Where are the microwaves?

By Katie Maki

With all the shit going on at SFU right now — levies stolen from our pockets and the whole catastrophe between the SFSS and the CUPE — I began to try and think of the things we could change, and the things we are changing. In order to do so I took a tip from my fourth grade teacher: “You can never go wrong with a Venn diagram.” Under the ‘could change’ column, I began listing off things that would be possible in accordance with money. Of course, not many things made the list. So I began to list things I’d honestly hated about my first year, which are things that were not necessarily within SFU’s budget. Slowly going down the list, I started to see a pattern of stupid trivial things that probably would never change, until I landed on it: “SFU needs more microwaves.” I know you’re all thinking that’s a frivolous request, but microwaves could actually save students a lot of money while also make the campus more environmentally friendly.

I remember waking up early in my first year — excited for the day’s lectures and tutorials — making myself a nice hot lunch, and stuffing it into my lunch pack so it would stay fresh throughout the day. Needless to say, bringing chili was a bad idea. As a first-year student, with no knowledge of the campus, I walked around for almost two hours looking for a microwave. And of course, that day just happened to be the one day I didn’t bring any money. I was not impressed. So for the rest of the day I had two options: starve and deal with my notoriously loud rumbling tummy, or eat nasty, cold, congealed chili. I eventually gave in to hunger, but the taste of that lunch will forever haunt me.

Besides having to go through that grueling ordeal, bringing a bagged lunch could actually help students save money. Consider this: say you go to SFU five days out of the week, and each day you buy lunch and (obviously) lots of coffee. Each day you’d spend around $10, or maybe $5 if you’re lucky, and semesters go for about three months. $10 per day multiplied by 25 days per month equals $250. $250 multiplied over three months equals $750. So you end up spending $750 each semester, which could easily be saved towards a new car or spent on your textbooks for the next year. But I’m not here to lecture you, because it’s not your fault.

SFU used to offer microwaves that were easily accessible to all students down in the West Mall cafeteria. Since Tim Hortons arrived, SFU has taken out the microwaves. But why? Simply to sell more food and make us spend more money? It seems implausible that students would spend so much money on food when we’re constantly paying hundreds of dollars for textbooks and insurance, and thousands on tuition. Many students still live at home, so to eat food your parents buy you could save you thousands of dollars! So why don’t more people bring bagged lunches?

Personally, I’m sick of eating the same cold-cut sandwiches I’ve been eating since middle school, so to bring homemade soup or “mom’s special lasagna” leftovers would just brighten my day. I think people don’t bring lunches because of inaccessibility. If SFU offered students the option, they would take it. If you’re still not sold, picture this: it’s snowy and windy up at SFU, and you’re stuck inside the cold concrete walls just like every other student. Shivering from the low thermostat setting in the AQ, you take out your lunch and voila! A lovely chili. You warm it up in a nearby microwave and hold the bowl in your hands. You suddenly think, “Hell, screw wintery weather, this chili is fantastic!”

Besides a hot lunch helping defrost your hands during the winter months, it would also help the environment. Take last semester when SFU launched the Go Green Container Exchange Program and apply that to a bigger spectrum: what if no one bought food on campus at all? Think about all the stuff that wouldn’t become trash! Although this is a far-fetched idea, it’s not as far off as one might think. If microwaves were strewn across campus, more people would bring bagged lunches. And those people coupled with the Go Green Container Exchange Program could really make a difference on the environment.

Because the idea of SFU needing microwaves isn’t at the top of everyone’s petition list (if you have one), it can be a little hard to make someone agree with such a trivial thing. However, you could also approach the issue like this: how can we solve the big problems if we can’t even find solutions to the little ones like access to microwaves? Although I don’t believe the student body should necessarily consider microwaves on campus at the top of priorities for SFU’s spending money, it’s a good idea to look into for in the future. With the plans for the student union building being discussed, I think that microwaves along with social space could really encourage more people to bring bagged lunches. Social space and microwaves together is a nice thought — no one wants to eat cold soup while sitting on the floor. But that’s just my food for thought.

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Microwaves on campus:

In Residence: