Mom Is Shocked When Teacher Calls Her To Say The Lunches She Gives Her Son Are “Inappropriate”
Parents strive to provide their children with tasty and nutritious meals, but what happens when their kid’s tastebuds don’t match up with those of their peers?
A mother on Reddit is asking if she’s a jerk for packing her son “disgusting and inappropriate” lunches after she received a call from his teacher and heard that the food is “distracting for the other students and has an unpleasant odor.”
The woman doesn’t know what to do. Does she risk a fight with the school? Or upsetting her son by editing his menu?
This woman just received an unexpected call from her son’s teacher
Image credits: valeriygoncharukphoto (not the actual photo)
And was told to stop packing him stinky lunch
Image credits: Ferks Guare (not the actual photo)
Image credits: Ketut Subiyanto (not the actual photo)
Image credits: flowergardens0
By the time a child is 5, they can eat a healthy balanced diet like the one recommended for adults.
However, it can be quite a hassle to find what they like. Pediatrician Claire McCarthy, MD, hears parents complain about it all the time.
“All children are picky eaters at some point or in some way during childhood; it’s part of how they assert their independence,” McCarthy wrote. “But some children are pickier than others, stubbornly refusing to eat everything except a few chosen foods.”
Image credits: Tanaphong Toochinda (not the actual photo)
An article published in the journal Pediatrics gives some insight into picky eating. Researchers looked at the habits of children ages 4 to 9 and discovered that picky eaters tended to stay that way. That means that moms and dads need to start early to prevent it, preferably before their child turns 2 (and that independent streak really sets in).
“Offer lots of different foods, including lots of different fruits and vegetables,” McCarthy said. “Don’t cook a separate kids’ meal. Let your child eat what you are eating (with one important exception: no choking hazards). That obviously works best if you are eating a variety of foods, so be adventurous yourself.”
So it sounds like u/flowergardens0 might actually benefit from changing up her kid’s menu.
The aforementioned study also found that when parents were very strict about the foods that the child could and couldn’t eat or were demanding about the child’s eating, the child was more likely to be a picky eater.
“Some of that could be a chicken-or-egg thing: when a child seems picky, parents might be more likely to want them to eat healthy or high-calorie foods — and really want them to finish them,” McCarthy explained. “However well-meaning this may be, it can make things worse.”
“Much of picky eating may be related to negative thoughts and memories about certain foods, or eating in general. The more that you are upbeat and positive about eating, the more likely your child will be that way too,” the pediatrician added.
Image credits: Annie Spratt (not the actual photo)
Here are some ideas she shared on how to do that:
- Have family meals — and enjoy each other during them. “Eating together puts the emphasis on the social aspect of eating, rather than the food itself, which can be helpful,” McCarthy said. “It’s most helpful if that social aspect is pleasant, so put aside the devices and use mealtimes as time to catch up with each other, tell funny stories and otherwise enjoy the time together.”
- Don’t force a child to eat. Encourage them to try new foods, but don’t argue about it. Do not make them finish everything on their plate but try to not let them snack all day (or fill up on milk or juice) too; if possible, they should arrive at a meal hungry enough to want to eat.
- Involve your child in meal planning and preparation. “Look at recipes together; be willing to try new and different things,” McCarthy continued. “Take them shopping with you. If you have the ability to grow some foods or spices, have your child be involved in that, too.”
Hopefully, u/flowergardens0 finds a solution as well.
Some people believe the mom is doing nothing wrong, and also mentioned racism
But others said she should be more thoughtful of her son’s classmates
And some believe that “everyone sucks here”
ESH. The teacher should have handled it better. "We're in very close quarters here and have asked everyone to avoid bringing strong-smelling foods because the odors tend to linger in the classroom." That being said, the mom is sending a stink-bomb in her kid's lunchbox! You don't microwave fish in the office, you don't eat durian at the gym, and you don't send fermented food with strong-smelling cheese and a vinegar-based chili-garlic sauce to a crowded classroom.
