Pack n Post update: Lots of progress today. Thankfully the temp in the apartment was cooler. Mom got the kitchen DONE! HoRah! I have about 80% of everything else done. It's a lot of little piles of cha-chiky (spelling? And then there is the clothes. That's next. And the camping stuff. Although there isn't a ton of it, but enough. Then take apart the desk. Take apart the dining set. And pack the car stuff. And clean. Clean. Clean.

Oh ya, quote of the day: "I wonder what the threshold is where folks won't believe you when you say "sorry about the mess, the maid quit a short time ago". Mom's reply: {laugh, laugh, laugh}

Omnis, do you mean tchotchke?

Many of my friends joke about the darn maid not doing her job and what do we pay her for anyway??? (they, of course, do not have a maid)

Oddly, I may actually be hiring someone (a friend of a friend) to clean, soon...we'll see...what do people think the going rate for cleaning is, anyway? I think she's selling herself short. Not, I suppose, that that's a bad thing for me. And I suppose if she has a couple hour minimum, depending on how often I had her come (probably not more than every couple weeks), it'd be fine. I've never hired someone, but I think it'd be good, but weird. But possibly necessary. And suspect it would help keep me *tidy*, as well as clean.

Having a housecleaner, if possible financially, is the best thing ever. It takes the deep cleaning stress out of a relationship. We hired a cleaning service to come in twice a month a few months after we moved in together, and I think it has (repeatedly) saved our relationship.

(Okay, maybe not really. But it certainly does end a lot of fights before they begin.)

And yes, it does help us to stay tidy, too.

ow. shoulder still hurting. i think the motrin helped a little, but it wore off. should probably take some more. stupid shoulder. i think that i subluxed it in my sleep, and pulled a few muscles in the process.

Gronk. The crazy, early laundry lady has struck again. We head home from our vacation today. It was too short.

Hil, I'm sorry you're in pain. I hope it's better soon.

Huh.

Just got phonecall from the Extras People; I'd emailed them about extras work in the forthcoming John Cusack movie being filmed here in Bangkok ( Shanghai ), but this guy just phoned me to ask if I'd be interested in working on an ad that's being shot on Wednesday of this week, in the meanwhile.

I said yes.

I am now staring at the phone in puzzlement. I mean, if this is the folks I emailed, they know my height and weight. What on earth do they want me in an advert for? (Not being disingenuous or asking for hairpats - the adverts for SLIMMING PRODUCTS feature UK size 10 girls looking on wistfully as the size 6 girls get all the attention from the guys.)

Oh, Hil. That sounds miserable.

sj, that is EVIL! EVIL I tell you!

Oh, Fay, that's wicked cool! ETA: Or not...it just sounds cool, I guess.

One of the cats is teasing the dogs. It's pretty hysterical.

ION, CBD is packing up to go home. The dogs are going to miss him SO much. Molly especially. She wants nothing to do with me anymore. She is totally his girl. It's SO funny. She's got bad arthritis and a bad back hip, but she'll go up the stairs to be with him if I'm the only one downstairs. It's so funny and cute.

Meara, back in the early 90s when I had a summer job as a maid at one of those places that sends out teams of three maids in Dayton, OH, the hourly charge for a team of three was $50ish. We were making less than a dollar over minimum wage. I have no idea if that will be at all helpful in you guessing what would be reasonable for your situation.

Hil, shoulder~ma.

Poor Molly. Poor vw, too.

sj, no vacation is ever long enough, but it really does seem like you just got there, and I'm not even on your vacation.

No, vw - I think it's pretty cool, as an interesting and random thing to do with one's Wednesday. I'm just a bit bemused.