Oh Shirley, forgive me... I can't help myself. Your post made me think of this. The last word that's cut off is "forever."
I have put some thought into this question which at first seemed easy to answer but after reading some of the things others have written I must say a true friend would also be something I would like. I have a good friend but the additional friend I would want to add would like to do more of the same type of things I like. It would be nice to have someone that I can go what I call treasure hunting with me. I go to second hand stores in search of treasures, you never know what you will find. I like to garden and take a trip to for the sake of taking that trip, when the car runs out of gas we are at our destination.
For me it would have to be a 3 things at once; computer for my home, maid service and taxi service. I'm getting older so I need both at home. I use the library computer, so it's all totally free with just paying for print outs. It's convenient to get to with the bus, but if I could have taxi's instead of the bus it's so much better for I cart groceries that's sometimes heavy so having enough for taxi is great and with an aging mother who may need emergency service that we got to pay for riding a free taxi would be great. Having a computer at home is so good for I have to cook for Mom and do everything else, so doing my work and socializing with a computer is so much easier and with a printer please. Since I'm older now maid service once a week for life to clean would be so great.
When you mentioned getting older, we are also thinking of what would happen when we cannot drive the car anymore. My husband said that in the future we might be needing the services of a family driver. With the usual heavy traffic on Metro Manila roads, it is very stressful to drive. So we can imagine older people still on the steering wheel, what magnitude of stress do they get, huh. It is a fact of life that we cannot stop growing old and all we can do is think ahead.
Oh mY goodness what absolute bliss that would be to have not only 2 but even one maid...to do all the housework...and Oh my goodness you even can get a massage too?...wow!! The cost of a maid in the UK would be very expensive...too expensive for most except the very rich. Most elderly people who have help in the house usually can only afford someone for perhaps 4 hours a week..someone to come in and do the heaver tasks around the house like cleaning floors, ironing, shopping etc... Most elderly cannot afford help at all...! Corie, I'm thinking Maids must be very cheap to employ where you live...if they are, I think I'll move to the Philippines..
You are right, housemaids come cheap here. The starting salary is 3,000 pesos per month. That's less than $100. We actually have 1 housemaid for now since the other one took a vacation and did not come anymore. We are still looking for another to complement our 1 housemaid who is very trustworthy. Her salary now is 4,000 pesos that's still less than $100. They have a bedroom and food is free. Our housemaids handle almost all the chores at home except cooking and gardening which are the domain of my husband. By the way, we also have a laundrywoman who comes 2x a week for our clothes.
OMG...less than a $100 dollars? per month...that's less than £70 UK sterling!! ...it would cost more than that just to have someone come in for a couple of hours a week here...!! WoW!! For someone who had a full time live in maid here, it would cost an average of £1000 pounds per month ( I've just put that into currency converter to Philippine peso and it comes out at around 68,800 Peso) they'd get free food and they would usually get at least 2 days off per week and if there's no children then they would have all their evenings free unless needed for some special occasion .. You can see why it would be too expensive for most people to have live in help here unless they were very well off!! I love this forum, we learn something new every day...thanks for that @Corie Henson
Well now wait a minute here, @Terry Page ! @Ruby Begonia gets this and I got the dude with the chubby tummy with dunlap's disease, no hair, and cigar breath?! Where is the fairness?! I protest!
Same here, @Holly Saunders ... if I could have a maid (and massage included? Oh my!) for less than $100 a month, I most surely would... I'd still do the cooking, though. I think that's great that you have the help you do, Corie! What are salaries like for other positions where you are, Corie? Like office work, nursing, teaching, etc?
You chose Mr Chubby Mari for fear of losing the handsome dude to a babe, you should have more faith in your feminine charms
Now how did I know you'd bring that up?! Yes, I chose Chubby over pretty boy, @Terry Page ... guilty as charged....but Ruby's dude is doing the vacuuming!!!! That smile would be unnerving, but I could get over it... especially if he does windows, too.