Why I still pack my lunch (even though I don't have to)
As I've mentioned before, I was almost-broke not that long ago.
When I was first in nursing school, going through my divorce, paying unending attorney fees, I really, really did not have extra money to spend.
At that point, things like lunch-packing were survival methods. If I hadn't been careful with my money, I could have easily gone into debt.
(Even with careful frugality, I had to open up some 0% interest credit cards toward the end of my divorce to pay the last attorney fees.)
Now, things are better; I'm happily attorney-free, and instead of paying to go to college, I'm getting paid to be a nurse, which is a nice double win.
But I still haven't broken my no-cafeteria streak. Why?
1. My packed lunches are (generally) healthier
I pack things like cottage cheese and fruit, green salads with chicken, kale salad, chickpea salad, protein pasta, soups made with homemade broth, and so on.
It would be tough to get cafeteria food that matches the nutrition level of these lunches.
And it would also be tricky to get something that wouldn't give me a blood sugar crash (which is a nightmare to me at work. I don't wanna be sleepy while I'm trying to take care of patients!)
2. Packed lunches = less trash
Cafeteria meals necessarily involve disposable packaging, but I can bring a zero-trash lunch from home.
I bring real silverware and a metal water bottle, I pack my food in either glass or metal containers, and it all goes in my insulated Snoopy lunchbox. 🙂
Doing this requires some mental compartmentalizing because holy moly, I throw away a lotta stuff every hospital shift (keeping things clean/sterile is a trash-tastic process).
But you know...I'd throw that stuff away regardless. I might as well decrease my contribution to the problem by having a trash-free lunch.
3. A packed lunch offers a lot of variety
If you want a super healthy cafeteria lunch, you are basically limited to the salad bar, and that would get boring for me.
By packing my lunch, I can incorporate a wide variety of foods, and that matters to me.
I know some people can happily eat the same thing every day, but for me, food is best when it's interesting and varied.
4. Lunches help me reduce food waste
You can certainly use up odds and ends at any meal, but for some reason, lunch feels the easiest to me.
In my lunches, I eat a lot of leftovers and also many produce odds and ends in salads, or just on their own. I know for sure this helps me cut down on food waste!
5. If I save my money, I have more to give to others
One of the motivations underlying lunch-packing and other frugal habits is this: if I spend less of my money, I am more able to give to others.
If I increased my spending to match my new paycheck, I would be no better off than before, and I wouldn't have extra to give away.
But by maintaining frugal habits (including, but not limited to, packing my lunch), I can keep a margin, and that improves my ability to give to others. I can contribute to charities at work (sometimes we do community projects, or sometimes a coworker has a loss and we do a group gift), I can pay for other people's food, I can be generous with my children, and more.
(I did some secret and anonymous behind-the-scenes helping of classmates this last semester by going through people who knew where the needs were. So much fun, despite the anonymity on both ends.)
I'm never gonna be able to do Oprah-level giving, obviously. But being able to share with others on a normal-person level is still very meaningful, and a super motivation to keep packing my lunches.
I spend less so that I can share more. 🙂
How about you? If you're a lunch-packer, what keeps you motivated?
P.S. I know packed lunches are not a 100% savings over cafeteria food, because I have to buy ingredients to pack in my lunches! But I'm sure that the equivalent food would be much pricier at the cafeteria. This is making me curious exactly how much some of my lunches cost, though. Maybe I should do a price breakdown of some of them...
P.P.S. I shared links to my stainless steel lunch containers in this post.
I really need to be better with this. I think maybe it's some kind of subconscious rebellion against my parents never buying lunch out when I was growing up - I don't know, but for some reason I always have to push myself to make a lunch. I've got better with it in the past month so I just need to continue with my streak 🙂 Good inspiration and I love your Snoopy bag! When I was a kid I had a My-Little-Pony lunchbox. Maybe I need to get one of those again (Snoopy works too!) 😉
@Sophie in Denmark, one thing that helped me is cooking a large batch of something, then freezing lunch-sized portions for easy grab-and-go.
@WilliamB, I splurged and bought my self some souper-cubes for this very reason. I really like them!! I’ve got extra soup in the freezer for lunches and quick dinners!
@Sophie in Denmark,
I can relate to your comment, which is why I think I am terrible at eating leftovers (except very specific dishes). When I was growing up, money was so tight you had to eat up leftovers regardless of if you liked them or not. Once I was on my own, I chose not to, because I want to. Fortunately now I have a son who loves leftovers so waste is less.
@WilliamB, Good idea! I have a rather tiny freezer but I'm sure I can store some things in the fridge.
@Shelley, We usually had sandwiches. I still want to splurge occasionally, but the key word I have to remember is occasionally!
I through most of my working nursing time took a packed meal. I found the cafeteria took too long to go to and return with food thereby leaving me little time to eat and regroup.
Btw, I bought hubbie the snoopy lunch bag because he is a big fan of the composer who wrote the jazz in the background of the Peanuts TV shows. We found that bag must be super poorly insulated because even with cold packs, things don’t stay very cold. Some hospitals i worked in had enough refrigeration for all the lunch boxes and some didn’t—yours must… a great perk in my opinion.?
Oh my gosh, I forgot to include that reason...yes! A half hour goes by so fast, and I don't want to spend going down to the cafeteria.
We do have a refrigerator, so I just stick my whole lunchbox in there. Good to know about the insulation, though; if I'm going to be fridge-less, I'll use a different bag.
Good morning. My reasons are pretty much the same as yours, Kristen. I use up leftovers, save money, eat way healthier. My 30 minutes to eat is really more like 25 once I factor in a restroom stop, heating my food if needed, and the walk to & fro. I have no time to drive anywhere to get food nor would I want to spend the money. There's a nearby sandwich shop that has a tasty menu, but whew it is pricey.
