Seriously, I used to abhor you. My mom was so obsessed with you when I was in high school; I would get my butt off of our super comfortable couch and go do something else when she put you on (looking back now, maybe she just put it on so I would go study or at least leave her alone to watch television in peace). "HGTV is on again?! You have got to be kidding me." *Cue eye roll, the infamous head shake, and major sass.* Who in his or her right mind would want to sit down and watch people redo houses, landscape their yards, build a deck, or--my least favorite show of all time--scourge the earth for one house they want to buy that has everything on their wish list, including granite counter tops (no, not those damn formica ones), a shotgun layout, and absolutely no grass in the yard (that's a real thing, I promise you. People ask for that in their dream homes).
I got to college and thought, oh, thank God, no more of you, HGTV. I'll have a normal roommate who watches normal things, like "Catfish," "Jersey Shore,"and "My Strange Addictions," and I did (I lucked out). But see, I live in a house of 60 plus people, and they are not all normal like my roommate and me. People in college, boys even, watch you. I'll never forget the first time you snuck up on me at college. I was walking down the hallway, minding my own business, when out of nowhere I heard that horribly familiar sound: "granite counter tops, hardwood flooring, and, of course, an open floor plan." This was just another annoying couple listing everything off of their wish list for their perfect home they are on the search for. I burst into the room the TV was blaring from and met two sets of boy eyes staring at me as I bellowed, "What the hell are you watching, and for the love of God, WHY?!" Apparently you are a thing that people of all ages watch, and dare I say it, enjoy. I am not one of those people.
Fast-forward two more summers, and here I am sitting with my family writing this article. What is everyone watching? "Megadecks." An hour ago, "House Hunters" was on. You are just blaring in my face as I write this article. The worst part? I don't even mind. Yes, I know, it is shocking, but I have become tolerant of you, HGTV. To some it might appear that I may even enjoy your station, but I refuse to go that far. I can tell you that I will sit down and watch ten episodes in a row of "Tiny House Hunters," and hate myself for every single minute of it. Who the hell wants to buy a tiny house, and who the hell wants to watch people shop for one? I am so disappointed in myself that when you are on the television, I do not get up and go elsewhere. I sit my butt down on the couch, ignore my responsibilities a little longer, and watch Tarek and his beautiful family flip houses. I yell at the TV when someone picks out tiles that I could never see in my own future house, and yes, I have succumbed to even putting things I like on my "someday" dream house wish list. I am not proud. I hate that you have the ability to make me sit down and obsess over how much money people are spending to make their deck "Mega" even when their house is not worth double the amount they are putting in to do it. I hate the way that you are, and I hate the way you have made me become.
Sincerely,
I still hate you no matter how much I watch you.