It was time to start looking for housing and preparing for the next year. Both of my roommates had decided to move, one to Gainesville and one to Port Charlotte, so I was left to find three people to live with. My other friend and I decided to live with each other and ended up with two random roommates.
1. They might not even be around.
One of my roommates basically lives with her boyfriend, so I have seen her about two times this year. Don't get me wrong, I am not complaining, we have less of a mess to worry about and more room in the fridge.
2. They might be around too much.
Sometimes I like to have peace and quiet and be home alone. Your roommate may be the person that takes mainly online classes and isn't involved on campus, so she's always home and always wants to talk.
3. They may end up being the biggest slob.
I'm not a clean freak, but coming home to a sink full of dishes and food all over the kitchen after a 12-hour shift is not the best. If you don't choose your roommate, you can't tell if they are messy before you live together and it's not the best. To avoid a complete freakout, establish a cleaning schedule or let them know to keep their mess contained in their own room.
4. You need to establish boundaries right off the bat.
It's really not great to come home to someone munching down on your bag of Lays. It's so important to establish things like if y'all are going to share things like paper towels, dish soap, shampoo, and food on basically your first day living together.
5. You don't have to be best friends.
I have found a lot of pressure from social media to try and be friends with my roommate, but the truth is that we just don't mesh. I can tolerate being around her, but I probably won't talk to her after this year, and I need to learn to not feel guilty about it.
6. Don't hesitate to communicate how you feel.
Bottling things up is never good. If your roommate does something that bothers you, let them know so they can change it and you guys can both move on. People can't read your mind, so just be honest and vocal about how you feel.
