Tuesday, September 21, 2010
My Life in Roommates
(That's also not counting those long 21 months when I transitioned back from Utah to California by living in my mom's office slash guest room.)
Anyway, I've moved a few times over the years and have lived with a LOT of different people. I've had somewhere around 20 roommates with a total of about 58 different personalities.
(More than a few of those personalities have been my own.)
It's been wild.
I thought I'd do the rundown of all the girls (and boy) with whom I've shared an address. Maybe some of this will explain why I am the way I am today. Maybe.
House #1: Ogden, Utah--Six bedrooms, Two bathrooms, Seven girls at a time
(Just so you know, I wasn't roommates with ALL of these girls at the same time. As someone would move out, someone else would move in. And I can't be entirely sure of the right order.)
Amie--Super smart English major. Amie was the one that shoved a battered copy of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone into my hands and told me I HAD to read it. She was right. She was also super cool because she was in the Army Reserves? National Guard? (I can't remember which) band and got to shoot guns and stuff.
Lindsay & Mandy--These awesome and fun girls from a tiny hometown in eastern Utah. I can't remember a time I ever saw one without the other. If you ever have to live with college freshman, I hope they can be as cool as Lindsay & Mandy.
Deborah--Was young and fun. A lot more quiet and reserved than Mandy and Lindsay, but still a really great girl. She actually managed to drag me to ward activities and helped me get to know some new people. She was the youngest in our house, and the first to get married. I DID mention this was Utah, right?
Heather the First--Just a little different. Okay, a LOT different. Really, really nice, but she had some unusual qualities. Like her habit of whispering to herself and telling herself funny stories when no one else was in the room. There were a few times we thought she was on the phone in her bedroom only to discover that she was all alone. It's also possible that she might have been responsible for the unpleasant kitchen situation that I wrote about recently.
Emily the First--She was totally unexpected. Really quiet and kept to herself a lot, but when you got her in the right mood (which wasn't hard) she was hilarious and so much fun. Really smart and talented. I've never had a roommate named Emily that I didn't like. Also, I got to help pick out her engagement ring. It was a surprise for her. I'm pretty stealthy and stuff. Maybe I'll tell you all that story sometime.
Diana--Way too cool. She had a different hairstyle every day and a super cute wardrobe. And she was really fun and her laugh was contagious. I wish I'd appreciated her more when we were roommates. For one thing, I think we could have been really good friends. For another, I didn't know at the time just how bad things could get when you live in a house with that many people.
Maria--Spunky and quirky. One of the nicest, most genuine people I've ever met in my entire life. I'm sad that I lost touch with her after she left for her mission.
Rose Hedges--I normally refrain from using last names, but seriously. I lived with a girl named Rose Hedges. And she was different. Nice, but kind of crazy. VERY boy crazy. She made us laugh a lot, and not even AT her. But, yeah. We probably wouldn't have really been friends. We didn't have much in common.
Heather the Second--When she moved in, we were shocked to find out she was only, like 16 or 17. She was young, but really mature (for the most part) and super smart. I'm pretty sure she is a neurologist or something by now. She was young and I didn't give her much of a chance either. Too bad, because she was pretty cool. But SO young.
Kari--Another super smart youngin. She had a chain for the all the weeks her boyfriend would be gone on his mission. She talked incessantly about their future wedding. I wanted her to date other people while she was waiting, but she was hopelessly devoted. I hope that worked out for her.
Shea--I don't remember much about her except that she existed, had the coolest hair (super short, but with tight, corkscrew curls) and had an amazing singing voice. I'm not even sure her name WAS Shea, but it seems right in my head.
Lisa--We were never meant to be friends. I'm just going to leave it at that. Because I can't say anything nice and, well, you know what Mom always said...
Leah--Was actually really cool and I liked her. I wanted to be friends with her, but she was friends with Lisa before they ever even moved in and, well, that stopped me from getting too close. I don't feel like I missed out there, though. It is what it is.
Sara--Another one where I'm not entirely sure of her name. She was nice but so self-conscious. Planned on being a physical therapist, I think. She got me really into running back in the day. She was also friends with Lisa, which made things awkward, but what can you do?
Season--She lived there for about 8 weeks in the summer and that's all I remember about her.
And then I moved!
House #2: Ogden, Utah--3 Bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, 3 Girls at a time
Amy--We gave her a nickname (which we never told her about). The...Klepto Canadian... She had a habit of forgetting that some people don't like it when you help yourself to their closets. Or their CD collections. And she was from Canada. But she was nice and we had a lot of fun times. And she's one of our very few witnesses to the haunting.
Emily the Second--If you don't already know how much I adore Emily then I don't know where you've been. She's one of only two roommates with whom I have kept in constant contact. Emily is one of my very best friends. She is smart and funny and a fiercely loyal friend. We had so many good times and I miss her a lot.
Karen--It was so much fun answering the phone, having the caller ask for "Karen" and taking a minute to realize it was NOT for me. She was a cool girl, but ran in different circles. I remember being annoyed on more than one occasion when I would pull into the driveway and discover that it was PACKED because she'd filled our tiny basement with friends. But it was never for very long and she was always good about washing her dishes. So, it was all good.
The Only Roommate Whose Name I REALLY Can't Remember--I feel so bad. I honestly, for the life of me can't tell you what this girl's name was. It's entirely possible her name was Season and I have the other girl's name wrong. Who knows? (Emily just informed me that her name was Lacy. Oops!) She moved in not long before Emily and I moved out to our own apartments, about a mile from each other. She was nice, but young. So, so young. I was around 25 and she was 18. By that point, I was done living with freshman.
And I moved AGAIN!
House #3: Ogden, Utah--1 bedroom, 1 bath, ONE girl living there!
I miss living by myself. It got lonely sometimes, but it was heaven.
But, all good things must turn into other good things, so I moved again.
House #4: Clearfield, Utah--3 bedrooms, 1 bath, 2 girls
Kelli--She's the other roommate I still talk to fairly regularly. Kelli is another of my besties. She's hilarious. Like, we have some of the absolute craziest stories together, but they don't hold a candle to the antics she's managed when NOT hanging out with me. Hilarious, smart, motivated (most of the time) and she got me addicted to putting M&Ms in my popcorn, which we used to do EVERY Sunday night while watching Desperate Housewives. Oh, Kel...season premier is next Sunday...
And then I moved back to Cali and into my mom's office slash guest room. That was a LONG 22 months until...
House #5: Anaheim, California--3 bedrooms (technically), 2 1/2 baths, 2 girls and 1 boy
David--He's like Chuck in real life. You ask him about any subject and he almost certainly knows at least SOMETHING about it. (Except David Archuleta, apparently.) He's also just about to finish his degree in culinary arts. Yes, he's an amazing chef. No, I don't eat with them every night. (I'm pretty sure my waistline would never forgive me.)
Catherine/Katie/Cathy--Her name depends on who you're talking to. I call her Katie. She's the one who taught me that not everyone understands my sense of humor. But we still manage to laugh. A lot. She's a good friend who cares about strangers just as much as her friends and family. She wants to take care of everyone she sees and frequently says the reason she's not rich is because she'd "give it all away anyway." And I know she means it, too, because when I asked her what one thing she would buy for herself if she could, her answer (after giving it some thought) was the complete TV series of Gidget. I'd be hard pressed to find someone less materialistic than Katie.
So........that's it. I really feel like I'm missing someone, but I sure couldn't say who! And with a list that long, I'm sure you don't mind if I forgot one or two.
Have you had a plethora of roommates? Do you have any favorites? Any horror stories?
Tomorrow's Confession Wednesday Topic:
Workout Confessions!
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If you haven't read "He Died With A Felafel In His Hand" or seen the movie, you really need to do one of those two things. It's a Aussie story about the interesting personalities a guy lived with in all of his "share houses"
ReplyDeleteMaybe one day you can expand this post and tell your own story.
I've never had a roommate. I moved out of the parents home and into this two bedroom flat on my own. This post has a number of reasons why I couldn't live with a roommate.
wow, that's a lot of roommates. You certainly make it sound fun...I only had one in college that I got along with really well and after that, I was alone.
ReplyDeleteOh my. Well, like my experiences dating in my 30s, it gave you TONS of funny stories to tell. Look at it that way!
ReplyDeleteThat's funny, cause I've had 20 different roomates, too! And five of them I lived with 2-3 separate times. And I moved all my stuff 16 different times.
ReplyDeleteLooking back I don't how I did it all, but I had some good times. And of course witnessed some MAJOR craziness. I wouldn't trade those experiences for anything.
