"I pay the rent. What do you do?"

"I hate you more than life itself."

"You stink like a big fat stinker."

Oh, the joys of roommates. They can be good companions. They help pay the bills. They get on your last nerve and make you leave nasty little messages like these posted on the crossed lines of a shared space.

Let's face it: Not everyone is so direct when communicating a problem.

"I Lick My Cheese and Other Real Notes from the Roommate Frontlines" is the hilarious compilation of notes from somewhat passive-aggressive roommates trying to get their point across.

Some notes address quirky situations, such as dealing with the person who likes to eat and leave their dishes in the bathroom. Other notes radiate with rage as the words "get out" pop from the page.

As an experienced roommate, Oonagh O'Hagan created a Web site, www.roommatesanonymous.com, and asked roommates to share their cohabitation capers. A designer and lecturer at Central St. Martins College of Art & Design in London and other universities in the United Kingdom, she compiled these notes for the book.

She offers comedic commentary and shares the stories behind the notes. The title note, "I lick my cheese," heralded the comment, "Very primitive -- like marking your territory. It works. I would never go near this fridge."

"I Lick My Cheese" was originally published in the U.K., and some parts of the book have been "Americanized." Regardless of language lines, anyone who has ever had a roommate will be able to relate to these accounts from apartment battlegrounds.