14 Aug 2020

Living with mates can feel like the pearly gates of heaven have opened to you. You're never alone, you can throw spontaneous shindigs, boring errands are made fun... The list of perks is endless.

But on the flip side, sometimes it can feel like you're on the highway to hell... Okay okay, I may be being dramatic here but once my roommate/mate ate all my cheese... I'll discuss this further later...

There are ups and downs. Here is what it's truly like to live with your mates!

Your social life is waaay more convenient

You can pre-drink together. You can split Ubers to the same events. You can host kick-ons together. This. Is. The. DREAM! 

Do you need to talk to someone? Don't worry, your mate is across the hall. Do you want to binge a tv show? They'll probably attend since you share the TV. Do you feel like some late night ice-cream? You can rock up to the supermarket together in your pyjamas. Are you scared to go to a certain party alone? They can come as your plus one! The convenience is golden!

Boring errands are a vibe

I would rather gouge my eyes out than hang out the washing, scrub the bathroom or do the dishes. Then again, I think we've established that I am a little dramatic. But alas, these monotonous, adult tasks have to be done... What a drag.

But! With your roommate/mate by your side, mind-numbing tasks become a social gatho! My roommate and I go shopping together every Thursday night after uni and share a days' worth of stories and rants. Bless.

Sharing is caring

Whether that be a pizza for dinner, some clothes to wear, shampoo, some cheese... Although sometimes this can get a little out of hand... this leads me to my next point.

Communication can be hard

Since I'm not too red hot at confrontation, I find it difficult to bring up issues to my roommates. Keep in mind that whilst living with someone, no matter how close you are with them, they'll always annoy you (and vice versa). It's natural to become agitated when you're in such close encounters with these people 24/7. 

It's hard, at least to me, to ask my friend to stop eating all my dang food! Sharing is caring but seriously, my friend ate all my cheese once and I made nachos before realising there was none left and I'd already had a bad day at work... THE AUDACITY!! 

Talking about boundaries (eg. "please don't eat my cheese") and having a list of separate tasks to do each week totally smoothed out living with mates. Communication is key people! I know two people that moved in as friends and bottled up all their annoyances until finally exploding. They still don't talk... Let that be a cautionary tale.

Finding space can sometimes be a little difficult

Spending so much time with your mates can leave you a lil' drained every now and then! You-time is essential but sometimes, peace and quiet is a little hard to come by. 

You're never lonely

Even though sometimes you may need some peace, cons aside, living with your best mate/s will guarantee that you'll never be lonely. You always have someone to come home to after a horrid day at work. You have someone to share your weird dreams with in the morning. You have someone that will randomly cook dinner for you, or clean your room, or buy you your favourite chocolate bar.

Living with best friends truly does make life all the more groovy. Bless!