Had a tough talk with my roommate about dirty dishes yesterday and it actually went ok

So I've been stewing for like 2 weeks about my roommate leaving crusty pans in the sink for days. Finally yesterday I just said 'hey can we figure out a dish schedule because the smell is getting to me' and she was like 'oh sorry I didn't realize it bothered you that much.' We agreed on a simple rule - wash by end of next day or pay $5 into a pizza fund. Idk why I built it up so much in my head. Has anyone else found that just saying the thing directly works better than dropping hints?

2 comments

2 Comments

miawalker11d ago

Wait till they break the rule though, that $5 thing never actually gets enforced.

baker.riley10d agoTop Commenter

Oh man, you're probably right about that @miawalker. I once spent a whole weekend building a fancy new birdhouse with like a dozen different rules painted on the side, and the first weekend a squirrel just chewed right through the "no nuts" rule and nothing happened. Honestly, I think I'm the type of person who would forget to collect the $5 anyway, probably lose the cash somewhere in my couch cushions. At this point, I'm half convinced the whole $5 threat is just there to make the rule makers feel important. But hey, at least it keeps me from feeling too bad when I accidentally break a rule myself, since nobody's actually enforcing it.