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Since my college career began four years ago, I've had five addresses, six bedrooms, and nine roommates. As you can imagine, they weren't all ideal roomies. Many of us get stuck with one of "those" roommates, but if you heed these tales, maybe you'll be able to spot the "Different Types"... before you sign a lease with one of them.

The Party Animal
When Courtney Martin, a recent Iowa State University (ISU, Ames, IA) graduate, moved into an apartment with "Kristine," things quickly went awry.

"When I was gone one night in October, Kristine threw a Halloween party and colored her hair with temporary dye," recalls Courtney. "She got drunk and somehow her hair got wet. She managed to drip black dye all over the apartment, completely ruining our carpet."

According to Courtney, that was only one of many instances of Kristine's rowdy parties. "Her parties almost always ended with her getting really upset and throwing people out of the apartment," she says.

The Goody-Goody
This roommate is the polar opposite of the Party Animal and walks the fine line between good influence and good riddance. Theresa Conradt, a sophomore at the University of Nebraska (Lincoln, NE), got tired of her roommate's constant studying.

"If I was watching something on TV, 'Tara' would turn it off and tell me it was 'study time,'" Theresa says. "'Study time lasted all night until 10:30. And then it was 'bedtime.'"

The Hygiene-Challenged
Although Bridget Blair, a junior at ISU, has had her share of bad roommates, she says the Hygiene-Challenged one was the worst. Out of his many disgusting habits, washing his body with cheap strawberry shampoo instead of actual soap took the cake. Apparently, this means of achieving cleanliness didn't cut it: "His body odor was so bad, even the shower couldn't rid him of it," Bridget says. "In fact, when he did shower, the rest of us avoided the second floor. The steam permeated the air, letting this humid, B.O.-induced toxin circulate around that level of the house."

The Parent-Controlled
Sometimes, it's not the roommate who's annoying -- interfering parents can be just as disruptive. Such was the case for Angie Smith, a senior at Oral Roberts University (Tulsa, OK), and her roommate. "She was 18 and from the town, but her mom had to know where she was every minute," Angie says. "If her mom couldn't get Anna on her cell phone, she would call me and ask where she was!"

Lucky for Angie, she didn't have to deal with the meddling mother for long. "A few days after spring semester started, I came home and all her stuff was gone. It turned out she and her mom had made a deal that if she lived at home, her mom would loosen the reins. I haven't heard from her since."

The Slob
Like Theresa, her brother had a sticky roommate situation to deal with -- literally. Paul Conradt, a senior at ISU, had an exceptionally messy housemate. "Alan would leave food everywhere -- crusty plates, fast-food wrappers... Once, we found an entire slice of pizza in the crack of a chair that only he sat in," says Paul. "It was rock-hard, so it had been there awhile. He was disgusting."

The Thief
Unfortunately, I had my own personal experience with the Thief my sophomore year. She never stole anything valuable, mostly just food and makeup. It probably wouldn't have bothered me if she had asked, but when my cans of soda began disappearing from the fridge, I turned into the Paranoid Roommate.

I started numbering the cans, just to make sure she really was stealing them. When I spotted Can #8 in her room one day, I called her on it. Of course, she denied taking it. We haven't spoken since the day she moved out.

Now you've heard about all these terrible roommates, but what do you do if you get stuck living with one of them? It's all about being an assertive communicator, says David Rardin, associate director for Illinois State University's (Normal, IL) Student Counseling Services.

"[Being] assertive [means] being direct, respectful, honest, and clear," he says. "Rather than demand that your needs be met, work together to reach an agreement that works well for both [of you]."

So if your roommate insists on turning off the TV to study for four hours, try meeting her in the middle. Tell her that if she can study elsewhere for half the time, you'll watch your reality shows in someone else's room for the other half. Maybe you could even benefit from some extra study time yourself.

Rardin also recommends taking preventive measures before problems erupt. "The best advice is to deal directly and early with any concerns," he says. "Most university residence halls have a roommate contract that clarifies many of these issues and can be used to help roommates talk about common sources of roommate stress."

Although roommates can be a bummer, never fear -- the ones that work out are worth it. Check out these two roommate stories that had happy endings.

The Hometown Friend
Many students have horror stories about rooming with a friend from high school. Old friendships can come to a bitter end over whose turn it was to take out the trash. On occasion, however, rooming with your hometown friend can work out wonderfully.

Before coming to college, ISU freshman Kyle Roemerman was "a little apprehensive about the roommate thing." He and his best friend decided the best way to ward off potentially scary dorm mates would be to live together. "Most people advised against it," Kyle admits. "But I'm happy to report that I couldn't have had a better roommate -- in fact, we're rooming together next year. He's like my brother."

The Best Friend
Although the "Different Types of Roommates" might have you considering a single room dorm or apartment, never fear: Going through the bad roommates is worth it to find the good ones.

"My most recent roommate will always be a best friend," Angie says. "She always has a listening ear and encourages me to get my stuff done. It seems like we have a lot of similar life experiences."

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