Throwback Thursdays are my thing. I get to reminisce about the good old days once a week?! Count me in. Let’s rewind to your elementary school cafeteria. That hectic pre-recess half hour of your day where you had to decide how to spend your $1.25, or enjoy what your mom packed in your lunch box. This was before the First Lady took over school lunches.
If you were a buyer, you probably had at least two choices served to you on a colored plastic tray. The cafeteria staff tried to make the mass quantity meals interesting, but let’s face it, it was the same five or six meals over and over again. Everyone had a favorite though. What was yours? Were you more of a lunch box carrier? Your parents probably had a reason for that.
Chicken Patty. You were a no-nonsense meat and bread kinda person. You probably enjoyed your Skip-It and racing to the swings at recess. You LOVED ketchup, and a patty was another vessel for your Heinz.
Pizza. Pizza day is the best day. Even if that pizza is a large rectangle with strangely pale crust. You probably loved staying up late on Fridays and putting your homework off until almost bed time.
Spaghetti. You loved spaghetti for the thrill of the slurping or the twirling if you were fancy. You couldn’t decide if you wanted to play in the sandboxes and get dirty, or play hopscotch and keep your clothes neat.
Any sort of fish entree. You were and still are a risk-taker. Going for the fish sticks or shrimp poppers takes some guts. You had a sophisticated taste even as an eight-year-old. You were the kid with the coolest new school supply, like the eraser pens or Lisa Frank pencils.
Subs. You were the mediator of your friend group, solving problems like telling off the bully who pushed your friend into the mud. You didn’t and still don’t like drama. You liked ham on some days, turkey on others, and never tuna. NEVER tuna.
Tacos. You were the life of a party, even as a kid. *~FIESTA!~* Taco Day probably fell on a Tuesday, because Taco Tuesday is a thing. You loved piling those things up with cheese and lettuce, MAYBE tomatoes. The cafeteria was a messy place after Taco Tuesday, littered with shredded cheese, taco shell crumbs, and the thousands of napkins you used to wipe the grease off your face.
Grilled cheese and tomato soup. You liked doing crafts and playing school with your friends or your stuffed animals. And you’ll probably make a good mother someday. You also liked playing in the snow.
Breakfast for lunch. You enjoyed this day because it involved French toast sticks and sausage, which allowed you to pour syrup over your entire tray. You were probably a messy kid, since there’s no clean way to eat anything with syrup. You probably also were the type to end up with melted ice cream all over your face, clothes and body because eating is hard.
Packed sandwich. A classic PB&J or your favorite deli meat between two slices of Wonder bread. You probably loved the slide or participating in a game of playground kickball. You always whined to your mom about having to do chores or your homework, but ended up doing it anyway because you didn’t want to be grounded.
Lunchable. At least for me, this was a special meal reserved for field trip days. The satisfaction of those round cookie cutter pieces of questionable meat on crackers, paired with a delicious pouch of sugar water (Capri Sun) and a little bag of Skittles was UNMATCHED by any other day of the year. If you were a regular Lunchable bringer, your parents probably gave up on the healthy thing. I don’t blame ’em. It’s hard.
Warmed-up leftovers. You were basically an adult at the age of seven. Last night’s macaroni and cheese? Best use of a Thermos. You probably helped your parents make the dinner you’re eating the next day, and you’re probably a good cook to this day.
Any sort of wrap or sandwich pinwheel or some other way to make boring food seem cool. Your mom probably subscribed to Family Fun, Parents, or any other raising-a-kid magazine and got all kinds of ideas to get you to eat vegetables. You probably only got one cookie. Kind of a letdown.
