DownTheShore

Every single one where the couple doesn't want a pool because they're afraid that their imaginary future children will fall into it. They've obviously never heard of pool fences, pool alarms, and swimming lessons at the local Y. Or couples who are pregnant who are looking for homes in "the city center" because they expect to be able to continue their nights of gathering with friends at the local pub or club. I laugh at all the free time they think they're going to have once they start popping out kids.

I finally saw recently that episode with the woman who was fixated on having ceiling fans in her home. That was really weird. I thought she was going to have the big O whenever she saw one.

That's because they're putting on a show for their guests, with themselves as the stars. ;) That's what a lot of the open concept desire seems to me, at least in regard to the people we've seen who want it on HH - either exhibitionism (wanting to show off cooking skills), insecurity (afraid that something is going to happen in "the other room" that they're not a part of), or over-protectiveness (must watch the child's every single move). No one ever says that they want it for better air flow, or for more light, the ability to give the kitchen a better view outdoors, and rarely do they mention a better traffic pattern, which are the things that I would consider if I wanted a place with an open floor plan. But after having lived in apartments most of my life, I'm tired of being able to see the majority of my home from a single vantage point. I want the mystery of separate spaces. I don't want everyone seeing or passing by my kitchen; I want to be able to leave things messy and not have everyone see it.

I was watching the one with the American/English couple in Leeds England, and you could just tell that the guy was dying inside when he gave in to the higher priced rental that his American wife wanted. She was from Florida and he kept warning her that she'd never experienced "an English winter" before. Forgive me if I'm mistaken but aren't English winters really not that bad, when compared to places in the US like Maine, Minnesota, or Montana? Isn't it just basically colder and wetter? From what I've looked up, it doesn't look as though the average temperature in Leeds ever drops below 3C, which puts it around 37F. I assume the place they rented has heat, and she already knew how to wear a scarf. ---- Did you folks ever see that one, again set in England where it was an American wife with a British husband, she was originally from Savannah and she wanted a typical English country cottage? I think she either had a baby or was about to have one. They looked at one place that had a second bedroom that was so small that any child raised in it would probably become agoraphobic when he/she went outdoors. But the thing that really irked me about the woman was how she was affecting a pseudo-English accent after living there all of five minutes. She sounded like Madonna did after her British adventure. Now, a Georgia accent is not an easy thing to lose; I've worked in the northeastern US with people who were raised in Georgia and they never lost their drawl. I know someone who moved to England close to 40 years ago and she doesn't even sound as English as that HHI woman did.

The tip-over away from stainless steel appliances should start occurring shortly, because the go-to choice seems to be dark cherry cabinets with brushed stainless knobs/handles with stainless appliances, or else it's those boring white cabinets also with stainless appliances. It's becoming generic. The wood cabinets are finally transitioning to painted ones; those started appearing in European home decor magazines at least five years ago. I'm waiting for the French stoves to start appearing, like La Cornue and Lacanche, with their enameled colors.

Also, I think that a lot of people buy houses who have no knowledge at all about what is exactly behind the paint on their walls and think that their lights and outlets are powered by magic. They don't know what they should be looking for when they buy a house, and either a home inspection isn't required or they decide to skimp on it.

Someone I know who married into a western ranching family said "there are poor farmers, but there are no poor ranchers". I watch this show because I find it strangely fascinating - the claim that she's some sort of pioneer woman while she lives in a million dollar home, drives late model large pickup trucks, never met an ingredient that she couldn't afford to buy. She's got a husband who's always taking the kids off somewhere for the day or overnight. I like her house and her kitchen; it's a pleasant fantasy to have a house like that. I can appreciate how well she markets herself as a homey mom, and I don't have any instinctive dislike for her as a person (though I rolled my eyes when I found out that she home schools; of course she would home school). I was watching one episode where she was talking about going to make her regular big grocery purchase, and I assumed that she was going to go to a place like Costco or BJ's and buy things in bulk - because, you know, she keeps telling us that she's out in the back of beyond - and she goes to a regular supermarket and buys things at whatever their price is! Honey, if you are a true pioneer woman, you know how to stretch a dollar until it screams and you buy true bulk, and don't have a pantry with a variety of store-bought ice cream toppings.

