I have a love/hate relationship with the “House Hunters” and “House Hunters International” programs on HGTV. I love to see the houses and apartments as the buyers tour them and shop for the perfect house, but their complaints about things such as paint color or no double-sinks in the bathroom never fail to infuriate me. “So change it after you buy the place,” I invariably grumble.
I particularly like to watch the international version of the show, especially when Americans are shopping for homes and apartments in other countries. Americans are many times unaware of how people in other countries live and that they can’t expect to find the typical American suburban house with all the bells and whistles when they're shopping in another country.
Nine times out of 10 on the show, the Americans shopping for an apartment in France will be disappointed that the washing machine is in the kitchen or the bathroom. (My daughter, her husband and their son have bounced around rental housing for several years now while my son-in-law is completing his degree. “I’d be so thrilled to have my own washing machine,” she told me after watching one of these shows. “I wouldn’t care if it was in the middle of the living room.”)
The American buyers on the show are usually dismayed when they see the typical French setup of a toilet in a room separate from the “bathroom,” which is, oddly enough, for bathing, and for washing clothes. And, of course, there are all the usual complaints about the small rooms, tiny kitchens, “only one bathroom” (!) and no garages that I hear on both the international and domestic shows.
It makes me want to shout: “Get over it!” As a person who grew up in a one-bathroom family (can you imagine?), I think we have forgotten that some things are luxuries, not necessities, and that a good quality of life will not necessarily result because you have more than one bathroom or because there are granite countertops in your kitchen.
I once read some tips in a travel guide about how to pack light when visiting Europe. The author suggested taking only sample-size toiletries to save space in your bag. Don’t worry if you run out, he wrote; they sell those things in Europe, too, and if they don’t, you might want to think about how millions of people get along every day without it, and then ask yourself why you think you need it.
The other day at Frugal, we were talking about the philosophy of frugal living, that it is not depriving yourself of anything, but rather learning what it is you need to live comfortably and forgo the nonessentials. We talked about how liberating it feels to downsize your life and get back to basics, and how the money you save as a result can be spent on the things you really need or want. Honestly, millions of people are happy with only one bathroom, and some of us would be thrilled with a washing machine in the living room.—Carol Wiley Lorente
5 comments:
darn it. I had a nice long post and then lost it. . helpful tip: highlight your text and copy it before hitting post.
I think I basically said that what we want or need is very individualistic. If someone *thinks* they want or need something then they do. This also means 2 things: 1. you can't know what others want or need and you do have the ability to adjust your own wants and needs. I'm a fan of realizing that having less stuff is often better and learning to enjoy what you have etc. I appreciate the sentiment but it doesn't do any good to judge others (and get angry about)on what they want or need. Just set a good example and be happy with your own lesser amounts of stuff.
It is interesting to think about the differences in culture and what different populations have for living spaces.
thanks. :)
My sister has an apartment in Minneapolis (in the US, not a foriegn country). She has a washer/dryer combo in the bathroom. I don't see what the big deal is. I also would love to have a washer at all. I really don't care what room it would be in. I, however, feel differently about the whole bathroom thing. While I don't need a full second bathroom, I like having a second toilet. My husband and I rented a very unfortunate place a few years back where the toilet almost never worked. It took 11 months to get the rental company to finally fix it. I would've given my eye teeth to have had a second toilet while we lived in that hell hole. I agree with "Gryphon", it all comes down to personal preferences.
I would have like it better if the first paragraph and the last paragraph were better connected so I knew when I started to read it that it really wasn't about HGTV House Hunters. Other than that it seems fine. Is this really what you are trying to sell?
I once worked with someone who said she'd never lived without a dishwasher and wall-to-wall carpeting. I guess by her standards my whole life has been one of deprivation, but it doesn't feel that way to me...
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