I always balk at the idea of hiring a maid to clean our house. I had a crew clean here the day we moved in (previous owners had trashed the place,) and a few times here and there while I was busy having babies or feeding newborns and other such trivial tasks. I had planned on getting a maid to clean after the remodel, but the only one I've ever really liked refuses to return my call. I think my family is just too dirty for her. So I've resorted to becoming my own maid. It's about time I stop relying on outside help when my house cleaning failures have just added up too much. And now I have a new "friend" to help me in my plight.
I will admit there was a hint of embarrassment and "I hope the neighbors don't see this" as I took my Carpet Pro out of the car and brought it into the house. This bad boy is big. Just the sucking pipe alone is giant. Getting him settled in the house was a bit of a chore. Then I strapped him on and took him for a spin. Oh, my.
He has adjustable straps around the shoulders and waist, just like a hiking backpack. He has a fifty foot extension cord for reaching everywhere in the house from one outlet. He even has a belt clip for the power switch. I tell you, I'm in love with him. Boy, is he fast! And strong, too.
I had the most interesting talk with the cute little old British man down at the Sew and Vac store about vacuums. "Why don't more people buy backpack vacuums?" I asked. He told me that maintenance people do, which of course, is why I'd had the idea of buying one in the first place. If it's good enough for them to use day in and day out, shouldn't it be good enough for me? We chatted about suction and speed and advertising, which he thinks is the main reason these bad boys don't sell like the others.
Dyson vacuums, it turns out, for all their clever advertising, are the worst, he says. He actually shuddered when I mentioned their name. He couldn't resist calling me over to look at the filthiest filter you've ever seen. This is the $72 filter for a Dyson, he says. Disgusting. Made in Malaysia, he tells me, not Europe, where most people assume, because of the great accent of their front man. This little Sew and Vac gets 3 or 4 Dysons in a week for service. I'm embarrassed to say that I never would have thought of taking a vacuum in for service. I usually just figure that after several years of good service, it's time for a new one. You should have seen the cute little old red vacuum in there, waiting for service. That sucker was old. And then all the Dysons, of course. Well, thank goodness I skipped that tempting brand and went for the choice of maintenance people everywhere.
My new Carpet Pro backpack vac. My, do I love him. I'll have to think of a name for him and keep you updated on his performance. So far, I know I want to get some kind of self retracting cord because the 50 foot one is now in a big knot on the floor of the hall closet. But beside that, it is love at first vacuum.
Oh, the things that will be vacuumed in this house in the coming days. Look at my new toy. It is a lean, mean, backpack vacuum machine and it is beyond cool.