hot or cold lunch?

Did you have cold or hot lunch in elementary school?

This is a question I've asked lots of people over the years. It's always fun to hear the answer because it's usually followed by a story. "I always had tortilla chips, never potato chips!" mentioned a cold luncher. And from the opposite side, " I couldn't stand the hot lunch chicken fried steak." The stories I've heard are always entertaining and the data I've collected (very carefully in my memory that is) is very intriguing really.

Most, if not all, people I've questioned had cold lunch. This surprised me. I mean, I grew up having hot lunch every day, never cold lunch. I cannot remember a time I brought lunch to school and ate it in the cafeteria and that is because I never did. But boy, how I wanted cold lunch. I mean, I wanted the juice boxes, the Fruit by the Foot, the chips, and the E.L Fudge cookies, oh, how I wanted them. But that isn't a surprise, right?

But wait, it is! Come to find out, the people who had cold lunch wanted hot lunch. Really? I was surprised by the facts once again. "Oh, how I wanted the pizza," one person mentioned. And another, "You guys got chocolate milk!"

True, the hot lunch meal did have great rolls which, at my weakest point, I bartered for sandwiches. I later learned that this was foolish. Those rolls were warm and fluffy and better than any pb&j. I'm sure the same could be said for those with cold lunch and their Gushers fruit snacks. Isn't it interesting that even at 9 years old we're victim to "the grass is always greener on the other side" mentality?

Do I do this now? Of course. And there are many days that I've got to step back, see the bigger picture, and let myself enjoy the hot lunch. I mean, not only did we get chocolate milk, at one point the school was offering Root Beer milk.

Do you ever wish your lunch was a different temperature?