# Single guys (and gals) living alone



## OldSchoolSkater (Jun 3, 2011)

How is it? 

I amfinally able to afford to move on my own. And I am very excited. I lived alone for a semester in college but I had good friends really close by that I could visit any time pretty much.

For those that live alone now, what do you do to entertain yourself? How do you keep your depression in check? 

Also, what are some essentials a single 26 year old man should have in his apartment? I mean, aside from the usual kitchen appliances, clothes, cleaning supplies, furniture, etc. I'm looking for tips on decorating a single mans place as well as actual useful items that I may need/someone visiting may need.


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## Michael127 (Dec 10, 2011)

If you are a guy and living alone, then you need an X-box and a computer. These are essential. Otherwise, you will get bored after living alone for awhile. Everything else will fall into place.


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## Double Indemnity (Aug 15, 2011)

I'm excited for you! Have you found a place yet?

I think I'm really going to like living by myself. I'm excited to decorate and make all my own decisions about what to do with my place. I have cats so they keep me company and fully entertained. I like to keep to myself. I tend to be more productive too when others aren't around.

I like the retro style. I'm planning to find some pieces like this for my basement:


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## Lonelyguy (Nov 8, 2003)

OldSchoolSkater said:


> How is it?


Its ok. I like the independence but I get very lonely.



OldSchoolSkater said:


> For those that live alone now, what do you do to entertain yourself? How do you keep your depression in check?


I work as much as possible. During the week I'm gone for 11-12 hours a day, so by the time I get home from work, make something to eat and do a few other things its bedtime. On the weekends I spend most of my time outside working or at my parent's place...anything to avoid sitting in the house alone. I don't look forward to coming home to an empty house or spending time alone, I get so lonely and depressed I've turned suicidal at times.



OldSchoolSkater said:


> Also, what are some essentials a single 26 year old man should have in his apartment? I mean, aside from the usual kitchen appliances, clothes, cleaning supplies, furniture, etc. I'm looking for tips on decorating a single mans place as well as actual useful items that I may need/someone visiting may need.


Mine is pretty simple. I have a plasma TV with Blu-ray home theater system but I hardly ever watch it. I have a few framed wildlife prints hanging on the walls, thats about it. Otherwise just the basics...cleaning supplies, kitchen tools, things like that.


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## veron (Apr 29, 2009)

Living alone can get lonely at times, but I much prefer it to living with family. If you have some sort of social life going on, and see people on a regular basis, I think you would do fine.


OldSchoolSkater said:


> Also, what are some essentials a single 26 year old man should have in his apartment? I mean, aside from the usual kitchen appliances, clothes, cleaning supplies, furniture, etc. I'm looking for tips on decorating a single mans place as well as actual useful items that I may need/someone visiting may need.


If you are prone to depression, I'd suggest getting some houseplants, and/or pets. Having something _living_ around can certainly boost spirits.


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## JGreenwood (Jan 28, 2011)

I second the motion for an Xbox/PS3 and a computer. On top of that you also need a pool table, a recliner, and a place to display your liquor. Also, a neon sign of any sort and a cardboard cutout of a chick in a bikini.


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## Journeychick (May 11, 2012)

I have a laptop and a lifetime subscription to an online rpg. that has really helped my depression while living alone. I was also suffering chronic pain so I couldnt go out much. I enjoyed socialising online by gaming. My laptop and video games saved my life.

another thing that is cool for me for depression is cooking. I would challenge myself by cooking as much from scratch as possible. It was a distraction from depression with delicious results  aquire decent cooking supplies and a good cookbook!


Clean sheets! If you are interested in attracting chicks to your place I cannot stress how important it will be to keep your pad clean.


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## torrente758 (Feb 11, 2011)

It gets really lonely at times... so yeah, invite some friends over or have some kind of hobby


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## squidlette (Jan 9, 2012)

I love living alone. <3 I don't get lonely very often at all, but I really enjoy being alone to begin with. Nobody to judge me on how clean the apartment is, or whether I'm sleeping too much / not enough, or what I want to eat. No compromising! Ever! 

Oh, and I'll second the pet thing. It's nice to have someone who's always happy to see you, but doesn't have any of the demands that human roommates do.


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## Milco (Dec 12, 2009)

I hate living alone.
I do have the xbox, computer and cat listed, but in the end that alone just isn't enough.
If you socialise at work/school or hang out with friends, then I'm sure living on your own can be good, but if you're all alone most of the time then it's just not good.


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## Gryffindor85 (Nov 7, 2011)

I love living alone and hate the idea of living with someone else unless we were just the perfect match. Living along is the high life. I can do whatever I want whenever I want, plus I can fill my apartment with Emma Watson stuff and no one thinks I'm crazy. I've met some very interesting people online that help to keep me company. I just goof around online, play games, read, watch movies and old sci-fi TV series while having private "fun fun" time whenever I want.


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## komorikun (Jan 11, 2009)

I would love to live alone. I hate having roommates. They wake me up everyday. I'm always waiting to use the bathroom. And when they sit in the living room it makes me feel weird walking past them to the kitchen. If I ever fix up my love life, it would be awkward to bring guys home.

It's just so expensive to live alone in this city. Now I pay $660, if I were to live alone the cheapest studio is $1200 in an inconvenient or not-so-safe part of the city.


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## Doriis (Jan 8, 2012)

I'm afraid I would become some piece of human garbage wandering around endlessly with a fcked up lifestyle if I lived alone and end up shutting out the world for real. The idea seems appealing though.