If it were not for the fact that these foods are indeed smelly I would say that the teacher missed a great opportunity to teach respect for different cultures to the other children. I agree with ESH, the teacher was excessively harsh and as you pointed out, it would have been possible to handle this without singling out the mother. The mother also needs to understand that she is used to these smells, but others are not. She should also understand that this situation will set her son up for exclusion and bullying. Surely there are other Korean foods that he likes which are not so pungent.
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Pickled herring is common in my country, but bring it for lunch in said country and everyone WILL judge you for stinking up the place. It's basic courtesy to not bring mega smelly foods to lunch, whether those foods are foreign or not.
Kimchi, blue cheese, goat cheese and siracha left in lunch box for half a day would have me dry retching and having to leave the room. The teacher could have handled it much more professionally and politely, but your response is pretty aholeish.
Completely agree, but we’re only getting one side of the story about the teacher’s tone. Possible it played out exactly like that, but it stinks of hyperbole (see what I did there!)
Load More Replies... I don't believe this situations real. It sounds more like a post trying to stir some reaction and outrage... If by any chance this situation was real, then the poster and the teacher are a bit insensitive each in their own ways. As a Kimchi lover I would be hesitant to bring some to work, knowing not everyone enjoys the smell of it, even in my own house I face resistance and criticism from people who love me otherwise (no racism at play).
Yeah, like the combo of all sorts of smelly foods made it all a bit... fishy.
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I'd suggest just asking the kid what's up. If they tell you their classmates are all complaining about the smell of his food then perhaps consider slightly less pungent meals until such a time where all the kids aren't forced to sit in a small space together. Which of course means the teacher is just bloody rude. If the other kids are totally unbothered with his lunch then you know the teacher is just racist and can be happily ignored.
i think esh, more so the teacher but still. also that one comment "sandwiches cut into the shapes of d***s" was hilarious
On the one hand, the teacher's tone is definitely out of line; she could have calmly suggested eating something different without being insulting about it. On the other hand, I bet that lunch had a pungent odor. I had a Korean SO for a number of years and I could always tell when kimchi had been made because when I came home and opened the front door my eyes started burning. No exaggeration there, it was potent!
Making kimchi is very different from bringing a small quantity somewhere. I make pepper sauce, very different effect than bringing some with me lol.
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Why is it bc a certain culture or race has stinky food that someone complaining about is automatically a racist? I'm a white American who likes sardines, I know better than to eat it in public. If I was dumb enough to eat in public and a person of color complained about it, I would never consider it racist. People are so quick to assume racism and they are the dumb ones.
Some smells are normalized: hot dogs and bologna stink, ripe bananas can have a strong, lingering smell, and even PB&J has a distinct smell, but these are considered "normal" lunches. Familiarity is a powerful predictor of liking for both odors and for food. Because some "ethnic" foods smell unfamiliar, they are labeled as gross or smelly. That said, foods with strong notes of some amines, sulfur, and/or fermentation are usually considered stinky, (but delicious!) no matter the culture. The mom, in this case, sent her child to school with not just stinky foods but discordantly stinky foods. Reference: (https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/food-science/food-odor#:~:text=Determination%20of%20odorant%20volatiles)
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I think soft ESH but that teacher is being a rude jerk with her tone
Edited to say apparently the post has been flagged as fake and the account has been suspended sooooo
I just checked out the link. The account is NOT suspended or flagged as fake.
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Once, when I was moving out of a loft, I was carrying a box of kitchen stuff to the elevator. Near the top was a large bottle of fermented fish sauce. As I stepped onto the elevator, the bottle fell and shattered, right in the gap between the lift and the shaft, raining down all 9 stories. I felt so ashamed and terrible for my neighbors. I swept and mopped as best I could, but the damage was done. I got to the ground floor, loaded the box into the van, and told my partner, "There's nothing else we need up there. Just drive."
I can't get past a 5 year old eating siracha marinated doritos. How do you marinate doritos? Like, place them in a bag and squirt the sauce on them? Do you bake them afterwards for twice baked doritos? Wouldn't that make them soft? And do 5 year olds usually like siracha sauce? So many questions...
I have a nephew that age who is obsessed with spicy food and the "Hot Ones" YouTube channel. I have no idea how you can marinate Doritos, but I would like the recipe.
