Well, this was unexpected

[wiseheart]

The first disadvantage of retirement raised its ugly head today: our cleaning ladies told us that they'll come one more time to help us with the big spring cleaning (with emphasis on the bloody windows, of which we have a lot), and then that was it. Clearly, they have been waiting for me to retire before dropping the bombshell.

I don't really blame them; they are a team of mother and daughter, and the mother is some ten years older than I am, so I understand that they're tired. They've quit all the other places they used to do the cleaning two years ago, but decided that as long as I was working we still needed help. Now that I don't work any longer, I apparently can do my thing on my own.

Most of it I actually can. I was telling Mum from the beginning that it's unnecessary to have them here every 4 or 6 weeks. (That I haven't retired with the master plan of scrubbing the bloody flat every week is another matter entirely.) What worries me is the window cleaning. I can't climb higher than the third level of the ladder, and that's not enough. And the thought that Mum is planning to do that gives me the creeps. What we absolutely can't do on our own is the changing of the curtains. I got dizzy even at modest heights and Mum can't raise her right arm above shoulder-height; hasn't been able to do so since she was mugged on the street and those incapable butchers at ER completely ruined her shoulder.

Spring-time window cleaning and curtain changing is covered. But after that we'll have to find a new solution, which isn't easy. One has to think twice if one wants to let unknown people into the flat. *sigh*

Comments

[motodraconis.livejournal.com]

What is curtain changing? O_o

[wiseheart.livejournal.com]

Errr... taking them down when they are dirty, washing them, then hanging them up again. There are stupid little snap thingies that hold the curtains in place that roll with them when you pull them to the side, and it isn't easy to handle them, not even if the ladder is long enough. Which ours isn't. Not that it would matter to me as I can't climb beyond the third step, but it has only four steps, and one have to raise one's arms well beyond one's head to put the curtain back up, which Mum can no longer do.

[motodraconis.livejournal.com]

I thought it might be something like that. How often do you do this?
I've had some of my curtains for 20 years, moving them across three houses in that time. Never washed them. Well... maybe once when I was given some curtains second hand from Maman and washed them - cos they were a bit grubby.

[wiseheart.livejournal.com]

Twice a year, usually. Central heating makes them all grey, unfortunately, and there's a point when Mum simply can't bear them any longer.

[motodraconis.livejournal.com]

It honestly has never occurred to me to do this, unless they were to have something spilt on them. most of my curtains (in the UK) are second hand, very thick, often velvet and/or thermal lined. Some are hand me downs from Maman, who got them from the Bumcrack house (left by the previous owner, and all thick velvet) and passed to me. They never go grey, or seem to pick up dust or dirt.
Even Maman, who is a bleach-freak, hasn't washed her curtains more than once every 10 years. (I will check with her.)
I feel pretty slobby now... though I confess I will still not be washing the curtains next time I go to London.

[wiseheart.livejournal.com]

Oh, I see what you mean. Our curtains are the white lace variation, used for decoration and little else since we have Venetian blinds on all windows. They do look very shabby after a few months, especially in the heating period.

[motodraconis.livejournal.com]

JESUS THANK GOD!

You really had me worried. I was so discombobulated I posted to facebook asking the London gang if they washed their curtains. Their reaction was the same as mine... "is this actually a thing?"

Occasionally I've washed nets, but 50% of the time they disintegrate and need to be replaced anyway (the light breaks down the material eventually).

[wiseheart.livejournal.com]

Oh, so lace curtains are called nets then? I didn't know that. Ours are rather resistant - they are at least 30 years old if not older.

[motodraconis.livejournal.com]

I'm guessing that nets and lace curtains are moderately different. By nets I mean something like this (https://i1.adis.ws/i/dm/1000015779_main.jpg?$v7pdphero$&img404=noimagedefault). Their only purpose is to prevent people nosing into your house, and are generally synthetic (hence disintegrating under light eventually - they would never last 30 years, especially if washed!) It is unusual for windows facing the street in the UK to not have nets for privacy, and while they can be patterned with a machine lace effect, that is less common.
I'm imagining something more sophisticated in your case?

