Tango de la Menegilda

Life is brutal,
If you must work as a maid
Hopeless, futile
Overworked and underpaid.
And if you just surrender
And if you don't learn to use your head
Though you may live to a hundred
You'll still end up in a poorhouse bed
As for me, I must say,
There were skills that I learned right away
Clothes to wash , beds to make
Floors to sweep, meals to cook, cakes to bake
But it didn't take me long to see
That life was passing me by
I consulted with my conscience
It said, "Listen, honey
You've learned how to bake
Now just learn how to take
Your piece of the cake."
I caught on so well, before anyone knew it,
I had some nice clothes and a trinket or two.
Perhaps you are wond'ring "How does she do it?"
With jewelry and dresses
My road to sucess is
I'd give you three guesses
But I think one will do
I was sent out
Shopping alone evry day
When I went out
They'd give me money to pay
And out of each ten duros
I'd end up spending, say, eight or nine,
And what was left I deposited
With a soldier friend of mine
Then one day I came back
And I found I'd been given the sack
Don't know why, don't know how
And I laugh when I think of it now
When my mistress had finished screaming
Her son whispered in my ear
As he paid me my back wages
He said, "Listen, honey, you know what I think."
And he said with a wink
"Let me buy you a drink."
I've worked for so many and gotten so clever
That's how I arrived where you find me today
I work for an old man who can't live forever
At the end of my journey
With money to burn, even power of attorney
What more can I say?