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"I sent my son to school with Surströmming, Limburger cheese, Durian, Natto, and a Century Egg. AITA?"
I've never had a century egg, but we love stinky tofu in my house. We have it on broccoli with parmesan. Whenever I buy it, the cashiers always say something like, "Are you sure?"
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ESH. Just don't. OK? Focus on the kid's education, and just inform the mom you don't stink-bomb people just because... I mean, there are some stenchy cheeses out there, but did we take them to school? No. It's just common courtesy to realize that strong smells are, gee, often offensive to others. (And I say that as someone who grew up on a farm. To offend this nose, you gotta work at it.)
Sorry, I worked in an office & oh lord...sardines! This guy would open a tin of sardines on a regular basis. That odor hung in the air for hours. He was finally asked to stop & he did. Same guy started popping pop corn in the micro. Yep, burnt almost everytime, none of us said anything. Figured it was better than the sardines...
I had to write this major exam in high school, it had to be overseen by a external group so all classes for the subject had to write it at the same time. We didn't have an auditorium, we had a 'cafetorium' because... I don't know, they cheaped out. Anyway, we were all in there for the 3.5hr exam and someone snuck in to heat up a bag of popcorn around the 1.5hr mark. The supervisors told him that he needed to go, etc but he had already started. I was in the far end but slowly the smell of popcorn just wafted... and of course I had been too nervous to eat lunch... my stomach growled literally the rest of the exam very loudly. Man that smell can travel... much, much worse than sardines purely because of how intoxicating it is. Might as well be frying bacon.
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There's a reason Kimchi refrigerators exist. Koreans know that kimchi has a strong aroma. I keep mine in a sealed container or my fridge will stink. This woman was probably trying to prove some sort of point about culture and racism. Except that bleu cheese is a different culture so the point becomes moot.
she sucks and so does the teacher. she's sending that kid with the smelliest things possible.
I don't think Sriracha is appropriate to bring into a confined space. I know this is hard to believe for people who love it, but some of us and our kids will experience painful burning in our nose, mouth and eyes just from spelling it a few feet away. Having said that, the teacher's comments are laced with racist vibes.
Lol what? Siriracha has no wafting effect and is not even that spicy. (Also I'm not a big fan of it... but like you can't smell it a few feet away)
Load More Replies... Nta but also not right. It's the teachers job to ensure that all children are happy and sometimes not all children can get everything they want. Not all parents understand that right away and it's the teachers job to explain it, preferably in a more diplomatic and professional manner than described here.
yeah, ESH. Teacher was way over the line. Should have just said, the food you pack for your child has a strong smell, and it's upsetting the other children. Please find something less smelly to pack for lunch, it's inconsiderate of others having to eat in that small space. Mother should have realized that you don't pack the really smelly stuff in the lunch box. It's just common courtesy.
The reddit post is 4 days old, and OP's account is already suspended. Me thinks we have a troll.
Lol what. I took many unusual things to school for lunch. No one ever complained, in fact people would trade me. Kimchi, esp when cold and kept cold with an ice pack is not smelly. I am not korean but I eat chilled kimchi at work, no complaints. It is no more smelly than a thermos of chunky brand chili or if a kid heats up a slice of supreme pizza. I used to take seaweed salad, zilzil tibs, codfish and ackee, etc. I brought various with blue cheese dip because i didn't like ranch. Yes many people had ham sandwiches but I was not from a ham sandwich kind of family and there were absolutely no complaints. Obviously i was conscious of the food smell so would underheat items that could be considered pungent (ie. Coucou with fish gravy) but other kids weren't always as considerate with heating their french onion soup or cabbage rolls and such... no one complained, no one cared. This very much seems like an issue with the teacher. I'm sure this is an unpopular opinion but in my experience... nta
It sounds like a really pungent lunch and with that, OP is teaching her kid that it's okay to be selfish as long as he's happy. Teacher may have been pissed that one person could be so thoughtless but had absolutely no right to speak to OP the way they did - if teacher in fact did speak to them so harshly. For all we know teacher has brought this up before and has had enough. There are plenty of Korean dishes that don't smell really strong. Sidenote, feeding the kid full fat, unpasteurised cheese every day ain't good.
