The Interesting People I Meet

December 15, 2022January 15, 2023Leave a comment

In my line of business, you meet interesting people all the time.

How about the guy who is a piano teacher and has been the music director for several local musicals. Currently, he is also a counselor at a Muslim high school even though he’s Christian – and he likes it!

Also, I have a client who has become a friend, lending me her company van when my van would be in the shop, and mine was unfortunately there off and on for over seven months. Cleaning for her is an opportunity, as she has over 30 cats! Some are in the house, and some are in the cat room. They’re everywhere! They’re everywhere!

Then there’s the guy who referred us to his ex-wife and son because he likes our work. (The son, who paid me, is a urologist in the Midwest. He had flown in for the holidays.) Some people don’t even communicate with their exes. This guy gives me business.

We also had a guy who had an infestation of cockroaches, and the cockroaches brought in their friends and relatives. We’ve finally gotten it down to just one or two of those boogers – every now and then.

Another client is a millionaire with three vehicles in his driveway that he can’t drive due to health issues. I think I’m really there to converse with him because we talk, have coffee together (or even have breakfast at a local restaurant), and then I do a little bit of cleaning.

In my business, tips don’t always have to be cash. There’s a client who gifts me with steaks, chorizo, fish, and always a meal. The other day, he sent me home with a cooler full of food.

I also get to meet lots of interesting people due to the Airbnb and Vrbo customers we get to clean up for after their visit. These are folks from all over the United States who provide exciting conversations. We had some clients recently that didn’t sleep in the beds; they pulled the sheets and comforters out of the closet and slept on the floors. Maybe that’s how they sleep in their country.

All these people make for interesting days. You never know what the excitement is for the day.

Dusters ‘R Us 😀

February 2, 2021Leave a comment

I find that dusting is nearly at the top of the list of the most disliked chore when it comes to house cleaning by my customers. It’s time-consuming and sometimes a very dirty job. But dusting is really rather important as it reduces the risk of sickness and allergies.

In my cleaning business, to quickly and efficiently accomplish this task, I use five different types of dusters:

• Microfiber cloths
• South African ostrich feather dusters
• Retractable feather dusters
• Microfiber dusters
• Dome Shaped Cobweb Dusters

You didn’t know there were so many kinds, did you? I’ll explain how I use each one.

1. 𝗠𝗶𝗰𝗿𝗼𝗳𝗶𝗯𝗲𝗿 𝗖𝗹𝗼𝘁𝗵𝘀 are used for heavier dust in large areas. You can even use them with a product like ‘Endust,’ but be sure to spray it on the cloth, not directly on the furniture.

2. 𝗦𝗼𝘂𝘁𝗵 𝗔𝗳𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝗢𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗵 𝗙𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗗𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀, with large feather plumes, are used for large areas but for more delicate things like statues or pictures. These kinds of dusters need to be shaken outdoors to be rid of the dust, or dust particles will land right back on the object you’re dusting.

I have a caveat caution though for using ostrich feather dusters; KEEP THEM AWAY FROM DOGS! I used one of these in a home with a dog, who ended up ripping it apart, thinking it was a bird. 😀

And for those concerned about the ostrich’s safety, ostrich feathers are taken from them without suffering to the bird. Ostriches have many layers of feathers for insulation that range in size from very short to extravagantly long. The method of removing their feathers does not kill the ostrich.

3. 𝗥𝗲𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲 (𝗹𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗻𝘀𝗶𝘃𝗲) 𝗙𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗗𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀 comes in a plastic tube and is easy to carry around. Use them for small areas and small delicates.

4. 𝗠𝗶𝗰𝗿𝗼𝗳𝗶𝗯𝗲𝗿 𝗗𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀 are used for dusting ceilings, walls, areas where there is sawdust from construction work, and in homes that have not been cleaned in a long time.

5. 𝗗𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝗦𝗵𝗮𝗽𝗲𝗱 𝗖𝗼𝗯𝘄𝗲𝗯 𝗗𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀 are great for getting into corners of ceilings and walls.

Try some of these, and see how they work for you.

Here’s My Story – Getting ‘Swept Up’ in Cleaning Scams

July 2, 2020February 2, 2021Leave a comment

phone scam sign Since arriving in Arizona from Montana and setting up my business down here, I’ve experienced something so frustrating and annoying I could pull out my hair, the rest of it that is left, that is. 😂

I get text messages and emails asking for my cleaning help … but they are anything but legit.

