I know they need jobs, but........

I don't like having a housekeeper. Cleaning gives me a measure of sanity (something about cleaning kitchens is calming). Also, it's really awkward to be sitting in your PJ's at the computer when someone just comes in and starts cleaning.............Like what's going on right now.

I know these women need jobs. I know that unemployment is high in Kenya. I know some of them have been through horrible things and need a respectable way to earn a livelihood. Or they have babies to feed. At the same time, I don't know about giving someone that access to my life.

It could also be that the culture's different. Even though people have maids in America, it's usually for the very rich. While I am considered one of the "very rich" here, I'm certainly not in the U.S., so that's an aspect that takes getting used to. In America, we tend to grow up with our mothers telling us, "This isn't a restaurant," or, "I'm not the maid," to encourage us to be responsible for our messes. In addition, I tend to be EXTREMELY independent, so I take pride in cleaning my own house, taking care of myself, getting myself to where I need to be (which is why I find it a huge turnoff when a guy calls me Cinderella and tries to romance me by playing a hero. Dude, I'm my own hero. Shut up). I guess the housekeeper thing is another aspect of my own personality. To me, having a maid makes me feel spoiled in a bad way. Like, I need to be coddled with kids' gloves. As a white person, as a female, people always treat me like that and it's one aspect that I will never really like.

I like that people are willing to watch out for you. I just hate being babied. To me, it feels like people think I don't work, that I'm not strong, etc. It just makes me feel very impotent. Maybe it's selfish. But I think that's why I'm so adverse to having a housekeeper. I know they need it. I know all of what I've written probably has nothing to do with my initial statement. It's just what I feel and how I feel.