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Campus through the seasons

IU is known for its lush scenery. It’s ranked among the most beautiful college campuses in the country. Here’s a sneak peek at the seasons to come.

IDS FILE PHOTO BY JAMES BROSHER WINTER Student battle in a snow ball fight in Dunn Meadow in 2009. IU canceled classes that year due to snow. Average high temperatures during the winter months are in the upper 30s and lows are in the 20s, but they go lower — and can feel much lower with a wind chill. It’s important to wear hats, gloves and layers of clothes for long walks through campus.

IDS FILE PHOTO FALL Senior Wanda Krieger and her friend Rachel Baszynski walk down Seventh Street in October 2014. Temperatures can vary substantially during the autumn months from highs in the 60s-70s and lows in the 40s-50s. ARBUTUS FILE PHOTO SUMMER There are an estimated 12,000 trees on the IU campus that create a beautiful and changing backdrop for students out for a walk during the warm weather months. Summer in Bloomington can be hot and humid with average highs in the 80s. Average lows are in the 60s. IDS FILE PHOTO BY SARAH ZYGMUNTOWSKI SPRING A group of graduates pose in their caps May 2, 2019 outside Bryan Hall. The group met their freshman year in the Kelley Living Learning Center. During March, April and May, high temperatures can range from the 50s to the 70s.

Here’s how to avoid unnecessary problems with roommates

By Olivia Franklin

orfrankl@iu.edu | @Livvvvv_5

Many students worry who they are going to room with when moving into college, and how that roommate experience will go.

Make sure you talk to your roommate before you live with them

Students can either room with someone they know from high school, meet someone online to room with or choose randomly, like I did. No matter which one, you should get to know your roommate before you actually move in and lay out some ground rules. Before I actually moved in with my roommate, we emailed and texted about how we planned to set up our room, how we would handle sharing snacks and other things.

I did not have a bad experience with my freshman year roommate, but at times it was awkward. At the beginning of the year we somewhat talked about our boundaries but as the year progressed we did not tell each other when things would bother us, so tension would build up a little bit. I feel like if we had communicated more then things would not have been as bad.

Do not let your living situation ruin a relationship

Whether you know the person before you live with them or not, you should never let the living situation ruin the relationship.

Last year I lived with four of my close friends, most of whom I met during my freshman year. I love all of them — but it was not a great living experience. We did not communicate our boundaries and expectations at the beginning of the year, so we all got frustrated pretty fast. We had a house meeting over what bothered us and, though it did help a little bit, it was too far overdue to fix everything.

Since roommates are a huge reason why a living situation can be good or bad, you should talk to people about their lifestyle before you decide to live with them. Believe me — it’s not worth it to ruin a friendship. If you do decide to live with your friends or someone you already know, make sure you communicate well and respect their boundaries. The worst thing you can do is ignore the problem and let it grow into something that could ruin the relationship.

Respect your roommates’ boundaries

This year I lived with three girls that I already knew, so I knew we would get along. We decided to have a roommate meeting as soon as possible, which quickly assured me this living situation was going to be better than in the past.

This was probably my favorite year of college so far. My roommates and I all had good relationships, and we hung out all the time outside of the house. If any of us had a problem, we communicated it to the others, and the problem was fixed every time.

Whenever someone wanted the dishes done, we all made sure to hand-wash our dishes or make sure they were put in the dishwasher. We also all had different shelves in the pantry and in the fridge, so we didn’t take each other’s food. Overall, being respectful of others and asking before doing something was always our go-to.

For my college experience, I think that my roommates each year definitely had an effect on whether I was social and how well I did in my classes. My best advice is: if you are looking for a roommate, make sure you know them for a little bit beforehand so you can get an understanding of who they are as a person.

You do not want to have a bad year because of who you are living with.

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