wash

Please don't get me wrong. I truly appreciate the fact that a lady comes to clean my house for a few hours three days a week. It is convenient and I am glad to be relieved of some of the work. But on the other hand, it will be something I won't exactly mind leaving behind, either.

In some ways, it actually adds a bit of extra stress to have another woman puttering around your house. You want things done a certain way. You like things in a certain order. You have specific places where things go. She has other ideas. It doesn't matter that it isn't her house, she just does things the way she wants. I get tired of making suggestions and corrections over and over. Sometimes I conclude it isn't worth the fight.

Here's one example. We have a washing machine. Most nationals don't have them, and so don't exactly understand how they work. I showed her how to use it, and have begged her time and again to use a plentiful amount of laundry soap, and to set the water level to high. (I would explain that there needs to be plenty of water for the clothes to slosh around, except I don't know how to say "slosh" in the local language.) But she thinks she's saving me money by skimping on the water and soap. I can't tell you how many times I have been half-way through a day only to have a shirt start smelling a little ripe, simply because it wasn't terribly clean in the first place.

A few days ago I stripped the bed and left the sheets and pillow cases for her to throw in the wash. When they were finished, I helped her hang them up to dry, because they're very large. As we were spreading one sheet out I noticed part of it was dry. Strange. I remarked on the dry spot. She said it's because that sheet was on top. I said, well then you didn't use enough water to begin with; we'll have to do the load again. To which she replied, changing her tune, no, that part just dried quickly; there isn't any reason to do the wash again.

I surrendered, tired of dealing with this same issue again and again. But when she left I did the load over, using generous soap and plenty of water. She really isn't saving us time or money if I have to redo the job.

And it isn't even work I mind doing. I did all my own cleaning for years before hiring her, and found it satisfying. We were just trying to be kind by giving her a source of income. I'm still glad we've done it, but it's a tension I won't be sad to leave behind.