How lazy must I be?

I'll tell you how lazy...too lazy to even have someone here to clean my house!

I haven't had anyone here to clean in a number of years, since the last housekeeper died.

Well, you know...I take that back. I did have someone here to clean a few times a year or two ago. She didn't speak much English, but seemed to know what she was doing. It got to where she didn't come when she was supposed to, however. She would show up a day or two later, not to work but to explain why she hadn't come...then she would say she would be back the next day to work, but she wouldn't show up. Finally, after a few cycles of that, she just never showed up again. Pity...she made some pretty good tamales that her husband would sell. He would bring them by, piping hot, straight out of the steamer. I could eat half a dozen without even pausing or even sitting down.

Recently, someone else was going to start cleaning. She actually supervises (at night) others who clean at hospitals. But, she has a few houses she cleans during the day. She came and looked at my house and estimated how long it would take to clean it. I thought everything was set, but then she said that she couldn't find anyone who wanted to clean with her on a Saturday...I didn't like the idea of someone coming on Saturday, but her weekdays were full. Anyway, she said that she had a cousin who would be willing to come on a weekday, (the old bait and switch!) so I agreed to that and to $10 an hour.

N.G. (new girl) worked at Carolyn's house first. At Carolyn's house, N.G. worked for about 7 hours and never made it to the master bathroom. N.G. did, however, go into Jax's room and spent who knows how much time tying the bumper pad (which Carolyn had removed, washed, folded, and stored under the changing table) back into the crib. N.G. also went into Carolyn's home office (which Carolyn had told her not to worry about) and proceeded to "straighten" the piles of bills, mail, papers, receipts, etc. that were on the desks in there. Not only did she straighten them, she moved them and other items in the office into drawers and under the desk. She took the box of computer checks and TAPED it shut and then stowed it away in the drawer of a secretary in there. Who knows how long all that took! Carolyn was busy with patients, so she couldn't be checking on her constantly. Oddly, Carolyn wasn't freaked out much about the office invasion...she said it motivated her to go through all the newly straightened piles...first, searching for things that needed attention (such as the tuition check she had written for Kate's school that was in one of the piles) and bills that needed to be paid and others that needed to be filed.

It became clear that N.G. had probably not cleaned house for anyone else before. Although young, she has 6 children and her mother lives with her (and probably does all the cleaning.) Anyway, after hearing about all this, I was prepared to spend my morning with N.G. when she came to my house, working alongside her and showing/explaining what I expected her to do. N.G. apparently doesn't have a complete grasp on English, although I felt like she understood what I was saying.

So, the first time she came here, we worked together in the master bathroom and on through a few more rooms downstairs and I was pretty satisfied. She was here for 4 hours, which is about as long as I can stand having someone here.

The next time she came, she went right to work and cleaned the master bath, the powder room, she vacuumed/swept/dustmopped/wet mopped the appropriate surfaces. And I asked her to dust the dining room table and chairs. It took her just under 3 hours, working steadily. I handed her $30 and she said I should pay her $40. I explained that she had worked for 3 hours at $10 an hour, so I was paying her $30. Reluctantly, she took the money, but told me that next time it would be $70 for 4 hours. Huh? I repeated what she said and she agreed that I heard it right. So, I said, "Well, I guess this will be the last time then." So, she left...never to return.

I did arrange for someone else to come...someone else who is new at cleaning for other people. But, it just hasn't worked out for her to be here yet. I was out of town or had something else going on a couple of the days she was scheduled to come, so had to cancel. Then, she was supposed to come today. But, yesterday, I decided that I just didn't want to have to do the preliminary straightening before she came and I also didn't want to go through training someone new, again. I called her yesterday to cancel permanently. That's how lazy I am!