I have always been a fan of architecture and interior design. I am constantly daydreaming of my… ‘dream’ home. I alternate between two different fantasies: 1. An apartment in either Los Angeles or Manhattan - one with exposed brick, huge windows that disperse immense amounts of natural light, and a very minimalist interior design. 2. A large Spanish-style beach house on the west coast - painted a mix of bright whites and calm blues, with massive windows and white curtains, and - again - a minimalist interior design.

While these both may sound more extravagant than my current home in Northeast Ohio, they distract me too much from my current living situation. It’s certainly not ideal, and I certainly wish that my family and I had a nicer home than we do now - one with sufficient electric, better lighting, and a larger, more comfortable interior for 4 adults. But while this may not be changing anytime soon, I like to watch networks like HGTV for inspiration and a way to ‘get away’ to the fantasy inside my own imagination.

Shows like “House Hunters” and “Property Brothers” are two of my favorites. But I’m not always a fan of the homebuyers featured in every episode. Some of these buyers are pretty flexible when it comes to what they want in a home, with only a few minor ‘non-negotiables’ like location, amount of rooms, and floor plan. But I can't tell you how many times I’ve watched an episode where the guest continually makes ridiculous requests that not only make the realator’s job hell, but also makes me appreciate what my family and I do have.

I recall one particular episode of "House Hunters" which involved a potential homebuyer dismissing an entire house because of brass door knobs. Seriously. Freaking doorknobs. Also, if I remember correctly, in that same episode, that homebuyer’s husband also said 'no' to any master bedroom that had windows because he ‘hated natural light’.

OK. It's one thing to have a couple ideas of how your dream home would look, but for God’s sake, doorknobs? Sunlight?!

I also love when potential homebuyers are shown massive, elegant homes with 4 bedrooms, 2.5 baths, a finished basement, an expansive kitchen, a pool, a guest home, helicopter pad, bowling alley, home theater, aquarium, theme park, a ‘birds nest’ on the roof in order to look down on the rest of society, and their very own personal Batcave - and its still not enough.

“I was just hoping for a little more square footage”… “I wanted granite countertops, not quartz”… “the driveway only holds 4 cars, not 6”… “This wine cellar can’t possibly hold my entire collection”…

Look, I get it - if you’ve worked your entire life (or married into money, as I’ve observed many times on the shows) in order to finally purchase your own dream escape, you have the right to want specific details and aspects of the house the way that you originally imagined. But at some point you have to ask yourself ‘am I being a bit too ridiculous?’

This shouldn't have to be said again, but there are a countless number of people across this globe who don't have somewhere to sleep tonight. No roof over their heads. No shelter from the storm. No place to call home.

If you’ve always dreamt of having a home theater but can’t find a home with one pre-built, sanction a room from your house and convert it yourself - and appreciate the space you do have to complete the project in the first place. If you are determined to have granite countertops compliment that Olympic-sized kitchen you just purchased, don’t throw a tantrum. Go to Home Depot and appreciate the workspace you do have to prepare meals in.

But if you are so freaking determined to have a blacked-out bedroom buy some freaking curtains. And if you absolutely hate brass doorknobs, so much to the point of refusing to even look at a potential home… well, I don’t think you should be a homebuyer.

I continue to enjoy HGTV for the content and aesthetic of it all. I spend hours watching the various programming whenever I have some downtime between classes, work, etc. And the shows have given me some cool inspirations that I genuinely had never thought about before. But I have also come to appreciate the home that my family and I do have. Its far from perfect, and I am certainly still in a hurry to get out and begin my life - wherever that may be.

But at least I have a window in my bedroom for those beautiful summer days, a roof over my head for those not-so-beautiful winter days, and a door that leads to my own bedroom - with perfectly usable doorknobs.

And yes, they're old brass handles.