Living Social 101

We all know someone who has had an experience with…THAT roommate. You know, the one that uses your stuff without asking, or throws their things on your side of the room, or how about that one that is just flat out too loud to deal with…

So how do you deal with living with someone that you got randomly paired up with?  Here are a few tips from your lovely dormers here at CSULB on how to not be “that roomie” and how to cope with one.

“Clean. Up. After. Yourself,” huffed Harlee Morikawa, a second year communications major. “Not everyone has to be a neat freak, but there is a difference between being a bit messy and being downright gross messy. It’s unhealthy.” Bottom line: don’t be too mean, just be kind of clean.

“Be considerate," said Deanna Lee, a second year graphic design major. “Sure, everyone likes having company, but if you’re going to invite your friends over past midnight when I’m trying to sleep or study? Cmon…” Bottom line: If you’re a night owl, try and host your shenanigans elsewhere; perhaps the USU or downtown Long Beach?

While some students are able to study with music blaring from ear to ear, others can only study in complete and utter silence. So in a cramped room, what is one to do?

“If my roomie is playing loud head banging music when I come back from class, I just venture to campus to study at Starbucks or something,” said Tillman Hubbard, a fourth year kinesiology major. “Or if it’s at night I just go down to the common room with my computer.”

Quiet floors at the library guarantee silence!

And the number one key tip to surviving the year without strangling each other? Communication and compromise. Communicate the problem and compromise a solution that both contribute to. Either way you’ll end up either a happy camper, or another story to tell your friends back home about THAT roomie. 

Be a Social Butterfly, Not a Couch Potato

It’s Friday. You’ve just finished class and you’re ready to do something for the weekend. But you have no car. And you’re dorming. Now what…?

Never fear! The CSULB housing community has a plan for you!

Events planned vary from road trips to nearby cities, trips to amusement parks, dances, social recreational activities, and even speed dating. For a small fee, students are able to travel to and from the designated destination on a communal bus, without having to worry about getting a ride and back to the dorms.

Throughout the semester, flyers for events are posted all around the dorms – in the dining halls, the common room, the hallways, even the doors are plastered with a friendly reminder of what’s planned for the week.

Go big or go home! Located at Beachside College

“It’s really cool!”, gushed international student Charlotte Gaffey. “I’m from England and I want to see everything this city has to offer. Some of the events included trips to San Diego and Disneyland! Being from a different country, I have no way to transport a car here so it’d be literally impossible for me to sightsee.”

Finished your homework and studying early on in the week? No problem! Some events are as simple as a communal still-playing-in-theaters movie night in the common room. Sounds like the perfect ending to a Taco Tuesday eh?

“This really is the stereotypical college experience”, said Jessica Aceret, a third year psychology major. “Having fun during the week, without having to have the party mentality.”

Signing up for the events is as easy as well, going to dinner. That’s where the signup sheets are located anyway, making signing up hard to forget and ignore!

So what are you waiting for? Go out and be social already!