Volume 124 Issue 2
kansan.com
TAKING CHARGE
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
Lawrence leads Manhattan in
INK
THURSDAY, AUGUST 18, 2011
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
PAGE 11
LIFE
A single conversation could stop roommate conflict
BRITTANY NELSON editor@kansan.com
Living without parents or siblings can be both liberating and stressful for many college students. Numerous students opt to live with their best friends so they have a support system and someone to hang out with. However, if living routines and personalities don't match up, it could ruin a friendship.
John Robertson, Lawrence psychologist, said that roommates need to talk to the person they plan on living with prior to moving in to discuss everyday living habits such as sleeping habits, study habits and cleaning habits to see if the roommate will be a good match.
"A planned conversation is best, right before you move in," Robertson said. "You need to talk about how you are going to live together. Clarity, kindness and consistency are the three key things."
Uzma Fareed, a graduate from Lenexa, said that when she lived with a good friend, the friendship turned sour.
"What she thought was clean I thought was messy," Fareed said. "We didn't set any rules or discuss anything in the beginning, which was a mistake."
The person that was once one of her best friends and now an acquaintance, Fareed regrets not having better communication.
"The secret is if people can talk to each other openly about things," Robertson said. "Sometimes, if you live with a close friend, confrontation may be more difficult."
Chris Leber, previous KU student from Overland Park, said he lived with a best friend his senior year of
high school.
Leber said that after his roommate received a DUI and suffered a car wreck, his roommate stopped drinking all together and became very religious.
"Before, he would start arguments with people about believing in God, and after the accident he didn't party anymore and was a completely different person." Leber said.
Leber said he also didn't help with dishes and would frequently use his computer.
"We ended up avoiding each other," Leber said. "We got a point where we finally wanted to sort out our problems but it was hard because I literally wanted to hit him. We recently got into a fight and are not speaking."
Leber and Fareed are not the only ones with roommate problems. And although they had their fair share of friendship issues under the same roof, they also had good experiences as well.
Fareed said this last school year, she lived with a good friend, but they decided to talk about rules and compromise living habits prior to moving in. Leber said that he lived with two of his best friends and it wasn't an issue.
"If we had a fight, wed get our boxing gloves and headgear and duke it out," Leber said.
Robertson said he doesn't advise against living with a good friend, but people have to communicate rules, living habits and how they can compromise so living together isn't a burden.
HALL CENTER for the HUMANITIES
"I've had a lot of students come to me depressed because of this issue," Robertson said. "Students need to look at this situation as a roommate problem, not a friendship problem."
HUMANITIES LECTURE SERIES 2011-2012
GET INVOLVED, AND FED, AT THE SAME TIME
Student clubs, residence halls and Hawk Week activities all offer new students at KU a way to get involved. But these meetings offer another incentive as well: free food. Here are a few places to get involved while also getting a meal.
is available. Ask your floor Resident Assistant for more information.
Young Democrats of KU Meeting Time: Tuesdays at 7 p.m.
— Meg Lowry
Residence Hall Meetings Residence Halls frequently hold meet and greets and informational meetings where free food, including ice cream and pizza.
Tea At Three August 25th, Kansas Union, 3:00-4:00
HAWK WEEK ACTIVITIES
Friday Night Live
August 19th, Sabatini Multicultural Resource Center 10 p.m.
to 1 a.m.
Ice Cream Social August 20th, Adams Alumni Center. 5:30-7:30
Alain Jamaica de Botton Kincaid
March 14, 2012
Author & philosopher
"Religion for Atheists"
April 10, 2012
Acclaimed Caribbean novelist
"Landscapes and Memory"
Woodruff Auditorium
The Frances and Floyd Horowitz Lecture
The Commons, Spooner Hall
All events are free, open to the public and begin at 7:30 p.m. www.hallcenterku.edu·785-864-4798
Partial funding for the Humanities Lecture Series is provided by the National Endowment for the Humanities' 2000 Challenge Grant. This series is co-sponsored by Kansas Public Radio.
bookstore recently began offering price comparisons between its own prices, Amazon.com and Half. com.
"There was one student that said, 'It was the best idea that KU has ever had.'" Rourke said.
Rentals cost 61 percent less than new print textbooks and could reduce the yearly amount spent on textbooks, according to Student PIRGs, an organization consisting of college students that looks at the rising cost of college.
But while students can save money renting or buying online, the bookstore prides itself on being there for students even after they've bought their textbooks.
"We are the non-profit store for the University," Rourke said. "Every profit that we make goes right back into student success such as the Student Union Activities (SUA) and the campus radio station,
Renting textbooks has also become a more popular option among students.
e" our
GRAPHIC BY HANNAH WISE/KANSAN
CLASSIFIEDS 2B
CROSSWORD 4A
Index
CRYPTOQUIPS 4A
OPINION 5A
SPORTS 1B
SUDOKU 4F
Kansan.com will also be getting a new look in the coming months. To complement our print redesign, we're striving to make Kansan.com an online destination for students. We want you to check out our exclusive content, watch Web videos and daily KUJH-TV broadcasts and talk with our football and basketball writers during games in live chats hosted on the website. If you have ideas of what you'd like to see on our website, let us know.
The UDK will continue to keep students and others up-to-date through our new mobile app and a stronger social media presence. You can find The University Daily Kansan's mobile app on Android and in the iTunes store. We've also re-branded our Twitter accounts to reflect our redesign and added more accounts. To stay updated on news on campus and around Lawrence, follow us at @UDK_News. For the latest on KU sports teams, follow @UDK_Sports. And to read opinion
san.com which is updated throughout the day to bring news to students and alumni.
Don't forget
Though The UDK is undergoing a gamut of changes, one thing hasn't change: We're still the student voice. We're your voice. So, let us know what you think. What do you think of our redesign? What do you want to see in the paper, on TV and online? Send an email to editor@kansan.com and let us know. After all, that's why we're here.
All contents, unless stated otherwise. © 2011 The University Daily Kansan
Another change will debut on Friday, Sept. 2 before Kansas takes on McNeese State at Memorial Stadium. Friday papers before home football games will have an expanded sports section sponsored by the Wave, our sports magazine, and will include game predictions and analysis. The paper will be tabloid-style like jayplay, our weekly lifestyle magazine, and don't worry, we'll still have our regular news, opinion and entertainment content.
Facebook page, too.
Stroda is editor-in-chief of The University Daily Kansan. She is a senior from Salina.
Today is the first day of classes. Don't forget to go to yours or you could fail.
Today's Weather
Forecasts done by University students. For a more detailed forecast, see page 2A.
HI: 92
L0: 71
at least it's not 100!