Maid in Hong Kong

i know what you're thinking, is it true???
is JLo getting her groove back by starring in a sequel to her 2002 pos movie, Maid in Manhattan?
the answer, of course, is god no.
simply put, we live in Hong Kong, and we now have a maid.
actually, the politically correct title is 'helper'.
we have a 'helper'.
a full-time, live-in, cooks us dinner, folds my underwear, 'helper'.
it still seems very odd, but yet very awesome at the same time.

prior to the move west (or is it east?) 8-months ago, we were given a floor plan to our soon-to-be new apartment. we were surprised how spacious it appeared on paper, especially coming from a single bedroom loft. most of the layout made sense, except for a little space at the backend of the unit. investigating further, we soon realized that this area was in fact the servant's quarters. an archaic idea for most of us libertarians, but in reality something that's fairly common over in this part of the world, especially in an expat compound. never did we dream that we'd actually use if for anything but storing my hockey equipment & mountain bike (total usage of both to date = zero).

let's be honest, when we first moved here, i was the 'helper'. fortunately, i was also treated well, and was allowed to sleep in the main bedroom. things were working out just fine.

we all know what happens next though, don't we....
someone put his big boy pants on and got himself a job. and how!
between AA & i, our schedules had us out the door before 8am and usually not back until after 8pm. we were burning the chicken finger at both ends….and working a ton too. after a few weeks of the inconvenient reality of a two-income household, along with the reassurance that i had properly acclimatized myself back into Jobland and was there to stay, we decided something had to be done.

enter Jackée, our 'helper'. she 'helps' take care of the place, keeps us eating well, and even keeps our little furball company during the day. i don't even see her as a 'helper', she's more our third roommate, with a little extra share of the chores. in all seriousness, she is great, and I think if anything, we are being very Canadian with our requests:

"If you don't mind, could you maybe, when you have time, if not too much trouble, make me some flapjacks?"

Hong Kong is a very different place. it's a densely populated bubble in Asia, where every expat belongs to a country club, taxis are taken for pocket change, air conditioning is life, and helpers move into your home to take good care of you. it's a phase for us, it won't last forever, so for now, please don't judge as we embrace the culturally diversities brought upon us. Don't hate the (former) helper….