When I first got the news that I was in going to be a triple dorm room, I cried for a solid hour. I was already nervous about having to live with one other person, let alone two. No matter how much my mom tried to tell me about her own positive experience living in a triple during her freshman and sophomore years of college, I was actually inconsolable.
My first conversations with my roomies were awkward and forced, and the more I got to know them, the more nervous I got. They both like rap music and partying? I was certain that Housing and Res Life had made an incredible mistake matching us up.
Then we finally met each other in person and…I was still not excited about living in a triple. They both seemed to get along with each other, banding together and inviting people into our room when I wanted to be antisocial and watch Netflix. I would keep to myself, and I even had thoughts of asking to move rooms to a quieter freshman area on campus. But thank goodness I stuck it out because all it took was a little give and take on all ends for the three of us to finally start understanding each other. After loosening up and deciding to actually enjoy myself a little bit, I found out that these two girls were actually pretty cool. Soon enough we were taking group trips to the market, coming up with inside jokes (usually about boys we thought were cute), and gossiping like we had been friends for years.
There can still be some issues, which happens with all roommate situations. For example, me and one of my roommates like the room to be cold, while the other (who just so happens to be right next to the heater) likes it to be warmer. Another instance is general room cleanliness. Just because now there are now two other people living with me, I am not automatically a neat person, and I definitely feel bad for having the messiest desk in the room. Being messy has become sort of a joke, but I do try to clean up when I know it’s gone too far and having two people silently guilting me into it does help.
We have found that it is easier to be “roommate goals” when there are more of us. We can always count on at least one other person from our room being in one of our classes, which makes turning in homework on time and holding each other accountable a lot easier. Not a week goes by that we don’t have some sort of picnic on floor, just recently for the super bowl we ordered pizza and wings (of which I ate an impressive 16 wings) and watched the game in the middle of our room. Whether we are doing laundry, going out (even though I beg them every weekend to stay in), or just chilling in our room sending each other memes, we are always sharing a good laugh and getting into some sort of trouble.
At this point, I can safely say that my two roommates are some of my best friends that I have made at Kenyon, despite our initial differences. These girls have helped me through boy drama and supported my crazy schedule and I don’t know what I would do without them.
Image Credit: Juliana Delsante, Annmarie Morrison