A worried wife sprang to the telephone when it rang and listened with relief to the kindly voice in her ear.
“How are you darling?” it said. “What kind of day are you having?”
“Oh Mother,” said the wife, breaking into bitter tears, “I’ve had such a bad day. The baby won’t eat and the washing machine broke down. I haven’t had a chance to go shopping, and besides, I’ve just sprained my ankle and have to hobble around. On top of that, the house is a mess and I’m suppose to have guests for dinner tonight.”
The mother was shocked and was at once all sympathetic. “Oh my darling,” she said, “sit down, relax and close your eyes. I’ll be over in half an hour. I’ll do your shopping, clean up the house and cook your dinner for you. I’ll feed the baby and I’ll call a repairman I know who’ll be at your house to fix the washing machine. Now stop crying. I’ll do everything. In fact, I’ll even call George at the office and tell him he should come home and help out for once.”
“George?” said the wife. “Who’s George?”
“Why, George! Your husband!…Is this 555-1246?”
“No, this is 555-1245”
“Oh, I’m sorry. I guess I have the wrong number.”
There was a short pause, and the wife said…
“Does this mean you’re not coming over?”