Speaking of lunch, I'm off to make it.
Have a great day, everyone.
I am generally home during the day and eat lunch at home. I do it for all the reasons you list. I could not have said it better myself.
@K D, I'm with you on this one. In my case, retirement hath its privileges.
@K D, same here. I work from home and I’m just too lazy to go out and get something. Wins all around!
@A. Marie,
Amen to that! One of the biggest privileges in retirement is sleeping in until 8 a.m. instead of having to get up, get ready, and drive somewhere in the dark.
@Fru-gal Lisa,
I intend to sleep in until 9 AM once I retire. Heh. 🙂
@Liz B., Hope that works out for you. I was always a night owl. But have discovered that my likes to do things differently as it ages. I eat differently, both amounts and times. I am usually in bed between 8 and 9. Evening prayers and read for a little while. But am waking up 4 to 5:30. Which is ok and I like it. But lately it is anytime between 1 and 4, then can't get back to sleep. No buenos!
@AZ Lynn, that was supposed to be "body likes to do"
@Liz B., when I first left the 8-5 work force, I slept 10 - 11 hours a day. It took me nearly a year to recover from being a full-time mom, career woman, and caregiver. Not sure how I did all of it back then, but you do what you must. Now 7 - 8 hours sleep is more than sufficient, but I never ever make an appointment before 10:00am.
@K D, better half is big on eating lunch. I have never been a breakfast eater and frankly, don't burn up many calories at my IT job. Most of the time it is soup since I've been WFH for 15 years. Truth be told I'd rather just catch a cat/zen nap. But who am I to complain for having a better half that cooks (and grocery shops).
@Bee, that is right - you do what you have to do. Sixty hours a week was a light week when my kids were little - thank goodness for my Mom. I also did all the paperwork/books for better half's business. I am no longer young but my team at work now is just recently at 60% (was 40% for three months this year). Trust me my "self appraisal" will be making note of this. My employer should be sending better a big thank-you - it'd be tough without him.
@AZ Lynn,
I was off work for 3 months after my total knee replacement, I woke up every morning at 9 AM. it was wonderful! I'm a night owl, too, so guessing I will continue to stay up late and sleep in once I'm retired (13 months and 1 week, but who's counting? Lol!). I'm sorry you wake up too early!
I have mostly packed lunches throughout my career for all the reasons you have cited, plus I get sick of restaurant food quickly (e.g., when on vacation). Even when I was self-employed working in a downtown area with lots of options, I still packed my lunches. Now I eat lunch out once a week to spend time with a friend - but it's not about the lunch, it's the friendship.
@Kristin, yes! I also save eating out for gathering with friends. That way no one has to cook or clean, either. And we often take a walk before or after.
DH (when he isn't furloughed) is a die-hard lunch packer. The only food options at his work--which is on an Air Force base-- are Dunkin' Donuts and Burger King. Very sad. So he packs healthy food from home. DS#1 also packs his lunch, I think more from the money-saving standpoint!
When I bike in to class, I generally get there very early because I allow myself a lot of time (just in case and so I'm not rushing), and I don't like to exercise on a full stomach, so I pack my breakfast. And a good thing too--the only food options at my satellite campus is a vending machine. They do have free meals for students in need, but a) I'm not in need, and b) my allergies prevent me from eating them! There is a Wendy's and a McDonald's nearby, and I suppose if I were in dire straits I could hop to the Walmart and grab some grocery items. But it's almost a food desert.
@Karen A., that’s crazy that an army base does not cook good 3 courses meals for theirs soldiers. We have bases with full kitchen, dietitians, cooks and lots of locally grown food . You don’t want your fighting force badly feed and lacking energy.
@Bella, There is a cafeteria in the one dorm on base; I have no idea what they serve there, but that dorm is far from the area on base where DH works, so the airmen there either pack their lunches (there are quite a few kitchens with fridges, so there's that), or they grab Burger King.
@Karen A., that must be a tiny base, most bases have a foodcourt in the Exchange and a few other options of free standing places. We always enjoyed eating at the golf course as well, great burgers.
@Melissa, The Exchange is on a whole different area of the base, a drive from the area where DH's school is located. The Exchange has, IIRC, a Charley's and a Subways. The dining facility is also near the Exchange. There are a few coffee shops, Starbucks and Dunkin. There's a Lumpia Queen somewhere and the Burger King I already mentioned. So students at the school would have to drive over to the Exchange and the dining facility for lunch, so often they don't bother. The Burger King is within walking distance of the school.
It's not a small base, in fact it's pretty large, but it's not managed very well when it comes to dining options.
I still like to pack lunch when I'm not working from home too. Most of the time my work sites aren't near any food options I particularly like, nor are they particularly nutritious (think drive through establishments only) so it feels like I'm doubly wasting money and calories to be disappointed anyway.
PS I hope you're so proud of yourself. I was actually thinking of you today and how you've always come through as such a caring mother and how valuable this rebuild phase of your life will be if ever your kids need to start over too because having watched you do it and so admirably, they hopefully won't be scared to do it if they need to too. Definitely inspo I needed in my life.
I pack my breakfast & lunch every day M-F. What keeps me motivated:
1. The cost (obviously)
2. More choices-I work in a building with a small grab-and-go selection of prepackaged foods-which is further limited bc I have celiac. In the past, I bought my lunch there bc I forgot my lunch, or my lunch spilled. I got a protein bar and soda which was eh at best.
3. Healthier meals
4. Time-saving benefits-Leaving the office for meals is very difficult (as in I'd miss meetings if I left the office) I typically eat at my desk while working or even in meetings when it cannot be helped (this, unfortunately, is common where I work).
Forgot to add I also do this because I pack my husbands breakfast/lunch everyday as well. If I'm packing his, I might as well do my own too.
