Heavy sleeper uses rice cooker as 5:30am alarm clock, annoys roommate: 'He said I should be grateful there's free rice'

Author image for Ally Perry
Ally Perry • Writer and Editor
Jul 18, 2026 9:15 AM EDT

Do we always have to put up with the quirks of the people we live with?

A roommate relationship can sometimes be a strange one. This is a person whom you do not necessarily know that well, but you have a front row seat to their most intimate domestic habits, and vice versa. You either learn how to work with their personal schedule, or you find someone else to live with.

Much like bad bosses make people leave jobs, a bad roommate can dampen the experience of an otherwise nice place to live. They stop a house from feeling like your home. That being said, everybody's idea of an undesirable individual to live with varies greatly depending on their personality and stage of life. A fellow slob might not care that the trash hasn't been taken out in two weeks, and that nonstop party animal may have been super fun to live with if you were still in college.

Nothing will make you realize how varied the human experience is quite like living with other people, and often this feels like a negative realization. It is easy to let frustration and resentment build up, making a shared living space an uncomfortable place to be. Sometimes, the smallest annoyances can turn into the biggest disagreements.

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  • A rice cooker sitting on a kitchen surface next to a window
    via MChe Lee

    A rice cooker sitting on a kitchen surface next to a window

  • A tenant was getting increasingly annoyed with their roommate because of his unorthodox method of waking himself up in the morning. He had to be awake at 5:30am for work, and he decided that the best way to ensure this was to use a rice cooker.

    He prepared rice before going to bed and put the machine on a delayed timer, so it would make a noise to wake him up at the right time. He added ingredients to it that made the whole apartment smell, leading his roommate to request that he stop doing it. He continued with it nonetheless.

  • My roommate uses the rice cooker as an alarm clock

    My roommate has to wake up at 5:30 for work and apparently normal alarms dont work on him. His solution is preparing rice before bed, setting the delayed timer, and having it finish cooking exactly at 5:30 because he claims the smell wakes him up.
    via AccomplishedLaw2551
  • At first it was just plain rice which was weird but whatever. Now he's started adding chicken stock, garlic and sometimes chopped sausage because he says the stronger smell works better. Our entire apartment smells like dinner before sunrise and the cooker plays a little song when it finishes.
    via AccomplishedLaw2551
  • I asked him to stop and he offered to move it into the hallway outside our bedrooms instead. He says I should be grateful because there's always free rice, but I've been budgeting and cooking my own meals already.
    via AccomplishedLaw2551
  • This morning I woke up at 5:30 to the smell of garlic sausage rice and him sleeping straight through it anyway.
    via AccomplishedLaw2551
  • A representation of a man lying in bed under a white comforter with his eyes open
    via Victoria Romulo (Unsplash+)

    A representation of a man lying in bed under a white comforter with his eyes open

  • ambercrayon He should put it on his nightstand so he can breathe the steam directly lol
    via ambercrayon
  • Odd-Thought4669 Rice and shine muthafucka
    via Odd-Thought4669
  • llcdrewtaylor I put bacon on my Foreman grille next to my bed before I go to sleep so I can awake to the smell of fresh cooked bacon. I can't see a problem.
    via llcdrewtaylor
  • LatterHunter3108 Im taking notes for next roomate requirements: cook rice at dusk!
    via LatterHunter3108
  • Mizzerella oh yeah hes such an a_h_le!!! wonder if hes looking for a place?
    via Mizzerella
  • junieroomie if he shares the food as free mealprep i'd let it pass
    via junieroomie
  • oxfay I don't see what the problem is. Except for the fact that it's not working in waking him. Tell him to drink a glass of water before he goes to sleep.
    via oxfay
  • IvanJerkinit I can see the vision if i lived alone
    via IvanJerkinit
  • Actual_Swingset thrift this man a Mr. Coffee or something Imao
    via Actual_Swingset
  • burgboi666 this is some Micheal Scott logic right here. can't blame him though
    via burgboi666
  • New-Entertainer 703 Your roommate is a clown, they should wear a smartwatch with a vibrating alarm.
    via New-Entertainer703
  • Happy-Plant458 wait youre mad about free hearty breakfast rice? why? the smell of sausage and garlic is lovely id just start nudging him awake and having breakfast with him. i guess if youre a night worker maybe its a problem? but like if youre up during the day just go to bed earlier and enjoy breakfast rice man
    via Happy-Plant458
  • omjy18 This honestly sounds like the opposite of a problem if hes willing to share. Thats like free breakfast rice in 4 steps
    via omjy18

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funny story living together bad roommates rice
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