Home is where the pants are

[listersgirl]

I'm officially tired of housesitting. I want my own bed back, not to mention clothing other than the suitcase-full I took with me. Also, I still can't find a broom, and I'm not entirely sure how to get the cat litter off the floor. Plus I'm really busy this weekend, and it would all be much easier if I weren't going back and forth between two places. I just have to make it until Monday, though, and Squishy didn't wake me up this morning*, so it's not too painful.

Has anyone done any housesitting? How much cleaning should I be doing? I'm going to clean the bathroom (ie. get the cat litter off the floor somehow, clean my hair out of the sink, that sort of thing) and the kitchen, but should I wash the sheets? I'm not really sure there's much point, since I'd have to use them again after I washed them, but I'm not sure. What would you expect if someone were staying at your place?

Speaking of cleaning, I'm having belated spring cleaning urges. I attribute this to the fact that I'm not at home, and therefore have no responsibility to act on them. I'm sure by the time I get home for good, any inclination I have to dust will have faded away, to be replaced by the urge to sit and do nothing.

*Actually she did, if you count 2:30 am as morning, but it was a nice change from the normal 5 am wake-up call, other than the fact that for a few minutes I thought that meant I was going to have to get up soon, and I couldn't figure out why it felt like I had just gone to bed.

Comments

[morag-gunn.livejournal.com]

I house-sat/cat-sat once and I think I felt the same way you feel. At first it's kind of fun and exotic to live in somebody else's house (esp when it's nicer than yours) but then you want your own stuff and you wonder where things are and generally get a bit homesick. I ended up carting a lot of my stuff from home to the house-sitting place so that by the time the owner got back, I had to make several trips (on the bus). She also never thanked me, which pissed me off and made me swear never to do it again.

I did wash the sheets though, and I even bought her a "Welcome Home" balloon. And I tried to put everything back as it was when I got there and stuff. Still, she didn't thank me so I wonder if I was a terrible house-sitter/cat-sitter. Or if maybe she was just mean. Or distracted. Hmmmmm... .

It's nice to come home to a clean house.

[listersgirl]

I really would like to leave flowers, but I'm having a hard time scheduling in some time to buy them (as pathetic as that seems). Part of the awkwardness comes from the fact that I have to stay there Sunday night so I can feed the cat on Monday, but I start work very early on Monday, so there's no time to do anything in the house before they get back.

And I just don't understand people who don't say thanks. How hard is that?

[sarcasma.livejournal.com]

I don't think I'd bother to wash the sheets if I was sleeping in them that night - although if you could bring your own from home you could wash theirs and sleep on your own and leave theirs folded to make it obvious that they're clean. See, mostly I wouldn't wash the sheets because I'm pretty sure they'd end up doing it themselves anyway. I know nothing about housesitting though, so... meh.

[listersgirl]

That's the thing - if it were me, I'd wash the sheets when I got home. Maybe I could just strip the bed, assuming I can find the laundry basket.

[sarcasma.livejournal.com]

I wouldn't do that either, because what if they get home all exhausted and like "Screw it, I just wanna fall into bed even if it is on someone else's dirty sheets" and then you've kindly stripped the bed and hidden the sheets somewhere as if to say "oh no you don't, you must wash your sheets first, disgusting people!"

I'd say either wash the sheets or do nothing.

[eanja]

I haven't house-sat, so I don't know about the cleaning level. I am slightly boggled by the idea of a house where you can't find a broom or dust pan - how many places could you potentially store those, after all? (If they don't own one, I'm guessing they won't expect stellar cleanliness.)

About the cat litter, if you don't find a broom, you could try vacuuming, depending on how good their vacuum is (if you can find one) and how it fits in the bathroom (or wherever the litter pan is). Barring that, you could try wet paper towels- if the litter is clay based or clumping, it should stick to them with a little pressure.

[listersgirl]

I know! I keep wondering if there's a hidden closet or something. I did find the vacuum, though, so I think I'll try that.

[protoainsley.livejournal.com]

I'd be certain the house is as clean as it was when you arrived, but like a good Girl Scout, I try to make it a bit cleaner.

When I house-sit or am a guest for more than overnight, I wash the sheets. What I would do is wash them and have them folded, and sleep on top of the covers that night.

[listersgirl]

This is the thing. I want them to come home and be happy, not feel like they immediately have to jump into dealing with things.

I'm probably overthinking things, but I have to sit across from this guy every day at work!

[bruiseblue.livejournal.com]

I'd say clean up anything that's your mess, make sure the dishes are done and there arent' any mysteries in the 'fridge, and remove the sheets you used and replace them with clean ones - put yours in the laundry basket. That's the ettiquette for a houseguest.

You're doing them a favour, by catsitting, so don't worry too much about cleaning extensively. Just tidy up after yourself and the cat, I'd say.

I used to babysit for weeks and weekends, and most people were pleased by just that much. They didn't want to come home to jelly crumbs and a wrecked house, but neither did they expect laundry done and toilets cleaned. :)

[listersgirl]

Oh, I like that - if I put mine in the laundry basket, it's obvious that the ones on the bed are clean. Smart!

[starfishchick]

I just got here, so it's clearly too late, but I would have washed the sheets (or put fresh ones on and left the dirty ones in the laundry) and left a note so they knew they were clean.

:)

[listersgirl]

I put fresh sheets on, and threw my towels and sheets in the laundry basket. I was thinking about washing them, but in the end I completely ran out of time, anyway. The new sheets are a completely different colour, so I assume they'll notice that they're new (although leaving a note would have been the smart thing to do).