I do meal prep every week for breakfasts (pancakes. oats, yogurt) and my lunches making (protein, carb, veggie). So, I guess avoiding food waste is another motivator.
I pack my own lunches and breakfasts and snacks for work and it is my goal to stay completely out of the cafeteria. For me, its shocking how expensive and non-healthy the offerings are. I feel like the company who runs the cafeteria for the hospital has zero interest in providing healthy food, and that's so wild! Fries, chicken strips, burgers and mac and cheese are staples down there. Its not even all that good. Even though I can afford it, why should I? As you said, there are more valuable ways to spend any excess. Aside from charity, there's also my retirement fund that can benefit!
@Gina from The Cannary Family, I'm with you. I mentioned above that where my DH works, on a military base, the closest food options in his area are a Burger King and a Dunkin' Donuts--and military personnel are supposed to keep up with their fitness requirements. How can they easily do that if the closest available food options are junk? It's baffling.
@Gina from The Cannary Family,
I fully understand what you mean about hospital cafeteria offerings and how unhealthful they are/can be.....keep in mind, they are there to *make money*. They offer burgers, French fries, chicken strips, Pop Tarts, etc. etc., *because they sell*.
If those items were not available, people would ask for them, and complain because they are not there; by "people", I mean employees, too, not just visitors. Every time they try and offer something healthful - be it something vegetarian, something that includes tofu, something that's low fat/low salt, it doesn't sell, or only sells a few servings at best. Not saying they shouldn't keep trying, but this is reality. (I'm in the Midwest US).
Having said that, the hospital where I work offers a huge salad bar, a make-to-order deli sandwich station, and a wife variety of beverages (bottled water as well as an ice/water station, seltzer waters, etc). They're not perfect, but there are a lot of options.
@Liz B., This is more of a sidenote, but it's interesting seeing things being called 'healthful'. In the UK we call them 'healthy'!
@Sophie in Denmark,
Ha ha, I think both words work!
In the three years I worked my last office job, I never once went out for lunch. Mostly for me it was an issue of time and my introverted nature. My lunch break was only thirty minutes. Going to get food would have involved driving at least five minutes each way, and then the ordering and eating would have been the rest of it. Plus, I would be out and still talking to other people. Whereas bringing my lunch meant I just walked downstairs to the breakroom--I could have eaten at my desk, but it was better for me to get away from it--and ate there. Not many other employees there used it, so I was mostly there by myself. And then I could go outside and walk around the office park for the rest of my lunch break.
Eating by myself was also good for me. I talked to people all day. It was nice to have some time to not do that.
Although, now that I think about, my lunch routine was the reason I knew so many people at least in passing at that job. I worked upstairs in the "white collar" part of a relatively large financial publishing company. When I walked downstairs to the breakroom, I went through the printing and warehouse areas. Because I did this every day at the same time, I got to know the guys who worked there, too. As well as the maintenance staff. I was much less in a bubble than my fellow co-workers on the second floor. And the maintenance staff was always happy to help me. 🙂
I pack because I can track my calories & protein. Not as easy to do when eating out. Most all of us at work don't actually take a "lunch hour" and the only places to eat out are downtown and you have to pay for parking. My pet peeve is paid parking for cities. Once they raised the lot to $5 as a standard fee no matter how long you are in the lot...no way.
Another thought - part of the reason why I need to push myself is that I work near lots of great independent cafes. I think I would be better at this if I only had a cafeteria or a fastfood chain to choose from! I do want to support the cafes, but I can still go there, just on a less frequent basis!
Kristen, your food pictures always make me hungry!! I love what you said about being able to help others anonymously. My favorite way to do that is tipping in restaurants. I just think how thankful I am there are people doing that very difficult job and I know they're not paid enough!! Happy Monday!!
@Plaidkaren,
I agree 100%! Food service employees work really hard, much harder than most of the rest of us, and are paid low wages.
The most gracious thing I ever witnessed at any banquet I covered in my quarter century of news reporting was this: after a NAACP banquet in DeLand, Fla., at Stetson Univ., the emcee thanked the usual people, and at the very last he called for all the kitchen help to come out to the banquet hall. He said something to the effect that "these are the people who worked the hardest to make this evening so wonderful, preparing all this delicious meal, so let's give them the applause they deserve."
The cooks and other kitchen workers were astonished at this recognition. But they, very deservedly, got a standing ovation that lasted several minutes.
Time was the major reason that I packed lunch. As a mom of three who also worked outside the home, time was a precious commodity. I packed my lunch along with the kiddos. I had an hour for lunch which I often used to make phone calls, pay bills, or run errands rather than sit in a restaurant or cafeteria. When my office finally instituted flex time, I would only take a 1/2 hour for lunch at my desk, so I could leave earlier. This allowed me to beat the traffic, get dinner on the table, help with homework, and do other evening chores. Of course, it also saved money which was always important. Of course, this was 30 years ago. I hope things are better for mothers that work away from home.
@Bee, sad to say it is probably not better for working mothers. Far, far too many don't think mothers should be working AT ALL. The 1950s/1960s are calling but no one is answering. That ship has long sailed.
I am OCD about an hour for lunch these days. While I understand noon "my time" meetings when the e-vites are across 4 time zones, I take an hour lunch period. It might be split into separate half hours but I take the hour.
Kristen, I admire you for your dedication to frugality and healthy eating!
I pack both my lunch and my hubby's and to be honest, I get sooooo tired of doing it! He doesn't have access to a microwave, as he is usually on the road, so sandwiches it is. And they get really boring.
I have options for reheating, but I get lazy. Reading your posts and seeing your delicious looking meals is motivating!
Kristen,
Beautiful reason....to be able to help others more:) No wonder I've hung around here reading your blog for so long!!!! God Bless and have a great week.
