Reserving Judgement

The new maid came in yesterday for an orientation. I had asked Hoa to come in as well to do a handover and help me to show the new maid the ropes and where things are kept etc.

Other than cooking us lunch (we ate the same thing again for dinner) and being shown around the house, she din start on any real work and was in bed by 8pm.

Today officially marks her first day at the Elawadi household and she would soon realise that we are not easy people to please. Maybe because she slept early the night before, maybe she was excited about her first day, I heard her get up at 5plus.
PS: I was very excited as well (actually more like stressed about having to re-train someone to work to my liking).

I too was up early (at 8am) and was watching and correcting her as she went along... although I din want her to think that I was being annoying so I would leave her alone for a bit before going back to see how she is progressing now and then. Since it was her first day, it is very vital that she starts off doing things the proper way and should be corrected before it develops into a habit.

We had given her instructions to clean level by level - starting from the very top. Tarek is very systematic and since he's used to running a factory, he wants things done in a certain way and has a print out of list of actions/duties for the maid.

Alas, while she did stick to starting from the top, she proved to be one of those super inefficient Vietnamese who do not know how to do things systematically. Her theory, which I soon found out, was to sweep n mop level by level. Then go back up to wipe the surfaces. And then one more round of cleaning the toilets!

I explained a few times and finally took a pail up containing all the cleaning agents and various cloths (separate cloths for wiping floor, surfaces and toilets) and physically showed her how to get things done efficiently.

First, U wipe the surfaces (so that the dust particles fall onto the floor), then u sweep and mop. And while u are at it, complete room by room, level by level and use the respective cleaning agents and separate cloths as instructed.

She just kept saying ok and before I know it, she was done and in my room ready to start cleaning. I noticed that the cloths (except for 1) are still untouched and she had left all the cleaning agents outside when she came in. So having lost all patience, I followed her and stood next to her as she cleaned. True enough, she wasn't cleaning as I expected and I had to physically show her how to clean the toilet and how I want the things on every surface removed to be wiped before returning to their original place and furniture to be moved so u can mop below and behind it.

Oh, did I mention? Part of her job scope is to walk the dogs twice a day!

PS: I must attribute this anal-ness to my husband and his mom... although I've always been a clean freak... I've only recently turned into a fanatic like them. And I must add, to be able to train someone, u have to actually know how to do it and what you are doing.

Part of our deal was to get her a TV in the room so she can bugger off and give us some privacy in the evenings. V found us a good deal - an expat who was leaving was selling her 27 inch Samsung TV for USD$100. T picked it up today and it's HUGE... what a luxury for the maid. The only downside now is that there is no cable point in the room so we need to find a way to get the local channels working for her.

Tomorrow marks her 2nd day and I will continue to supervise and watch her until she is doing things just the way I like it!