Brunchin’ Broke
I believe in brunch. It is the one meal that lets you sleep in, and stuff your face when you awake, and the one that fuels you through to dinner. It is an excuse to eat anything (hint: fried chicken) before noon and it saves you the hassle of needing two separate meals. Brunch is the ultimate blessing bestowed upon the forever hungry, sleepless procrastinators of the world — in other words, students.
When I was a student, I LOVED brunch (heck, I still do). But as a student, I was also undeniably and perpetually broke. In the face of luscious breakfast spreads and so-fluffy-I-could-die pancakes, nothing could keep me away, not even my measly student budget. But as it turns out, brunching well with what little money I had taught me quite a skill — I call it “brunching broke”.
Brunch Was My Favourite Subject
You know how in every exam, there is always that one question that stumps you with a choice between two extremely convincing answers? Deciding between spending RM25 on eggs benedict or a textbook I needed for Public Relations class is one of those. But never for me. That runny egg yolk seeping into the soft pillows of brioche was always worth the giant hole it left in my pocket. Oh, and I managed to photocopy my way through the textbook. See, kids, brunch teaches you life skills.
I Became That Cheapskate Customer
Yes, the one who comes in to order fancy RM20 nasi lemak, then refuses to get a drink. I am that girl who shamelessly asks for the Wi-Fi password before I am even seated, and who hogs the only power point available to stream an old episode of my favourite drama. It’s a horrible, horrible thing to do and I feel bad about it to this day, especially on the days that I still do it. Just kidding (but not really).
Will Study For Baked Eggs
While my wallet was not as quick to accommodate my brunch desires, I am fortunate enough to have an older sister who was. At the end of every semester when I finished my exams, she would take me out for these amazing brunches — gorgeous baked eggs and long (maybe sometimes a little too long), languid conversations over great coffee. She called it my reward for studying hard, even though she never cared whether my results actually reflected that. She made sure I was never deprived of it when I needed it most and that, to me, was a colossal act of love that I could only attempt to repay.
These days, I no longer brunch broke. I still return to my old favourite haunts, albeit with much more dignity and definitely, definitely a drink order to redeem the old sins of my younger, cheapskate self. These days, no matter how busy I am, I always make time to take my sister out for brunch.
For three years, I brunched dead broke and it was absolutely priceless. Whether you are a student or not, I hope for your sake that you’re brunching — broke, or otherwise.
