My First Job

When I was twelve, I started a Saturday/summer job at a motel. I'm guessing most motels don't hire so young, but my aunt was the head housekeeper and she vouched for me. My cousin/friend worked there too (we called ourselves "cuz buds"--doesn't that sound so twelve and thirteen?). Most days, my cousin and I got to team clean. It was always a hundred times more fun than cleaning alone. We could work the day away with giggles and races to see who could make a bed faster (she could). And hairy bathtubs and skid marks didn't seem so bad when I had someone to laugh about it with.

Each room had a hanging rack on the wall by the vanity. I usually hit my head on it when I cleaned the vanity. You'd think I would have learned, but I worked at that same motel for eight years, and I never really did. My cousin laughed every time. You might also think after all those years, it wouldn't have been so funny, but it always was to her.

My aunt was a blast. She has this laugh that makes you want to laugh. I miss those days with them. I rarely see them or talk to them now, so those days are nostalgic to me.

Cleaning the same fifty rooms (but it was like cleaning the same one room because they were practically identical) over and over for years on end was good preparation for the life I live now. I gained useful skills like how to spread a sheet on a bed in just the right spot without having to walk around the bed to smooth or straighten, or how to scrub a bathroom from top to bottom in seven minutes flat. And even though hairy bathtubs and skid marks are pretty gross, so are poopy diapers and puke in the carpet.

But most of all, I got used to the idea that most days have pretty much the same routine. After awhile, things will change a little (like new bedspreads or a new baby), but the to do list doesn't change a whole lot from day to day. It might be fun to compare routines from different life phases.

This is the one I'm in now:

Wake up. Feed kids. Change two diapers. Dress kids. Feed me (at computer). Exercise (70% of days). Put baby down for nap. Shower. Dress me. Clean. Feed kids. Change diapers. Dishes. Feed me. Laundry. Snack. Clean. Change diapers. Make dinner. Eat dinner. Dishes. Change diapers. Brush teeth. Jammies. Stories. Kids in bed. Movies with husband. Pray. Me in bed.

I've been working on inserting "Pray" and "Make bed" between "Wake up" and "Feed kids," and "Make kids laugh" (more points if I can do it without tickling) between "Dress me" and "Feed kids." Once I've accomplished that, I'd like to squeeze in: Finish unfinished projects. Work on family history/genealogy. Scrapbook. Crochet. Mend. Clean more. Read. Bake. Paint. Build shelves. Learn Finnish.

And a bunch of other things I've forgotten about (like the hanging rack by the vanity).