Yesterday morning, I was backing out of the garage when I saw a car stopped in the street at the end of our driveway.

At first, I couldn't understand. Then, as I backed a little farther, I saw that the driver had come to a halt because a couple of loose dogs were prancing in the street.

In seconds, two women appeared and took hold of the canines' collars and escorted them out of the road. The car out on the street proceeded. And I backed out and went on my way.

But as I drove to the store, I started wondering. Distracted as I was, had I remembered to close the garage door?

So when I got to the store and parked, I sent my wife a text asking that she confirm that the garage door was closed.

Well, I thought I sent it to my wife -- recipient of 99.9 percent of my paltry volume of texts.

But actually that request went to my sister-in-law in Michigan, with whom I had exchanged messages Friday night.

When my sister-in-law got the text, she assumed or was kind enough to pretend that I was trying to be funny.

Later Saturday she called my wife and asked her to see if the flowers outside her place there in Michigan needed watering.

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