During the first weeks of summer, I bought a new blender. Haven’t had one since Sam was a baby. I’ve been content with my Thunderstick which chopped veggies well enough. But my kids are crazy about smoothies and fruit shakes and a blender would not only keep them busy over the vacation, I would benefit too since I knew I would get a steady supply of cold drinks.
Then, after a mere two weeks, the house helper broke the blender. The pitcher cracked and that was it. How it happened was just mind-boggling. The blender was standing on the counter, she passed by and her arm hit it and it fell. It’s not like the space was cramped. But she still broke it. The one-year warranty would be useless since the damage was not due to some defect in the product but a defect in the house helper.
Darn, I don’t know what it is with this house helper. She’s been with us less that six months and she has broken more things in the house than all the other house helpers we had over the years lumped together. A framed poster, an industrial fan, Luminarc drinking glasses (which pissed Sam so much because she gave me the two sets of Luminarc glasses for Christmas)… and, the most recent disaster, the stand mixer that Speedy gave me on Mother’s Day.
What can I say? I know she doesn’t do it on purpose. And I’m not the kind who would demand that the equivalent amount of the damaged goods be taken off her wages. It must be the worst combination of clumsiness and ignorance about things that aren’t commonly used in the far-flung rural area where she comes from. It did pass my mind too that it might not be clumsiness per se but hasty movements — she’s always in a hurry to catch her daily dose of teleseryes.
Clearly, the girl isn’t aware of the cost. But accidents happen and it’s just up to us to take precautions rather than send her packing and do the house cleaning ourselves. The girl might be clumsy but, at least, the house is clean everyday. I don’t have to run to the gate either every time someone knocks or run to get the clothes from the sampayan when the rain starts to fall. Win some, lose some.
Sam and Alex have been told to wash or clean small appliances that they use. No more leaving everything for the house helper to wash. When my work table gets cleaned, I remove my MacBook. I even take out the camera bag with all the lenses when she cleans the bedroom.
I rarely rant about these things but I miss the blender now more than ever. With Alex’s braces, we really need one as JS and Chris point out. I can buy a replacement for the pitcher but the nearest dealer’s outlet is in Quezon City. If I consider the price of gas, the time, the heat, traffic and abala, buying a new blender next time I go to the supermarket (that’s today) sounds like a better deal.
So, there, I’ve gotten my frustration out of my system.
The second quarter issue of Code Red Magazine is out. The theme is Balance: ‘”Bigatins” attend adequately to all areas of their lives, defining what success truly is to them. With the proper values and skills on two wheels, parents can navigate the road through parenthood and still enjoy the ride of their lives.’
According to the Code Red site, my article, Parenthood is not
a power status, was published as a column. Been texting Carol, my editor, to ask what the significance is (in pesoses hehehe) but she’s probably still on her [short] trip somewhere.
Anyway, you can get the latest issue of Code Red from National Bookstore or by direct subscription.
the stand mixer?? maiiyak ata ako if i were in your shoes. yeah, i agree with you our househelpers don’t seem to have the foggiest idea how valuable these things are to us. i remember when we first got our ref in about a weeks’ time nag crack yung sliding thing ng chiller. our helper stepped on it daw while cleaning…why was it on the floor in the first place??! hay naku…what gets me too is the way they sometimes hide it from us pa that they broke something. yeah i agree..win some lose some. kaya me, i clean the really important stuff myself…my mixer, non stick pans, corelle dishes, cast iron pan…ay ang dami ko pala hinuhugasan! hahaha
Hi Nadia, now that you mention it, the class cover of the vegetable crisper of the fridge? She broke that too.
Grabe.
I’m sorry to hear about the broken blender, I would have felt the same if someone came to our home and is careless with our stuff.
Is there any kind of training can be given to her help the issue?
Sheesh!! You are absolutely right..some househelpers do not put any importance on our stuff simply because…hindi kanila. Ganun ata talaga. Dati nga we had a helper who routinely scrubbed our teflon pans with a scouring pad. No matter how many times we warned her she just went ahead and scrubbed to her heart’s content.
KK, I think Kongkong responded to the training issue well. Most times, no matter how often you repeat the instructions, it’s useless. Minsan something as simple as transfer leftovers to proper fridge containers before putting them in the fridge para hindi masikip, wala pa rin! hayun! yung pan nung rice cooker nasa loob ng fridge.
Hay p’reho tayo… di naman appliances, damit ko naman ang laging sira!
Andung plantsahin ng mainit ang satin or velvet, or maging iba kulay ng damit ko. Minsan pati nga tea towels na matino nagiging basahan dahil mukha nang patapon.
Ang sakit naman sa puso ng mga nabasag niya. I know material things can be easily replaced pero… gastos pa rin kasi yon! And the sentimental value… aray. At least nalabas mo na. Kahit papaano, nabawasan ang sakit!
Auee, we had a plantsadora who was like that. She ironed over rubberized designs on the kids T-shirts. Mayabang pa kasi daw 10 years na sya plantsadora.
Toni, ang sakit din nung price nung bagong blender. Kaya lang, kailangan eh.
Oh, my God! Luminarc glasses! I had those too – two dozens, in varying sizes. Ngayon, ayun – apat na piraso na lang ang natira.
Hope Alex is starting to adjust now with her braces!
She’s not in so much pain anymore, Rhodora. Thanks. Pero, hirap pa rin kumain.
Hi Connie! We love your site
Is there any chance we can do a content partnership (you + brand)? Kindly advise where I can contact you.
I emailed you, Chinkey.
theres a lot of wrong stuff going on here.. Just be thankful you’re rich enough to afford servants. Imagine if you were to switch places? you helping out at their homes? tapos makakarinig ka ng “oh my god, this new helper doesnt even know how to make baga the panggatong! And come to think of it, she even burnt the galunggong she was frying!” “I know how you feel, i used to have a house helper who didnt know how to wash clothes in the sapa. she kept asking where the “washing machine” was? would you believe that?”..
Be nice, ladies. You dont want to be the next Malu Fernandez. Its unfortunate that your employee wasnt careful, But i dont think you should stereotype.
dito sa US wala kaming katulong, kaya minsan ung dishes 3 days na andon pa rin sa sink and anything and everything here we treat as garbage, pag nasira, throw away, hindi uso dito ang repair shop, we’ve had helpers when we were back there, mga teenager na relatives, they’ve all been very careful to our things, pero most especially yung concern and pag-aalaga nila for my daughter was first and foremost. the only thing I offer them is if they want they can go to school in the afternoon since I know that we won’t be needing them for a long time and everybody should move on after 6 months and do something better so they can earn some more money. the only thing we treat as very valuable here now are the much awaited phonecalls, e-mails and updated pictures at picasa. there is a book don’t sweat the small stuff. and yes, training is very vital and also knowing a little bit of psychology to help them understand better that they shoul be careful and value your house things so everybody can enjoy your smoothies
what can i say! im sorry but i must say, us filipinos have the tendency to gossip about house helpers. i cant read all the comments anymore because just reading the first makes me shiver. the last one from lorena marzan at least is a consolation. im sorry about this really
Leticia, re “us filipinos have the tendency to gossip about house helpers”.
Not as much as they love, and actually do, gossip about their employers with the neighbors’ househelpers.