I work 12 hour shifts also so I bring my lunch to make sure I hit all my food groups (and water intake) and I’m not as easily tempted by all the treats and celebrations in the break room. Also, my cafeteria is very expensive at work so I try to budget when I can. Funny that this post came in today when I accidentally forgot my lunch on my kitchen counter (!!) and have been sitting at work mourning my lunch box! LOL.
I’m also mostly a lunch packer, for myself and my kids, for many of the same reasons - better nutrition (I’m mostly a vegetarian and I end up eating too much cheese in search of cafeteria protein), cost (with goals of long-term financial independence and ability to give away more), less packaging.
That said, I work long hours and burnout is a real threat. If an occasional latte from the hospital Starbucks or salad from the cafeteria salad bar or bowl of ramen with tofu from the hospital Japanese place help me to get through a 17-day stretch of working every day, it’s a good investment.
@Katie, I hear you re: burnout. And I told my boss and his boss that it is *not* going to happen with me. During one "all staff" meeting I heard our CEO say another employees concern re: AI taking his job was "selfish". This did not sit well with me then and continues to not sit well with me. If you don't lookout for yourself, who else will?
When I worked in a hospital as a respiratory therapist, I always brought my meals. As a single mother of three girls, I certainly had no extra money to spend on cafeteria food but the time factor was almost as strong as frugality. I'm a naturally slow eater and could not have fit being in line to purchase food AND eating it in the half hour allotted time. Bringing my own food also allowed me to eat maybe later, at a slower time in my shift. So time - plus all the other reasons you mentioned - made this choice easy.
Great post!
When we have to be out and about at lunch I usually pack a lunch. Or if my husband has a jib that takes him somewhere that he can pop in here or his parent's place for lunch.
My reasons are very similar to yours:
1. Much, much cheaper than eating out.
2. Healthier
3. For my husband at a jobsite, it can even be a time saver. He doesn't have to stop and go wait in a drive through line.
I would love a price breakdown post!
I packed lunches and dinners for many years before I retired, for your reasons plus: schedule issues. The small campus snack shop closed down at 2 0pm, so teaching a 7 pm class with no dinner wasn’t good. Also, my home meals were more satisfying and generous. As you point out, nutritionally superior too. In all, more satisfying. Sometimes, timing. The snack shop was a 20 minute walk each way from my office, and classrooms were spread farther. I am a slow eater so home made worked better. In terms of overall quality my meals were much better. Good for my charity budget too!
I am a dedicated lunch (and breakfast and coffee packer), for all the reasons stated above. One of my most important motivators was not mentioned by Kristen -- TIME. Which is just as (if not more) valuable to me. I don't have a cafeteria at my work (though one is coming!) and the vending options are disgusting. So if I don't bring my meals, I have to walk to my car, drive 5 minutes for fast food or 10 minutes for anything healthier, pick out what I want, wait for it, and drive back. At least 30 minutes and $20 spent. I do go out for lunch with friends sometimes, but that is for social purposes.
Any habit is tough to start, but once you get going it becomes easier. I pack my meals while my kids eat breakfast at the breakfast counter. I also freeze leftovers in meal portions so I have a homemade frozen entree. Occasionally these get thrown out but most often I'm thankful to have them.
There are any number of things I would not stop doing, even if money were infinite. Packing my own food is one of them, for the reasons you list: frugality, disposables, food waste, etc. My last job was located 1.5 mi from my usual grocery store and I still packed lunch; among the reasons was that making that drive every day would be wasteful.
Here's an idea for a future post: if $10 million were dropped in your lap, which frugal measures would you change and which would you keep?
@WilliamB,
Great question! That actually happened to my brother when he sold his company. He still drives used trucks, lives in his one and only marriage home and chooses camping over resorts. He and his wife have added scholarship funds to their high schools, started a fund for community help. It has a board of social workers and religious leaders. SIL still packs her lunch, kids do as well, but they are in college. They do a ton of charity work and annonomously give to my after foster foundation (setting up kids who age out of the foster program).
@Blue Gate Farmgirl, kudos for the assistance to those who age out of foster care. What is this country thinking?
I only treat myself to a purchased lunch at the hospital if I am there for a meeting day. Otherwise, I pack 100%. I eat breakfast while I am taking report, lunch on my first break and a hearty snack of veggies, hummus, cheese and nuts at my second break. This carries me through! I do treat myself to a purchased coffee when I work though! My only treat!
I work in a hospital lab. We used to have a group called The Lab Rats who quietly listened to coworkers talk. Often, when a team member was in crisis due to a spouse health issue or job loss, we would take up money and buy gift cards for food, Christmas gifts, or whatever was needed and they would be passed to the people in need. All was anonymous
Sweetest thing ever was when a coworker posted pictures of her children shopping and buying their own wants with their gift card for Christmas. They were so excited. Their daddy was fighting cancer and it shared a bit of joy and normalcy...
I pack my breakfast & lunch every workday. My main motivators are:
1) saving money
2) saving time since my building has no food items available, not even vending machines
3) healthier meals than eating out
4) reducing food waste by incorporating leftovers and odds and ends into my lunches
I love this post, Kristen! It inspired me to cook more, and just be mindful of where my money goes...and yummy nutrition is such a big bonus. I can relate to wanting to give to others. The holidays are coming up and I have a list of possible orgs to donate to. I was wondering where your containers came from, so thanks for the links, too 🙂
It's so wonderful that you are using your extra funds to help others. I hope you are also putting a little away for retirement. My husband and I were very frugal for years and now that we are retired, we are more secure financially because of the money we socked away for years.
We pack lunch because, it’s kosher , it’s healthy , it’s food we already bought and we don’t trash food . But the biggest reason, the taste is great . My husband will sometimes eat at a vegan restaurant with colleagues for social reasons. I don’t have the same social urges nor obligation.
