GR8 Expectations?

Just over a week ago I received a text message:

You ok

I didn't know who it was from, so I replied:

Fine, thanks. Who is asking?

I soon got a reply:

Its lee have i got the right number who are you?

Now, the only Lee I know is someone who I met at university a few years ago. It was unlikely to be him, but I replied, letting Lee know where I live:

Phil, N Wales. If you're that Lee, then hello, long time on see!

Note the how predictive text predicted I wanted "on" instead of "no". It wasn't the Lee I knew:

Im lee from northampton sorry mate must have got the wrong number, how is wales anyway.

Now, ordinarily if folk get through to a wrong number, they usually apologise and then that is that; I know I do. Not in this case, however. I reply:

No worries. Wales is somewhat wet, but otherwise nice. Hope it is nice where you are.

A swift reply:

Yea its been nice here 2day,had a few beers in town,my auntie lives in carmathen,you know it?

To which I replied:

No, but I know someone who lives there.

Then a reply to which I didn't respond back to:

Its a small world enit lol,you wouldnt like it here its turned into poland,nothing against them tho,the girls are nice,plus ive been her all my life had enough.

I didn't really like the route that this odd conversation was going, so I declined to reply.

Weirdly enough, the Lee I thought it might have been posted a message to me on Facebook at the time that the text messaging was taking place. How very odd.


I thought that that was it, until I received the following text later on the following Saturday (technically Sunday morning):

You ok son

To which I replied:

Yes, thanks Lee. Hope you're okay too.

Indeed he was:

Yeah im fine just been down the local 4 a beer its been really hot 2day,were off 2 menorca on friday a family one,can't wait lol.

My reply:

It'll be even hotter on holiday! Sure you'll have fun.

Which prompted the reply that encompassed what I had been thinking:

Yea hope so,you must think im weird texting you at random,i dont even know your ages or what you look like,we could be long lost friends lol.

As I went on to say, it is quite odd:

I'm 38. Not weird, just unusual. Would be odd if we were long lost friends!

Note the ambigious middle sentence following the "I'm" bit. After my reply I heard nothing. I concluded that perhaps Lee was 18, 19 and he decided that he didn't really want to text someone old enough to be his father.

However, on Monday I received a text:

So what do you do 4 a living? i fell asleep was a bit drunk,went 2 a neighbours 50th.

As an aside, I find that when I type these texts for the blog, I automatically write "to" and "for" and then have to edit them to what some folk know as Princebonics, some as text speak.

I reply:

Usually office work, bit of writing. How old are you and what do you do?

Lee replied:

Im 33,i work in a warehouse fork lift and the warehouse crap,my names lee buy the way,you got kids or married?

I removed Lee's birthdate from the above text, to help protect his identity. I don't usually tell strangers more personal details, but I did this time:

No children, not married. I'm Phil, in case you'd forgotten.

Another reply:

My middle name is philip lol,do you have picture phone i could send you a pic,have you got any female friends?

Now, why would I want to see a photograph of someone I barely know? Also, who hasn't got any female friends? I replied:

My phone is pretty old and doesn't really do photos. I have female friends, but most have moved away since uni.

Another swift reply:

Ohh well i should come down where you live and have a few beers with ya,there must be women round your town,who you live with?

Now, I have met folk that I've met over the 'net, but never my random text messages, and I doubt I ever shall. I reply:

Live on my own, which makes a nice change from sharing a house.

Lee replied with more personal details which I won't publish here. I've not heard from him for a few days. Will I hear from him again? Will he text me when on holiday? Who knows.