Avery Ballmann | Staff Writer
Students, don’t feel embarrassed to bring your lunch to campus. It’s convenient and affordable. I’ll take those two pleasures over what any student might have to say about my butterfly lunchbox.
I live off campus this year, so I had to find a way to avoid paying for a meal plan or driving back to my apartment in the middle of the school day. When coming up with a solution, I remembered what saved me throughout my entire K-12 education: a packed lunch.
I love the convenience and accessibility of a packed lunch. I have enjoyed taking my lunch to a pretty building on campus and meeting up with friends or just eating by myself. Now that the weather is cooling down, I am looking forward to eating my lunch outside.
These lunches don’t have to be complicated or gross. Branch out from the subpar soggy sandwich, and pack something you enjoy. I like to make my lunches fun so that I look forward to eating them. Usually, I pack sides and a main dish, plus a lot of snacks for the days I’m on campus from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Packed lunches can also be really affordable since you control what groceries you buy and use throughout the week. Usually, I pack leftovers or frozen meals I can heat up, such as chicken nuggets or potstickers. Sometimes I am jealous of students who are eating at the Bill Daniel Student Center every day, but I remind myself that I’m saving money.
The All Access five-day meal plan for the dining halls is $2,734.13 each semester, including $200 in dining dollars. If a student buys three meals a day, five days a week, then one meal averages to roughly $10.50. To me, paying that much for a meal you can’t control isn’t worth it. When packing your own lunch, you have the ability to choose how healthy you eat and how affordable the meal is.
There are block meal plans that are based solely on swipes, but when doing the math, this method isn’t significantly cheaper. The Block 65 plan, not including dining dollars, is $644.09. This plan has 65 swipes, so each meal averages $9.90. That’s only 60 cents cheaper than the amount it would cost you out of pocket. Paying this much for one meal while having to fight the long lines and crowded tables is simply not worth it.
When I first started bringing my lunch to campus, I was worried I wouldn’t be able to heat up my food properly, but I have found several microwaves on campus; I frequently use the ones on the first floor of the SUB and on the second floor of Moody Memorial Library, right next to the vending machines. I’ve never had a problem waiting in line, and the microwaves work well.
If you’re feeling insecure about being seen with your lunchbox on campus, just know that I will proudly be sporting mine. Having a lunch prepared by myself and eating it where I can relax in the middle of my day is a small blessing I look forward to.