I take leftovers to work because I like what I cook and I'm happy to eat it again! The norm at our office is for people to bring in leftovers or get a quick lunch from Trader Joe's (it is nice and close to the office). Our office kitchen area filled with catering leftovers from meetings over the weekend is very popular - we even have a Teams channel devoted to this "free food".
Members of my direct team work with catering and there is leftovers because of minimums to meet and a wide variety of dietary needs. They have looked into ways to decrease the amount of food that we get to avoid the leftovers but depending on what is ordered it is unavoidable. Feeding staff the leftovers makes everyone happy and helps avoid food waste.
In all the years of substitute teaching, and one of my full-time teaching jobs, I always packed my lunch.
The FT teaching job I held the longest, if I sat out in the cafeteria with the students, they provided me with free lunches, so that was a fantastic deal! Their food was both delicious and healthy. Plus, I got to sit with various kids and get to know them better -- which helped the teacher-student interactions in the classroom. By eating and visiting with them, they knew I cared about them.
But for more than a decade, I was a dedicated brown bagger, as the various schools would not take cash, you had to have an account with that particular school, and as a subbie, I was going to dozens of different schools. Chances were that I might not be back to a given school again, or maybe I would -- one never knew.
Most schools had teacher's "workrooms" (lounges with Xerox machines, refrigerators and microwave ovens) where I ate. So I often took frozen dinners that could be zapped in 1 or 2 minutes, as there would be others wanting to use the microwave. One of my latest favorites was the calzones you could get at Aldi. Often, I couldn't eat it all, and brought half of it home. Or I'd half it with someone who didn't have a lunch. We'd both be filled up!
If I were going to an unfamiliar school, I'd take a cold sandwich -- but never peanut butter. Peanut allergies are widespread, and I'd often see signs that said no peanuts (in any form) allowed. Instead of peanut butter-and-cheese-cracker snacks, I'd pack cream cheese cracker snacks. Better safe than sorry!
My drink would often be a 16-oz soda pop bottle that was refilled from my 2L bottle at home. I used 'em like Thermoses for my Dr Pepper. I'd take the bottle back home for next time. Or, I'd get a can of DP from the break room at my evening job -- they were only 35 cents -- and make sure I'd recycle the can. If the school wasn't collecting cans for recycling, I'd save them for a friend. It's been more than a year since she's come to get her cans; meanwhile, I saved up a contractor's bag full. I took it in last week and I had 5 pounds! But received only $3.25 for my efforts.
@Fru-gal Lisa, I'd have a hard time with no peanut butter. One of the food on the base of my food pyramid.
I've worked in a hospital lab for over 30 years. I completely understand the compartmentalization about waste, because the amount of trash generated is shocking. I've worked really hard to make my own house low waste! I always take my own supper to work, and I agree with all your reasons. But my biggest reasons are these. In my hospital (and it's massive) the biggest cafeteria isn't even open for supper. There's another cafeteria but it's a long way from my work area, and only offers Subway, stuff from the grill and prepackaged meals in the evening. If I go there, most of my break time is used walking over, going through the line, and walking back. I would rather sit and enjoy my break and not have to gobble down my meal.
I pack my lunch and most of my life, including going to school. My junior college didn't even have a cafeteria; it was still in temporary buildings when I attended and all we had were snack machines - yuck. Fun fact - the site for the college was chosen as the geographical center of several small, rural counties, so my junior college was unofficially known as "The College in the Cornfield." It was literally in cornfields, not in any town or village. We could watch from our low hilltop as the farmers worked their fields below.
As a wife and mother, I packed lunches for all of us. If the kids wanted a school lunch, they had to use their own money, which meant they rarely ate school lunches. For many years, DH worked in the swampy woods of North Florida, so his option was bring a packed lunch or go hungry. When I worked in my town of residence, there was, and still is, such a pitiful selection of restaurants, that I wasn't tempted to go out, anyway.
I share the same reasons for packing lunches as Kristen and add one more - I had people with restricted diets. My youngest spent years with food allergies; no citrus or citric acid (which is a super common additive), no caffeine, no yellow dye, no tomatoes or tomato products, no strawberries, no chocolate, and that wasn't all. DH, of course, had to limit carbs for his T1 diabetes and try to eat more vegetables and proteins.
I get tired of packing sometimes, but I typically cook extra food for lunches when I cook dinner, so I normally have packable food at hand. I am grateful that I work where I can easily store, heat and eat my lunch using my Goodwill plate and utensils. I made my own insulated lunch bag that fits my lunch and snacks, and I insulated it really well. It keeps things really cool on my long drive to work, but I still put my lunch in the refrigerator at work once I arrive.
Perfect post!
Anonymous giving is one of my FAVORITE things! Doesn't even have to be cash/money. Leaving baked goods on the porch or sending an anonymous card or meeting another need (I've sent random things from Amazon.) brings me MUCH joy! My parents modeled this so well for us and never wanted any credit or thanks. I am so grateful to be able to carry on their love for giving to others.
I packed my lunch for the first 15 years of my career, and then worked at a company that had free lunch (what a gift!). My current company is offering free lunches through the end of the year, and then we pay again. I will move back to packing lunches when the free lunch ride ends, unless it's a last minute thing. I'm not quite as good as Kristen, and probably have an 85% success rate packing vs buying. Better than nothing, but can definitely do better.
My workplace doesn't even have a cafeteria...just vending machines (and I bet you can guess how healthy that isn't!!). I'm just getting started on consistently taking lunch from home so keeping it very simple--salads, instant oatmeal, soups. Anything is better for me than the contents of that vending machine!!
I’m about a year into my second (maybe third?) career as an airline pilot and I pack my food for 3-4 day trips. Airport food is so expensive, often times delays mean the time I would’ve had to go grab food I can’t any more, what I pack is healthier than what I’d probably find in the airport. It does take extra preparation and planning as well as getting ice during the trip to keep food cold but it keeps me from getting “hangry” and saves me significant money(those savings go towards the often $1,000/month in dog sitters)
I recently moved from an apartment to a small house for better quality of life when I’m home and I’m single so yes, airline pilot $, especially at the beginning of their career is tight.
