To clarify - we'd been corresponding with April and she'd only indicated the office had lost power.  When Debbi called their office yesterday (emails were bouncing back due to the outage), a lady in their office assured her no one had been personally hurt or traumatized by the tornado - BECAUSE WE ASKED.  We were concerned for their well being.  Anyone who works with us regularly (and there are many here who will read this), knows we're not rude or ignorant toward anyone, especially in a time of tragedy.

My email to April asking for more information on the will/probate ended by saying "and you can't blame everything on the tornado :) " Smiley face indicating it was meant as light-hearted.  We've had other abstractors affected as well and they didn't take offense to similar comments - we commiserated on Mother Nature's poor management lately and they were the ones making the funny jokes.  Of course I'd seen on TV the devastation and my best friend in Raleigh had just been through the same recently and didn't answer his cell for a week so I understand completely how this can affect those you love.

I emailed April after her tirade to me, apologizing, saying I had no idea her family or community had been hurt so disastrously.  We'd been led to believe that only the office had lost power and April had been friendly and accomodating during the disaster so I had no reason to think she'd take my kidding seriously.

I don't think this is the place to post your personal beefs with a client - especially before you read the email of apology and explanation I sent that I never intended to offend anyone.  There was no reason to make this public, my email explained my apparent gaffe and I apologized profusely and said I never intended to make light of something that had affected April so seriously.  In other words, my bad.  This was something personal and if you'd read the email before posting, you'd realize I completely fell to my knees in that email apologizing because we had no idea the level of devastation you or April had experienced because we'd been told differently.

I also apologize to the users of this site for airing what should be dirty laundry kept in-house.  I don't use this forum for personal beefs I've had with clients (and whoa, are there some real jerks out there) but because its here, I have to respond.

And my bad also for overlooking that line in the report.  We're apparently the only client you have/had who makes human errors.  We just hired a new person who was working on that order. 

Making knee-jerk decisions and firing off emails breaking up with your good paying clients, and bad-mouthing them publicly before they have a chance to respond isn't something I'd do - but then again, I stay away from the keyboard when I'm PO'd. 

SINCERELY (all caps means I really am)

Kym - The much reviled ABSTRACTOPIA.