Realizing you took the free food for granted.
REALIZING YOU TOOK THE FREE FOOD FOR GRANTED.
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Remember those sprawling dining halls? The endless buffet of options, from suspiciously gourmet-looking entrees to the trusty, ever-present pizza station. For four glorious years, it was your culinary kingdom. Whether it was a quick grab-and-go breakfast before an 8 AM lecture, a hurried lunch between back-to-back seminars, or the lifeline of a midnight snack run after an intense study session, the dining hall was always there. Unlimited soft drinks, endless coffee refills, the occasional fancy dessert bar – it all just was. It was part of the background hum of ambition and late nights.
Then graduation hit. Suddenly, the world became a lot more expensive. That perfectly adequate, always available dining hall food transformed from a mundane convenience into a cherished memory. The shock of actual grocery bills. The realization that cooking a balanced meal takes time, effort, and money. Or the sheer cost of daily takeout. You start to pine for the days when a full meal was just a swipe away, a part of the tuition package you barely registered. The humble cereal bar, the surprisingly decent chicken tenders, even the slightly questionable 'Mystery Meat Monday' – they all take on a new, golden glow of nostalgia. Those were the days when sustenance was effortless, allowing your brain to focus on problem sets and philosophical debates, not pantry stock and meal prep. It's funny how something so fundamental, so taken for granted, becomes such a poignant symbol of a chapter closed. What's your most missed dining hall staple?