Reminds me of when I was in college (long ago, 60 two person rooms off one hallway.) and I liked to put kimchi in my Ramen noodles and everyone on the whole floor would complain without knowing what the problem was. Maybe it was a subconscious rebellion against the pot smell I did not like!
Oh boy, this one really hits home for me. 7th grade I think it was. The worst coach the school ever had got hold of my lunch. Called me into his office and laid into me about it's contents. Told me he was calling mom blah blah blah. See, he was under the impression "I" packed it due to the contents. Mom, like the one in this post, sent what she knew I'd eat. Not the healthiest lunch but eating anything is better then eating nothing. So he calls and she lays him out. She came home wanting to know who the a***ole is? And what makes him think he ahs any right to lecture her on my lunch etc. She was still steaming and I was laughing. Tat coach and I had bumped heads a few times before this but he pretty much stayed clear of me when mom got through with him. I'd have to look back at my yearbooks but I'm thinking he wasn't there the following year.
Teacher had a teensy point, but sounded nasty. If you can't have a sense of humor over stinky lunches, keep your mouth shut. Settings matter. Is this in a cafeteria, a classroom? My school used to boil cabbage or broccoli or cauliflower; I think 100 servings of those stink way worse than 1 serving of kimchi... but I'm kinda guessing this is a small classroom, since the teacher seems to have more feelings about "EW!" than about what's best for the kid's socialization. OTOH, it's POSSIBLE the issue is just plain racism.
I mean this in a kind way, so I hope I don't get down voted... agree with everyone on the smell front. Where I live you're not allowed to pack crisps, sweets, etc so I've been conditioned to think that way. I have a kid with allergies and he's super fussy, so I get you just want your kid fed. BUT my concern is the sheer amount of salt in that meal.
I just can't get over one comment about popcorn?? My school SOLD popcorn. I mean everyone hated the kind that burned it but if you don't burn it, whatever
Kimchi, spicy doritos with Sriracha, and blue cheese. Teacher lady, the odor isn't from his lunch, it's probably out his rear. In all seriousness though, the parent has every right to take care of her kid as she sees fit, as long as the kid isn't malnourished or abused end of story.
Everyone saying it's racist...I could point out a dozen posts here where we talk about people microwaving fish in the company break room as an offense that incites people to want to fire them. So...it's just a common sense thing. I wouldn't necessarily send fish in. But at the end of the day, I can't stand the smell of corned beef or certain meats...smell is a little subjective so feed your kid whatever you want but know you're unnecessarily annoying everyone and I don't know why this is the hill you want to die on. My aunt is Korean and the food is amazing and I learned how to cook a lot of it. There are plenty of Korean foods that don't smell bad that you could feed him if you insist on that. Dumplings, chicken gimbap, etc. Or maybe you could just make some more basic fare for school.
There truly are disgusting things that people, inlcuding children, eat ... even enjoy, or at least say so. Kimchi, for example, I tried and don't like. Spam ... I remember having eaten it some time around 10 years old, and it was just as disgusting as I thought it to be. But ... but, the teacher here is overstepping something, in case the meals are neither poisonous nor spark anyones' allergic reactions. If we agree on being free to eat whatever we want to, there cannot be a reasonable exception in regard to children, unless you'd feed them opium or booze... NTA.
I had a colleague that would eat a dish with smoked fish, kimchi and blue cheese on a weekly basis. Literally the entire office had to vacate the floor - and hers came out of the fridge, not a lunchbox. Every other dish she brought to work was either odorless or smelt great and therefore was appropriate. If it smells so bad it vacates an office floor its inappropriate.
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I'll come to your workplace and microwave a tuna sandwich. See how quick you 'get over it'.
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ESH. The teacher should have handled it better. "We're in very close quarters here and have asked everyone to avoid bringing strong-smelling foods because the odors tend to linger in the classroom." That being said, the mom is sending a stink-bomb in her kid's lunchbox! You don't microwave fish in the office, you don't eat durian at the gym, and you don't send fermented food with strong-smelling cheese and a vinegar-based chili-garlic sauce to a crowded classroom.
