Summer is a time for lighter food on your plate. And a season for lighter fare at CurrentMom, too. With that in mind, I offer you my thoughts about working moms and . . . lunch. A light lunch.
Lunch (a very funny-looking word) is a short form of the word "luncheon" (also funny-sounding). It was originally used to describe a meal inserted between more substantial meals. (You can read all about the history of lunch on Wikipedia, here.) Over time, lunch developed its own identity and place in American popular culture from "the ladies who lunch" (immortalized by Elaine Stritch in the song of the same name from Sondheim's Company) to the three-martini, three-hour "power lunch." (Here's a fairly hilarious, mildly offensive definition from UrbanDictionary.)
My own relationship with lunch is evolving. At the outset of my career, I alternated between in-house lunches with my colleagues in the office lunchroom, obligatory lunches with clients, and social lunches with friends and prospective dates. Sometimes I used the lunch hour (usually less than an hour) to exercise or shop. When I moved to my current job located just off the National Mall, occasionally I'd even pop into a museum for a lunchtime culture break.
When I had my children, lunch became all about feeding them, not me. My kids were both in an on-site day care center so I nursed each of them at lunchtime when they were babies. Even after weaning, I still visited them more days than not, which - between my two kids - added up to several years!
Now that my kids are older and I work a less-than-full-time schedule, lunch is often a casualty of my compressed workday. Although I do "do lunch" from time-to-time, I usually bring my lunch from home and clear away some clutter to eat at my desk. (At least, it's economical and healthy.) Sometimes, when I haven't packed lunch for myself in the chaos of the morning rush, I run up to the cafeteria or to an outside food joint for a take-away salad or sandwich. Other days, I miss lunch completely. Luckily, I pass the Tangy Sweet frozen yogurt shop on my way home.
Lately, though, I've been feeling the urge to lunch. (Yes, it can be used as a verb!) This summer, I'm working slightly longer days from Monday to Thursday so I've decided to take advantage of my summer schedule to make some lunch plans with friends and colleagues, go for a walk, or just read a book for a half hour or so. I'll probably still eat at my desk most days but it's a start.
How about you? Do you do lunch? I'd love to hear how lunch fits into your working mom life.
Photo by Sifu Renka via Flickr.com.
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