[anamax]

> everybody from the middle-class up had a maid, but now only rich people do because machines now do most of the household work for us.

You'd be surprised how many people hire household help. Pretty-much every dual-income couple I know over a certain age has someone come in every week or so. And no, it's not a generation thing, that "certain age" has remained stable for at least 15 years. (I didn't notice before because I was too young.)

Yes, there's an income threshold, but at $150/month, the starter cost is suprisingly low. (That's San Jose prices.)