If it were not for the fact that these foods are indeed smelly I would say that the teacher missed a great opportunity to teach respect for different cultures to the other children. I agree with ESH, the teacher was excessively harsh and as you pointed out, it would have been possible to handle this without singling out the mother. The mother also needs to understand that she is used to these smells, but others are not. She should also understand that this situation will set her son up for exclusion and bullying. Surely there are other Korean foods that he likes which are not so pungent.
Load More Replies... Pickled herring is common in my country, but bring it for lunch in said country and everyone WILL judge you for stinking up the place. It's basic courtesy to not bring mega smelly foods to lunch, whether those foods are foreign or not.
Kimchi, blue cheese, goat cheese and siracha left in lunch box for half a day would have me dry retching and having to leave the room. The teacher could have handled it much more professionally and politely, but your response is pretty aholeish.
Completely agree, but we’re only getting one side of the story about the teacher’s tone. Possible it played out exactly like that, but it stinks of hyperbole (see what I did there!)
Load More Replies... I don't believe this situations real. It sounds more like a post trying to stir some reaction and outrage... If by any chance this situation was real, then the poster and the teacher are a bit insensitive each in their own ways. As a Kimchi lover I would be hesitant to bring some to work, knowing not everyone enjoys the smell of it, even in my own house I face resistance and criticism from people who love me otherwise (no racism at play).
Yeah, like the combo of all sorts of smelly foods made it all a bit... fishy.
Load More Replies... I'd suggest just asking the kid what's up. If they tell you their classmates are all complaining about the smell of his food then perhaps consider slightly less pungent meals until such a time where all the kids aren't forced to sit in a small space together. Which of course means the teacher is just bloody rude. If the other kids are totally unbothered with his lunch then you know the teacher is just racist and can be happily ignored.
i think esh, more so the teacher but still. also that one comment "sandwiches cut into the shapes of d***s" was hilarious
On the one hand, the teacher's tone is definitely out of line; she could have calmly suggested eating something different without being insulting about it. On the other hand, I bet that lunch had a pungent odor. I had a Korean SO for a number of years and I could always tell when kimchi had been made because when I came home and opened the front door my eyes started burning. No exaggeration there, it was potent!
Making kimchi is very different from bringing a small quantity somewhere. I make pepper sauce, very different effect than bringing some with me lol.
Load More Replies... Why is it bc a certain culture or race has stinky food that someone complaining about is automatically a racist? I'm a white American who likes sardines, I know better than to eat it in public. If I was dumb enough to eat in public and a person of color complained about it, I would never consider it racist. People are so quick to assume racism and they are the dumb ones.
Some smells are normalized: hot dogs and bologna stink, ripe bananas can have a strong, lingering smell, and even PB&J has a distinct smell, but these are considered "normal" lunches. Familiarity is a powerful predictor of liking for both odors and for food. Because some "ethnic" foods smell unfamiliar, they are labeled as gross or smelly. That said, foods with strong notes of some amines, sulfur, and/or fermentation are usually considered stinky, (but delicious!) no matter the culture. The mom, in this case, sent her child to school with not just stinky foods but discordantly stinky foods. Reference: (https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/food-science/food-odor#:~:text=Determination%20of%20odorant%20volatiles)
Load More Replies... I think soft ESH but that teacher is being a rude jerk with her tone
Edited to say apparently the post has been flagged as fake and the account has been suspended sooooo
I just checked out the link. The account is NOT suspended or flagged as fake.
Load More Replies... Once, when I was moving out of a loft, I was carrying a box of kitchen stuff to the elevator. Near the top was a large bottle of fermented fish sauce. As I stepped onto the elevator, the bottle fell and shattered, right in the gap between the lift and the shaft, raining down all 9 stories. I felt so ashamed and terrible for my neighbors. I swept and mopped as best I could, but the damage was done. I got to the ground floor, loaded the box into the van, and told my partner, "There's nothing else we need up there. Just drive."
