Friday Five: Rent Requirements

We are looking for a place to rent. There are a lot of possibilities, so we have to narrow them down. At the same time it will probably be a short-term lease so we're not looking to stay there forever.

The location is important. I would like somewhere with trees and close proximity to water. It is also paramount that I be able to walk to the shops/cafes and there is a bit of a village feel, rather than a soulless suburb in a cultural wasteland.

But let's focus solely on the house - and preferrably it is a detatched house rather than an appartment or a terrace. Although, of course, we could mostly live anywhere if necessary, there are some things that are very high on the wish list, and yes, I realise this is exactly what we own.

5 Things I Want in a House:

1. Three bedrooms - our room, guest room and office (preferrably one with an ensuite)
2. Open plan living areas - I'm happy to be in the kitchen cooking if I can still mingle with the conversation in the front room; good flow to the outdoor area also works for entertaining
3. A garage or large lockable shed - I don't care about the car, but we need somewhere safe and dry to put the bikes (and the beer)
4. A bath - it's not a bathroom if it hasn't got a bath
5. Must take pets - our cat goes where we go; that really is non-negotiable

American television

Last night was the last of the season of Boston Legal. I have been following that programme with interest as one of the best programmes to come out of America since M*A*S*H.

I love the acting and the scriptwriting. I know it is ludicrous but it doesn’t pretend to be anything else. It is a great drama full of comedy and issues and, unusual in American dramas, satire.

I also enjoy House, Brothers and Sisters, and Desperate Housewives.There is a glossy glamour to all of these shows which combine some good acting and assured directing.

Hugh Laurie is a wonderfully cantankerous old man, and his American accent isn’t too bad either – someone I know recently expressed surprise that he was British – but then she is 22 and has no memory of his comedy excellence from A Bit of Fry and Laurie onwards.

I know that Brothers and Sisters is emotionally manipulative, and yet I am prepared to be seduced by this big dysfunctional family with their overwhelming problems and their underpinning love for each other. I can even tolerate Calista Flockhart, who isn’t as annoyingly irritating in this as she usually is.

And I could watch Rob Lowe ad infinitum – I have been a fan ever since my teenaged days of watching The Outsiders and believing that nobody understood me. I was horrified recently when my mum confessed to having a thing for him too – it’s just not right to fancy the same blokes as your mum! I told her to leave me Rob Lowe and Robert Carlyle; she can have Robert Redford and Sean Connery.

I can even persuade my husband to watch Desperate Housewives, although he pretends to watch it under sufferance. He is not so secretly hoping that Eva Longoria will get her kit off and Teri Hatcher will keep hers on. I recently read that Calista Flockhart auditioned for the part of Susan Mayer, but lost the role to Teri Hatcher. Interesting…

Horror of all horrors, I have just taken the on-line test to see which Deperate Housewife I am, and it turns out I am Susan! Best not tell my husband.