To those who have a cleaner...

Mojisola

fluffnutter wrote: »

There's so much pressure to work, and have a beautiful house, and have clean, well-behaved kids, and have a husband who's every need (including those in the bedroom!) is catered for... and then when you do the sensible thing and think 'Fcuk it, I'm knackered, I'm going to pay someone to tickle round with the hoover once a week' you feel too embarrassed to admit it! Madness

I don't see why you need the excuse of being knackered. We all spend our money in different ways. If other people want to do their own cleaning and spend money on something I wouldn't be interested in, that's their choice. I wouldn't ask them to justify their spending; I don't have to justify mine.

spugzbunny

threads like this always remind that I am basically a filthy minger living with a bunch of animals!

Example - last night I had to bleach the bin before bed because the stink of rotting food at the bottom had gotten so bad from people playing bin jenga that I couldnt come within a foot of it.

Mmmmmmm

fluffnutter

Mojisola wrote: »

I don't see why you need the excuse of being knackered. We all spend our money in different ways. If other people want to do their own cleaning and spend money on something I wouldn't be interested in, that's their choice. I wouldn't ask them to justify their spending; I don't have to justify mine.

Good for you. I'm just saying that many women do feel the need to justify it. I'm empathising with daisiegg and her (faintly neurotic ) approach to cleaning and the fact that she doesn't feel comfortable about saying she employs a cleaner to her workmates.

I'm not saying she needs the 'excuse' of anything. In fact, quite the opposite. It's a comment about women's perceptions and expectations of each other. Clearly you're not one of those women, which is great.

choccielover

Lol I clean for the cleaner too.

I am funny about loos anyway so they are always clean but before i leave on the morning of the cleaning days I will have a quick check round for general tidiness.

The way I figure it, i am paying her to do the cleaning i have neither the time nor inclination for, like skirting boards, windows and bathrooms.

Choccie

faerie~spangles

tea_lover wrote: »

I would LOVE a wife!

Or gay roommate. My next door neighbour is unbelievably houseproud and he complains to me that his new boyfriend is up first thing Sat/Sun morning, cleaning windows, mopping floors or hoovering!

Back on topic: I don't have a cleaner but I would feel the need to tidy up and clean the loo before s/he arrived.

dorisday

lallysmum wrote: »

I'm a cleaner.. and think that it is pointless for the people I clean for to tidy up before I come. The lady I cleaned for yesterday actually left me a note to apologise for the mess! A) it wasn't that messy, and she pays me to tidy up!

I feel a bit useless when I come into a spotless home - what on earth are they paying me for? I also like to think that it's a nice treat when they come home to a sparkling, shiny house.. so at least let me provide that for them.

(Ooh, as an aside, for any cleaners on here.. is there anything you can recommend to get rid of shower door watermarks? A couple of houses I do, i don't think they cleaned their shower doors for months before, I've tried just about everything but can't seem to get rid of all the water spots)

Try soap the kind you wash your hands with.

londonsurrey

faerie~spangles wrote: »

Or gay roommate. My next door neighbour is unbelievably houseproud and he complains to me that his new boyfriend is up first thing Sat/Sun morning, cleaning windows, mopping floors or hoovering!

Back on topic: I don't have a cleaner but I would feel the need to tidy up and clean the loo before s/he arrived.

Pssst! Could you give me your address, please? I'll be right round with my butterfly net

BugglyB

I WANT A CLEANER

That is all

Tish_P

Really interesting discussion, fluffnutter!

I don't feel embarrassed about having a cleaner (as far as I can tell, single males with my job ALL have a cleaner) but I used to get really upset and depressed when the place was a tip - like I can't relax and ought to be doing something about the mess RIGHT NOW even if I just got home at 11pm after a twelve hour day. Partly it's probably ingrained social pressure, and partly it's that I grew up in a filthy house so I know what it's like when things simply stop working around the home because of mess; that's not a pattern I want to repeat in my adult life.

Whereas my beloved grew up with a SAHM and his family had a cleaner so I think he just got irritated that the place didn't magically clean itself. Getting a cleaner must have saved us so many hours - not only of housework but of nagging and arguing.

daisiegg

It's interesting, my best friend lives with her boyfriend's family (don't ask!) and they are fabulously wealthy with a huge mansion and so on. His mum has never worked and is the type to be in the gym once a day, getting her nails done twice a week, always buying designer clothes, etc etc... you would think they would be EXACTLY the sort of people to have a cleaner, but they don't, and apparently the housework is a constant source of stress and arguments and misery as the mum feels put upon that she does it all and nags everyone etc etc. I've said loads of times to my friend when she's moaning about this that I can't believe this woman doesn't get a cleaner - god knows they can absolutely afford it - but apparently she's too proud to get one. Weird!