I can't stand Braid Lady. SHE'S BACK!!! The door rang on Wednesday and there she was, braid and all. I was supposed to try out a new housekeeper who seemed great on the Tuesday before Braid Lady returned. She was one of the many who responded in the first rush after I listed it on Just Ask Boo. I called her and got a message in Espanol, so I went on to the next candidate. After interviewing three other people with no luck, I went back to this one. I'm willing to sign up at Berlitz at this point.She came with her husband who said she could clean, iron, cooked great and had an excellent driving record. She herself, said very little and seemed shy. When I called her reference (who she still works for 1 day a week) she recommended her highly and said she had even "lent her out" to friends who needed help at dinner parties etc... I was going to have her come Tuesday, before Braid Lady returned from Ecuador, but her husband called Monday and told me she had taken a job for the week. She reasoned a week's worth of work was better than two days, but I was planning on hiring her permanently. I thought I would have Braid Lady back and see if she still bugged the crap out of me. She does. I left the panini maker open, because it needed to be cleaned. When I returned, it was closed up, with stuff on top of it. I assumed she had cleaned it, but checkedanyway. It was still full of gunk. I opened it back up and asked her to clean it. "Do the things come out?" she asked, speaking of the grill panels. "No. I just cleaned it last week. It's not that hard." Rolling of the eyes. I told her I needed her to dust, mop and vacuum Every Week. She said yes, she understood, but I found a fake fingernail where she had supposedly mopped and she definitely didn't vacuum ("Your vacuum stinks"). My friend Martha says "You need to get someone who doesn't speak English." I'm not sure how this will help them clean better, but I'm willing to try anything at this point. My husband said "We've had a revolving door of nannies. We're due for a good one." I may give the quiet, Peruvian one a try next week if she is still available. I don't think I can take another week of Braid Lady's passive aggressive responses.