Totally on board with your perspective. I dislike housework, but I'd rather do that than go to the gym -- building movement into your daily life allows you to keep being capable of doing it for a lot longer. We're heading into single-floor living, and I know part of me is going to regret not being forced to climb stairs.
I remember reading it an article about people who lived in Blue Zones (areas where people tend to have very long and healthy lives) one of the hallmarks was that they all did their own house cleaning
I love your answer- do what you can, but don’t feel guilty if you decide to off-load some tasks.
I had to have spinal surgery and have lower leg neuropathy, so I hired a guy who does the bathrooms and floors, yard work as needed, and I do the rest.
Walking balance and stamina is difficult so I signed up for grocery curbside pick-up and do delivery when ice/snow are on the ground.
My husband needed to go into AL, so I have a guy who does snow removal and the mowing.
I used to work in health care. I regularly had patients with bone fractures from falling off ladders, so even when my husband was able, I arranged for a company that does gutter clean-outs.
If there is anything I could convince you to do- stay off ladders. Please check the statistics for outcomes for seniors with fractures.
Saw lots of ladder-to-roof- for whatever falls with various fractures and combinations of fractures (spinal/femoral/hip (s)/humeral/wrist (s)/) but only saw one caused by fell-asleep-in-a-tree stand and down he went.
Also saw a senior, who fell off a ladder hanging drapes in her living room, bilateral hip fractures. To all my senior Connect online friends- it’s not worth the danger.
@tcokeefe yes, those have always been my concerns but this is where “word of mouth” comes in. I make sure I don’t have any valuables lying around to tempt them!
The single cleaning person you interviewed could have had a vested interest. You also have to go with your gut feelings.
She definitely did not have a vested interest. She was unable to take the job, it was very very nice and as she left, I think she felt sorry for me and said she wanted to just give me a word of advice.
Totally on board with your perspective. I dislike housework, but I'd rather do that than go to the gym -- building movement into your daily life allows you to keep being capable of doing it for a lot longer. We're heading into single-floor living, and I know part of me is going to regret not being forced to climb stairs.
Thanks for adding that perspective about stairs. We're fortunate to live in mountainous terrain, but also at the coast (on the Strait of Georgia between Vancouver Island and Texada Island in British Columbia). There is an enormous set of outdoor steps on a seaside bluff about 30 minutes into my daily walk rising perhaps 250 feet. I love doing them, even if I only plod while the younger and buff bucks sprint past me saying 'Attaboy, grandpa, you'll get there!' And, all that hard work, besides getting me off my backside and out the door, meant that climbing the myriads of steps in the stairwells of cruise ships was a piece of cake, as I was reminded last September during a Mediterranean cruise. I dint need no stinkin' elevators.
Also saw a senior, who fell off a ladder hanging drapes in her living room, bilateral hip fractures. To all my senior Connect online friends- it’s not worth the danger.
Honestly, it's as common as motor vehicle accidents to those waiting in the local ERs everywhere. Seniors falling. Loss of useful muscle mass, weak muscles that are still clinging to their bones, poor vestibular responses and interactions with those few muscles, brittle bones...it goes on and on...
Look for 'bonded' services where the onus is on the service provider/employer as much as it is 'on you' to ensure your security and privacy.
Interview the provider AND the actual service rep who comes to clean your home. It must be a comfortable fit. Your spidey sense will help here. If you are likely to get two or three individuals coming on a revolving basis, insist on meeting each one of them.
Middle-aged and older cleaners might be more reliable than younger cleaners. I hate to 'go there', but the chances are a middle-aged person is more stable, less dependent, more mature, and has a better work ethic.,,by this point in their lives. They have more learning and scruples, generally, as they mature. And, they're generally more comfortable between their ears with who they are, including all their 'misses'. Happens to all of us who are sane and reasonable.
Hi Kathy,
I'm 78 and clean my own home. I do the laundry, scrub the floors, wash the windows, cook meals, dust, vacuum etc. I also do the gardening and take the garbage out. All of this "exercise" makes me feel good. I did pay the neighbor who is a landscaper to clear off my roof of debris. I'm a little too old to manage heights. It all depends on your physical health and your income. House keepers are expensive!
PML
I love your answer- do what you can, but don’t feel guilty if you decide to off-load some tasks.
I had to have spinal surgery and have lower leg neuropathy, so I hired a guy who does the bathrooms and floors, yard work as needed, and I do the rest.
Walking balance and stamina is difficult so I signed up for grocery curbside pick-up and do delivery when ice/snow are on the ground.
My husband needed to go into AL, so I have a guy who does snow removal and the mowing.
I used to work in health care. I regularly had patients with bone fractures from falling off ladders, so even when my husband was able, I arranged for a company that does gutter clean-outs.
