I will never live in a tiny house. I lived in small
apartments and I feel like I did my time and now I’d like to live somewhere
more spacious. When we were looking for our current house, it was my goal not
to buy anything anyone could describe as “cute” when walking through the door
because in real estate, “cute” means “small.” I don’t need a McMansion but I’m
never living in 200 square feet unless I absolutely have to.
We were watching HGTV when there was an ad for some kind of
tiny house show. The couple on it said, “We’re redefining success.” That’s a
bit of self-regard, don’t you think? You’re
changing the definition of success just because you live in a dollhouse? I’m
pretty sure a generally accepted definition of success is not having to cook
dinner on a hotplate while pooping in the toilet next to the Murphy bed.
I don’t mean to make light of people who have no choice but
to live in a small area. But when I see these tiny house people on TV, I don’t
see some couple down on their luck who have to live in a cramped tenement and
are just getting by. These people seem almost like austerity tourists, people
who have had the big house and now want to live somewhere adorable so they can
spend the rest of their money traveling the world, whereas people who can’t
afford a huge living space don’t have the disposable cash for the
extracurricular activities.
These people also said, “Spend less time working and more
time living.” Yes, but living where? I understand that we should spend some time
smelling the roses but I personally don’t mind working if it will buy me a
decent house. I also understand the idea of spending money on experiences and
not things but I don’t share it. Maybe I’m too much a part of my generation and
hanging onto tangible possessions.
You know an experience I enjoy? Coming home from working a
40-hour week and jumping in the pool. It’s a lot of work and expense to
maintain a pool and a yard but I don’t mind because the reward is getting to
have a pool and a yard. My time at work gives me money to do all that and
facilitate living.
Acquiring things is certainly not the goal in life but I
still like having things. I could go to the library for all my books but it
took me decades to acquire my own library and I like to have my own books to reread
when I want. I also get some pleasure looking at the bookshelves in our house.
I’m glad Steve finally moved that piano to our house so he can start playing
and that piano would not have fit into a tiny house.
We saw the tiny house commercial during Love It or List It, which is on the opposite spectrum where some of
the residents seem so spoiled. It’s fun to watch and love or hate the
homeowners. One person found an absolutely perfect house but it was just
slightly outside the ideal neighborhood near work and I thought of my hour
commute and wanted to throw something at the screen. Then there are the couples
who have a fit when they can’t have a hot tub in their unfinished attic or a
moat or something. I know it’s all staged but it’s still amusing. I guess the
lesson is that you can’t have it all but you can have enough.
So today I’ve criticized people whose houses are too small
and people who are unsatisfied with their huge castles. There is no pleasing
me.
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