Cleaning Service

When Sam started residency, I asked him if we could please hire someone to clean the house once a month.  Of all his wonderful qualities, and believe me there are many, housework is not near the top of Sam's list.  In fact, Sam's version of helping out is usually to rally the troops (aka me) and start the project before melting away into another room where I find him passed out with the dog or reading the newspaper.  

Coupled with Sam's lack of interest in cleaning, he is equally enthused by the idea of paying someone to clean for us.  And I can understand that, my family never had anyone come in to help clean - my mom did it all herself.  But she was also a stay at home mom.  

Second year of residency, the wheels really came off our haphazard cleaning routine.  Sam was on call approximately every 4th night and stayed at the hospital, we had our third roommate shedding all over the house, and I was working my butt off founding a marketing department for a small telecommunications company.  Again, I told Sam I wanted to hire someone to clean the house once a month.  Again, he refused to pay for something we could do ourselves.  

But we didn't do it.  I am mortified to admit that I can't remember the last time I cleaned our bathroom... I mean REALLY cleaned our bathroom.  One time in the last year that does stick out in my mind is when I got so overwhelmed by how bad the bathroom was that I actually started crying when Sam wouldn't help me clean it.  And I don't want you to have the wrong impression, I am a pretty tidy person.  Seriously, you could probably ask any of my former roommates and they would say I am much more of a neat freak than they are.  I am so religious when it comes to dusty and vacuuming every other weekend that I have a calendar event on iCal that goes off.  I'm sure counts for something, but I hate deep cleaning with a passion.  

I digress, anyway, for my birthday in September, I told Sam all I wanted was for someone to come in and clean the apartment.  And he finally agreed.  (Sam's motto about cleaning is that if I leave it long enough he will eventually be bothered enough to do it himself, but his threshold is just much lower than mine... I guess that means the place has gotten pretty bad!)

Sam and I started asking for recommendations from our friends who use house cleaners.  It turns out a lot of the medical students and residents we know use cleaning services, and not just the guys.  We had a couple of friends say they wouldn't recommend who they use, but one of our friends had someone she thought we should try.  Three weeks after she gave me his contact information, I finally got around to making the appointment.  

And he will be here tomorrow morning, bright and early!

I just have to resist the urge to clean the place before he gets here out of guilt!!!