@Pilot Meg, I have watched many a You Tube video on what Flight Attendants pack in their cooler bags for 2-4 day trips, its interesting to see what they can pack and make in a hotel room! They all do it to save money also.
I worked in banking for 10 years and then in education for 28 before retiring. As a young married we just didn't have the money. Once we did the cost of eating lunch out every day really added up. I decided I would rather spend that money on a meal out with my husband. I packed our lunches every day. It was a great use of leftovers. I occasionally would join a friend for lunch out but honestly the rush to get somewhere wasn't very relaxing. With the cost of fast food now I am guessing more people are packing their lunches.
I pack my lunches for health and money saving reasons, but also because I'm too lazy to leave my office, climb up several flights of stairs of the parking garage to my vehicle, drive to a restaurant, fight for parking or wait in the lunchtime drive through lines, drive back, fight for parking in the garage, walk down several flights of stairs and back to my office, and sit down to eat only to find that my lunch break is almost over. I joke that it's just the universe keeping me healthy and frugal 😀
Yes to all of your reasons. I typically do my charting while eating lunch, and it's more time efficient to have a lunch already prepared rather than heading to the cafeteria. I don't remember the last time I ate cafeteria food. I do occasionally treat myself to coffee if I'm having a rough morning. At $1.90 a cup for employees, it seems like a cheap indulgence.
I have always been a lunch packer! I have always preferred to choose my own food and save the $ and as Kristen mentions, purchased options are rarely as healthy as what I can bring from home. I wish I could say I am as good about taking an actual lunch break! I do usually eat at my desk - I only have an hour between my 11:30 class and my 2:00 class and I often have students wanting to meet with me or a zoom meeting to attend during that block of time. So I pack "munchy lunches" - things like cut up fruit, veg, and cheese, trail mix, pretzels - that I can eat a bit here and a bit there as I have a few minutes. I usually also pack a sandwich or wrap but some days it is hard to find time to eat that, unfortunately! I do have some colleagues who eat in the campus dining hall every day, but I'll usually only head over there once a semester or so and it is usually as part of a meeting or service obligation rather than my own preference.
One of the many beauties of working from home is that all lunches come from my fridge! Almost always leftovers from the night before. The downside is that snacks are always a few rooms away - self control is a must!
@Stephanie the Future Nomad, ain’t that the living truth!! When people want to go out to lunch, I have the freedom to do so but don’t want to be gone from my work for that long. Eating from the fridge which is a 35 second walk from my studio is a much more efficient use of time, but it takes self control to not pick up my library book and get comfortable.
My virgo heart loves all the images of these organized, packed lunches! Especially since I rarely pack a lunch anymore. I've worked from home for nearly 20 years and actually miss packing lunches, as I feel like it's easier to be mindful of nutrition when packing a days food at once. Don't get me wrong, there are several advantages to working from home, but I typically do not think of eating until my stomach is growling, when I'll walk into the kitchen and make something. I make a lot of egg/egg-white scrambles + a tortilla or fruit, but often eat a more "snacky" lunch of crackers + hummus, fruit, and nuts. It really is a snack, so I find myself hungry for dinner on the early side.
All of this said, as I write, I'm realizing that I can plan ahead even though I don't technically have to. This is giving me inspiration!
All the same reasons. At my old job, and even 15 years ago in THIS job, I started a trend of lunch packing. One guy, while I was eating my lunch, mentioned how good I was at bringing lunch. At the time I said "3 lunches a day - me, hub, kid, times 50 weeks a year - in 5 years paid for that new Civic I bought when the old one got totaled in an accident."
My glass containers are breaking, though. I have plastic containers, and I might start saving more glass jars from various condiments. I can dump them onto a corelle plate at work.
Random thoughts in response:
1. I still wish I had the metal Mary Poppins lunchbox from elementary school. It would be so handy for many things.
2. Whenever I had real jobs in real towns, I was far too cheap (frugal? broke?) to eat out. Besides, it took too much time.
3. When my studio was in a town, a new restaurant opened. They offered 1/2 sandwich with drink, pickle, and cookie for $2.75. I ate there frequently, thinking it wouldn’t be long until they figured out that they needed to raise their prices. This was probably 30 years ago. Last spring we met my cousins there for lunch. I paid—for the 4 of us, it was around $60.
4. Frugality for the purpose of generosity is rare and wonderful. As another commenter wrote, this sort of excellence of character is what keeps me hanging around here.
5. Your lunches don’t look as if they can go the distance of a 12 hour shift. I would need more fat or more protein in order to keep my stomach from eating my backbone!
I am also a lunch-packer for all of the reasons you listed. At this point I'm motivated by the fact that having to figure out lunch on the fly sounds annoying to me. My university has a few lunch options, but nothing as simple as just going down to the cafeteria. I would have to make a decision of where to go, walk there, decide what I was going to order, wait for it to be prepared . . . I would rather just dig into whatever food I packed when I am ready to eat. The savings and health benefits are icing on the cake!
Re-reading your comment, I once covered a news story in which a local hospital pretty much zeroed its food waste. No one wanted to eat the same meal two or more days in a row, and the hospital wanted to fulfill its charitable mission and reduce waste. So it made arrangements with the local food bank. The cafeteria workers volunteered to stay 10 or 15 minutes over their shift, and they packed the leftover food into takeout containers. They'd pack containers for individuals; small families and large families and put it in the freezer. Once a week, the food bank came and got it, and the containers were given to its clients. If an entire cafeteria line tray was untouched (one of those big rectangular metal dishes they dole out scoops of food in), the Salvation Army would get it to use at their canteen's cafeteria, which served the homeless. Hospital employees and visitors didn't have to eat leftovers; charities got free food; and needy people got to eat hot, nutritious entrees.