I can't get past a 5 year old eating siracha marinated doritos. How do you marinate doritos? Like, place them in a bag and squirt the sauce on them? Do you bake them afterwards for twice baked doritos? Wouldn't that make them soft? And do 5 year olds usually like siracha sauce? So many questions...
I have a nephew that age who is obsessed with spicy food and the "Hot Ones" YouTube channel. I have no idea how you can marinate Doritos, but I would like the recipe.
Load More Replies... "I sent my son to school with Surströmming, Limburger cheese, Durian, Natto, and a Century Egg. AITA?"
I've never had a century egg, but we love stinky tofu in my house. We have it on broccoli with parmesan. Whenever I buy it, the cashiers always say something like, "Are you sure?"
Load More Replies... ESH. Just don't. OK? Focus on the kid's education, and just inform the mom you don't stink-bomb people just because... I mean, there are some stenchy cheeses out there, but did we take them to school? No. It's just common courtesy to realize that strong smells are, gee, often offensive to others. (And I say that as someone who grew up on a farm. To offend this nose, you gotta work at it.)
Sorry, I worked in an office & oh lord...sardines! This guy would open a tin of sardines on a regular basis. That odor hung in the air for hours. He was finally asked to stop & he did. Same guy started popping pop corn in the micro. Yep, burnt almost everytime, none of us said anything. Figured it was better than the sardines...
I had to write this major exam in high school, it had to be overseen by a external group so all classes for the subject had to write it at the same time. We didn't have an auditorium, we had a 'cafetorium' because... I don't know, they cheaped out. Anyway, we were all in there for the 3.5hr exam and someone snuck in to heat up a bag of popcorn around the 1.5hr mark. The supervisors told him that he needed to go, etc but he had already started. I was in the far end but slowly the smell of popcorn just wafted... and of course I had been too nervous to eat lunch... my stomach growled literally the rest of the exam very loudly. Man that smell can travel... much, much worse than sardines purely because of how intoxicating it is. Might as well be frying bacon.
Load More Replies... There's a reason Kimchi refrigerators exist. Koreans know that kimchi has a strong aroma. I keep mine in a sealed container or my fridge will stink. This woman was probably trying to prove some sort of point about culture and racism. Except that bleu cheese is a different culture so the point becomes moot.
she sucks and so does the teacher. she's sending that kid with the smelliest things possible.
I don't think Sriracha is appropriate to bring into a confined space. I know this is hard to believe for people who love it, but some of us and our kids will experience painful burning in our nose, mouth and eyes just from spelling it a few feet away. Having said that, the teacher's comments are laced with racist vibes.
Lol what? Siriracha has no wafting effect and is not even that spicy. (Also I'm not a big fan of it... but like you can't smell it a few feet away)
Load More Replies... Nta but also not right. It's the teachers job to ensure that all children are happy and sometimes not all children can get everything they want. Not all parents understand that right away and it's the teachers job to explain it, preferably in a more diplomatic and professional manner than described here.
yeah, ESH. Teacher was way over the line. Should have just said, the food you pack for your child has a strong smell, and it's upsetting the other children. Please find something less smelly to pack for lunch, it's inconsiderate of others having to eat in that small space. Mother should have realized that you don't pack the really smelly stuff in the lunch box. It's just common courtesy.
The reddit post is 4 days old, and OP's account is already suspended. Me thinks we have a troll.
Lol what. I took many unusual things to school for lunch. No one ever complained, in fact people would trade me. Kimchi, esp when cold and kept cold with an ice pack is not smelly. I am not korean but I eat chilled kimchi at work, no complaints. It is no more smelly than a thermos of chunky brand chili or if a kid heats up a slice of supreme pizza. I used to take seaweed salad, zilzil tibs, codfish and ackee, etc. I brought various with blue cheese dip because i didn't like ranch. Yes many people had ham sandwiches but I was not from a ham sandwich kind of family and there were absolutely no complaints. Obviously i was conscious of the food smell so would underheat items that could be considered pungent (ie. Coucou with fish gravy) but other kids weren't always as considerate with heating their french onion soup or cabbage rolls and such... no one complained, no one cared. This very much seems like an issue with the teacher. I'm sure this is an unpopular opinion but in my experience... nta
It sounds like a really pungent lunch and with that, OP is teaching her kid that it's okay to be selfish as long as he's happy. Teacher may have been pissed that one person could be so thoughtless but had absolutely no right to speak to OP the way they did - if teacher in fact did speak to them so harshly. For all we know teacher has brought this up before and has had enough. There are plenty of Korean dishes that don't smell really strong. Sidenote, feeding the kid full fat, unpasteurised cheese every day ain't good.
