You are lovely guys and I’m usually happy living with you.
I’m not a neat freak and don’t want to be a nag. This is why I’m venting my rage on a message board and not at you.
There are three places that it is STUPID to put dirty dishes:
In the drying rack.
In the dishwasher-when it has run and the other dishes in there are clean.
In the fucking cupboard.
Why oh why do you I ALWAYS find your dirty dishes in one of these three places?
I mean, if you just left them on the table, top of the telly, the floor whatever, the effect would be nil. But this way the dishes that were previously clean get dirty too so you’re actually making things worse.
Arrrrrgh!
P.s. Yes, I did tell them. So did my other housemate. More than once. They still insist on doing this.
My father, back in his college days, had a roommate who refused to do dishes. His solution was to refuse to do dishes likewise, and whenever he needed a dish, utensil, etc., he would go clean it right before using it. So his roommate had to choose between chipping in with the chores or eating off a half-inch layer of mold.
Ugh. I once had a roommate that complained because I didn’t do the dishes often enough. Then I witnessed his method of doing dishes – he would essentially lick the food off the plate then put it back in the cupboard.
In the less-gross-but-every-bit-as-annoying category, my ex live-in mate would never empty ice trays into the bucket, she would simply take cubes out of the tray. Every single time I went to get ice, I would be greeted with empty trays. When I spoke to her about this, she accused me of be anal about it.
Hmmm, like the put-in-their-bed plan, although I might prefer to keep the peace.
I think with shared housing there is always some give and take about tidiness and/or lack thereof. What gets to me in this case is the shear stupidity of it all. If they just didn’t do dishes at all, it would be one bad enough in itself but I could live with that. I love music and they put up with that (I’m reasonable enough about it, mind you). There’s always something that will annoy another and at least these guys aren’t psychos.
The thing is that what they do it actually WORSE than doing nothing all. Amazing!
Oh, and thanks for reading and joining in on the rant. It helps.
Shortly after moving in with my new flatmate*, I discovered not one but two unwashed casserole dishes in a kitchen cupboard. They’d been there several months, by the looks. I have no idea what he was thinking.
It’s really stupid that you’d have to resort to something like this, but maybe you should put up a chart and tell your flatmates which chores need doing on which day.
One week it could be “inconsiderate butthead’s” turn to do dishes. Next week, he’d take bathroom duty. The following week, dust and vaccuum. Rotate the shift so everyone gets some household drudgery.
I had a roommate that would do the dishes. I had lived with him for more than a year when I saw him filling the dishwasher. He filled it up, closed the door and turned it on.
But he didn’t add any soap. He didn’t know that you had to add soap.
He also didn’t use soap in the shower, to wash his hands or in his laundry.
Odd guy, but very nice and a considerate roommate.
I had a pair of flatmates once (a couple) that would bring all the dishes into their room to use as ashtrays. When they weren’t putting their cigarettes out in the kitchen sink.