<p>boys are sooo much easier than girls…as if you all didn’t know that already!! lol</p>
<p>Friend roomed with best friend from high school - it was a disaster. Best friend decided to party now that parents were not around to supervise, brought boys to the room, drank, etc. A random roommate would have been better</p>
<p>^ A random roommate could have done the exact same things, though I suppose that would not be a friendship damaged int e end.</p>
<p>I’ve lived with random roommates every year, and each experience has been excellent. In fact, the only time I didn’t have a good experience was when I voluntarily roomed with a friend, which ended in total disaster for our friendship.</p>
<p>I admit, though, that I’ve been lucky. I’ve never gotten the random roommate from hell. All of them have been normal, down-to-earth guys. I’ve never had any issues that were even remotely major, but if I did, I feel confident that talking with them would’ve sorted things out.</p>
<p>Generally, for any roommate - random or friend - talking solves problems. Saying ‘hi’ to each other when you’re in an apartment or engaging in small talk if you’re in a dorm or suite goes a long way in making the year enjoyable. If there are issues, sit down and talk them out. Sadly, I learned the hard way that this doesn’t work all the time; talking only made things worse with my friend roommate, which is all the more ironic since we’re guys, and talking is supposed to be the civilized method of guy problem solving.</p>
<p>I would not say that I am very close friends with any of my random roommates. I don’t think you have to be to have a good roommate relationship. The key is balancing personal space with friendliness, and the way to do that is through communication.</p>
<p>I’ve lived with TWO random roommates, my third is a friend that I requested. We weren’t very close friends and he does his own thing, so he’s not clingy and we really respect each other’s space. </p>
<p>Don’t be afraid. When you first meet each other be open and honest about what you expect from each other. Remember to tell each other “the house rules”, i.e. drinking, brining guests to stay over, when you sleep, music volume, sleeping habits, windows open/closed, the heater/AC, etc. Don’t forget to mention the smaller things, too, such as taking out the trash and/or borrowing each other’s possessions. </p>
<p>My RA was really good about this b/c she made each of us sit down and talk to her about all these different issues. TALK now, rather then FIGHT later! Have fun, be open minded, if something bothers you, TELL the roommate!</p>