I think more eateries ought to get in on this act!
@Fru-gal Lisa, wow -- that sounds like a very effective program. Hope the hospital continues to do that.
43 yrs and counting lunch packer! I found Kristen's ss lunch box set at a garage sale a few years ago, so wonderful for salads and fruit. My husband was a creative lunch packer, we could always count on spaghetti and meatball sandwiches after spaghetti dinner. We actually served them at his funeral as an family joke.
I work 2 hrs from home, one way. 3 twelve HR shifts, I pack lunch, breakfast and snacks. Only six more shifts until retirement!
@Blue Gate Farmgirl, ! only 6 more shifts - woo hoo!
100% lunch packing for me, my kids and hubby (when he needs a lunch). Is it time consuming and brain consuming? yes. Is it worth it- to me, yes. Its healthier, less food waste, and more money to spend elsewhere. Variety helps my feelings (everyone in my family actually) but I'll just keep doing this. Have done this since I started work at the hospital 20 years ago and I'll keep doing it. Doing it for my kids has helped them realize the value also. We aren't die hard, we will buy a lunch if needed but we try not too. Meal planning, have produce washed and ready are both very very helpful
It continues to be a blessing that our house is 12 miles from the nearest people who will make food for money, and 20 miles from fast food. Any closer — and heaven forbid the ready-made food proximity of a city — and I may never cook a single meal ever. This way, we are better off on numerous levels.
I almost always pack a lunch. It is just habit now. Definitely saves money and uses up left-overs. Plus, over the last few years food from food courts, restaurants etc. has gotten more expensive. I usually only buy lunch if I am meeting a friend.
Up until recently, everyone in the Food Service department where I work (including us dietitians) was given a $6/day food allowance. With impending potential cuts to Medicaid, every hospital department has been asked to cut costs wherever they can....so, our meal allowance went bye-bye. While the cafeteria food costs more than bringing from home, it was a nice perk while it lasted. I can say, the cafeteria where I work offers many healthful options similar to what you, Kristen, might bring for your lunches....BUT it would cost significantly more than what you spend on ingredients. 🙂
Since I am now packing my lunch, we rarely have any food waste. DH works from home, so food waste was already pretty low, but it's even lower now.
I have a lot of food restrictions, so I rarely eat out - it is just too complicated to explain, check, recheck and maybe still fail.
In a very stressful time working from home, even then I "packed" my lunch, because I knew I would eat what I prepared when I had time instead of taking some not so healthy snack or eat nothing!
So I highly recommend buying some fun gear to motivate you and do it.
I may remember Katy claiming it part of her early retirement strategy?
Many good reasons to keep doing it 🙂
We only get 30 minutes for lunch. The only places that are close by are fast food. Also, saving for a new car so my money is going for that.
I think I’ve packed a lunch just about every day for pushing 35 years now…my current job has a staff restaurant where partners like me eat basically for free, up to three meals a day (I think we pay a couple of pounds a meal?) five days a week, but at this point I’m so used to packing my own lunches I mostly can’t wrap my head around letting someone else choose my lunch!
I retired from the work world five months ago, and it feels good! But for 35 years of full-time paid work (minus SAHM baby years) I took work lunches 99 percent of the time. The rare exception would be planned work events/meetings with lunch attached. 1) Frugality was a very big part of it but so was 2) convenience and ease at lunch break time. I didn’t have to think, what for lunch? I’d be tired, short on time usually, and didn’t have to waste brain cells. I had it. I didn’t have to drive or walk somewhere and make a decision. 3) I controlled the quality and taste of what I ate. I called the shots. Oddly enough, this happy retiree kinda misses work lunches from home.??
I’m lunch packer, as is my husband.
He will occasionally eat out, but it’s planned and not impulse.
Especially in healthcare, I have never really taken a real lunch break. Typically it’s eat and get caught up on computer work/notes. Going down to the cafeteria, waiting in line, getting food, paying, would easily be a 20 minute process, all before eating it. That’s a major reason, besides all the others.
The hospital I work at has excellent food in the cafeteria, and there are some healthy options. There's always a fish entree, many times broiled or baked, once in awhile it's fried shrimp and catfish. Also always broccoli and sweet potatoes (Baked ). Employees get a 75% discount: an entree and 3 sides costs less than $4. I get a small soup as a side, eat that for lunch and take most of the rest home and share it with my husband for dinner. I think I save money by doing this!!
Mine are all of the above too, Kristen! Throughout my career, I packed my lunch 95% of the time (5% I treated myself out to lunch with work friends) - leftovers, soup, etc. I'm not a superb cook, but I LOOVVE to make soup and oh my goodness, that got me through grad school and the years beyond. I still have a thermos my late mother gave me to take my soup in. I think of all the money/food I've saved over the years and it makes me smile.
Wow, this post has elicited a lot of comments! I admire those of you who consistently pack lunches and have for years. That's a bazillion dollars saved!
My packed lunches consist of items bought particularly for packing, or leftovers, or leftovers made with packing in mind. If I forget or run short on time to pack, I have a macaroni and cheese cup, or a tuna and crackers pack, or a ramen cup. Yes, not healthy but provide in a pinch. I do not take a lunch break as the only licensed person on, but eat at the desk (you didn't hear that). Rarely, I get Taco Bell burrito or McD's and more often Jimmy John's on the way out of town. JJ's feeds me twice. As for coffee, we have a Keurig and I buy the donut shop pods from Aldi and stash those with my packaged lunch options in my locker. A lot of times, I, or the staff I work with, will cook a crock pot of something or bring a dessert to share. There are no options for eating out in the middle of the night. Depending on the menu posted the day prior, I occasionally order and have lunch in the fridge. We have good cooks and $3.00 out of my paycheck is worth a homelike cooked meal.