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## rdrr (Dec 31, 2008)

I've never had roommates since I've moved out, always lived alone. The best thing about living alone, is the privacy and the ability to live in the amount of cleanliness you choose to. Sometimes I feel people judge me negatively for living by myself, when I tell them. Sure, it does get lonely sometimes coming home to an empty apartment, but you cant be around people 24/7. I try not to stay inside too much on my days off from work, and try to balance the social/alone time.


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## jsgt (Jun 26, 2011)

There is nothing like the feeling of independance, but there are drawbacks too(as already mentioned by others). One thing I would suggest is to look at ways to save energy. Since you're paying the bills now, you'll want to be more careful...to make sure your money isnt being wasted. Ex: I have a little microwave oven that I use for almost everything. It sure beats firing up the big oven(which I havent used in 1.5yrs). My entertainment is the internet or DVDs. I dont have cable, but have a digital antenna that picks up a few channels. When I start to feel bad, I immerse myself in a project. Distractions are key.

One more suggestion: *Save your money*! Life will throw you a curveball when you least expect it(yes, stating the obvious but it deserves repeating), so keep a stock pile for when you get into a jam. Trust me, you will sleep so much easier when you know your "reserve" will keep you afloat. Good luck!


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## pita (Jan 17, 2004)

Useful items to have when guests come over/in general:

- Wine glasses
- Hand soap
- Clean towels (clean everything, actually)

Keeping depression in check:

- Go for walks
- Clean your house
- Distract yourself
- Buy houseplants


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## chillLifter (Apr 2, 2012)

wish i had the money to move on my own. I don't think living by myself would be much of an issue.


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## Gryffindor85 (Nov 7, 2011)

I can count the amount of people other than maintenance men and internet people who have come into my apartments over last two years on one hand, I think the total was three and all one time visits.


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## Aaron0 (Feb 7, 2012)

When I was living alone I would rarely be home it would get very boring. I would suggest books & computer would probably be the best way to entertain yourself. Maybe take up a hobby as well.


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## The Sleeping Dragon (Sep 29, 2011)

Decorating? Well lets put it this way. I sometimes joke around I have no soul when talking about how I set the place up...  So I'm not going to give advice on that.

How I entertain myself? Gaming, reading, watching tv, internet, music, playing bass.


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## jim11 (May 23, 2011)

You need to have at least a queen size bed.


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## ItsCoolBreeze (May 17, 2012)

Exciting! I have been living on my own now for almost a decade, the first few years with roommates and the larger portion alone. One mistake I made in the past was letting the living alone mean "being alone" - I made sure to change my bad pattern of disappearing off to an unknown location by having a few close people come over for a sort of "apartment-warming" gathering. Nothing overly pressuring - people whom I'm comfortable with having around, be it family members, friends, etc... we had a calm dinner, talked about how to decorate, and they helped me get unpacked and "settled" - I feel like that really helped me start off on a better foot in my newest place - it felt more "homey" and those people felt more invited to want to come by to see me, check on me, and stay in contact - which is good so that I don't let myself sink unnoticed. 

As for decorating - I would have to suggest for your "bachelor pad" suggest clean lines (similar to the ones posted earlier, maybe IKEA-esque?), main pieces dark colors (no stains from food/drink etc to worry about) with some accent art, colors, "conversation pieces" to tie it together. Make those something personal, or something that you find speaks to you in some way. It will make the space feel "yours." 

Curtains - don't forget curtains. I feel like people neglect those too often and let the standard blinds in most places do the "shading" but there's a warmness that curtains add that I think makes even the whitest "cold" apartment seem a bit more friendly, calming even - just a nice basic sheer to match whatever theme you go with. It did wonders for me - it lets in enough sunlight to let me feel I can enjoy the daytime without having to have my windows blatantly open and uncovered. 

Good luck to you and I hope you enjoy your new space!


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## Perfectionist (Mar 19, 2004)

I love love love living alone.

My place is quite literally decorated with textbooks. My landlord came in one day and was all "wow, uh, buy some art?"

I can't really afford non-essential stuff right now so my place is pretty plain. A couple plants are great though. I have a tiny cactus and it makes me happy.


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## ohm (May 2, 2012)

I enjoy it. My favorite thing is being able to walk around naked without a care in the world... quite liberating  But I live in a really bad area so I always have to be mindful of locking my doors and windows at night and not being out by myself after dark. I also try to look as unattractive as possible when I am doing errands in the general vicinity of my neighborhood (I'm sorry if that sounds conceded, but the guys in my neighborhood would f*** a brown paper bag lol)


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## ItsCoolBreeze (May 17, 2012)

jim11 said:


> You need to have at least a queen size bed.


Agreed!!! :evil


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## MidnightBlu (Jun 11, 2006)

How do you guys afford living alone?


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## OldSchoolSkater (Jun 3, 2011)

Thanks for all the suggestions everyone!

So far I've got some of the main things covered it sounds like.

-Xbox 360
-Laptop
-Queen size bed
-Couple of pictures in frames to hang up, couple of smaller picture frames to leave on an end table or something.
-As a woman mentioned to me earlier, Handsoap (I never understood how so many guys could live without this for long periods of time). 

I've also got some furniture already covered so I wont need to buy anything new, at least not right away. I can always save up and buy some after a couple of months if I really dislike how this stuff works out. I've got a dresser, night stand, couch and chair, and coffee table already. 

I did end up going to Ikea and spent a good chunk of change. I got quite a bit for what I had spent though. Just some random essentials: silverware, plates and bowls, kitchen utinsels, glasses, etc. 

Thanks for all the input everyone! Keep it coming. I'm starting to get nervous but I'm really excited. I want to move right now but I can't get my keys until mid-July. Probably not a bad thing, as I feel like there are a lot of things I'm still missing that I'd like to get before I move.


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