Editor's letter 8 December 2019: Who'd want to live with me? - YOU Magazine Fashion Beauty Celebrity Health Life Relationships Horoscopes Food Interiors Travel Sign in Welcome!Log into your account Forgot your password? Password recovery Recover your password Search Sign in Welcome! Log into your account Forgot your password? Get help Password recovery Recover your password A password will be e-mailed to you. YOU Magazine Fashion Beauty Celebrity Health Life Relationships Horoscopes Food Interiors Travel Home Life Editor’ s letter Who’ d want to live with me By You Magazine - December 8, 2019 My husband and I rub along very well together, in the main. But, naturally, old marrieds like us will have habits that drive each other crazy. My tendency to leave shoes sitting wherever I’ve taken them off – be it the hallway, the kitchen, the bathroom. Expletives are often hurled in my direction as he trips over a pair that should not have been anywhere near that bend on the stairs. I know, I’m a disgrace. But in my defence, he never ever cleans the hob or the grill after he’s used them. If he had a column, he’d complain that I never take out the rubbish. But I don’t think he even realises that the shower drain needs a regular de-hairing and it ain’t the shower fairies who do it. Still, we like the same TV shows and the same kinds of dinners. We agree we can’t go to sleep if there’s an unresolved argument or a dirty dish left in the sink. We’ve lived together for around 26 years and I’m starting to think I might keep him. When, inevitably, I’m cursing as I go to use the grill and discover that first I will need to chisel off last week’s congealed cheese, I will remember the horror stories that some of the younger YOU team members tell me about their current flat-sharing arrangements. When you’re living in your own house and raising your own family under your version of ‘normal’ house rules, it’s easy to forget what it’s like to live with others with… interesting takes on cohabiting etiquette. Some days at work I can hardly believe my ears. Until recently, one woman here shared a house with someone who would regularly leave half-eaten chicken bones strewn across the kitchen floor. There they’d stay for days. Another had a flatmate who tried to enforce a rota of strictly timed showers. There was the woman who was banned by her flatmate from wearing dark socks, in case the lint left marks on the cream carpet. Another colleague tells the tale of the flatmate who made the rest of the house watch a documentary about the illuminati – ‘He was convinced he was opening our eyes to reality’. The worst stories, as you can imagine, revolve around sex. ‘I lived with a woman who I realised was using my bed for her Tinder hook-ups,’ says a colleague. ‘She had to come clean when I came home and found she’d ripped the sheets.’ What’s that old saying? Hell really is other people. It’s why I’m fascinated by the feature about women who, with their student years long behind them, are embracing unconventional, communal ways of living. It’s easy to see the benefits, such as always having a babysitter on hand or really shrinking that gas bill. But given the way even two people can niggle each other with annoying habits in my own household, I have to salute those we interviewed for being far more tolerant and – let’s be honest – far less annoying than me. Maybe I should start putting my shoes away before I get packed off to a commune. Editor’ s picks A few things I’m coveting this week I love the glow this gives me. BFF Skin Perfector cream, £35, trinnylondon.com Great to cook, eat or gift. Panettone, £18.95, carluccios.com I fancied an upgrade for the dog walks. Coat, £65, asos.com RELATED ARTICLESMORE FROM AUTHOR Everything we know about The Crown season 5 Aldi s exercise equipment is on sale with up to 50% off The best Halloween events for 2022 across the UK Popular in Life The You magazine team reveal their New Year s resolutions December 31, 2021 Susannah Taylor The TLC tools your body will love January 23, 2022 How to stop living in fear February 6, 2022 Susannah Taylor My pick of the fittest leggings February 27, 2022 Women’ s Prize for Fiction 2022 winner announced June 17, 2022 These BBC dramas are returning for a second series June 30, 2022 Susannah Taylor gives the lowdown on nature s little helper – CBD April 17, 2022 The baby names that are banned across the world April 27, 2022 The Queen has released her own emojis May 26, 2022 Sally Brompton horoscopes 27th June-3rd July 2022 June 26, 2022 Popular CategoriesFood2704Life2496Fashion2240Beauty1738Celebrity1261Interiors684 Sign up for YOUMail Thanks for subscribing Please check your email to confirm (If you don't see the email, check the spam box) Fashion Beauty Celebrity Life Food Privacy & Cookies T&C Copyright 2022 - YOU Magazine. All Rights Reserved