 showing the interviewee and the other showing us.
Nearing the end of the interview I noticed my boss had seemed to develop an unusual neck spasm. He would face the screen then suddenly look to the side then face the screen again.
At the end of the interview, as the candidate was exchanging thank you etc, I learnt over and asked if my boss was ok.
His answer was just loud enough to be picked up by the microphone: if you twist fast enough you can see your own ear!
Needless to say the job offer was not accepted 😁
#24
friend called me for a quick question followed by an a*s exploding in a toilet before he hung up. was not the type of friend to do that sort of thing so it was hilarious
#25
A doctor’s office: “f**k you, Dave!”
I don’t know who Dave is. I’m not Dave.
#26
Grandma left me a voicemail asking for my help with stuff on her computer. She thought she hung up but she didn’t and I hear her call me a “f*****g b***h.” Haven’t really talked to her since.
#27
My father in law (who is 86) can't work his phone too well. He always, I mean always gets phone calls at dinner time. So once a week when he is over, he gets a call. And it's always from someone different. 9 times out of 10 he makes a smart remark about not liking them. 8 times out of 10 he hasn't hung up yet but thought he did.
EDIT: Example
Him: "Boy, they never stop talking"
Me: "Ummm let me help you end this call"
GoddessOdd 2 years ago
If he keeps it up long enough, he'll have offended everyone who calls him =0)
#28
“He said his biggest regret was losing me as his manager.” My boss talking to his daughter after I gave my notice. He was an average manager at best and I never really commented on his management skills one way or the other.
NinaRosario 2 years ago
Wow, a bit delusional of the boss... I would honestly have said something on the line. You have nothing to lose since you're quitting anyway ;)
#29
That 911 call where the guy says “I honestly don’t give a s**t what happens to you”.
#30
After a business convo: 'I don't trust those guys'
What do you think ?
Dr. Carlos Dangercat 2 years ago
My coworker once ended a call with me "ok, love you, bye!" which I assume was a habit from talking to his wife as we weren't on those terms!!
sanityisnotproven 2 years ago
I do that. Then immediately face palm myself. It's a habit as most my calls are with my kids and I make it a policy to always have "I love you" be the ending of any convo with them, phone, email, in person....always. I never got to say "I love you" one last time to my mom before she died. In fact the last interaction with her was a fight with my sister and her asking us to stop because she had a horrible headache (she was rushed to the hospital that night because of a brain aneurysm and never came home). Of course my dumb 14 yr old teen age brain decided being snarky was better than apologizing and expressing concern. Regret that to this day and I will always end my convos to the people I love with "I love you". You never know when that will be the last time you see them.
Load More Replies...
Kristin Ingersoll 2 years ago
Used to do training for a call center that dealt mainly with an elderly population. One of the big things I reinforced over and over and over was that "mute" didn't always work. And you know how voicemails say the calls will be listened to for training purposes? True. So to reinforce the point that mute doesn't mean mute, I played a call with an agent who, very kindly, told the confused but sweet elderly customer, that she was putting her on hold for a moment. She hit mute. She was not muted. She went on an expletive-laden rant about the woman, who was confused for good reason!!! The old lady began to cry. The representative lost her job. That call scared my students into never believing mute... ever.
Leo Domitrix 2 years ago
My mother needs a flip phone. We got her a smartphone, but she can't seem to end calls on them. The red button just doesn't seem to work. So we... got her an old flipphone. She flips it, call ends, no more entertaining rants by Mom featuring her opinion on whoever invented touchscreen technology.
Ter Mite 2 years ago (edited)
Was on my way to a customers house and called them to tell them i would be 10 mins late, she very politely thanked me for calling and then tried to hang up but didnt, then immediately started screaming and cussing about me and how her whole day was ruined. I try my best but sometimes life happens and you run late....
The Starsong Princess 2 years ago
I had a colleague leave me a long voicemail explaining an issue and what he wanted to do. The voicemail was too long and he ran out of time. I could hear him saying “Oh s***!” as he realized he was getting cut off. But he must have thought the voicemail didn’t send because he called back and said everything again, ran out of time again and said “F*** it, f••• it!” before getting cutoff a second time. So he calls my voicemail a third time and leaves me a message “Call me, it’s John.”. Of course, I shared all his voicemails with the whole team and laughed myself sick.
kim morris 2 years ago
I used to live in a rural area, upper state NY. Picked up the phone to call my ex, and could hear him talking on the phone with our milkmaid. Dairy farm, there are still milkmaids. She was describing what she was making him for breakfast. very sweetly. and affectionately. They could not hear me, and every time I hung up, trying to end the call, and picked it up again, they were still on the phone, talking about the wonderful breakfast she was making him. He was not encouraging her, she was the one making the breakfast, he was trying to get the barnwork done. He had plausible deniability. She was all evil. We're divorced now. They're unhappily married.
kim morris 2 years ago
I wrote that confusedly . we were married when this happened.
