By Deanna Fraser [1]
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[4]BELLEVILLE – For many students, living away from home for the first time can be exciting, but for some all the responsibilities that come with it – such as laundry, cooking and cleaning – can be scary.
Ryley Bowins, a first-year student from Lindsay, Ont., [5] said she was really looking forward to moving out.
“I’m loving the freedom. I’ve wanted to move out since Grade 10,” she said. “I can actually take care of myself. I know how to cook and clean.”
With Bowins being the youngest of four children, the rule in her house was always clean up after yourself.
“I always had to make sure my own room was clean, do my own laundry, and wash my own dishes.”
Although she felt prepared with household chores, she said she still has difficulty with other things.
“Budgeting is what I’m still working on. I was prepared to do groceries, but I didn’t realize how expensive stuff actually is. I don’t even know what a good deal is.”
Bowins added that sometimes she forgets that she doesn’t have her parents to take care of her.
“I didn’t think of some of the things I was going to need. I actually need to buy my own shampoo now, it’s not just there for me all the time.”
Even though Kristen Maracle is from the nearby Tyendinaga First Nation [6] and could easily commute, her parents wanted her to live in residence and experience what it’s like on her own.
“There’s just so much to do when you live alone,” said the first-year Police Foundations [7] student.
Maracle’s biggest challenges include cooking and buying groceries.
“I still need help. I always end up calling my mom, even just to cook a chicken.”
Television and New Media [8] student Simon Sheehan said his first year living away from his home in Oshawa, Ont. [9] was quite the struggle because he never had to do many chores living at home.
Sheehan said the first big challenge he faced was doing the laundry.
“I really only took out the garbage. I didn’t even know how to do my own laundry. My mom always did it for me, so it was weird without her. I called her a lot first year”
Sheehan added that people sometimes take living at home for granted.
“It takes a little more effort to live on your own than you think. It really makes you appreciate your parents a whole lot more.”
For students like Sheehan who struggled to do their laundry, here’s a step-by-step video: