Fired Cook

After delaying it for a few months, I finally fired our cook yesterday morning. It’s been long overdue.

Every night, she cooks delicious meals we never got to taste. Chicken afritada, beef caldereta, chicken and pork adobo, etc. By 5 pm the meals were ready. I would always remind her not to fry or grill that early because we’re not eating yet that early and she’s not sure if we’re eating at home at all. When I ask who’s she cooking those for, she would be quick to reply, niluto ko mam yan para sa inyo. Which I doubted. Those were for them, okay lang kasi we’re not really eating at home most of the time.

Sometimes when I liked the look of what she cooked, I would request that she saves some for us, for breakfast. She would but a watered down version. Alam mo ng dinagdagan lang ng tubig.

Wednesday night, I arrived at 7:45 pm. I saw one big caldero of beef with soup. More beef than soup. Ang laki ng caldero and puno ng beef. (I bought 20 kilos of beef batangas last thurday).
Again, when I said, ulam nyo? Pwedeng makahingi ng konting soup?
She said she cooked it for us. Lying lying lying. Wala I just ignored her. I hurriedly cooked my quick meal— some beef soup, sotanghon noodles and fish balls. I was in a hurry because I wanted to watch this new teleserye Dolce Amore set in Italy.

After 15 minutes, I went down to the kitchen. The lights were off but the cook was still there. I saw her holding a big cup of what looked like beef soup and an empty bowl that was still wet. She was wiping her hands on her shirt.

I opened the ref in the dirty kitchen, I didn’t see the big casserole. I called her “kinain nyo na yung beef? Hindi ka nagtira ng para sa amin, baka biglang dumating si sir or si mam Julienne, baka may gustong kumain bigla”.

She said “meron mam”. I called her a few more times before she came to the kitchen. When pressed where’s beef she set aside for us, “nadyan mam”.

I panned the whole kitchen, I didn’t see the kaldero. It’s not in any of the refs at hindi kakasya kasi malaki.

She had no choice but to get it where she was hiding it. She opened the ilalim ng lababo and there it was, she hid it there.

When I asked anong gimick nya at dun nya tinago. kasi daw pinapalamig nya at mainit pa. Even the other maid was bewildered.
Rather than get angry, I just went back upstairs and continued watching tv.

I waited till morning to tell her “____paki ayos na gamit mo”. She was taken by surprise. Dami na nyang nakakainis na ginawa but I didn’t fire her kaya siguro it didn’t dawn on her that that’s the day of reckoning.

She went down to the maids room, nasalubong nya si Opay, our house girl. She told her to come with her, “pinaalis ako ni mam, sumama ka sa akin”.

I saw Opay crying in the kitchen while the cook was standing beside her.

Cook owes her P4,200 daw and since she’s leaving, how would she pay her back. That’s money she’s been saving daw.
Etong mga ito, kahit sabihan ko na wag magpapautang sa mga kasamahan, hindi nakikinig.

The cook didn’t want to leave Opay’s side while I was talking to Opay.
“Bumaba ka na, paki kuha na gamit mo”.

Kaya pala iyak ng iyak eh halong lungkot (goodbye 4,200) at halong galak.
Cook and lavandera had been bullying her daw. Sinabunutan pa yata ni cook sya. They were scared to tell us daw kasi cook belongs to another religion and she’s bigger than them, baka daw sugurin sila.

The cook had just been out for a day and she’d made several calls to our house and to Opay. Nangungumusta lang daw, tinatanong kung ano ang ulam nila.

I think it’s about time we change our landline number.