If there is anything I could convince you to do- stay off ladders. Please check the statistics for outcomes for seniors with fractures.
Saw lots of ladder-to-roof- for whatever falls with various fractures and combinations of fractures (spinal/femoral/hip (s)/humeral/wrist (s)/) but only saw one caused by fell-asleep-in-a-tree stand and down he went.
Thanks, I have an eye on the stats for seniors and falls. I hope I'm smart enough to get up on a ladder the last time successfully before that fateful fall. I am in a position where I can hire someone to do the odd bit of maintenance, and my wife's stern looks should help to make me bite the bullet, so to speak. 😀
i appreciate your friendly caution. Thumb up.
Not to be crass about it, but unless you are living in a house with a contagious illness spread by contact with surfaces or with someone who has a compromised immune system, I think we all get to set our own standards for cleanliness, including in our bathrooms. I tend to meet friends these days at coffee shops, so I rarely see the inside of their homes -- if I did, and if the bathrooms didn't meet my standards, I would just plan to join them elsewhere.
My husband and I have a deal: if one of us has higher cleanliness standards than the other for something specific, that person gets to do that aspect of the cleaning. If necessary, the other person just picks up a different (non-cleaning) chore to keep the workload reasonably balanced. It's worked for decades.
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I remember reading it an article about people who lived in Blue Zones (areas where people tend to have very long and healthy lives) one of the hallmarks was that they all did their own house cleaning
Also saw a senior, who fell off a ladder hanging drapes in her living room, bilateral hip fractures. To all my senior Connect online friends- it’s not worth the danger.
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1 ReactionShe definitely did not have a vested interest. She was unable to take the job, it was very very nice and as she left, I think she felt sorry for me and said she wanted to just give me a word of advice.
-
Like -
Helpful -
Hug
1 ReactionThanks for adding that perspective about stairs. We're fortunate to live in mountainous terrain, but also at the coast (on the Strait of Georgia between Vancouver Island and Texada Island in British Columbia). There is an enormous set of outdoor steps on a seaside bluff about 30 minutes into my daily walk rising perhaps 250 feet. I love doing them, even if I only plod while the younger and buff bucks sprint past me saying 'Attaboy, grandpa, you'll get there!' And, all that hard work, besides getting me off my backside and out the door, meant that climbing the myriads of steps in the stairwells of cruise ships was a piece of cake, as I was reminded last September during a Mediterranean cruise. I dint need no stinkin' elevators.
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Like -
Helpful -
Hug
3 ReactionsHonestly, it's as common as motor vehicle accidents to those waiting in the local ERs everywhere. Seniors falling. Loss of useful muscle mass, weak muscles that are still clinging to their bones, poor vestibular responses and interactions with those few muscles, brittle bones...it goes on and on...
-
Like -
Helpful -
Hug
2 ReactionsLook for 'bonded' services where the onus is on the service provider/employer as much as it is 'on you' to ensure your security and privacy.
Interview the provider AND the actual service rep who comes to clean your home. It must be a comfortable fit. Your spidey sense will help here. If you are likely to get two or three individuals coming on a revolving basis, insist on meeting each one of them.
Middle-aged and older cleaners might be more reliable than younger cleaners. I hate to 'go there', but the chances are a middle-aged person is more stable, less dependent, more mature, and has a better work ethic.,,by this point in their lives. They have more learning and scruples, generally, as they mature. And, they're generally more comfortable between their ears with who they are, including all their 'misses'. Happens to all of us who are sane and reasonable.
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Helpful -
Hug
4 ReactionsHow about cleaning your bathrooms? No one seems to mention that. Once a month cleaning of bathrooms would not suffice.
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1 ReactionThanks, I have an eye on the stats for seniors and falls. I hope I'm smart enough to get up on a ladder the last time successfully before that fateful fall. I am in a position where I can hire someone to do the odd bit of maintenance, and my wife's stern looks should help to make me bite the bullet, so to speak. 😀
i appreciate your friendly caution. Thumb up.
-
Like -
Helpful -
Hug
2 ReactionsNot to be crass about it, but unless you are living in a house with a contagious illness spread by contact with surfaces or with someone who has a compromised immune system, I think we all get to set our own standards for cleanliness, including in our bathrooms. I tend to meet friends these days at coffee shops, so I rarely see the inside of their homes -- if I did, and if the bathrooms didn't meet my standards, I would just plan to join them elsewhere.
My husband and I have a deal: if one of us has higher cleanliness standards than the other for something specific, that person gets to do that aspect of the cleaning. If necessary, the other person just picks up a different (non-cleaning) chore to keep the workload reasonably balanced. It's worked for decades.
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Helpful -
Hug
4 ReactionsI do clean the bathroom often. I just didn't mention it.
PML