I got my start in cleaning very soon after I moved to Minneapolis in 1982 to become a Zen student at the Minnesota Zen Meditation Center. Cleaning as a profession is a tradition among Zen students at Zen centers across the country. It goes with Zen's emphasis on simple attention and it allows the flexibility for a lot of meditation.
It's been many years since I've been an active Zen student but I still honor the deep appreciation of ordinary life that Zen practice instills and am grateful for the time that I spent in it.