I guess it took a good long vacation to make our Guardian (French equivalent of a building "Super") Angela who was suggested to us as our "housekeeper" to realize that she didn't like cleaning up cat hair and this even after I had purchased a new vacuum cleaner (aspirateur) that works real well on cat hair. Angela had phoned our good friend Veronique and told her that she would be bringing her cousin up to take her place of course not telegraphing that to me but through Veronique. We'd never had a housekeeper before although occasionally would hire one to do "deep" cleaning sometimes perhaps once a year in the states and our house there was 3 times as big as this apartment. I think initially it was good politics to hire Angela although I had misgivings about the building manager being in our apartment so much. She was dynamite at cleaning and always did a good job. In any event, Angela now claims she's allergic to cat hair and also some kinds of fruit too. What Angela doesn't know is that I worked in health care for over 20 years and know a lot about allergies. Usually folks who allergic to cat hair will react to it almost immediately, not months after the fact. When she came up to see me the next day with her cousin, I had a Google translated note for her thanking her for her good work for us but let her know that me and twins would be handling it from here on out as that's what we used to do in Virginia with a WAY bigger place. I don't think she was very happy but another thing she couldn't know is that cleaning is one of my core competencies being in the military for as long as I was.
Perhaps we'll being someone else in that we vet first but until that time me and the guys have got it.
Our house didn't sell in the over 6 months that we've been gone even after we reduced it in price significantly (knocked 30 k off and still no takers) so we're back to working with Norma Stein who we'd started with in the first place to manage renting our house for us until we return in 2012 so it looks like we'll be going back to Lynchburg which is fine with the twins and me. Cassie can negotiate with Areva for an executive apartment to stay in while working in Bethesda when we get back. We're not willing to pay a fortune for a small place there when we'll almost finished paying for our home in Lynchburg. I guess we'll chalk it up to the continuing economic downturn. Our neighbor Betty was overjoyed as was her son Paul who lives up the street. Should be interesting to find out how the place looks after we return. Norma will do a kick ass job I'm sure.
More to come later on this week. Stay tuned......
Love to all!
A bientot,
Sid
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