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OT: Text Flirting

StepMadre's picture

Kay, this is very off topic, but I have a question for you all. I won't go into the back story at the moment, but I would love some feedback and opinions (from both the guy and girl perspective!). Here it is: Is it considered inappropriate and flirtatious for a single girl to text message someone else's husband while they, the husband and the wife are all hanging out together? As in private text messages from the single girl to the married man, while hanging out. Not even taking the content of the messages into account, do you think this is appropriate? Inappropriate? Flirting? Add to this that the single girl has a giant, obvious and long term crush on the husband. I define this as flirtatious and inappropriate, but I would love some other opinions! There is a long back story to this and it's not a huge deal, I am just curious about what you all think about this and this kind of text messaging etiquette.

Comments

Pantera's picture

I don't think its appropriate. Its like she's trying to hide something. If she is in the same place, couldn't she just say what she needed to say in front of the wife? I wouldn't like it and I would tell DH to address it.

"If I turn into another, Dig me up from under what is covering the better part of me" -Incubus

LotusFlower's picture

Its highly inappropriate, IMO...couple friends of ours that we socialize with...I have the women's cell phones numbers and I do text them,,,,but I would never text the husband, I always go thru the wife...I think it would be exremely disrespectful...

A mother is not defined by the "b" or the "s" in front of her name, she is defined by how she handles the "mother" part.....

belleboudeuse's picture

That is totally inappropriate. It doesn't matter at all what the texts say. You are all hanging out together, and while she is in the room with you, she is privately texting him? That's totally wrong. The message she's trying to send is that they have a private conversation going on, apart from you all. It's trying to establish an intimacy with him while he's with you. And you know what -- if it continues, it will eventually work! Because one of these days, she will text him something that he feels compelled to hide from you. And that's where the emotional affair starts.

BB

You are not second best, you are not second class. Do not ever let anyone make you feel that way. - 2BLoved

Fading's picture

Its inappropriate whether he's with you or not. She's single and has a crush on HIM. She shouldn't be texting him period. Work related or not, if she is a colleague she should CALL him with work related issues not text.

~*Fading*~

"I have not failed, I have just found 10,000 ways that won't work." -Thomas Edison

soverysad's picture

If a single woman who had a crush on my dh was texting him (whether in the room with us or not), I would definitely have a problem with both the woman and my dh. My dh fell in love with me (while planning to leave his wife, but before he left) through email and text so I am extremely sensitive to where it could lead.

"God is great, beer is good, and people are crazy" and you can't change crazy!!

DISbelief's picture

I actually had this happen a few months back. DH works at a gym. A LOT of BEAUTIFUL girls work there. And DH is HOT if I do say so myself. One of the girls he worked with had an obvious crush on him. I hated her. One night he came home from work and I went to put something in his calendar on his phone (we LIVE by the calendar on his phone) and a text came through so it took me to his text messages (it was him mom at that moment) I replied to her and backed out of that text...noticing a text from him, to a random number that said "who is this?" Curious me, opened it...

So there was a text from this number WHILE he was at work that said "who are you texting?" and he replied "who is this?".

I asked him about it, he told me who it was, and I went BALISTIC! Why on earth would SHE be texting YOU from across the room???? And WHO does she think she is that she NEEDS TO KNOW who YOU are texting?????? I was irate. I took that number, grabbed my phone and asked her very politely to please stop texting my husband. She didn't reply. I assume she knew it was me...

DH said that it was just a joke and after he figured out who it was he talked to her about how that is going to look to ME, another woman texting him from across the room. Very inappropriate. She quit working there a few days later. I have to admit, I check his records every once in a while to make sure of no repeat offenses... her number has never popped up again.

I don't care WHAT the circumstances are... texting a married man about anything is inappropriate.

DISbelief~

~You have to BE crazy to UNDERSTAND crazy!~ Wink

StepMadre's picture

This is totally appalling. That would piss me off so much. Your DH handled it really well though, which is awesome. It's not even their behavior that upsets me, they can't help it that they're hot and nice and girls hit on them. What bothers me is that these women don't seem to have any sense of self-respect and appropriateness. Seriously, unless they get called on their behavior who knows how far they would try to go? Also, in yours and my case I think it's really good that our husbands took care of it, because these girls need to hear it from them, not us. I decided not to say anything to the girl because then I would just come across as the bitchy jealous wife and she needs to know that HE has the problem with her behavior, not just me. I think when they hear it just from us, they just roll their eyes and think we're jealous and psycho.

"If you want to tell people the truth, make them laugh, otherwise they will kill you." ~Oscar Wilde

DISbelief's picture

I was proud of him for recognizing that it was wrong, and for putting a stop to it immediatly. I can't stand HER and her little games... but I don't have to deal with her so, she can go make someone else's life miserable. She does in fact have a boyfriend. Wonder how he would feel if he knew she was texting another guy from across the room?

