Library Food

I'd like to study in the library more. I'm generally more productive there than in my usual study spot on my bed, but there are a few reasons why I'm not there too often. The one I'm going to address here is food. Either because my brain is working hard and burning calories or as a response to stress, studying makes me hungry so I eat really often. It's convenient to be able to go to my kitchen and pour a bowl of cereal, make a sandwich, or get a little more fancy if I feel the urge. Packing good food for the library would probably increase my efficiency, but I have a lot of trouble deciding what to bring.

Challenge #1: Noise level

A lot of convenient food is loud to eat and so much packaged food is loud to open. Baby carrots are one of my favorite study food for at home but the worst for the library. Eat those on the sixth floor in Geisel and you might get thrown through a window. Apples, pita chips, dry cereal, crackers, and most other food I would think to bring with me fall under this category.

Challenge #2: Packability

You need to find something that you can throw into your bag or backpack that wont get smushed and can be shaken around a bit. A pear, strawberries, or grapes would avoid the noisiness factor but could be damaged on transport if you're not careful. In addition, it has to be something that you can eat at room temperature. Leftover pasta or pizza are in this group if you're like me and prefer them warm.

Challenge #3: Cleanliness

First of all, there are rules about what kind of food you can eat in the library. My freshman year, I saw a student sent out of the library and forced to eat their salad outside. I haven't witnessed anything of the sort since then, but it's a good idea to be respectful and leave the place clean when you leave it. Most of the food that comes to mind here already wouldn't pass the packability test anyways, but anything that produces lots of crumbs like toast or any large, juicy fruit that you eat with your hands like watermelon or peaches is a poor choice.


Soulution #1: Mixed nuts and dried fruit. Make your own with soft nuts that won't be loud when you eat them or get one of those mixes from Trader Joe's.

Solution #2. Sandwich. Make sure it's not one that will fall apart or get soggy.

Solution #3: Fruit salad in a tupperware container. This would be perfect in the spring when melons are coming into season. I don't think it would be messy, but it's against Geisel's rules to eat something like this, so do so vigilantly. Don't forget to bring a fork.

Solution #4: Cereal with milk. If you like it soggy, it gets much quieter to eat as long as you're not a slurper. Pour milk over your cereal and let it sit for a while before you eat it. This is also against the rules, and the more I think about it, the worse idea it seems. I just really like cereal.

Solution #6: Couscous salad. See the recipe for the one I make after I post it. Ok, so pretty much all of these are against the rules.

Solution #7: Mahi's cold noodles. Rules, shmules.

Solution #8: Banana bread. Take extra bananas from a tournament a couple weeks before, let them get overripe, and then get baking. If the bananas are too hard when you want to make it, leave a few in a brown bag together and let the gas they release ripen them faster.


Looks like I didn't come up with much that actually meets all of my challenges, but please add to my list. Now that most of you are just getting out of finals studying mode, I'm hoping you have some good ideas. Actually, screw this. It's Spring Break! Sorry I made you read about studying. I only posted it because it took me so long to write.