18. Staring at a screen by yourself = sad. Staring at a screen together = bonding.
From Lord of the Rings to The Room, movies can be a great way to let off some steam. So, if your roommate doesn’t mind the company, you may find that roasting an old Disney or horror film becomes a great pastime for you and your roommate(s), or at least a night worth remembering.
17. They can hear you.
Whether you’re badmouthing them to someone or you’re extremely loud for any…other reason, your roommates can hear you, it will be awkward, and that type of silence met with a lack of eye contact, every day, isn’t something anyone wants to go through.
16. They know where you sleep (quite literally)
If you have a class in the morning, most people will be more than happy to learn your sleep schedule and adjust noise levels accordingly. Conversely, the best part of waking up is not having someone else’s tampon in your cups.
15. You don’t want to be that kid
Everyone has a bad roommate story. Don’t be one of them. If you are, it’s pretty much guaranteed that your living habits will spread all over campus, your roommate will leave you, and absolutely NO ONE will want to room with you ever, ever again.
14. Hopefully, you would just want to be a good roommate.
And want that good roommate-ism to be returned. Just as the Golden Rule should apply in life, it applies here too. Whenever you talk to or about your roommate(s), ask yourself, “Would I want this said about or to me in the way I’m saying it?” If you get defensive answering that question, chances are your roommate(s) will too.
13. You will get locked out of your room, and you will need someone to call that isn’t campus security.
The amount of times you will be locked out of your room looking like a kid who’s had their birthday cake stepped on will be too frequent to admit to campus security and too embarrassing to admit to yourself. So, you’re going to need their number for the option to tag along to whatever they’re currently doing or to at least get their key for prompt return later.
12. Roommate security for the years to come.
If you have even a slightly decent relationship with your current roommates, they’ll likely want to continue the same living situation. Why? Because you know each other’s quirks. Whatever kinds of habits you have learned from your current roommates are already ones you can live with, so why not stick with them?
11. Sharing/borrowing things is a lot easier.
Ask first (I don’t care if they’re not home. Call, send a text, send a SnapChat, make a smoke signal, shout it to the heavens, and WAIT FOR A REPLY), but if you’re out of something and you haven’t gotten to the store or if your roommate just wants you to look great in something of theirs, it’s a lot easier to ask – for anything, really – if your relationship up until then has been nothing but pleasant.
10. Someone to travel with (to the store or back home).
Even if neither/none of you have a car, it’s still very comforting and a lot safer to travel in packs. Whether you’re going clothes shopping or just taking a walk somewhere in your city, there is actually a lot of strength in numbers, especially if you’re a woman. You may even end up with some pretty interesting stories and inside jokes when you travel in packs
9. They will look out for you.
Hopefully you’re not getting sloppy drunk on a Friday night or bringing questionable dates back to the room, but if you are, you’re going to want to make sure you’ve got someone in your corner to tuck you in without vomit on your shirt or to formally ban the campus creep from your sleeping quarters.
8. Complaints sound a bit less like complaints when you’re talking to a friend and not to someone you “just happen to live with”.
Poll: Which would you rather hear?: “I’m setting up a meeting with our RA about how your friends are always over and really loud during quiet hours,” or, “Hey, guys. Could you keep it down, please? I’m trying to sleep.” If you answered the latter, then chances are your roommate(s) would answer the same.
7. Your RA’s are there to mediate, not babysit.
RA’s are beautiful human beings who have taken on the huge job of trying to keep everyone in a hall calm and relatively happy. So, tracking them down to tell them about every issue you haven’t even tried to mediate yourself can be a bit tiring for you and you’re not going to be exactly winning them over for the lack of communication.
6. Being passive-aggressive will not get you results or sympathy.
I’m going to need some people in the back row to repeat that. Part of being nice to a person is knowing when to speak up for yourself with respect and consideration for the other person. If college is a kind of pre-adulthood, everyone needs to be an adult and talk it out or leave the situation, because if you can do something about it, no one is going to baby you.
5. They can introduce you to people.
Whether at a small college, and they’re introducing you to the entire baseball team or you’re at a big school, and they’re introducing you to the Creative Writing club, roommates can be your key to a better social life if you want it.
4. If one or both of you are busy, you won’t even see them much anyway.
Honestly, between classes, studying, and everything you may or may not join, your room may just be somewhere to lay your head at night. In this case, the short interactions between your roommate(s) and you don’t need to be at each other’s throats. There’s no need to bring cattiness into an environment where everyone already has enough stress to make a new fault line.
3. You significantly decrease your chances of sitting at a dining hall alone.
There’s nothing more socially disappointing than searching high and low through the dining hall, not seeing anyone you know, having people look at you in your fruitless search, and then sitting alone in friendless shame. If you and your roommates are on good terms, you could at least get a wave over by a familiar face.
2. You’ll want someone who you can trust with your stuff.
This also depends somewhat upon the nature of your roommate(s), but there’s no denying that the chance for sabotage is high when you leave your things with another person. Coming home to a broken personal item or a dirty living space after you just cleaned usually isn’t ideal. So, you want to make sure your roommates at least respect you enough to respect your stuff while you’re out doing 11 billion things.
1. They can become some of the best friends you have.
There is a saying that goes, “Don’t expect to be friends with your roommates,” and while that’s true, they can become really good friends. There are certain sides to you that your roommate(s) will see that a rare few have, including family. But whether they bring home a leftover plate of cookies from an event or you nerd out over the same episode of Doctor Who every once and a while, it’s nice to have a safe space and/or a warm hug inches from your bed.
(By Denitria Barnett)
