Farooq and Nemanja

People have often asked me how it is that I have been room-mates with Nemanja all this time (three years and proud of it). Honestly, I still can’t think of an answer, especially when I consider the fact that our first impressions of each other were very negative – I thought he was crazy and to be avoided and he thought I was scary and to be avoided!
Actually, had it not been for the EECS program coordinators, we would probably never have gotten to know each other. But by making the first-year of an incredibly tough major incredibly tough, they ensured that we befriended each other. We were both EECS students, drowning fast and clutching at straws. I was good in EE and he was friends with a TA in CS – it was a match made in heaven!
However, in addition to his usefulness in CS, it turned out he was an excellent person, albeit with the annoying habit of playing Balkan ‘folk’ songs in ours EE labs, for which we were partners! But, we had much in common. Both had similar family backgrounds – our dads were in the army, our moms seemed to be of a similar nature – loving, ever-worried and constantly checking on us – we were both the eldest and we each had one younger brother. We had similar standards of cleanliness, although his room was way cooler than mine! We even had similar tastes in music, meaning that I liked pretty much all the Balkan songs he introduced me to. Dino Merlin is fantastic!! But to top it all, we both liked football. I wanted to be a goalie, and he had years of practicing with his brother, who was also a goalie. I wanted to dive around and make ‘awesome’ saves, and he loved to shoot ‘Bomb-aa’ shots! Like I said, we were a perfect match!
I have some fantastic memories from our time together. One is our rivalry at pool. In our first semester, we played it to relieve stress. But in our second semester, we started to keep score. By the end of the year, the score was 99 – 87 in his favor! My only consolation was that I didn’t let him cross 100! Other than that, despite the score-line, I still maintain that I was the better player! He just got lucky 12 more times than I managed to beat him playing proper pool shots!
I also remember the times when we cleaned the washroom. We were supposed to do it every other weekend. However, I found it to be a most thankless task. And so, after helping a couple of times, I made it a point to be ‘away’ from our room whenever the next time came. I knew he’d do a good job, and in much quicker time than I would manage. Avoiding an afternoon mopping the floor or scraping the shower was definitely worth it. But I’m glad he didn’t see it that way!
To conclude, I’ve had three wonderful years rooming with Nemanja. He’s a fantastic person and the best room-mate that I could’ve had. We’ve had some great times and he is definitely a brother to me. I hope that we have a wonderful lasting friendship and of course I wish him the very best.