Thursday, October 25, 2007

Di mana kan ku cari ganti... NOT?!

I felt the urge to write this after reading Dad of Four plus One's latest posting today. I really can relate to his predicaments.

Remember I wrote some time in June that my maid ran away, right?

Since then, I had been without a bibik. The agent had been promising to get a replacement for us, but, he seems to be full of excuses - no supply, too young, too old (we specifically asked for one aged 30-34) failed medical, passports not ready, puasa, raya, etc.

It has been more than 4 months, and I think we've been coping quite well (just...).

Some of you might know that for the past 9 years, we have been staying with Mak in PJ. Even after we bought our own house in SD 7 years ago, we still stayed in PJ during weekdays, and only went back to SD during weekends. We've had, let me see...7 maids in the last 7 years.

One was sent home because she was so "gedik", and was trying to woo one of Mak's staff. She somewhat succeeded - we had to send her back.

One would have won an Oscar - she would be the best actress if she were to star in the Exorcism of Emily Rose.

One was quite good, and we had no issues with her - except that when it was time to renew her permit, she failed her Medical. She was Hep B +ve.

One followed us to the UK during my first year of my PhD. We brought her everywhere we went around the UK, we let her call Indonesia every 2 weeks (we footed all the bills), we gave her pocket money (in pound sterling) on top of her monthly salary, we let her cook whatever she wanted to eat (because she was quite particular with her diet), we bought her clothes and stuff, we even bought for her whatever she fancied at all the Car Boot Sales in Newcastle we went to. She ended up telling people that we starved her, and we found out that she also pasang a Pak Arab boyfriend there... (and until today we couldn't figure out how both of them communicated with each other!). So, when we came back home to Malaysia, we sent her back to Indonesia.

One was quite pleasant, but she just could not stand Mak's bibik who was so bossy (even bossier than the majikan, mind you!) and was subject to being bullied and ended up doing most of the work! She asked to be sent home. Our principle - if our maid asks to be sent home, we send her home. No point of keeping her.

One was another Oscar winner - faked a fall, and ended up at the A&E, and pretended to lose consciousness (from morning until the afternoon!), when all the docs (including Ayah) and the nurses could tell that she was faking it! She had to go.

One was quite okay - quite hardworking, but quite loud. But, she, too could not stand Mak's bossy bibik! This was the one who ran away in June...

(We really are at their mercy, aren't we? Mak's bossy bibik was a REALLY good cook and very hardworking, and she can do just about whatever you asked her to do! So, we just couldn't send her home just because she was bossy with the other maids, could we?! Anyway, her contract just ended in August and she's gone now)

So, for the past 4 months or so, everytime we went back to SD during weekends, I would be the bibik. I would do the sweeping, the mopping (all 3 floors AND also outside, okay?!), the washing/drying/ironing of the clothes, the cooking (including the pre- and post-cooking chores), the dishes, tidying up the mess, etc. It's not that Ayah and the kids did not help at all. They did and still do, but, it's just me. I like to do things MY way, so at the end of the day, I would re-do the chores which had been done by them! But, it's strange in the sense that when we had the maids, I just let them be and do the chores around the house, and I would be Ma'am Besar and just supervise them. Boleh pulak?!

Anyway, it's a bit of an irony and quite mind-boggling that in our dire maidless situation, Ayah and I decided that we would move from PJ to stay at our own house in SD permanently. And the decision was made about 2 weeks into Ramadhan. Can you imagine that? Elok-elok we stayed in PJ, with Mak's and my SIL's maids there to prepare for Iftar and Sahur, we decided to make our life difficult during Ramadhan.

Yes - yours truly had to set at least 3 alarm clocks just to make sure I wake up in time to PREPARE for sahur. I also had the chance of honing my driving skills going through the Ramadhan traffic jam everyday from my office, to the kids' school in PJ, to SD (going through Jalan Universiti, Section 12, Section 16, SPRINT and LDP or Penchala Link!) I also decided that alang-alang dah jadi Ibu Mithali, I would also COOK for berbuka... Smart, eh? So, I did just that.

It was quite a torture.

People might think that we were crazy - the timing was not quite right...

But, we were adamant. We REALLY wanted to experience Ramadhan with just the five of us. And we are so glad that we did it.

It has been 5 weeks now - living in our own home. It's quite exhausting, but it's nothing compared to our feel-good feelings. Even the kids enjoy their home. More space. (More like more internet access! ;)) even though sometimes it looked as if a toranado had just passed through the whole house sometimes...

What we do now is - Ayah would send Hanna to school in the morning before going to the hospital. I would send Hasya and Hilman to Mak's house before going to my office. Mak's staff would send them to school in the afternoon and also fetch Hanna and send her to Mak's house. I would fetch the kids from school straight after work, fetch Hanna from Mak's and drive everybody back to SD.

Prepare dinner. Wash dishes. Iron clothes (aaaarrrrggggghhhh!!!). Settle kids for bed. Sleep. Wake up. Do the laundry. Sweep. Mop. Hang laundry. Shower. Wake kids up. Send them to PJ. Go to office. Work. And the cycle continues.... Hmmm...I sound like a robot, no?

