EDitorial ± 21-Jul-2003

Box Of Delights

Envy of another man's lunchbox is an unfortunate condition. His was capacious & sturdy with designer curves, perhaps the result of extensive testing in a wind tunnel. And the contents! Have I mentioned the plethora of compartments, each yielding a tasty surprise?

I couldn't stand it any more. One lunchtime I found myself in that fancy kitchen place at Woodbridge, and beheld the Lock & Lock, 2.2 litres of stackable airtight container. Barely enough change out of a fiver for a KitKat Chunky, though well worth it: boot, foot, other, I feel.

...absolutely air tight ...liquid tight ...dishwasher and microwave safe, and it's mine, all mine, I tell you!

Of course, with 2200 cubic centimetres on display in the coffee lounge, I get more than a few admiring looks. Alas, him with the oh-so-90s curves has turned slightly catty, pointing out a paragraph in a recent Sunday Times: apparently the head teacher of a school in West Yorkshire believes that her staff could easily fall over some of the larger lunchboxes that make their way to school, and is consequently advising parents not to send packed lunches. It's true, it was also in The Super Soaraway Sun.

I found a way to break through this cellophane bag
Cuz I know what's goin' on
In your mind
I'm a livin' in a box
— 1987 single Living In A Box
— by the group Living In A Box
— taken from the album Living In A Box

They're not built to last, you know. Here's a potted history of eldest's packed lunch containers and why each has been replaced:

  1. (in reception) Mr Men — catch stopped working on the hard yellow plastic
  2. (year 1) Winnie The Pooh — another box, another dodgy catch
  3. (year 2) Pokemon — velcro wouldn't hold on the otherwise nicely designed upright bag with lower zipped pocket
  4. (year 3) Harry Potter — sturdy single zipped pocket is still going strong

See, made it to the end without a single mention of that now-retired champion sprinter.

If You Take Away With You Nothing Else

Today — tuna & mayo sarnie, chicken crisps, choc cake bar and a nectarine:

  • Bionic Woman lunchbox went for £26 last week on ebay
  • now popular on lunchboxes.com: Scooby Doo, Terminator 3 and Kim Possible (???)
  • help, there are Voices In My Lunchbox!

Be seeing you!

Ed