I only have two roommate stories, and I failed miserably at being a roommate both times. The first time, I was 18 or 19 and one of my best friends from Oklahoma moved to Texas to start a better life. We got an apartment, didn't have furniture other than beds, and I moved out and back with my boyfriend within a couple of months. I kept paying rent, but she ended up moving back home. Who would want to stay in a state where you didn't have the buddy who moved you there??? I did her soooo wrong. It wrecked our friendship. My second attempt I was around 30 and let a gal move in with me for about four months. I couldn't stand her. We just didn't gel at all. She ended up moving out before her six months' lease was up, which was more than fine by me. We are no longer friends either.
ReplyDeleteCan you believe that I'm happily married? It is amazing that my husband didn't move away from me, or me from him. I guess we gel pretty good together.
I want to live with a real live Chuck...
ReplyDeleteI've only lived with roommates three time, and never more than two at a time. And only one of those experiences was horrible.
ReplyDeleteI only had roommates in college. One was a druggie who never went to class and eventually dropped out.
ReplyDeleteOne was a crazy lesbian 45 year-old library science major. Why she wanted to live in the DORMS is beyond me. She told me once I had cute feet. She sat on her bed and stared at me while I tried to study, and I'm pretty sure she was trying to kill my fish.
I moved out of that room and in with a good friend, and she's the last roommate I've had.
I've had only a handful of roommates through the years but all of them left me with fond memories, and laugh out loud moments. Then there were the crazy ones that were hard to get a long with but then again when you needed them they were always there. Good times. Reading your blog made me think of college memories I had long forgotten ha ha. :-)
ReplyDeleteI can't even imagine! I had suitemates in college for one year, then I moved back home. I realized I need my privacy! Since then I've only lived with my husband.
ReplyDeleteFun walk down memory lane for sure! I remember some of those roommates from the 35th street house.
ReplyDeleteRemember the two girls that lived upstairs in the 36th street house? Angela and....the one that would mow the lawn with a mask.
Wow, that's a lot of roommates! I don't think I could have handled that very well, even the nice ones.
ReplyDeleteYou do have quite an array of roommates parading through your memories. I haven't had too many roommates and I've been pretty fortunate in the ones I did have. Roommates were okay when I was younger, but I don't think I'd want one now-- except my wife of course!
ReplyDeleteLee
Tossing It Out
And I thought that I have lived with a lot of different people. You've one this round. I liked this idea. I might have to borrow it sometime.
ReplyDeleteThis is excellent! I had roommates during my first year of college and since then...well, I've shared my house with boys.
ReplyDeleteI had a LOT of hospital roommates growing up. The only one I remember vividly, although I can't remember her name, was when I was 12 y.o. and in the hospital for 9 weeks.
ReplyDeleteShe was blonde, blue-eyed, and scared to death. She had a tumor and her Dr. wanted to do a biopsy to see if it was cancerous. She was so afraid whenever they came to get her that they didn't push the issue. After 2 days, I asked, "What are you afraid of?" She immediately replied, "Dying." I said, "What if they find nothing? Then you've worried for nothing. But you won't find out and you'd die anyway, if it is cancerous, if you don't let them biopsy it."
She agreed to it when her Dr. came the next day...and it wasn't cancerous, so they decided to leave it alone "for now". She left the hospital, her parents thanked me profusely and gave me their phone number. They lived at the beach and my mom and I visited them once. I don't remember why we didn't keep in touch but I wish we had.
Okay, I have to admit that after house #1, my head was spinning. I couldn't read on. Really, I couldn't. You are a good person to be able to live with that many different personalities. I don't think I could deal with it. (Okay, I know I couldn't deal with it.)
ReplyDeleteThe key roommate lesson I learned is never move in with strangers if they all know each other and you're odd man out. I had that nightmare scenario TWICE because I was too dumb to learn the first time.
ReplyDeleteGood Grief! I'm suprised you remember all of these! I'm sure some you wish you hadn't, lol. I've only had around 4 including college ones in the dorm, so can't imagine all of the "personalities" you've got to meet. Probably makes living w/the hubb & kiddos a breeze! GReat post! Lindsey
ReplyDeleteDang, Gina, you've had as many roommates as I've had jobs! Oh I miss those days!!! xoxo Kelli
ReplyDeleteoh my gosh, what a cute idea. I would need to sit down and write this...but it would be hilarious.
ReplyDeleteExcellent topic to ponder...very very excellent.