Here in the UK there are some minor TV channels that probably have only ONE VIEWER. One such is DMAX; and I think the only viewer is ME!
Some while ago I discovered a programme called 'Alaska: Homestead Rescue'. It's vaguely similar to the UK's DIY SOS, but instead of ordinary householders in need of help, the ones requiring assistance are failing US 'Homesteaders' whose ramshackle woodland cabins are usually no more than falling-down garden sheds, and their 'Homesteads' are more like Junkyards than Farmyards. So, along comes a trio of 'caped-crusaders', who, just like in DIY SOS, promise to make things better in just 7 days.
It has to be said that the majority of 'Homesteaders' around the world, are well organised and successful. But this programme searches-out the most hapless amongst them, for the sake of making 'interesting' viewing.
I've only seen a few of these programmes, but the lives and lifestyles of these particular featured Homesteaders is rudimentary to say the least. They tend to live off almost nothing, have a few hens, and scatter their collection of scruffy junk and belongings over a wide area. No effort is ever made to create an enclosed Farmyard, where all their barns, animals, and growing areas are protected from the wildlife that lives around them. The very idea of 'Landscaping' seems totally alien to them. When you live in an area that is full of Bears, Cayotes, Wolves, Poisonous Snakes, etc, the first thing anyone would usually do is to create a safe enclosure for themselves, their crops, and their animals. But no......
In many ways I do approve of these people's choice of lifestyle, but NOT of how they go about it. It costs nothing to be tidy, or make your exterior environment as attractive as possible. It might cost a bit to bring-in water, or solar power, or fix the roof, but to live amongst a mess is not the route to a decent standard of living. So they write to Mr Fix-It (Marty Raney, his daughter Misty, and son Matt, above) and they come to help; and, of course, to make a TV programme about themselves.
Frankly, by the time they leave, these Homesteads don't look very different to how they were the week before. They may have a new precarious source of water, a veg' patch, and a few solar panels, but life rarely seems to improve for the residents. In fact the whole TV programme is more of a back-slapping exercise for the Raney family themselves, than for improving the lives of these Homesteaders.
In DIY SOS, the families end-up, after a week, with a completely new, fully-fitted, re-designed, luxury home; but, of course, they do have about 100 volunteer workers. I think Mr Raney should take a look at a few of their episodes!
A bunch of old hippies with big beards, and a desire to live off the land, is de rigueur in this TV programme. If that 'Lights your Fire' then AHR could be for you! I must say; there's something really nice about seeing people happy to live in tumble-down shacks, even though they're desperate for some running water and a useable loo.
Does 'Homestead' always have to mean 'Ramshackle'?..... I don't see why it should!
Verdict: 3/10 Good for a rainy (Raney?) afternoon siesta.
16 comments:
That sounds like mildly interesting entertainment. Now and again we get programmes like that on one of the satelitte channels. Alaska is a favourite place for tv cameras filming life in extreme climates but I haven't seen this one.
It's better than the endless discussions of the latest scandal or conflict
It's a shame there isn't an equivalent DIY SOS team in south west France. Then the TV cameras could descend upon your neglected rural homestead to update the decor and chuck out the old furniture - replacing it with cool Scandinavian items from IKEA. The French might call the programme, "Le Grand Changement".
I wouldn't bother watching it. Not worth it, unless, like me, you use it for soporific purposes.
Sadly there are loads of French owned homes just like that. They take a lovely old house, and convert it into a modern bungalow. It's heartbreaking. Our little house is one of the few that still retains all it's original features.
"Our little house is one of the few that still retains all it's original features." Isn't that just another way of saying that you live in a museum of rural life?
In a way; yes. We heat the house with wood, often cook with wood, and have the minimum of mod-cons. On the other hand we have Skylink internet, a flushing loo, a Microwave cooker, and Roku TV. A sophisticated version of homesteading.
I haven’t seen the programme but I tend to agree with you. As you said it doesn’t take much to try and make your surroundings attractive. THey also look as if they could both do with a haircut and good scrub down.
Apparently it is a bit of a trend in the US, he goes out and does manly stuff around the farm, she tends to the chickens and home schools. I recently read an amusing novel Yesteryear which is about this. A couple have a TV programme about their homestead life.
Have you watched any Escape to the Chateau?
I watched it when it first started, simply because it was a novel idea. Eventually it became a bit self-indulgent, and I lost interest. It was good in the beginning because they were tackling the essentials.
I love that show! Especially when they bring in the heavy equipment. At first my reaction is, "What is WRONG with you people! Clean up your mess!" Then the story unfolds and you find out these people have had something really shattering happen to them to make them hide away off grid. I like how Marty has a "teach them how to fish" attitude. Self-sufficiency. Imagine that instead of welfare? We used to have a vacuum (hoover) commercial here, "Life is dirty. Clean it up." I love the joy and the hope the folks are left with as Marty and his kids ride off into the sunset. Wouldn't it be fun to have your own bulldozer? :)
I've seen one or two episodes of that show, but it does seem to focus a lot on the presenters.
I actually enjoy some of the tv makover shows, particularly garden makeovers.
The worst one must be 'Money for Nothing' originally shown on BBC. And yesterday they rescued a fine looking antique chest of draws, decimating it by sanding it down and painting it in garish colours.
I find the mess (especially when it's everywhere) very off putting. The rest can be fun, but occasionally I simply despair at the laziness of the people.
The Money for Nothing 'restorers' are a bunch of hooligans. I've seen some real horror makeovers. You're right about the AHR presenters; it's more about them than the homesteaders.
Self sufficiency is hard work, and expensive, the idea seems simple, the reality is a lot of very hard work, or a need for rescue. You made your place in France liveable, by putting in a ton of work, and probably more money than you want to think about.
I've watched a few programs about people living off-the-grid and in the wilds. Unlike the program you describe the home/landowners are industrious hard-working people. They hunt and grow veggies for food, chop wood for heating and have water via a well or stream. They like the isolation/wilderness and self-sufficiency lifestyle.
You're right on both counts. It was A LOT of hard work, and it cost A LOT of cash.
That is the norm. The Raney's manage to find a different type of homesteader who are not quite so able.
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