Comments on: What Are Some Good Ground Rules For A Brother-In-Law in 650 Sq. Ft.?

By: Kim Siever

Kim Siever — Fri, 29 Sep 2006 18:50:27 +0000

Wow, and I thought our 2 bedroom 798 sq ft place was small. As someone who let a brother-in-law, sister-in-law, cousin-in-law and parents-in-law stay with us all at the same time, the only advice I have is: don’t do it.

By: Don

Don — Fri, 29 Sep 2006 16:02:31 +0000

I just watched “You Me and Dupree”, you need to see it before he gets there. After the comments you made about how long your mother stayed, wait ’til she hears about this!!! LOL, LOL, LOL!!
Hey he’s a good kid, and you probably will get stomped in Halo.

By: John Mansfield

John Mansfield — Thu, 28 Sep 2006 13:44:20 +0000

Watch The Wrong Trousers and note any peguin-like characteristics of your brother-in-law that could be a concern. My brother-in-law lived in my house for a year and it was a great thing.

By: JKS

JKS — Thu, 28 Sep 2006 05:06:01 +0000

Oh, I should also mention that we were making money off him (like I said, I was cooking for him and buying all his food). I soon realized I needed to buy 12 oz cans of soda for him, which were more expensive than having 2 ltr. or having no soda. Also, he totally cranked up the radiator heater in his room. Don’t ask me how anyone could need that much heat. So I’m sure we spent more in utilities that originally planned.
But along with the negative surprises were the very happy surprises. I miss him!

By: JKS

JKS — Thu, 28 Sep 2006 05:01:39 +0000

When my brother moved in, I did send him an email beforehand with some guidelines. He was going to pay us rent that included food. I don’t remember everything that I put in there, maybe I said he’d clean his bathroom when he moved out?
I remember putting in something about “if there are problems” that he and I would “talk about it” and “share our feelings “and then I said if he and my husband had issues that could “not talk about it” and “male bond over computer games” and “pretend it never happened” which gave the letter the right touch of humor.
The sooner you let him know what is expected in terms of chores, the better, I think. It is easier that having to go to him after he’s done it and say “Please don’t do that anymore.”
Since his rent was a needed income for us, I cooked for him and did dishes, which meant that he didn’t have to share a lot of chores.
We asked him (and he agreed when he moved in) to get on the roof and take down the antennae before he moved away…….he did it the morning he moved away after his truck was already packed lol.
It was a great experience both times he lived with us. Unfortunately the second time he starting dating his wife and so he was useless as a babysitter. The first time around he was awesome hanging out with our 2 year old when I had just given birth to baby #2.

By: Silus Grok

Silus Grok — Thu, 28 Sep 2006 02:50:37 +0000

Yeah… on the food… best rule of thumb: don’t open something un-opened, and don’t finish-off.

By: meems

meems — Thu, 28 Sep 2006 01:24:03 +0000

I agree with what Susan said mostly. My input:
Clean up after yourself (dirty cups go in the sink, not left around the apartment);
Don’t eat the last of anything unless you know ahead of time it’s okay. This includes not eating food that was set aside for some other purpsoe (tomorrow night’s dinner or whatever);
When you guys go out, it’s not an automatic invitation for him to come along (although you may want to invite him!);
Don’t bring strangers over to the hosue when you’re not there. Friends of friends of their friends can sometimes turn out to be people you really don’t want in your place.
Have him be actively engaged in some pursuit of happiness that gets him out of the house once in awhile. There’s nothing more depressing than coming hom to someone who’s been laying around the house doing nothing all day. Especially a small house.

Wow. Our place in California is 1050 sq ft for two adults and two kids (and 2 bedrooms) and we’re cramped beyond belief. (Of course, part of this may be that my husband has taken over the entirety of the “dining area” as his home recording and music studio!

By: D. Fletcher

D. Fletcher — Thu, 28 Sep 2006 00:42:42 +0000

I’ve got 1,200 square feet all to myself. Of course, the bank may take it away from me at any time.

By: Tim

Tim — Thu, 28 Sep 2006 00:33:23 +0000

Gotta agree with Silus about the intimacy issue. This isn’t Guatemala we’re talking about here.

By: a random John

a random John — Wed, 27 Sep 2006 22:19:43 +0000

The real problem is that Rusty knows he is going to get his you-know-what handed to him in Halo and he can’t deal…