School Lunches

[Antoninus]

I saw a thread about this in Just Talk, well, similar anyways. I thought you might have some ideas.

The prices for lunch at our school are getting...a touch high. The school DOES have a thing where you can pay a set price and get tickets for lunch and it IS cheaper. But the lunch you get is...well...nearly un-edible. The school charges 3.50 for a little pizza, 2.50 for a burrito and they just knocked the price up on anything to drink to 1.75. No one knows what to do, the school keeps professing that thier supplier is raising prices and they cant help it. But alot of us cant afford to buy lunch at these prices. Especially considering how MUCH alot of us eat.

A bunch of us talked to the office about letting private companies like Mc Donalds or some private company selling us food. The principal did this whole song and dance, apparently the state pays money to this one company for them to supply us food. So instead of the state giving us money, we figgured that a private company could do it for far less money and have cheaper prices for food that people would be willing to buy.

What do you think? Any alternate ideas?

[asamananara]

How about bringing a bag lunch?
I hate to say it, but life is expensive. I would love the
opportunity to buy lunch, even a "nearly un-edible" one, for
the prices available to students. Beggars can't be choosers,
so if you want something which agrees with both your palate,
and your wallet, I can only suggest that you put in the extra
effort and pack your own food to school.

[morrigen]

How about bringing a bag lunch?
I hate to say it, but life is expensive. I would love the
opportunity to buy lunch, even a "nearly un-edible" one, for
the prices available to students. Beggars can't be choosers,
so if you want something which agrees with both your palate,
and your wallet, I can only suggest that you put in the extra
effort and pack your own food to school.

What Asa said.

[Caitrin SilverWolf]

second that. why would you want to pay for un-edible food (especially maccas!?!) when its so much easier to bring something with you, and then you have the added bonus that a) it's edible, and b) you'll know you like what you eat. It's really not that hard.

[Mindflayer]

second that. why would you want to pay for un-edible food (especially maccas!?!) when its so much easier to bring something with you, and then you have the added bonus that a) it's edible, and b) you'll know you like what you eat. It's really not that hard.Well, because sandwiches get old fast, it's REALLY hard to pack anything hot, and a lot of cold stuff gets soagy, or luke-warm by the time lunch rolls around (even with an ice pack)...

Plus you have to figure out where to keep it until lunch, or lug it around the entire day.

[asamananara]

*leaning on my old-fogey stick*
Kids these days.
You should be glad that you even *have* these options available
to you. Back in my high-school days, you ate what was served.
One entree, two sides. Friday was ketchup and processed cheese
on a hamburger-roll "pizza" day. Drink choices included milk,
and chocolate milk.
As for sandwiches getting old, try eating tomato soup and white
bread every weekday for three months. That's the only way I've
found to eat lunch at work for about what my daughter pays for
school lunches, and while it's hardly gourmet... at least it
fills my belly. That's good enough for me.
Crap. I sound like my father.
:)

[mucgwyrt]

Over here in the UK there's a HUGE scandal at the moment because the amount of money (and by extension the quality) spent on a prisoner's meal is significantly higher than the amount spent on a child's meal whilst they're at school. Tut tut.

[asamananara]

Well, many kids seem to graduate from high-school directly to
prison, so I guess they'll have something to look forward to.
Jail actually seems like a pretty good deal, compared to living
on the streets. Free food, decent healthcare, educational opportunities,
vocational training, plenty of spare time to read...
If it wasn't for the constant threat of beatings, rape, and the
restriction of liberties... it almost sounds like a resort.
.
edited to add:
.
This is interesting- in the US:
Average cost to incarcerate a person for one year: $20,140
Average cost to send a child to college for one year: $8,000

[mucgwyrt]

Well, many kids seem to graduate from high-school directly to
prison, so I guess they'll have something to look forward to.
Jail actually seems like a pretty good deal, compared to living
on the streets. Free food, decent healthcare, educational opportunities,
vocational training, plenty of spare time to read...
If it wasn't for the constant threat of beatings, rape, and the
restriction of liberties... it almost sounds like a resort.
Apparently they even get cable... :heybaby:

(mum cancelled our cable while I was in Cambodia - no more spongebob for macha :wah: )

