1. You don’t know where the dumpster is:
Do your part, take out the trash. Quietly ignoring the piling heap until your roommate is forced to drag three bags out at once is not a good way to keep the peace. Even if she puts more in the trash than you do, be a good mate and take thirty seconds out of your Netflix time to clean out the rubbish!
2. You also don’t know where the vacuum is:
As with the trash, you are contributing to the messiness of your place. Take turns vacuuming and sweeping. A few minutes each week will go a long way to improve the look and feel of not only your shared space, but also your relationship with your roomie.
3. You brought your pets with you to campus:
No matter how much you roomie claims to love the soft fur of your feline friend, leave Paws at home. Pets cause messes, require upkeep and aren’t as easily controlled as you think. Boxing one in a small dorm or apartment will make you and your roommate annoyed with the nocturnal habits of pets as well as the quick to set in stench of pet dander and litter boxes. The only exception to this is a mutual agreement to pick out a pet together, but even in this case, the idea of getting a cute puppy or kitten is often much more exciting than the day-to-day pet peeves (pun intended….) that accompany owning a fur ball. (Unless your cat vacuums for you, that is of course the exception).
4. You think you are being respectful… But actually…
Annoyed by your roommate? Tell her. Keeping it in, even if for the purpose of being respectful will only cause that irritation to fester and cause passive aggressive tension. It is always better to clear the air through an adult and respectful conversation rather than waiting for the other shoe to drop, resulting in a larger and escalated argument.
5. Your motto is “Sharing is Caring”:
Although you may ask your roomie first before “borrowing” her bag of chips, and she may kindly say yes, that does not mean she really wants to share her comfort food. Offering is one thing, but don’t expect to always be sharing all your food and personal items. Your roomie bought her stuff for herself, respect that, just as you shouldn’t have to always share your food and clothes with her.
6. Your schedule is her schedule:
Whether you abide by a strict sleeping schedule or prefer to subsist off intermittent naps, you cannot expect your roommate to always be on the same schedule as you. While it may be nice of her to turn off the lights and leave every time you wish to snooze, be aware that you aren’t respecting her schedule. Try to take your naps while she is in class and make sure to share your schedule in advance so that neither of you feels kicked out of the room. Same goes for studying; if your roomie is clearly studying, be a pal and put headphones in. Be considerate!
7. You are a “creative spirit”:
To put it bluntly, there is no excuse for not following a general conduct of cleanliness. Even if you have work right after class every day, even if you know where the jeans you wore last week are amongst your pile of clothes and books on the floor, even if you had to tear your room apart right before class to find that folder, even if you haven’t had any down time for the past month… There is no reason for not throwing your dirty clothes in a hamper or stacking your books and paper on your desk. Everyone has busy lives, but your roommate doesn’t deserve to be punished by staring at your messes. Clean up as you go: instead of throwing your clothes on the floor after a shower, put them directly in the hamper; instead of piling dishes in the sink after eating, at least make the effort to rinse them off so washing is easier later.
In conclusion, if you wanna be a stellar roomie, you shouldn’t only not bring your favorite animal with you to school, but more importantly, you should not act like an animal while at school… Be considerate and keep it clean!