You wake up on a Sunday morning, ready for breakfast and in desperate need of a hangover meal. You glance at the clock and in that split second, your day halts in its tracks.
The time reads nowhere near 11 a.m., which marks the opening hour of Nelson and Boyd dining halls. Suddenly, your positive outlook for the day hits a crash and burn. Your stomach twists into knots as you realize a financially sustainable food option is not a possibility in the near future.
As a broke college student still on a meal plan and living in a tight, moldy dorm, no one has the money to buy groceries and miraculously find somewhere to whip up breakfast. So, Sunday mornings generally turn into a waiting game with the clock.
Sure, breakfast from Brenen's, Union Street Diner or HangOverEasy is nice, but if you’re not looking to break your bank by the third week of the semester, you’re fresh out of luck.
Some things about me: One, I need breakfast to function, and two, I love my mornings. In this case, you can see how these two factors don’t really mesh well. I know I’m not the only student on this campus who operates this way.
Breakfast sets every day into motion. Nearly 85% of Americans over 20 years old eat breakfast. It is important that those who benefit from this meal upon waking can have that option, especially while actively paying for a meal plan.
If you have ever arrived at Nelson or Boyd as they are opening Sunday morning, you would find the line to scan your Bobcat ID reaches the entry doors. It’s almost as if people have been waiting hours to get food in their system.
Although the late opening is bad enough, the same food is provided on repeat. New day, no new options. The only time the dining halls actually attempt to make something edible is during campus events, such as Homecoming.
We have the same melon every day, and even during those “special” weekends, nothing screams fresh such as frozen berries. If I eat one more hamburger or piece of rubbery chicken, I genuinely might throw up.
Though I respect the university for giving student employees a chance to sleep in during the weekend, an 11 a.m. opening time is outrageous. It’s basically the afternoon for someone who is hungover. By that point, many students have woken up at 7 a.m. and chugged numerous water bottles to try to heal their raspy throats.
During the week, the dining halls begin offering lunch by 11 a.m. You can’t just skip over serving a core meal for the day simply because it’s the weekend and use that as your excuse.
Many meal-plan-holders are up early in the morning, yet they seem to be overlooked. The handful of student employees working Sundays, so few you could count them on your own two hands, are given priority. They get the benefit of rest, while students who rely on dining hall breakfasts are left sitting hungry for hours.
Even upon entry, a selection of dietary options is not yet ready for students to grab. Items like yogurt and its toppings are still covered with Saran Wrap. While these items may become available shortly after students arrive, I stress again that it’s almost the afternoon and items should be fully prepared.
A late opening can also interrupt eating habits for students following a diet or trying to stay on a stricter schedule. The least the university can do is offer better hours in exchange for their poor food options, like the scrambled eggs that come from a carton.
OU Culinary Services should acknowledge the flaw in their system and adjust their hours; it will benefit everyone. The omelette station employees wouldn’t get bombarded with orders all at once, and those awake can begin their day several hours earlier.
The Pest is an anonymous column for writers to air their grievances about Ohio University, Athens and society at large. Want to share your thoughts? Email the Editor in Chief at editor@thepostathens.com.