Load More Replies...
Kit The Dudess 2 years ago
My mother is a toxic, malignant narcissist. Myself & my youngest daughter got phone call from my father (the kindest, gentlest, intelligent, most loving man on earth, who was suffering with progression of Alzheimer’s Disease). My vile, jealous mother was at home sat next to my wonderful father (before she dumped him in a dementia unit) and thought he had hung up the call after a conversation with me then my daughter. My toxic, cruel, wicked mother then spends ten minutes slagging me off to my father, a form of abuse in itself as she was trying to turn him against me in the most hurtful, untrue, evil things she was saying about me. My daughter & I heard it all! It was horrendous & extreme. Note: my mother told me when I had just experienced a traumatic emergency caesarean with my first child at the age of 25 that she’d suffered for 25 years knowing that her husband loved their daughter more than his wife?!!! My father died in 2013. The nasty old woman & I are estranged.
Dr. Carlos Dangercat 2 years ago
My coworker once ended a call with me "ok, love you, bye!" which I assume was a habit from talking to his wife as we weren't on those terms!!
sanityisnotproven 2 years ago
I do that. Then immediately face palm myself. It's a habit as most my calls are with my kids and I make it a policy to always have "I love you" be the ending of any convo with them, phone, email, in person....always. I never got to say "I love you" one last time to my mom before she died. In fact the last interaction with her was a fight with my sister and her asking us to stop because she had a horrible headache (she was rushed to the hospital that night because of a brain aneurysm and never came home). Of course my dumb 14 yr old teen age brain decided being snarky was better than apologizing and expressing concern. Regret that to this day and I will always end my convos to the people I love with "I love you". You never know when that will be the last time you see them.
Load More Replies... Kristin Ingersoll 2 years ago
Used to do training for a call center that dealt mainly with an elderly population. One of the big things I reinforced over and over and over was that "mute" didn't always work. And you know how voicemails say the calls will be listened to for training purposes? True. So to reinforce the point that mute doesn't mean mute, I played a call with an agent who, very kindly, told the confused but sweet elderly customer, that she was putting her on hold for a moment. She hit mute. She was not muted. She went on an expletive-laden rant about the woman, who was confused for good reason!!! The old lady began to cry. The representative lost her job. That call scared my students into never believing mute... ever.
Leo Domitrix 2 years ago
My mother needs a flip phone. We got her a smartphone, but she can't seem to end calls on them. The red button just doesn't seem to work. So we... got her an old flipphone. She flips it, call ends, no more entertaining rants by Mom featuring her opinion on whoever invented touchscreen technology.
Ter Mite 2 years ago (edited)
Was on my way to a customers house and called them to tell them i would be 10 mins late, she very politely thanked me for calling and then tried to hang up but didnt, then immediately started screaming and cussing about me and how her whole day was ruined. I try my best but sometimes life happens and you run late....
The Starsong Princess 2 years ago
I had a colleague leave me a long voicemail explaining an issue and what he wanted to do. The voicemail was too long and he ran out of time. I could hear him saying “Oh s***!” as he realized he was getting cut off. But he must have thought the voicemail didn’t send because he called back and said everything again, ran out of time again and said “F*** it, f••• it!” before getting cutoff a second time. So he calls my voicemail a third time and leaves me a message “Call me, it’s John.”. Of course, I shared all his voicemails with the whole team and laughed myself sick.
kim morris 2 years ago
I used to live in a rural area, upper state NY. Picked up the phone to call my ex, and could hear him talking on the phone with our milkmaid. Dairy farm, there are still milkmaids. She was describing what she was making him for breakfast. very sweetly. and affectionately. They could not hear me, and every time I hung up, trying to end the call, and picked it up again, they were still on the phone, talking about the wonderful breakfast she was making him. He was not encouraging her, she was the one making the breakfast, he was trying to get the barnwork done. He had plausible deniability. She was all evil. We're divorced now. They're unhappily married.
kim morris 2 years ago
I wrote that confusedly . we were married when this happened.
Load More Replies... Kit The Dudess 2 years ago
My mother is a toxic, malignant narcissist. Myself & my youngest daughter got phone call from my father (the kindest, gentlest, intelligent, most loving man on earth, who was suffering with progression of Alzheimer’s Disease). My vile, jealous mother was at home sat next to my wonderful father (before she dumped him in a dementia unit) and thought he had hung up the call after a conversation with me then my daughter. My toxic, cruel, wicked mother then spends ten minutes slagging me off to my father, a form of abuse in itself as she was trying to turn him against me in the most hurtful, untrue, evil things she was saying about me. My daughter & I heard it all! It was horrendous & extreme. Note: my mother told me when I had just experienced a traumatic emergency caesarean with my first child at the age of 25 that she’d suffered for 25 years knowing that her husband loved their daughter more than his wife?!!! My father died in 2013. The nasty old woman & I are estranged.
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