New city. New school. New living situation.
Hi, Iām Emma. I figured I should introduce myself briefly before diving into the fact that I lived with three roommates and am now down to two. BUT ANYWAYS, I am a transfer junior from a community college less than an hour away from Bradley. I am an Ad and PR major, my favorite color is green, and I now live with two strangers instead of three, which is why you are reading this article. Iāll get into it.
As a transfer, I didnāt really want to move into the dorms because…
A: Shared bathrooms, gross
B: Shared single room with a stranger, yikes
C: I would be one of the few non-teenagers living in the dorms, ew
But I was stressed. Off-campus housing means I am away from everything else, which can be a little isolating and uninspiring. I am also not the most self-motivated individual, so living with others was 100% necessary.Ā
Applications opened in February. I know no one going to school here, so I have no obvious options for who to live with. The way my housing contract worked was I had to know either who I was going to room with for having one to three roommates, or if I didnāt know, I would have to do a random roommate assignment with three people.Ā
After completing my application, I had been crossing my fingers and genuinely manifesting good roommates for months.
Fast-forward to the middle of May, and my inbox was EMPTY. Truly, moths came out of my screen when I hit refresh. I was told to expect to know who my roommates were by the end of April or very early May, and NADA. So, I reached out and waited. I got the contact of my roommates on May 28th, and I was planning on moving in on June 10th.Ā
I wanted to meet up or maybe talk about what everyone was bringing, but I was nervous to start a group chat. Like what if they judged me based on the way I texted, or what if they thought that meeting up would be dumb? Well, I just dove in and sent the first text because I had been waiting weeks to hear anything.
We all introduced ourselves, but I couldnāt really catch the vibes, so… I obviously went to Insta and started lightly stalking. I found out that two of my roommates, let’s call them B and G, have been living together since last year. I felt better knowing they had lived together before, and it worked out well, so they could do it again. I couldnāt find anything about my roommate D, and I knew I would be living with her first since she moved in two weeks before me. So, I was a little freaked out; if I couldnāt find anything, I might as well ask. D is the one I texted the most before moving in, and we got to know each other a little more, which was comforting.
I moved in June, and D and I became friendly; having separate spaces and a shared living area was perfect. We shared a bathroom, but it was great because we were able to share things, cover for certain things, and just help each other out. She was also a transfer student in a new environment, so it was reassuring to know that I was not totally alone in this. We always caught up while we were each eating dinner every day, and I felt like this would really work.
Then school started, and B and G moved in.
We immediately hit it off. (You were expecting something worse, right? Why do you want my downfall, reader?) We all care about what we each need to do and have excellent communication, which is perfect. Routine kicked in, and we met at the end of our first week to discuss our expectations for each other. We even started planning weekend game nights, and we all just clicked.Ā
Just as things started to get comfortable, and we would have outings together, something happened.
D said that she would be moving out in three days.
We were all really concerned, but she just told us that her program was not for her, which came as a surprise, but she also didnāt at the same time. Like I said, we have been talking since the summer about how our days went, and I know how she felt about her classes. I was really sad, more than I thought I would be. I felt like this was going to be a perfect situation with the four of us, but she was leaving, and our ācouncil,ā as we called it, broke a little. Her moving out was upsetting because she truly is so sweet, but Iām happy that she knew what she wanted to do and that it would be best for her.
It is now September, and I feel so lucky to have met these three people. Even though D left, we still text her every once in a while. So, if you wanted to read this to hear the drama, there isnāt any. I am so grateful to have built-in friends with my roommates.Ā
As I write this, I am chilling in the living room with B and G and a Papa Johnās pizza. They convinced me to watch Chicago (they are introducing me into musicals, and I am very excited; Hamilton is next). I feel beyond lucky to have great roommates; we have our ācouncilā meetings and game nights and live well together. So, no, there is no drama, but I was expecting the worst as a pessimistic person. I am learning that even if things go wrong, time goes on, and new lessons are learned. Things wouldnāt be as exciting if I said no more than I said yes. Pessimism can stop you from exploring new opportunities. If I decided to go with a one-bedroom, I donāt think I would enjoy school as much as I do, and I probably wouldnāt have met any of these three pretty sick people. So, take the leap and go out of your comfort zone.