I am religious about packing lunch for all the reasons you describe. Paying a lot of money for food that is not as tasty or healthy seems like an act of madness to me. Since I am rarely cooking lunch food from scratch it ends up saving time too!
My hubby always carried his lunch. Occasionally the guys would talk him into going out or he had a meeting lunch. He was an accountant, then office manager, then CFO, then property manager in his last few years (which he loved). But, we chose to have our family supper in the evening and so a lighter lunch for him was great at noon. We had four children and needed to have family together time!
One question. Do you ever need to heat anything or is all your food cold?
@Kathy,
I keep a Corningware bowl in my locker to reheat.
I have a couple of great wide mouth thermos containers that keep soup hot for 6 hrs.
Agree with everyone's reasons: I pack for dh every day and pack for myself when I'm running errands and/or always have snacks in the car.
Packing is also good if your job involves driving around all day- - whether Home Health worker, delivery of people or stuff, construction/dump trucks etc.... You never know where you're going to be or what the options are.
Some jobs do not have refrigerators, microwaves, or rooms in which to eat (and you are forbidden to eat at your desk). Some jobs, you don't even know where you will be at lunch time.
I think it's great that you take your lunch for the many reasons listed but it simply isn't possible in some jobs. (And some jobs you must bring a lunch as you might not be anywhere where you can even get food.)
I once worked for a large, Fortune 50 company. It had a huge cafeteria with excellent food: Many choices, very healthy and, extremely reasonable. I worked long hours, sometimes starting with breakfast and ending with dinner.
I kept track of costs for a few weeks and realized that using the cafeteria was a better choice, both financially and in terms of healthy food options. I did a sort of reverse thing in which I took leftovers from lunch, which I then used for that night's dinner, either at the office or home. It was a situation where I had a bit more money than time and this way I saved a lot of money because I did not have food delivered and did not get takeout...there were so many restaurants around the office of all types.
I also traveled a lot for business at that time and there was no way I could pack any kind of lunch because I could not drag it around with me and still look the professional I was in my role in dealing with top execs if I were eating a home-made lunch or dinner. On the upside, many, if not all meals on a trip were paid for by the company, within certain dollar amounts!
Also, another factor: Many offices that have shared kitchen facilities face an ongoing problem: Food theft. Ridiculous that adults would be so petty but... it happened enough that most of us stopped using the fridge and limited our options.
Working from home has been the best thing in terms of saving $ and avoiding food waste and I'm grateful that I can do it.
I have to ask - how is your retirement account looking? Hopefully you got 50% of your ex-es retirement. Women are far, far more likely to live in poverty when they reach SS age. I watched both sets of my grandparents struggle once my grandfathers retired (don't get me started on my not-so-smart one grandmother). When I was 21, I was told by a banker (no less) I was too young to be worrying about retirement. No I was not.
Kudos for on-the-sly assistance, I've done it that way myself. And I've done it "front and center". I am a firm believer that those that can should help out. I gnash my teeth when I see a company/person sponsoring a stadium or "donating" for a delusional dream. Yet those same people whine about paying a dollar in taxes.
I did get 50% of the retirement accounts. But...splitting an account obviously reduces the amount by a lot. Ha.
Sooo, I will just have to work on building it up myself. 🙂
Yes to all of those reasons. Plus, I don’t have a cafeteria at work so it’s much more of a break for me to eat my packed lunch in the back room and read than go out and drive around and wait for lunch. I do take my packed lunch to a park sometimes in nice weather. We have a break room fridge and microwave which makes packing easy.
Oh, packing lunch is automatic to me, as you say, left overs and odd bits and pieces that need to be finished off. This past year I have had three boiled eggs as starting point for my lunch and then added on whatever needs to be eaten and that's lunch. For me it's soo easy, it really has become a routine. (Example below is based on Swedish conditions, being where I live). Consumer advisory associations here will point to a $3900 saving per year. This is a five days a week lunch at $15 a lunch. Eating out is expensive, so saving on lunch food seems worth it, for us over here.
Rather than do a whole lot of number crunching, I can suggest going to Budgetbytes.com. I was going through a long protracted separation/split while in law school and dead broke. I also could not even boil water, since my mother didn't cook and my father thought me learning to cook would lend a to a life a servitude (they tended to take feminism to some weird lengths.)
'One day I looked a the grocery store downstairs and figured I could somehow feed myself. Googled, found Budget Bytes and all of her recipes had prices for the meal!
I would not have made it through those dark years financially without that site.
But point being, she has prices for everything from a dash of pepper to different kinds of flour. No need to reinvent the wheel!
the reasons I pack lunch every day are the same as yours. I will also add that it takes time to walk to the cafeteria and the decision making is difficult. I have gone down with coworkers and there really aren't a lot of healthy choices. Also I am tempted to buy all that non-healthy food (mostly cookies, donuts, potato chips. yummy).
I have been a "brown bagger" since elementary school. As a child it was just something my parents did, (I thought the school lunch looked and smelled "yucky" anyway), and as an adult I don't have a cafeteria - so brown bagging or eating out were my options. I am not interested in spending money on food that doesn't appeal to me, or can be a pricey lunch (local fast food, Wawa, or Panera are my options), so brown bag it is! I can pack what I want and its much healthier -- eliminates food waste in my house, and just save me money. Like you, I want to save where I can so I can give or spend where I WANT.
when i was working 11 years ago i alternated from bringing lunch to buying lunch in the frank gehry designed cafeteria. my kid's nanny would bring them lunchtime before they were old enough to go to school. it was so much fun. usually if i brought lunch from home i would kill it before lunch hour was official. the food was really good but not subsidized like it was when i worked at disney world before my junior year of college.