No Free Lunches

12 Responses:

1. Lorelei Says:
   March 1st, 2008 at 1:54 pm

   If it ends up wasting a lot of cafeteria food or affecting their education, I’d say it’s a bad thing. But jeez. I don’t remember any stigma at my high school (and I was friends with people who qualified), but we didn’t separate the free-lunch kids from the paid kids. And the amount of poverty that qualifies you for a free lunch is pretty severe.

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2. DoorFrame Says:
   March 1st, 2008 at 1:57 pm

   There’s something positive to be said about encouraging people not to want to take handouts. On the other hand, there’s also something to be said about eating.

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3. Troeltsch Says:
   March 1st, 2008 at 1:58 pm

   As a grad student I can tell you I *never* reject a free lunch. I also never reject food that was served to others and has been left on the kitchen table for me and my grad student kin. Even if I’m not hungry. The theory is the calories I consume now mean I don’t need to eat lunch tomorrow.

   We have free lunch next week. I’m so excited.

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4. DoorFrame Says:
   March 1st, 2008 at 2:06 pm

   Yeah, I’m pretty sure you’re not the type of student envisioned by this program.

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5. Troeltsch Says:
   March 1st, 2008 at 5:50 pm

   Yes, but if I were offered free lunch back in public high school, I’d have snapped it up then, too. I’m not proud.

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6. DoorFrame Says:
   March 1st, 2008 at 5:56 pm

   Me too, but I suspect that that’s because neither of us would have been offered a free lunch.

   I never applied for unemployment when I could have… mostly out of shame (partially out of laziness).

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7. New York Anthony Says:
   March 1st, 2008 at 7:00 pm

   Now that you are moving to LA I suggest you take unemployment at some point. It’s great.
   I had the same problem at first, but now I do it all the time between projects. There is no shame in it. Everyone in LA (in showbiz) does it.

   As for free lunch in school, I do believe there was a stigma in the schools I went to. It meant you were poor and kids don’t want to be seen that way.

   And Troeltsch, I imagine if you fond an uneaten sandwich on the street you might be tempted to eat it.

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8. Troeltsch Says:
   March 1st, 2008 at 7:57 pm

   And I imagine if you found me dying of AIDS in a hospital bed you might be tempted to make fun of me. But I didn’t point it out. Until now.

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9. Troeltsch Says:
   March 1st, 2008 at 7:58 pm

   Also, unless things go horribly wrong (and they did to a friend of mine in your situation, but I imagine you’ll do less cocaine than he did) you won’t be eligible for unemployment.

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10. DoorFrame Says:
    March 1st, 2008 at 8:19 pm

    Why won’t I be eligible? Or did you mean NYA?

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11. Lorelei Says:
    March 1st, 2008 at 11:29 pm

    He says he means you will continue to have a job, unlike his friend the cokehead.

    I wonder if self-employed people could get unemployment during a long dry spell.

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12. jbg. Says:
    March 2nd, 2008 at 11:01 pm

    wait, wait. what’s this about unemployment in l.a.??

    nya, you have much to teach me.

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