Myself, I always brought lunch from home in a paper bag. I tried a few lunch boxes, but they never seemed to last very long. Lunch was almost always a peanut butter and jelly (grape) sandwich, some type of chips (usually Fritos or Doritos in a baggy), a desert (most of the time it was a few cookies - Chips Ahoy were a favorite), and a piece of fruit (apple, banana, or orange). Same thing for years -- until high school and the "open campus", then I'd go off-site or just skip lunch.

Today, I prefer *not* to eat a cold lunch. If we had a cafeteria here at work, it'd be my first choice. Lately I've been bringing in food to microwave.

As a very little kid, lunchbox sometimes but often even then, and forever after, whatever was served in the cafeteria.

Lunch in elementary school was 85 cents, high school I think $1.25.

Snacks were extra.

We were not allowed to go out for lunch until 11th grade, it was cutting otherwise, and they took attendance.

Now, from what I understand, at my old school, a couple of years after i left they finally expanded the cafeteria, with enough room to keep the 11th and 12th graders in, which they do. Also, unlike my time, there is only one way in or out during the day now (except for emergencies), and someone watches the door. When I was there, several doors could be used to get in and out.

Ummm.... I had a mix of both. Some days took lunch - some days bought lunch.

It's a rusted mess but I still have mine:

Don't eat lunch.

Same here, and BB'd it after the second grade. In first and second grade I carried the Christopher Reeve Superman lunch box..

This sounds like a warning.

I was the type of kid who never realized when things were against the rules.

I remember taking the lunch box, and then seemingly overnight, no one had them and I was laughed at.

Same thing happened with those white socks with the colored stripes. One day, I was being ridiculed where the day before, seemingly, everyone wore them.

I don't remember the change, but I definitely remember thinking that those striped socks weren't cool anymore.

Sounds like you are saying, "Don't eat lunch." As in warning us not to eat lunch.

Oh, no, I was just saying I don't eat lunch.

It was an implied meaning based on the question being a direct address.

Mine's all rusted out, but this was my very first lunchbox (hard to believe I know):

I usually ate the school lunch, but required a cool lunch box just in case.

Kindergarten (first lunch box): That Robin Hood fox from Disney. No input, a mom choice.
First Grade: Six Million Dollar Man, followed by Land of the Lost, because I just had to have it when it came out. Still have the Land of the Lost, with Thermos.

All of the above at one time or another.

Ditto

In elementary school I mainly used lunchboxes. Those included "Planet of the Apes" and "Super Friends" (See below.)

In middle school I mostly ate at the cafeteria.

In high school it was a mixture of brown bagging it and eating at the cafeteria, which had the choices of traditional school food, a salad bar, or pizza.

When I brought my lunch it was often a peanut butter and chocolate chip sandwich with chips and a Little Debbie treat for dessert.

As you can see by my answer above, I don't fit into the poll parameters since all three have applied to me in pretty much equal numbers. So I reject your poll, Mr. Marcoux!

My School Lunch...
was a cigarette or ten behind the football field.

Ah, anorexic I see

This is the only pail I remember having. I mostly had the hot lunch. When I lived in Detroit (one semester in fifth grade) , they even served breakfast.

In high school be had a most excellent salad bar. They also made a "shake" that was more like a Wendy's Frosty. We used to dip our fries in them.

I still dip my firies in my Frosties when I go to Wendy's.

I remember in Middle School there was a big contoversy about the Pizza.
We would get one huge piece with the hot lunch. Then they switched to two smaller pieces (that equalled out to be less than the one huge piece).
All the kids were pissed.

Good one, counselor.
If only!

If ever you try to sue the fast food industry for my lack of willpower, I'm there. I know it's a BS idea, but if some lamebrain judge wants to give us money, what the hell.

Here was mine...



But I mostly ate cafeteria lunches, I think, so I must not've used this for too long. In fact, at that point I was probably just really keen to carry around a Star Wars lunchbox, so wherever my meal came from would have been a secondary consideration at best.

Pretty much always liked institutional food, especially those steamed hamburgers we used to get. And the big square pizzas, you know the kind where you can't really tell the meat from the cheese? Yum...