Raquel moved to Point Reyes Station following a friend’s advice. She has worked for eight years cleaning houses and has a loyal group of clients. In January she and David, her husband, bought a house in Santa Rosa, but she continues to work in Point Reyes Station, forty miles away. Raquel lives with David, and their three-year-old daughter, Sofia.
Photos by Betty Macias
Before moving to this house, they lived in a cottage in Inverness, then in an apartment in Cotati. They loved the cottage, but needed more. It was tiny, “for doves,” with only one room. They used an electric camping stove and a tiny refrigerator.
This house was expensive, but Raquel is confident that they will be able to afford it. David put up most of the money for the down payment, and her earnings pay for the majority of the monthly bills. To make ends meet, Raquel cleans nine houses a week in Pt. Reyes and twelve houses a week around Santa Rosa. David works as a manager at an A&M Electric and owns a taco truck in Cotati, eight miles away from Santa Rosa.
According to Raquel, the house is worth all the hard work. Her husband wanted a house in the country, and Raquel didn’t expect to own this much land, but once she moved in she was very happy. “I like the privacy—it’s my house!”
The house stands on five acres, with an orchard. An enclosure right outside the house contains eleven small white goats. Raquel loves the place. There are fields and cattle nearby, and flocks of blackbirds circle the distant ranch buildings. “I hear the birds in the air, the leaves moving. This is the life! It’s a good feeling,” says Raquel.