Growing up as a kid, I’d come back from school and turn the house upside down, cleaning it. From washing the dishes, and pots to sweeping the floors. Remember those old beds with long legs, I’d slide under and take all the dirt out
On weekends, before anything else or going anywhere, I’d clean up my place. Coming from rural areas, we didn’t have tiles, so we used to smear the floors with cow dung. I was good at it, even making decorations. I’d be singing the whole time with no worries of who might be watching or listening
The garden was always green. The spinach, potatoes, and carrots were always available every summer season. I loved it so much, and I was never reminded when to start planting. The good thing is, that is still with me with the hope of feeding the nation at some point
Going to college, the workload was a bit more, and time was a bit limited to complete everything compared to high school and earlier years, but I’d cut the grass, clean the yard, and cut those unwanted weeds that usually pop up on the paving
That task takes forever to complete, but I was always patient with it, from start to finish. I was never told to do it, but I’d just get it done the moment I notice that it’s getting longer than it should, as soon as it starts getting out of control, making the yard look untidy
There was nothing nicer than washing a car on a Sunday afternoon. It was my job as a kid, and I never complained about doing it. It was just nice playing with water. That was before the strict measures about saving water were put in place, and I was just a kid to think about saving it anyway
With age, listening to music while washing the car became a thing. If you are a fan of love songs, I’m sure you’ll agree with me when I say there was nothing more fulfilling than listening to the radio on a Sunday afternoon before your Spotify and other streaming services became a thing. You got to hear all the songs that you probably never heard of before, and the love stories from different callers, sharing their experiences
Sometimes my uncle would propose taking it to the car wash, but I just didn’t mind washing it for free
Something good though came out of that because I had a car wash of my own years later as my first official business. I got to use the skills I learnt while washing my uncle’s car, but I got employed, and everything changed
Then it suddenly became a problem to do any of the things that I used to volunteer to do with passion
Right now, I don’t mind doing absolutely nothing, absolutely nothing the whole day, even worse, doing something that will make me leave my desk and everything on it
Even washing my own car is a huge problem. I used to do it, only when it was very dirty, but not anymore. That’s all because now the distance to everything is suddenly longer, even when it’s not. The love for it is still there, because I feel like car washers are more about money than getting your car cleaned up to your expectations, but I just don’t have time and energy to do it anymore
My girlfriend used to turn the place upside down when she came over. When I’m not going anywhere, I don’t rush to wake up so she’d wake up as soon as she’s tired of sleeping, clean the entire place, and do my laundry. That was nice
Sometimes I’d leave her at home while going to work, instead of relaxing, she’d take the whole time she’s alone, making my place look new. But she got employed, and that all changed. Now I remind her that we must wake up. She still does the cleaning, but only the staff that really matters
I never understood why my uncle took forever to do anything that’s not work-related. When he was at home, he didn’t mind sitting on the couch the whole day. Only stand up to take a bath, to pour a glass of Coke, his favourite, then sit in front of the TV. Well, I got to that position where you wake up and go to work every day, run around the whole day. Now, I understand completely how he felt because I don’t mind doing nothing the whole day if it means moving away from the desk or the comfort of my couch
I understand now very well why it should be an option for a wife to work, because you’re just being ridiculous if you expect her to go to work and come back and run around the house after
During my school years, weekends were for laundry and ironing everything afterward. But if you ask me now, all that has changed. I only do my laundry at night, as that’s the only time I get. Even then, the motivation comes from watching the wardrobe running empty while the clothes are piling up in the washing basket
Everything that used to be easy to do is not anymore because I got employed, and everything changed
I love home-baked bread, so I used to buy the ingredients, and I'd make bread and fat cakes, but not anymore. I don’t even know the price of flour, that’s how long it's been since I last bought it
I remember when I had all the time I needed to listen to every song I love, but I just didn't have all the songs I love, just the time to listen to them. I had to rely on the radio, which only plays one of them once a week. I remember waking up in the early hours of the day just to listen to all the love songs on the radio, from the likes of O'Jays, The Manhattans, to the likes of Celine Dion, Mariah Carey, the list is endless. But now I have all the songs I ever loved, because time has made it possible. All those nights I wished I had a better music library came true, just not the time to listen to all of them, because I got employed and everything changed
Sometimes I wish I could be home, listening to my music, but all I get is to run around making sure the bottles get to the customer with no complaints in return
I got employed, and everything changed
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