Let me preface this by saying, we are not talking about kids' lunches and public school free lunch. This is not a political discourse on who exactly is paying for what!
Lunchflation - We had the (TV!) news on the other morning, and it was actually news that "workers" (generically declared by the news source, not me) are shocked by the amount lunch is costing them. Well yeah, if you, as a fully grown adult, buy lunch every day. Granted, I do know there are folks that do buy lunch every day.
Let's look at that for a second. The people, workers who buy lunch every day, generally are not working from home (Clearly. Unless, you're living my dream life and visiting with family friends, going to The Club, having Brunch... But I digress...). The hard working people who are buying every day are most likely commuting to work, thus saving time and having to juggle yet another item (that will likely spoil or spill) on the arduous way in. More than likely, this is an urban setting (are there any metro stations in the country that anyone can think of? I'd really like to know! Truly! And are folks bringing their lunches?). Lastly, urban areas are not known for cheap lunches (unless you are truly in-the-know AND love yourself some not-so-organic, yummy, fatty deliciousness (I feel that right now), along side yet another serving of disposable flatware.
Again. How is this news? This is how: Let's normalize - not expensive lunches - but BUYING lunches. Period. This is healthy for our (eek! Capitalist!) economy.
Some real questions here:
What have folks done in the past? Why does it
not work now? What are the real barriers? What are the bullshit excuses?
Why should workers be surprised if they try to buy lunch? It is not news
that lunch would suddenly be so expensive? (Well, yes, inflation - Yet again, how is this a surprise to anyone?)
My point in the spirit of all things finance, money, thrift, and good work ethic-related: More expensive things are being normalized at every turn. Why not just bring a lunch? Well, convenience and food safety, for sure, those are real excuses when you have a truly heinous commute. On the other hand, there are some long-lasting, quality, good-for-the-environment countermeasures, like this slick lunchbox that is more like a packing cube. I personally use this bento box with an ice pack (cute!). (Not affiliate links, by the way!)
Also - if you're worried about carrying one more thing, think of this: Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis (NEAT) is a thing! Going to the gym is so very normalized. Why so much gym when NEAT is so handy? See this article, The Healthiest People In the World don’t go to the Gym.
I just find it an insidiously promulgated idea that we need
to spend more money to have a “nice” life.
Comments
Post a Comment