DISbelief~

~You have to BE crazy to UNDERSTAND crazy!~ Wink

StepMadre's picture

Thanks girls! You just affirmed what I thought, so it's good to hear that I'm not being irrational.

To give a little background, we were all hanging out on Thanksgiving with a couple of out of town friends and since it was a casual, relaxed day (rather than with a formal meal) we invited her to join us because her family isn't in the area. While we were all sitting around watching tv (I even had my legs over H's lap like I usually do when we watch tv) and she sat across the room and text messaged him. After she left, he showed me the messages and they were things like "I counted and you just said "Uh" six times" and teasing things like that. I think that even saying that out loud in a group would verge on flirtatious, but text messaging it seemed like she was trying to create some special, intimate thing just between them. She sent him a total of six random messages like that and I felt extremely uncomfortable and angry. It was purely a social occasion and she has absolutely no reason to text him privately. H was irritated, but still doesn't perceive it as flirting! He doesn't understand why it's inappropriate! She has had a huge crush on H for many years and both H and I have talked about it and I sometimes tease him about it. The great part is that I'm not worried at all about H being unfaithful to me in any way, it just bothers me that this girl crossed some boundaries. Fortunately, this whole thing had a happy ending. We had a mini-fight about Thanksgiving and he acknowledged that she acted "weird" and "annoying" but wouldn't face that she was flirting and being inappropriate with him. We both know that she isn't a threat because it's completely one-sided, but I wanted him to set some clear boundaries with her because it drives me nuts to think that this stupid girl thinks she can be inappropriate with MY husband right in front of my face! So anyway, we argued about it a little bit, but on Christmas she sent him another text message that ended with "Love, ---- xoxoxo" We both agreed that that was completely and totally inappropriate and he was even more upset than I was because he realized that I had been right about her and he felt like she disrespected me, him, and our marriage and threw away their friendship. He called her right away and although it was really awkward, he told her that he wasn't comfortable with anything suggesting anything other than a platonic relationship. She freaked out and told him that she sent it to everyone in her phone, which isn't true because I am in her phone and she certainly didn't send it to me! H was very clear and wasn't mean, he just set a boundary. Her reaction shows me that he hit a nerve. She wouldn't have freaked out like she did if there hadn't been anything behind her actions. She then un-added him on Facebook and hasn't called or texted since. She had always been weird with me and ranged from socially awkward and shy to rude and kind of bitchy. It was never anything I could call her on until Thanksgiving but was stuff like her constantly mentioning that we got married fast and pointing out that she has known him "forever" and things like that. H also told me that once she asked H to tell her how we met and our story and he started out explaining it and when he said, "then we fell in love..." she stopped him and said she didn't want to hear it. ??? She also dresses up like a skank when she is going to hang out around him with tons of tacky cleavage. My mom and sisters saw how she was acting on Thanksgiving and were completely appalled and all individually came up to me and asked me how I put up with her? She basically followed him around like a little puppy and wouldn't talk to anyone else. When someone comes into MY home, they better damn well treat me with respect and not attach themselves like a rotting barnacle to my husband. H was completely oblivious and didn't notice anything at all. He was as affectionate as he usually is and she just stared at us with pure jealousy and anger and I can't believe he couldn't see it. Maybe it is a girl thing and we are the only ones who notice it when other women are hitting on our guys? So, anyway, it ended well and I am actually relieved that things came to a head and got resolved, at least from my perspective.

I'm so glad you all agree that the text messaging is flirting though. I still can't get H to recognize it when women flirt with him and it would give me peace of mind if he acknowledged it. I never have to worry about him cheating on me or anything like that, but I still want him to set clear boundaries with those few women that don't respect that he is very happily married. We are a very affectionate and happy couple, so that's not the issue. I remember seeing him when he was with BM and he was totally different. An outsider would never have known they were together. They always maintained about six feet of distance between them, never once held hands and showed no affection or warmth other than politeness. We are totally different and there is no way any woman could see us as anything other than very happily married. This girl walked the line of inappropriate for a while, but I was okay with her until she crossed a boundary. I want to be cool with H having female friends so I tolerated her, but eventually it was too much. I just want H to know about this stuff for the future, because women hit on him and check him out all the time. We have the curse of the hot husbands I guess!

Thanks for the feedback because it makes me realize that I'm not totally crazy and paranoid. I feel affirmed about being uncomfortable with this kind of behavior.

"If you want to tell people the truth, make them laugh, otherwise they will kill you." ~Oscar Wilde

Angel's picture

These women know EXACTLY what they are doing. The men also know what is happening. You cannot take step two before taking step one. These flirtations are very dangerous.