What is definitely true is that I am never short of work, and I’m not even a “great” cleaner, or a treasure. I’m a good cleaner. I do skirting boards, light switches, polish the smudges and grease off kettles and toasters. I do the stuff other people don’t have the time or inclination to do. I’ll take all your boyfriend’s work shirts back to my flat to iron if your electricity is on the blink. I will go the extra mile, because the work is honest, very physical, and at the end of the day, I sleep the deep sleep of the justly tired.

~ Michele Kirsch: My life as a cleaner in London

Notes:

• Do read Michele Kirsch’s entire excellent essay where she offers “insights from her writing career to her current job” in:  My life as a cleaner in London (via independent.co.uk, Oct 25, 2015)
• Related Posts: It’s been a long day