Dialogue: Home is where the heart is as times get tough

The dollar is plunging, petrol prices are rocketing, young people are leaving like lemmings off a cliff and the Olympic wounds are still hurting. Let's face it, we are officially in the doldrums and it will take more than a few hot days and some medals at the Paralympics to drag us out.

But what happens when the going gets tough? The tough get going - to the garden centre, that is.

It's a reflex action. We are losing control of the big picture so we simply make the small picture look better. In consumer-trend-speak it's called cocooning or fortressing - where we head to the safety and comfort of our homes when it gets ugly out there.

While those who are footloose and fancy-free can run for the hills, most have commitments in New Zealand (as opposed to being committed to New Zealand), meaning they have no choice but to batten down the hatches and prepare for hard times. And they may as well sweat it out in nice surroundings.

All this was first reflected in the magazines we bought. While the sales of Metro and some other more cerebral publications stagnated, up popped a flurry of publications that showed pretty pictures of nice homes or simply reported on how to build a pagoda.

And now we witness the Kiwi obsession with what my television-executive friend calls "lifestyle programming" (she means TV shows about homes and gardens).

For some time now our airwaves have been jammed with programmes about real life in the suburbs. Sounds a bore but they are strangely addictive. There is the "hot tip" genre such as Maggie's Garden Show and Location Location Location and then the more "hands-on" concept shows such as Ground Force and Changing Rooms. And the new contender Hot Property mixes both. Who can resist tips on selling your home for the maximum price with minimum outlay? And this show has the actual property owners in overalls doing at least some of the work.

Although some of these shows have been ripped off from overseas, New Zealanders have an unusual fascination with "lifestyle" television. It taps into our do-it-yourself DNA. We have always been a great DIY nation - like sport it was something we knew how to do. Of course, even this is changing.

It's all very well for Ground Force to show a happy working bee but can you imagine trying to get the neighbours to help to dig the new swimming pool? ("Yoo-hoo! What are you doing on Saturday?" ... Slam.)

In this day and age everyone stays on their own patch. And besides, no one really knows how to DIY anyway. The new generation of nesters now can't be relied upon to knock up a fence or install a smoke alarm without following very specific instructions. They haven't been taught, haven't had the time to learn or haven't needed to, as they have lived through an era of kitset furniture and Hire a Hubby.

So the concept of DIY has morphed into do-it-for-me and what these lifestyle media provide is inspiration and ideas which viewers can then get help in to emulate.

Someone once told me that the first sign of aging is when you no longer automatically chuck out junk mail but give it a quick once-over to avoid missing hot hardware or garden bargains. The second sign must surely be holidaying the old-fashioned way - taking time off just to stay at home.

But this is less about age and more about creating a safe haven. Now more than ever, in the days of poor job security, credit-card debt, and retirement looming, one's home represents the ultimate security.

Before they even think of saving for retirement home-owners want to pay off the mortgage - and it's a race against time to do so. It may be a short-sighted investment strategy but it's a case of "Well, if it all turns to custard at least I will have a roof over my head."

They say that those with true inner peace are of no fixed abode. That may be okay for the Dalai Lama, but for many of us "My home is my bunker."

And we are pouring money into our homes, with home security systems, home office systems and home entertainment systems, as if there was no tomorrow.