Hasya and Hilman are quite independent and so, when they're in PJ, the only thing that Mak's maids need to worry about is just to prepare lunch for them (which is no big deal because more often than not they would only ask for Ayam Goreng and Nasi!) What' so difficult about that? They would take their shower and get ready for school on their own.

Shouldn't be a problem, right?

Shouldn't be.

Just that - this morning, two of the maids ran away...*

Ppppfffhhh...

(*Apparently one of them has a boyfriend somewhere out there...)

24 comments:

Anonymous said...

salam ...

dear kak shana ...

OMG!!! they ran away!!! both pulak tu ...

yep ... remembered the one that followed you to UK ... how can we forget?! (i bet you still have that 'letter' - me and kak ina was not surprised you didn't send it ... hehehe)

i am sure you remembered mine one and only maid - never again ...

it's hard when you're on your own and if you can't manage don't carry it all yourself okay - i know the feeling ... :) ... but i know you're strong and you'll be fine ...

take care and hope your mum in law won't be without help for too long ...

wassalam ...

fifi said...

How inconsiderate. Tapi kalau kerja tak ikhlas tu, memangla. Hope your MIL gets a (GOOD)replacement soon. One of ours ran away on the day of my sister's wedding, the week before I balik UK. Felt the world was about to collapse around us, esp with my dad.. Hmph. Lots of love to Hanna, Hasya, Hilman.. aunty fifi says you guys must be gooooood and help Ayah and Mummmy tau...

wanshana said...

Salam refugee,

One of them was my MIL's maid for her office, while the other one was her maid for the house.

Luckily, Lynn's maid and also a temp which my MIL took to help over raya are still around... If not, sure lagi panchit...

You - my maid masa kat UK dulu tu, until I die also I cannot forget! The letter meant for her brother tu...yup, still not posted. You know me - cepat kesian kat orang...

I'm just taking it easy now and buat yang mana sempat aje - that's why my ironing room looks like Gunung Kinabalu now... Eherks...

Take care ;)

Dad of 4+1 said...

Shana - What? 4 months? My sil is also waiting for her replacement. two months already!

Aren't they all the same - agents and maids likeiose!

Reading your entry (especially the maids' "resume") - we've had our fair share too! LOL! (Well... we can just laugh when we think back what we went through!)

Dad of 4+1 said...

Shana - This Anuar Zain's song is Khadijah's fave! ; )

wanshana said...

Dear Fifi,

"Inconsiderate" is an understatement...

Oh my...ran away when you guys needed her the most! I guess she took the opportunity to slip away masa orang-ramai tengah sibuk for the wedding. I gather that your Mom's maid now is quite good - saw her taking care of your Dad during the twins' birthday that day.

Yes, hopefully my MIL will get good replacements soon, and hopefully WE will also get one sooner! Macam nak pengsan now ni.

I will convey your love and pesan to the kids, insya Allah. They (Hanna especially!) still can't get over how gorgeous your twins are!

Take care, dear! Salam to A'bar and kisses to Adam and Farah, please. TQ.

wanshana said...

Dad of Four,

Both Ayah and I just couldn't care less now - even when we're nice to them, if they want to run away, they will run away.

When we look at our neighbours' maids whose food is rationed, and only get to sleep 4 hours at night, and worked non-stop from morning to night, and their employers are so garang ya amat, pelik pulak coz' jarang yang run away!

Our maids - they eat what we eat, (sometimes more!)and siap dapat bonus and baju raya. One of them even has a handphone (BIG mistake....I know...) I guess because we're too lenient, they all berani lari.

Anyway, so, Khadijah likes this Anuar Zain song? HI-5 to her! Please tell her, "Auntie Shana says she has excellent taste!" :D

Take care and take it easy with the chores, eh?!

Dad of 4+1 said...

That's exactly what Yani says...Treat nicely pun buat perangai..Other garang employers somehow manage to keep them long. Hmmm...must be garang now! LOL

Anonymous said...

Some maids are good
Some maids are mediocre
Some are so bad
They make you suffer

The nice ones are like angels
They treat you with respect
But when they fail their medical
You have to send them back ...(sigh)

When your maid dah lari
Your life is so miserable
But always be grateful and happy
You have a super-duper, fantabulous, superhuman wife!!!

Tq Mommy... Luv ya to bits ;p

Ayah

wanshana said...

Errr...Ayah, the last verse doesn't rhyme laaarr..

WHATEVER...

I LIKE!!! Hehehe!

Thank you, thank you, thank you! :D

wanshana said...

Dad of Four,

Can't imagine you all garang... Hehehe!

But, knowing my luck with all the maids from hell, If I garang pun, they all will terbang... Sigh...

Anonymous said...

I say man...silap! The 2nd line of the last verse should read..

"..You have a miserable life"

Then barulah rhyme! This is the 'I-am-at-work-on-a-non-working-day-and-my-wife-is-anxiously-waiting-for-me-to-come-back-so-that-we-can-go-to-all-the-7-open-houses-today' poem. Sori..tak sempat check!

Ayah ;p

MAMAMIA said...