"Little Big Head" indeed - lol. I tend to watch her show with horrified fascination.

That's what I thought, too, that the utility area would be the giveaway. Something like the circuit breaker box might even have an inspection date stamped on it; and if it had fuses instead of breakers that would even date it further.

I like the show, too. It's obvious that they understand, respect, and appreciate each other. There's no fake drama. Isn't it interesting how much they can do with the budgets they have, in their area, as opposed to how much renovations cost in other areas of the country? I like Joanna's decorating style, but I have noticed that she does tend to repeat some elements such as white subway tile with dark grout, and a huge over-sized clock on a wall somewhere. I always wonder if people keep those decorative old books that she uses for accent pieces?

There used to be a series of commercials for a large real estate firm, might have been Century 21 or some other, years ago that consisted of a little girl all dressed up in grownup clothing showing her outdoor playhouse to her prospective "clients" - another young boy and girl. One of the phrases that she used to describe her "house" was that it had "high ceilings and low floors". Every time a HH exclaims about the high ceilings, I always ask myself, "But does it also have low floors?" LOL That's one of the first thing they look for - good entertaining space. They've never lived in that state or country. If it's a new country, neither of them can speak the language, yet they expect to entertain hordes. I always wonder about those folks who need that outside balcony in order to grill. I don't know what the rules are everywhere, but in my town, they don't allow any grills on rental apartment balconies or patios. They consider it a fire hazard.

Did she sell a property in Hawaii? I know they mentioned that she had to go to work when her boyfriend died to support herself and her daughter with Hawaii's cost-of-living, so he was evidently making good money if she had been able to stay home. I figured if he had some life insurance and if she sold their home, then she would have a nest egg. Selling all their household goods in Hawaii means that they probably had much lower moving costs. And the daughter is probably getting Social Security survivors benefits which could be used to cover the higher HOA fees. She could actually "be" on a budget, in that the money she has, has to last until her daughter is old enough to support herself. She could have included private schooling in that budget. ;)

I missed the beginning of that show so I don't know why it was so important for him to have a yellow school bus, but as I was watching that show I was wondering what his neighbors are going to think of that yellow eyesore visible from their back windows, and also wondering if he's going to be bitten in the rear by any town ordinances that prevent commercial vehicles from being stored in residential areas.

I always wonder what the second floors look like, because they only seem to work on the first floor. I have to admit to a sneaking sense of "ha ha" when they show the couple that first home that contains all of their wishlist and they are shocked by the cost. I don't feel sorry for them because they obviously haven't done any homework at all into what houses cost. And isn't it amazing how none of the couples can see beyond what is actually in front of them, when Jonathan is trying to describe what can be done with the houses? Their vision is immediately stopped by walls, paint colors and dead bugs. If I had a contractor with his name on the line like Jonathan who was guaranteeing that my home would be remodeled within 5-6 weeks, I would jump on that offer. I'm watching the rebuilding being done after Superstorm Sandy and there are people with small cottages (500 sq. ft) who have had contractors working on their homes for almost a year. The contractors around here have so overbooked themselves that you're lucky if they give you a day's work per week on your house. What I do like about the show is that it is made obvious that the brothers are taking the couples around to a lot of potential remodels - not just the magic three potential purchases houses like House Hunters.

I wasn't that fond of either of them the first year they appeared on the air, but I think the Brother vs. Brother show humanized them a bit more and gave me more of a sense of separation of their personalities, so when I watch them on Property Brothers they are less annoying.

OMG! Hildi! I would have come at her with a baseball bat if she was the one who worked on my house. Remember that one where she nailed LP albums to an entire wall, and when they did one of those "where are they now" shows, the woman said that they pulled all the records off and had to patch and spackle the wall because of all the holes in it. Or that thing she did with the feathers? Holy heck, her and her design visions! I remember last year with B vs B, when one team didn't finish properly, the brother had his construction team finish up the work. I still don't have a person on the show this season whom I'm rooting for. And I'm getting tired of contestants with one word names, like Six. And what's with Peggy - does she do anything else but make sad faces and cry? I think that two people don't want to work on the same project because they want to get all the credit for it and don't want to have to accommodate anyone else's design ideas.