[Ceres]

i second the bag lunch notion. it requires some thought for preparation and to remember it, but its REAL food. or can be. i think the nutrition in a hot lunch of poor quality, like instant pizza or processed burritos is going to be lower than that of a cold lunch u send. sandwiches arent the only option: how about pita and hummus...breadsticks and peanut or almond butter.....a wrap with cream cheese and veggies.....crackers and cheese......i could go on and on and we homeschool ;)
Theresa

[mucgwyrt]

i second the bag lunch notion. it requires some thought for preparation and to remember it, but its REAL food. or can be. i think the nutrition in a hot lunch of poor quality, like instant pizza or processed burritos is going to be lower than that of a cold lunch u send. sandwiches arent the only option: how about pita and hummus...breadsticks and peanut or almond butter.....a wrap with cream cheese and veggies.....crackers and cheese......i could go on and on and we homeschool ;)
Theresa
Or cold potato curry :drool: or rice and something, or a cold pasta dish, or...

[Ceres]

sound slike we need a recipe thread for bag lunches :D

[aluokaloo]

Bag lunches! I rarely ate cafeteria food. I just had my little lunchbox, and well I put things like sandwhiches, chips fruit juice, hot pockets, cookies and candy and fruit into it and ate it at school.

[Antoninus]

Noboddy brings food anymore. We have a bit of a problem with theft here. Those who dont bring lunch, steal from those who do. I tried bringing my lunch the first few weeks of my freshman year, and of those few weeks, I actually got to eat that lunch about 2 or 3 days a week. You bring food to school, you run a real big risk of having it..."liberated."

[~Macha~]

i 2nd the bag lunch recipie thread motion
NEHU-
Lockers? Do u ppl not have lockers to put stuff in? If u do, lunch in locker= non liberation.

[Tsuchimaru]

I either pack a lunch or go home...

[Antoninus]

No we dont have lockers. The school is being re-modeled and we wont have lockers for a LOOOONG time.

[sincerebliss]

yeah, a sack lunch would work. At my school it's not as much but I must say the prices have jumped a bit. Many people in my school are offered an almost free lunch. Their lunch is about 30-50 cents for pizza, a drink, and another thing. I think it might cost so much because the schools are paying for those who cannot afford lunch. Those who can have higher prices. Your school may be different though... :hahugh:

[Velvet]

I don't eat lunch anyways, but that is way more then the lunch is at my school.

[Antoninus]

yeah, a sack lunch would work. At my school it's not as much but I must say the prices have jumped a bit. Many people in my school are offered an almost free lunch. Their lunch is about 30-50 cents for pizza, a drink, and another thing. I think it might cost so much because the schools are paying for those who cannot afford lunch. Those who can have higher prices. Your school may be different though... :hahugh:
30-50 cents!? Wow...I wanna go to that school. Here, this dinky little Pizza Hut pizza thing that wouldnt feed a rat dog costs 3.75.

[~Macha~]

then put it in ur backpack. get some of those glad sandwich holders or containers and put ur lunch in the bottom of ur bag. or find a teacher u like, and they like u, and see if they will hold ur lunch in their room for ya. there are ways around stuff, u jus gotta look for them and get creative. r y'all alloweed to ur cars during the day? if so, keep ur lunch there, or in a friend's car. i used to keep mine in a hole in a tree because ppl kept breaking into my locker to steal my books. my only concern was my lunch (don't steal the fat girl's food), so i hid it. do what it takes. i know one kid who kept his on the roof near the caf. but we also had no enclosed hallways, just breezeways.

[Valkie]

well, you could also do what I use to do in high school.
1. don't eat lunch.
2. skip out and hit McDonalds or BK. :D

[Avalonia]

I always bring my lunch to school, because I hate the lineups for food which could take our almost 45 minutes of lunch period at times. Plus, I like knowing what's in my food. I've been bringing "bag lunches" as you guys call it for about three years, and I try to keep a variety instead of the same old thing. We have access to microwaves, but I usually opt for wraps (instead of sandwiches, it's a bit different) or soup in a thermos or something like chicken salad. Works for me. And actually, overall, it's probably cheaper than buying lunch everyday, and it's probably more nutritious than the school lunch program (which, as far as I've seen, deep fries a lot of their food, and even the pizza looks unnaturally greasy. Ew. I'll keep to my mom's homemade turkey soup or my own pizza subs, thank you very much).