[wiseheart.livejournal.com]

I really don't know. Two of them are synthetic, the other two are not, and while we get a lot of sunlight, I guess aforementioned Venetian blinds protect them. We bought both kinds a couple of years after moving into our current flat, and we've been living here since 1977, so... But yeah, all of them have a lace pattern, although I think they are all machine-made, since they weren't outrageously expensive. Of course, life behind the Iron Curtain was definitely magnitudes cheaper, and a lot of this stuff was made in East-Germany, which meant very sturdy quality.

[meathiel]

Haha ... I really love this curtains discussion.
Difference of culture, eh?
Germans seem to be more like Hungarians - we have "net" curtains on all windows as well. I have to admit I wash mine ... errr ... maybe once a year? And my mum takes them down and up because I'm afraid of heights, so the ladder is a big no!

[wiseheart.livejournal.com]

Well, yeah, we also only wash them twice a year, so... Mum takes them down all right, but she can't put them up again because of her crippled shoulder (thank you, Hungarian health system!), so that's the basic problem. Because I'm like you when it comes to ladders. Funnily enough, there was a time, back at the convent, when I climbed up a 2-metre-ladder with a minimum of panic, but those times are long gone.

[lindahoyland.livejournal.com]

I dread losing my cleaning lady. She can't climb,though and my windows and curtains were last cleaned in the dark ages but I survive. Do you have cleaning agencies where the people are vetted? Maybe you could hire someone from one of those occasionally?

[wiseheart.livejournal.com]

That is my hope, too.

[spikesgirl58.livejournal.com]

Perhaps you can hire someone you trust to do the windows once in a while... You might ask your cleaners for a referral.

[wiseheart.livejournal.com]

They just did this in their spare time to earn some extra money, so they don't really know other people who do the same.

[spikesgirl58.livejournal.com]

Oh, okay.

[adafrog.livejournal.com]

That's too bad.

[wiseheart.livejournal.com]

Very inconvenient indeed. :(

[starwatcher]

.
Hi. Saw your post in LJ's "you might like this"; butting in with a window-washing possibility.

Forget the back story. A few weeks ago, I realized that a sponge-mop would be great for washing windows. (Is that a thing where you are? Something like this.) You can reach pretty high without climbing on anything. You'd need to experiment a little with the amount of water to leave in the mop for best effect. Even if you need a little extra polishing of the lower panes (the part you look through), it should clean the upper panes to the point of "good enough" so you don't have to climb.

Might be worth a try, anyway. Good luck with the cleaning.
.

[wiseheart.livejournal.com]

Thank you for the suggestion, I'll look around if I find something like that at Auchan's. They tend to have the most surprising things.

[alittlebonkers.livejournal.com]

My bf has a cleaning lady... we do our own maintenance to a degree. :)

[wiseheart.livejournal.com]

We do as much as we can, but some things are physically beyond us at our current age.

[(Anonymous)]

I live in a house with 22 other ladies and we help each other.

[wiseheart.livejournal.com]

That can be useful, I guess. There's only Mum and me here, and we are both well beyond our first youth.

[alittlebonkers.livejournal.com]

That was my anon comment. Sorry! I'm Sam btw.

[wiseheart.livejournal.com]

No prob. LJ has the nasty tendency to log one out randomly.
Welcome to my virtual living room, Sam!

[alittlebonkers.livejournal.com]

Thank you. :) *sits in rocking chair*

[espresso_addict]

As with other responses on this post, the idea of washing curtains gave me pause; I don't think I've ever washed curtains in my life!

I don't know if it will help you but you can buy long extension handles for window-washing brushes. Also, you can get foldable platforms designed for safely painting high walls/ceilings. We have one and it's wonderful.