Shelter-in-place has been a very interesting time to inquire into whether one’s housemates are just people who live with you or something a bit deeper.

These questions are the basis for building a community house that works. (your mileage may vary :)

Scenarios to Ponder

• how would you propose everyone share the duty of taking out the trash if your goal is “zero waste” and your housemates produced, on average, 10x the trash you do each week?
• how would you propose everyone clean the house if you felt like your nature is to keep places like the kitchen, bathroom “clean as you go” - like someone once told you something might be possible if you were to leave a bathroom cleaner than you found it (yes, even a public bathroom!)?

Questions

1. describe your perfect housemate
2. how do you feel about working and creating things together?
   1. what do you envision our household creating together?
3. define responsibility as it relates to living together
4. how does the phrase “leave the bathroom cleaner than you found it” land for you?
5. There is trash that isn't yours on the floor. do you pick it up? why or why not?
6. share about your relationship to the 3 Rs (reduce, reuse, recycle)
   1. what are some of your strategies for reducing trash?
   2. what are some of the things you like to wash and reuse?
7. share about how you see housemates sharing things we use in common (dish soap, TP, cooking oil, etc)
   1. how do you feel one should deal with feelings about feeling like they are paying more than their share?
   2. what if you need eggs and you open up the fridge and nobody has replaced them?
8. what are some things that trigger you as a housemate?
   1. what do you feel you need in these moments that is not being met?
   2. in what ways can we support what you need in a housemate?
9. how do you feel housemate should get to know each other?
   1. what do you think are fun things to do together?
   2. how often do you feel we should get together?
   3. how do you feel we should share the work in regards to organizing events together?
10. how do you feel housemates should settle any differences in opinion in a healthy way?
    1. describe a time you got into an argument and how you settled it
11. what are some of your best practices for maintaining a healthy household?
12. how do you feel housemates should share chores?
13. how do you feel housemates should manage expenses?
14. how do you feel we should give each other space?