Cleaning out a drawer of expired meal-card receipts (peak Saturday glamour), I found my freshman fall student ID. Same bad haircut. My face filled the entire frame back then. I'm 61 lbs down, about 19 months in, and I honestly hadn't clocked any of it until I set the two cards side by side on my desk.
The unglamorous stuff did the work: dining hall chicken when it isn't rubber, canned tuna with an irresponsible amount of hot sauce, cottage cheese from the campus store, eggs microwaved in a mug. My roommate calls my dinner "sad protein charcuterie." Weirdly, I'm spending less than I did on 1 a.m. delivery, which still doesn't feel real.
No single week was dramatic. Just a pile of boring weeks and walking to class instead of waiting for the shuttle.
For the campus people here: what's your default plate when the dining hall options look grim? I need new backup ideas that don't involve a sad salad.