Dear Miss Information,
I have a problem. I’m a freshman, and I have classes back to back for hours each day. I try to pack food when I have time to plan ahead, but I’m constantly running between classes and ending up hungry throughout the day. This makes me feel tired and run down all the time, and I perform worse in classes as a result. It gets expensive to constantly go to the vending machines or stop to buy little snacks around campus, and I can only work a little campus job right now for extra money. Are there any resources or people on campus to help me? I hate handouts, but I’m really struggling. I’d always rather work for what I have, but there are only so many hours and dollars in a day.
Sincerely, Snacks Before Facts
Dear Snacks Before Facts,
You’ll be happy to know that there are actually plenty of faculty members and offices that keep snacks stocked at all times for such a time as this! If you’re in HHC or the library, you can stop by the Writing Center and check the snack baskets there. Then, you can go next door to Ruby Baker’s office and raid the shelf behind the door. Go downstairs on floor and stop by Kelsey Fiander-Carr’s office, where you can get snacks from inside the giant whicker dinosaur! The new advising office in Centennial Hall will have snacks stocked up soon as well, and there’s usually an unmonitored Diet Coke in the mini fridge.
If you’re creative enough, you can do a trading-up type of situation. Have you ever watched the video of the guy who traded a paper clip for things until he eventually ended up with a Tesla or something? It’s, like, probably foolproof. If you get a snack-sized bag of pretzels, you can go trade it up with someone who has a cupcake or something. Then, look for someone with a sandwich or one of those funky rainbow bagels with anything but cream cheese on it (because, yuck). Keep going, and you could end up with a four-course meal by the end of the day!
That’s also a perfect solution to your weird insecurity around not taking things for free. You’ll get one thing for free I guess, but you’re pretty much “working” to get better things in place of it by going around and sleuthing out people’s snacks. Think of it as an old-timey bartering situation. That’s so cool and not weird.
I hope this advice proves itself useful and not at all off putting or uncomfortable for those around you! Thanks for writing in, and happy snacking.
Sincerely, Miss Information