Bila baca cerita2 pasal how these maids can make one's life topsy turvy, I bersyukur sangat Papa decided to never have any maid/stranger in the house.

Tapi the state of the house is always like a war zone, we outsource work like ironing (Papa's office wear mostly). & we eat simple meal. Sekali sekala call Pizzahut & McD.

Kalau I masuk program "Perfect Housewife' on Home & Health Channel tu, guarantee I'll be the loser....

wanshana said...

Ayah,

;-)

----------------------------

Mamamia,

Tu laaa.... Because from Day 1 dah ada maid in the house, I've become too dependant on them! Can't live with them, but, at the same time can't live without them - that's me :(

Takper semak sikit rumah tu, mamamia - janji tak sakit hati...

We thought of just getting a weekly helper to come and do the ironing (especially) and also cleaning/mopping, but somehow never got around doing it.

Anyway, today the kids and I gotong-royong mengemas their room, and they thoroughly enjoyed it - especially when they have their own territories whereby they can decorate with whatever they want. And Ayah did his bit by making burgers and hotdogs for everyone for sahur before bedtime :D

So, today everybody in the house jadi bibik...

Azian hasan said...

Shana,
Biar penat buat sendiri... daripada hati sakit kan.. yang penting GUMBIRA..gembira la...
Take care

wanshana said...

Azian,

Yes! HATI MUSTI GUMBIRA ;D...

Just got a call from the agent. There's one candidate and we'll get the biodata by the end of this week. Ding Dong sana-sini, if we're okay with her, insya Allah by shool holiday, we'll have a bibik at home!

But, I'm having mixed feelings.

Lega - because I will not have to do almost all of the chores (especially the ironing!) anymore.

Anxious because I need to train her, etc. Takut she'll be another maid from hell (Nauzubillah...)

Somewhat sad - will be spending less time slaving for the family... :C

D.N.A.S said...

Alamak, now I pulak dilemma nak ambik maid ke tidak. My first son will start primary 1 next year and he refuses to stay at the nursery until 7pm, he wants to stay at home. So does the 2nd son.
After reading the list of maid cases you put up here, rasa macam tak jadi lah pulak nak ambik. :)

wanshana said...

D.N.A.S,

So sorry to have put you in a dilemma!!!

Actually all these berpangkal pada nasib jugak...I have a (Ehemmm... one blogger from Rawang) friend whose bibik has been with her for nearly 9 years (and whose teh tarik memang kawwwww punyer!!!

I guess you wouldn't know until you've tried it.

All the best.

afsi said...

Salam

Well I have been really lucky in this department. Our maid have been with us ever since my 2nd daughter was born and that was 8 years plus ago. Now she is thinking of going back next year after my eldest daughter completes her UPSR.... now I am in panic in searching for a new maid, after hearing all the horror stories here and some of my friends...

errr... any recommendations?

wanshana said...

Dear afsi,

Waa'laikumussalam, and thank you for visiting :D

Wow! You're so lucky - one in a million yang lucky as you all. Syukur alhamdulillah.

That's it - it all depends on luck, I guess. We all ni kena mandi bunga ke aper kot baru okay?! HAHAHA!

Errrr...after reading this entry, don't you think I would be the LAST person for you to ask recommendations from?!! Hehehe...

All the best with your new maid application, eh?

:D

Anonymous said...

Salaam, K.Shana.

Hmmm.... there's no end to these maid stories.
Mine tgh gatal bercinta .... dgn Mat Siam whom she met when we were in Perlis... likewise, i also wonder how they communicate, becoz most of the time she doesnt even understand what i said to her....and her Jawa accent is still sooooo pekat despite having been working in Msia for 4 years..
Her work permit expires in december... Am seriously considering quitting my job & be a stay-at-home mum... :D

wanshana said...

Dear Adrina,

Wa a'laikumussalam...

Thank you for visiting :D

Love is truly blind...and also deaf in our maids' case, eh? It doesn't matter if one cakap itik, and another cakap ayam... kalau dah menggatal tu, anything goes!

Hmmm...If I had a choice pun, memang nak pencen and be a fulltime mom. But, at the moment, living in KL we need double income maaa... :(

Anyway, all the best to you. Hope everything works well for you!

P/S : Just curious - are you Feizal ZA's Adrina from UEA, Norwich? ;)

Anonymous said...

yep! very true.... bila nak buat kerja, cakap face to face pun boleh buat x faham... and yet bila berchenta, ckp on the phone pun boleh plan nak kahwin....

p/s: Yes, K.Shana. It IS me.... hehe..
Feizal sends his regards :p

wanshana said...

Adrina,

OMG!!!! Soooo good to 'hear' from you again after all these years!!! The last time we saw each other was about 9-10 years ago (at Shida and Mamak's daughter's b'day do, I think?!)

So, are you guys in KL now or still up north?

Do keep in touch - e-mail me, okay? I'll give you my mobile number.

FYI, just last weekend we met up with Reha and Tabs (monthly ritual).

Wa a'laikumussalaam... Do convey my salam to Biden @ Feizal ;D

Take care, dear.