Three months ago received a phone call to start a new assignment, on Tuesdays 3 hours from 2 pm to 5 pm. The husband leaves his wife with Parkinson’s to go to his company. After I research the route I had to walk about 3.5 miles from my bus stop to their home. This complex is in a enclosed high security area, you have to check in and they call the husband at work to verify, then you walk for another 10 minutes up a hill to the home. Being January it is a pleasant walk for I do not mind the cold. But then I realized that in the summer is going to be murder for my asthma, I mention this to the husband and he told me to let me know a month ahead when I would stop coming.
Apparently the wife has someone in am until 1:30 pm then me and every two weeks a cleaning lady all on Tuesday. For the first couple weeks it was pleasant and interesting, then the am lady went on vacation and the husband would call me to come in at 10 am.
I did this for 3 weeks and then they told me that. The lady will not come back if I would permanently come 10-5 from now on, now its March.
The first day I went there at 10 am I was early and I found her on the bathroom floor waiting for me to com in, apparently she tried to lift herself from wheelchair and fell. I helped up and it was not an easy thing. As a companion there’s no hands on! We watch them we follow them so that they are safe and reach things for them but basically our low pay tells us we are babysitters. ($10 an hour, we get a 1099 for IRS and we pay taxes on that.) This family is private pay from my company, they get the high $$ we get the standard $10/per hour.
No matter, I could not leave her on the floor… I helped with her dressing, cleaning etc…
when we went downstairs I made her breakfast, reminded her of taking her pills every 2 1/2 hours and then she told me we are making apple pie form scratch with no ingredients available. The lady thinks she can do but she can’t , I ended up doing crust from flour batter rolling it ( no room, awkward as hell, ruining my wrist after the picking her up and rolling dough) and cooking dinner too!
After that I wore wrist band telling her I fell will not be able to use hand for anything!
Every week for seven hours without a break no offering of lunch or drink ( one time she offered me left over that they packed from a restaurant they ate at the night before!). she would order me around to do things and walk her dog twice a day and pick up dog poop! ( I din’t because dog never went! But never told her.)
The husband asked if I would be staying I told him yes, since I’m walking at 9 am, not at 1pm. So, it was settled that I would stay.
This week was a mess in the morning at 7:30 am, due to accident on highway, big fire on main-road where I travel from, traffic was dead stop. I felt so bad that I could not get to her on time, I got off the bus and walked for 20 minutes ( about 3 miles) to my next bus. I picked up bus only 10 minutes later, got off at her stop and walked another 4 miles to her house arriving only 5 minutes late!
I went upstairs and she told me that she would like to stay in bed for awhile longer why don’t I take the dog for a long walk! This after I had told her how much I had walked to get to her!!!! I walked the dog, we sat outside on steps and rested my poor legs! Then when I came back she want to change her soiled bed, she can’t do it, so I ended up doing it! (If my employers find this out…)
During the day she kept saying how she keeps getting wrong dresses for this August formal wedding. I felt so bad for her ( she pays someone on Saturday to take her shopping, but woman shops for herself and doesn’t pay attention to the lady she works for!). I offered to go with them and for free on my own time, she agreed and we settled on days I’m off.
When the husband comes in she tells him about me offering to help, “we pay enough already we do not need to pay more!”
The one good deed the husband does every weeks is dropping me at my bus stop, so that I don’t have to walk 4 miles. On the way to dropping off he told me if I’m in the mind to taking summer off because the lady that was doing it last summer would like to do it again this summer and she needs the money! ( and what do I need? I walk 4 miles on a normal day so that I can have the pleasure of being ordered about?) I did not say this, all I said was I thought we had settled that since I come at 10 am the heat would not be intense as 1pm! He did not answer that, he kept saying but she needs the money. My answer it’s up to you ( he wanted me to return in September). I did not say it that come September I will not be available even if I was. I’m a lady, a professional and I do not threaten or beg! But, he said it, I answered that if I find worked elsewhere then I will not be available. He said he is going to talk to his wife.
I got a phone call 2 hours later from the wife telling me that she discussed with her husband and they will take my offer of going with her to help find a dress for the wedding! My answer was, “sorry but I got called to work and will not be available on my day off!” The nerve 2 hours earlier he wanted someone else for 2 months while I twiddle my thumbs, and they now want me to give them free time too!!!!
I learned that I have to detach myself and be insensible to people needs only do what I’m paid and no more!
One Day at the Time 