Emails are easy to ignore, but the texts? — Not only are they not easy to prevent, they are not easy to get rid of either. I tried blocking the text’s phone number, but that does not solve the problem. Why? Because these scammers sometimes don’t send the text to just me, they like to include something like 12 to 18 other people as well.

And, of course, when one person responds to the text, we all get texted back. So, I took the time once to block all 18 of the other text numbers, including the originator of the text. That took so much time, I decided not to take the time to do it again. So I’m stuck getting the text messages and just pulling out more of my receding hair.

And then there are the emailers. What they do is text you a message first. At least, for these kinds of text, they only text me, not 20 other people. The texter asks me if I am still in the cleaning business and wants to connect with me for a cleaning job. They usually leave their information and ask me to get back to their wife by email. So, I respond to their text by sending the requested email, and a bit later, I get an email back.

cell phone

Some of the emails that I get tell a tale of how the person lives out of town, but will be moving to such and such an address soon and wants me to clean their apartment (it’s never a house). Not only for one time but monthly.

They want to set up a contract with me for $500 a month (It’s always $500-$550, and sometimes it’s paid weekly). Then they ask for my phone number, address, and the last curious question — what is my line of business? What? Didn’t they just ask me to clean their place every month?

Fortunately, I have never responded to their emails, but it took me a while to stop responding to the originating text messages.

It’s amazing to me the scammers out there. This reminds me of when one of my friends told me on Facebook messenger that he had just received a federal grant for $250,000 and that I should request one too. I won’t even go there with how that was a scam. A scam I fell for, by the way.

scam signs It’s amazing to me how people take the time to sit around and figure out how to cheat people of their money or personal information. They must not know the law of karma.

And — it’s getting harder and harder to determine which request is a fraud.

Stay safe! Be alert! And don’t fall for scams, especially as sophisticated as they can be these days.

Here’s A Feel-Good, Miracle Story for You

May 5, 2020Leave a comment

Yesterday, I had a pretty awesome experience.

In the cleaning business, the last week of the month is usually busy with move-outs. This past last week of April was no different for Job Well Done Cleaning. We had spent the week sprucing up, scrubbing down, and dusting homes that were particularly dirty — sooty, in fact. Our company vacuum cleaners were filled to the brim with dust, dust, and more dust. So, yesterday, I set about cleaning them out. After completing the task, I began putting the vacuums away in my truck, when to my surprise, a ring fell from the small opening of one of the vacuum cleaners. Miraculously, it just popped out.

Astonished at this and even more surprised that I hadn’t accidentally thrown it away along with the dust and dirt, I looked it over and took it to my wife. I wasn’t sure if it was costume jewelry or not, though it was a beautiful ring. Upon placing it in her hand and feeling it’s weight, she was pretty sure that it was NOT costume-jewelry. And she found some small letters on the inside of the ring that said ‘plat.’ We determined that it was a platinum ring, and it had 12 fairly large rectangular stones that we figured were real diamonds.

As this appeared to be an expensive piece of jewelry, I needed to find the ring’s owner. My quest began by calling my last week’s customers — but no one was claiming the ring. I then remembered a new client of mine, a woman whose beautiful home I had cleaned about two weeks ago. The woman had hired us because her regular cleaning crew of 20 years had retired and her replacement crew was having difficulty being flexible with her schedule. When I told her that I had found a platinum ring, she joyfully proclaimed, “It’s my wedding ring!” And she described it in detail.

That ring had been lost for over a year. After reporting the loss to her insurance company, her husband purchased her another, which became her ‘third’ wedding ring, by the way. Her baby had thrown her first wedding ring down the toilet, or so she thought. And of course, her second wedding ring went missing too. Her husband bought her a less expensive third wedding ring. This wedding ring business was getting to be costly for him. 🙂

The husband traveled to my home to retrieve the ring and revealed to me that it had cost many thousands of dollars. He also said his wife was crying when she called him to tell him about the find. This miraculous course of events brought tears to my eyes as well. It was an emotional experience.

Thinking about this situation a bit later, I was amazed that my company was able to find a ring that had gone missing for over a year, and that two prior cleaning crews had never seen the ring in all that time. Hmmm. This is truly one for the books.

If you want a thorough cleaning job, why not call Job Well Done Cleaning at 480-599-4045? We might even find lost things for you too! 🙂