"Mom, I don't know how to cook. I'm going to starve," was a recent blubbering phone call to my mom the first week living off campus in my own apartment. Pretty quickly, I figured out living in an apartment isn't all fun and games, it's a huge responsibility. Renting your own home is no joke.
On the arrival to your new home, don't expect to walk into the door with a red carpet rolled out for you. You're seen as just another annoying student that the landlord has to deal with. Wi-Fi, electricity and running water won't be readily accessible to you. Yes, you actually have to turn it on, pay for it and wait for customer service to finally answer your many "on hold" phone calls. The plus to all this is that you get to make up your own personal Wi-Fi password. Of course, I went with "bacon."
Once you can finally stay in your now livable, air-conditioned home, the reality of it being "your house" sets in. Suddenly, you get why you're parents would freak out when you eat your sloppy leftovers on the leather couch or drink from the "public" milk carton. Surprisingly, living in my house turned me into my mom. No joke, I will yell at someone for messing up the couch pillows and frantically fix them after they get up. Your house becomes like your "baby," even more precious than your clunker of a car. Don't get me wrong, you will have days your house looks like a tornado tore through it, and days where you feel like you have control of your house by the reins. Utilities and cleaning aren't the only obstacles at hand, here are some basic things you need to know before you go out on your own because trust me, it's a whole lot more complex than you think.
1. Trash
Oh, taking out the trash, what a simple task, one would think! Well, if you forget to take it out, it's more like a gruesome World War II battle scene. In the beginning, my roommates and I had a nice white, clean and pristine trash bin in our kitchen. Until one day, I took the full trash, containing a week's worth of scraps and old raw chicken and put it on the porch outside our door. I evidently forgot about the bag and left for a weekend trip. Now, South Carolina is HOT, and when heat and raw meat mix it doesn't go very well. When I returned, I remember walking up the steps to my house and smelling the reek of death that traveled down the long side porch and out onto the street. As I got closer, every step I took shook hundreds of little black dots that were vibrating off the bag. Well, those dots were tiny gnats, little black flies and big fat papa flies all having a fly reunion right on my porch. I discovered that more guests joined the party, a whole colony of maggots decided to start families while enjoying their lovely stay in my trash. Eventually, I had to grab this leaking bag and run to the dumpster. Till this day, I still have flies and gnats around the house that are camping out waiting for their next feast. It has turned into a daily war between the human residents and fly residents. Please, never forget about your friend the trash can and never leave it unattended for the weekend.
2. Bills
Yes, you have to pay rent, bills, fees and other lovely charges every single month for everything you do or use. You're an adult now, so you actually have to turn off your bedroom light before you leave, turn down the A.C. or not take hour long hot steamy showers. These bills blindside you monthly, and it's your responsibility to tackle them head on.
3. Cooking
This is probably the one I had the most difficulty with. Cooking was never my forte, and freshman year I sure did enjoy eating warm cooked meals from the dining hall. Now, I come home to an empty fridge and a cupboard with sparse provisions of peanut butter and Ramen Noodles. For one, you must learn how to make a shopping list and fit in weekly trips to the grocery store. The trip usually requires you to endure a grocery bag weight lifting workout, as you walk ten blocks back to your apartment with your coveted meal. Once you've spent most of your life savings, it's time to cook! It's easier than it sounds. I suggest looking online, as there are YouTube videos that help you find a meal and a recipe with step-by-step tutorials on how to cook. These videos helped me not burn down the house again (but that's another story). There's always the option of calling your parents if suddenly adulthood isn't as fun as you thought it'd be, but let's be honest, we don't want to show weakness. Evidently, cooking requires patience, time and practice (probably a college student's least favorite words). Now, the most important thing to know is that all of these foods will expire and go bad, and you will get sick if you eat them. Don't forget to throw out expired food (like the raw chicken), and a fun fact, the freezer, is a place not just for ice cream, but for everything and anything you want to preserve longer. Crazy, right? Keep cooking away, and soon you'll actually make a meal you can eat.
Hopefully, these quick tips from personal experiences help you be more prepared for off-campus living. As long as you stay responsible and plan ahead, you will love living in your own personal sanctuary, reaping the benefits of the first steps of independence and adulthood.
