DEAR SOMEONE ELSE’S MOM: In my freshman dorm, I had two roommates who were into pretty much everything I was. We had a BLAST. This year, I’ve got a roommate who is a shy nerd, who never wants to do anything with me, or anyone else for that matter. I feel weird having friends in to hang out, especially girls, because he’s ALWAYS in the room, killing my buzz.
I want to be able to feel comfortable with the person I have to live with. I have even asked about swapping, but was told that the best I can hope for is doing that next semester, when there should be some rooms available.
How do I survive in the meantime with Mr. Dull? --- MY ROOMMATE’S A DUD
DEAR MY ROOMMATE’S A DUD: What you have here appears to be a particularly useful life lesson to help you realize you can’t always choose the people you’re thrown in with, so sometimes you have to learn to make the best with what you’ve got.
You can either continue to complain about your roommate, or you can accept him for who he is and get on with your own life.
It might help if you could be patient with him, and accept that he may need more time to warm up to you, especially if you’re the outgoing type and he’s an introvert. In some living arrangements opposites work well, in others not; but either way, it looks like as the potentially more socially savvy one, the ball’s largely in your court to make the time you have with your current roommate more tolerable for you both.