When it comes time to relax after finals I am left with the conclusion that I get my on campus apartment to myself while the roommates go back home for the holidays. Now while it may get lonely, I came up with 5 perks to having the whole place to yourself for a good 3 weeks. While my roommates live hours away, my family is only 20 minutes, so I chose to stay on campus all break. I love having a place to myself and these are just a few thoughts I came up with as to why.

5: Come and go as you please

During the semester, I've had my fair share of sneaking into my apartment and my own room trying to not make a sound ( and failing miserably sometimes) at late hours of the night. If it was after a party or just hanging out with some sisters in my sorority I have a tendency to want to come back after midnight on a regular basis. While the semester goes on it can become straining on other roommates, having to say when you'll be back so they don't lock the room or the dead bolt. Trust me when I say, sleeping on the futon after being locked out of the room (not on purpose) was not an experience I wish on anyone. When the roommates leave however, you can lock up and come home whenever you please and make noise as usual. Having to tip-toe at night is respectful but when it's just one person in the apartment the issue is void.

4: No fighting over the bathroom or losing valuable hot water

Sometimes you can be in such a rush that it's a go go go situation. You wake up and have to do the daily routine whether it be shower, shave, brush and dress or just trying to speed the process like a lot of college students and just doing the bare minimum before missing class completely. Having a bathroom split between three/four people can be time consuming and ultimately frustrating. For a girl like me that lives and breaths hot water that can burn off skin, I like to soak and enjoy my time in the shower. On some occasions however, I need to get in and out and get my procrastinating butt to class. So when the bathroom is occupied it can be a hassle for anyone to start their routine and get on with their day. Being home alone gives me a chance to take the longest showers possible to man and really relax without worrying about anyone else's needs or time management.

3: You can be free as a bird in your birthday suit

I know for a fact there are some people that think less clothes is better than being bundled up. I am one. I like not having to wear pants constantly around the house or having to put on a shirt and pants as soon as I get out of bed. Some of us like being able to walk out of the shower and roam around the apartment in underwear until the time to actually be presentable is requested. With roommates it's a battle between running around in a towel or underwear quickly and getting your belongings or getting dressing in a tiny box of a bathroom. I choose to have space and get dressed where I please while the roommates are away.

2: Control over the AC/Heater

There are two kinds of people in this world. The ones that love the cold and wrapping up in a warm blanket or sweats and socks. Or the ones that live in the heat and would rather sweat to death than feel a speck of icy wind. From personal experience, my roommates love it to be cold and be bundled up. I however, love the heat and have been blasting it on the highest setting my college allows 24/7. If they allowed higher than 74 degrees, you bet your next meal I would have it high as can be right now. Even now I get freezing and stand under the vent to get some heat on my body. There have been times during this last semester that I would turn up the heater a few degrees and leave for class just to come home back to the original coldness. With the roommate's away, I bring the heat in the apartment to stay.

1: Control over who comes in and out of the apartment

If your roommates have boyfriends like mine do, they are bound to visit and stay throughout the semester. It was never an issue with me and to this day it isn't. But sometimes college students don't get so lucky on being cool with who comes and goes in the apartment. Some just have issues with random people and even though you share with other students, you don't always hold the control. So when break time rolls around, it's nice not to worry about coming home after a long day to hear a rager going on inside with people you don't know sitting and using your stuff. You get control for a small amount of time and man it's a refresher.

After three long weeks without roommates, it may have been nice but it gets extremely lonely. The feeling of someone else there with you and someone you can talk to whenever you are bored is a blessing. So as much fun as it is to have a place to yourself, come time the roommates come back it will be a nice happy reunion.