If you grew up with parents as strict as mine, you couldn’t have been more excited for college. Finally, no longer would you have to try to be as quiet as possible in your house at night because everyone else was asleep by 8 p.m. You could leave in the middle of the night to get ice cream without an interrogation from your father about the dangers of the dark and you could travel somewhere for a weekend without having to constantly update your parents on your location and activities. You wouldn’t have to submit a three week notice to sleep over someone’s house and you wouldn’t have to waste so much of your time creating excuses for disabling tracking on your phone anymore. No longer would you have to deal with two overly caring, sure, but ridiculously overprotective helicopters constantly surveying your every move.
And yeah, it was all it was cracked up to be. You escaped and it was worth it. Maybe, like me, you even got closer to your parents when you weren’t living with them anymore. Maybe you even started to miss living at home, not having to pay for groceries and using actually nice appliances and utensils, as opposed to a blender that doesn’t work and blunt knifes from Walmart. Maybe you realized you would have to go home for the summer to avoid living on the street, or maybe you missed your dog, or perhaps you were guilted into it by your mother. Any which way, you came back home for the summer.
And does it BLOW.
Maybe it’s just due to crazy parents, but having rules again is not the most fun. You’re an adult that lives by his or her self 90 percent of the time, but now you’re under the same roof as your parents once again, and your age doesn’t matter. Those high school restrictions are still there and now you’re always in trouble, and WOW, life is rough living with your parents for the summer, particularly for these reasons (though I’m sure there’s others):
1. Curfew. Are you serious?
It doesn’t matter that you can do whatever you want at college, you better be back by midnight. And don’t worry, your mom or dad will stay up to wait for you!
2. The JUDGEMENT
Yes mom, I am going to eat four cupcakes. No mom, I’m not going to eat anything but these chips for dinner. Yes mom, I am aware that I probably shouldn’t consume this much sugar. No mom, I’m not going to start eating salads.
3. Sleeping late
Apparently, if you’re still in bed past 7 a.m. you must be sick. 9 a.m. is much too late, let alone 12 p.m.! You know why you’re sleeping in until noon? You stay up much too late and eat too much junk food, that's why!
4. Constant questions; constant worrying
“Where are you?” “Are you in for the night?” “Where are you going?” “Why do you need the car?” “Text me the number of the friend you’re staying with.” “Send me your location.”
5. Ridiculous restrictions
Even though you’re over 18, you have to make sure what you watch on TV is “allowed” (or maybe I just have to deal with some extra craziness). Don’t forget that you aren’t an equal in the house anymore like you are with your roommates at school – Mom and Dad make the final call on everything, even when it just affects you and not them at all.
6. So many people, so little food, so little cars, so little TVs
If you have siblings, it all just got worse. Yes, you don’t have to buy groceries, but everything disappears in five seconds. There’s never a second of peace, no matter what time you’re awake, someone else is there too. Want to go somewhere? Better hope your sibling didn’t already grab the car. If you record a show to watch later or want to watch TV at a particular time, don’t count on it. Hey, sharing is caring!
7. Location is crucial
Maybe it’s the distance of college that calms parents’ nerves about where their child is, or maybe they just pretend you’re always in class when you’re there. For some reason, it’s not necessary for them to know every single moment you leave your dorm room at college, but at home, the moment you even think about leaving your house, you get twenty thousand questions about where you’re going and what you’ll be doing. And once you actually leave the house, your phone will be buzzing the whole time from Mom or Dad asking for updates on where you are and what time you’ll be back.
8. And the FOMO!
Life is hard enough back with your parents, and then you’re forced to see all your college friends who stayed on campus for the summer having fun together on Instagram. If only to be there instead…
Okay, yes , there are awesome things about living at home. Seeing your family, your high school and childhood friends, home-cooked meals, your comfy bed, et cetera, et cetera. But honestly, do those things outweigh everything else?
Eh… Ask me next week.
