Most people know how to be a good roommate, but here are stories from Salisbury University students where roommates took it a little too far.
House parties are common for college students. They can be a fun way to blow off some steam and meet new people through mutual friends.
They can also get out of hand very quickly.
Most residents prefer furniture to remain in the living room of apartments and houses, but an unbridled house party can cause a rearrangement.
Casey Tippett is a senior at SU who witnessed neighbors throw a couch off of their third story balcony, in celebration of the semester's end.
"On their last day in the apartment complex at University Orchard, they decided to throw the couch off the third story apartment and collectively transport it to the median in between all four apartment buildings to pose for pictures," Tippett said. "Everyone at the party was drinking, but the next day I watched them move out with the help of their mothers like nothing had happened."
Cleanliness and respecting boundaries are important aspects to being a good roommate. Not keeping up with dishes and walking into a roommate's space without permission are two surefire ways to complicate your living situation.
During Hope Wobbe's freshman year at SU, she lived with a girl whose boyfriend visited during the weekends.
"I remember sleeping at a friend's dorm, out of courtesy, because her boyfriend came to visit," Wobbe said. "When I came home early the next day, I saw her boyfriend completely naked in my bed without any kind of explanation."
Following several arguments with her roommate after the incident, she claims her roommate still does "not see the issue" with her boyfriend sleeping naked in Wobbe's bed.
After moving out of the dorms and finding an apartment the following year, Wobbe ran into several problems with the same person.
No one likes a messy sink, but when mold starts to grow all over the dishes and food scraps, it becomes a health and safety hazard.
"I was trying to prove a point that mommy and daddy aren't going to do your chores in the real world and that you need to do them yourself," Wobbe said. "I finally caved when the dishes became an extreme safety hazard because of a buildup of black and white fuzzy mold that covered almost every dish in the sink."
These issues caused Wobbe to rethink her living situation and find a new roommate for the upcoming year.
Subway always offers fast sandwiches for students on the go, making it a perfect snack or meal for dorm residents. Some students may even enjoy eating in bed but falling asleep with food can lead to sticky situations.
SU Senior Gracie Reyes witnessed her suite mate fall asleep with her sandwich leftovers on several occasions. It became such a recurring problem that food would accidentally, and sometimes intentionally, end up on the roommates' shared floorspace.
"Condiments, toppings and lunch meat would end up all over the sheets because she would not put away her leftovers," Reyes said. "Food would be left all over the floor and this led to a roach, grasshopper and mice infestation. It was super messy and gross to see."
Reyes described these incidents as bad, but less disturbing than what else she encountered. She also elaborated on the roommate not properly covering herself when walking around the dorm or not closing doors when using the facilities.
"She often would walk around naked without any regard to anyone else and would poop with the door wide open," Reyes said. "It was not something I was comfortable with at all and a big reason why I would not room with them in the future."
Heed the warning stories of these students if you wish to keep your living situation cordial or make use of these examples to lose a roommate in 10 days.
By JACK FIECHTNER
Gull Life editor
Photography courtesy of Ben Lausch
Comments