I was wondering about that whole tourism bit the husband plans to do. I'm sure it's a nice place to visit, but once you've seen the statues, what's there to do, other than relax? Take some surfing lessons from a woman who's sole qualification seems to be that she claims to be the first woman to surf there? Wah-hoo. I looked up accommodations there and it looks like a lot of it of staying in other peoples' homes. If he's not even going to have a full-time internet connection, how is he going to deal immediately with any travel problems that might occur? Bet they fix up her house and start booking rooms out of it. ---------------- Anyone else getting tired of the Australian ones where some single person decides to move to the Gold Coast, or the Wonderful Coast, or the SuperDuper Coast, or the Best-Coast-in-the-World, without having any job waiting for them? And how are these people going to make their rent, pay their utilities and afford all their clubbing by giving massages or teaching para-sailing? Does Australia just allow anyone to arrive and stay???

My mom did the same thing with us - we were always being told to go play until the food was ready. My mom loved us, but she didn't want us underfoot all the time. Then again, my childhood wasn't as structured and as regimented as the lives of children are today. Title IX hadn't been passed so there were no formal sports activities that girls could participate, few families in my neighborhood could afford private dance or music lessons, and there was no Girl Scout group in my area. Other than school, we had nothing but free time in which to amuse ourselves, and since mothers were usually home and dads usually worked nearby, it wasn't that important to schedule "family time" because we were around each other most of the time. Maybe that whole line-of-sight thing has a strong element of guilt to it since both parents usually work now, and are away from the home for much longer periods of time. I mean, there was no such thing as after-care when I was a kid because there wasn't much of a need for it. Your grandparents or a neighbor usually handled it if it was necessary.

What's with all these women afraid of ghosts and the men afraid of zombies?

Thanks for that info. I always figured that they must be getting something financial out of it. Imagine how much further that $25,000 would go if they were in the Waco TX and could go on the Fixer Upper show. I swear, that couple seems to remodel a home for what it costs for the contractor to merely walk in the door in one of those California HHR shows.

Those people with their obsessions regarding the kitchens being open so they can participate in the rest of the family's activities crack me up. I mean, really, how long does it take any of us nowadays to prepare a meal? It's not like it was back in the day when you had to butcher your own chicken and bake your own bread. What are world-shattering fun are they going to miss? Their significant other and/or children staring at the TV while they wait for the meal? I would like HH to quiz the children of these people and find out how many of them want their parents hovering within their sight-lines at all times - lol.

Yes, that final pattern was hideous. It would have been better not to have used it at all, and just waited until they could afford a bigger piece.

Oh, I hate those beds-and-sofas-of-a-thousand-pillows! First of all, in those bedrooms there's never any obvious place to store them - other than throwing them in a corner on the floor. I sure as heck wouldn't want to have to put them on and off the bed every single day. And second, it is darned awkward to sit on a sofa that's filled with pillows. I don't like pillow-back sofas for just that reason. I always figured that if I ever built my own home, I would put in one of those showers that is so large that you don't even need a curtain or a door, because the water would never be able to splash out of it. One thing that drives me crazy is when a couple is shown banging into each other in the kitchen as they try to prepare a meal. Every time I see that I say to myself, "figure out which one of you is cooking tonight and the other one just get out of the kitchen!"

I just caught the tail end of one tonight where the wife was going through the rooms of the house they chose, waving a burning bunch of sage and trying to lay any ghosts that were there.

Oh, I'm so glad that you folks saw the Yoga Lady one! I was virtually screaming at the TV because she was such a twit. Given how long they would have had to have been in that cat apartment to get the shots done, she didn't seem to be having any allergic reaction to them. Maybe her allergy is just another thing that makes her special? I thought it was rather sad how she was fixated on getting a man. I pity the poor fool who is drawn into her orbit. -------- Re the Easter Island folks, the wife kept saying how she didn't want to be far away from her family lands whenever they looked at a house - yet she had been living in freaking Sweden for years! What, all of a sudden being on the same small island in the Pacific as the rest of her kin is somehow farther away than Sweden??