Reminds me of when I was in college (long ago, 60 two person rooms off one hallway.) and I liked to put kimchi in my Ramen noodles and everyone on the whole floor would complain without knowing what the problem was. Maybe it was a subconscious rebellion against the pot smell I did not like!
Oh boy, this one really hits home for me. 7th grade I think it was. The worst coach the school ever had got hold of my lunch. Called me into his office and laid into me about it's contents. Told me he was calling mom blah blah blah. See, he was under the impression "I" packed it due to the contents. Mom, like the one in this post, sent what she knew I'd eat. Not the healthiest lunch but eating anything is better then eating nothing. So he calls and she lays him out. She came home wanting to know who the a***ole is? And what makes him think he ahs any right to lecture her on my lunch etc. She was still steaming and I was laughing. Tat coach and I had bumped heads a few times before this but he pretty much stayed clear of me when mom got through with him. I'd have to look back at my yearbooks but I'm thinking he wasn't there the following year.
Teacher had a teensy point, but sounded nasty. If you can't have a sense of humor over stinky lunches, keep your mouth shut. Settings matter. Is this in a cafeteria, a classroom? My school used to boil cabbage or broccoli or cauliflower; I think 100 servings of those stink way worse than 1 serving of kimchi... but I'm kinda guessing this is a small classroom, since the teacher seems to have more feelings about "EW!" than about what's best for the kid's socialization. OTOH, it's POSSIBLE the issue is just plain racism.
I mean this in a kind way, so I hope I don't get down voted... agree with everyone on the smell front. Where I live you're not allowed to pack crisps, sweets, etc so I've been conditioned to think that way. I have a kid with allergies and he's super fussy, so I get you just want your kid fed. BUT my concern is the sheer amount of salt in that meal.
I just can't get over one comment about popcorn?? My school SOLD popcorn. I mean everyone hated the kind that burned it but if you don't burn it, whatever
Kimchi, spicy doritos with Sriracha, and blue cheese. Teacher lady, the odor isn't from his lunch, it's probably out his rear. In all seriousness though, the parent has every right to take care of her kid as she sees fit, as long as the kid isn't malnourished or abused end of story.
Everyone saying it's racist...I could point out a dozen posts here where we talk about people microwaving fish in the company break room as an offense that incites people to want to fire them. So...it's just a common sense thing. I wouldn't necessarily send fish in. But at the end of the day, I can't stand the smell of corned beef or certain meats...smell is a little subjective so feed your kid whatever you want but know you're unnecessarily annoying everyone and I don't know why this is the hill you want to die on. My aunt is Korean and the food is amazing and I learned how to cook a lot of it. There are plenty of Korean foods that don't smell bad that you could feed him if you insist on that. Dumplings, chicken gimbap, etc. Or maybe you could just make some more basic fare for school.
There truly are disgusting things that people, inlcuding children, eat ... even enjoy, or at least say so. Kimchi, for example, I tried and don't like. Spam ... I remember having eaten it some time around 10 years old, and it was just as disgusting as I thought it to be. But ... but, the teacher here is overstepping something, in case the meals are neither poisonous nor spark anyones' allergic reactions. If we agree on being free to eat whatever we want to, there cannot be a reasonable exception in regard to children, unless you'd feed them opium or booze... NTA.
I had a colleague that would eat a dish with smoked fish, kimchi and blue cheese on a weekly basis. Literally the entire office had to vacate the floor - and hers came out of the fridge, not a lunchbox. Every other dish she brought to work was either odorless or smelt great and therefore was appropriate. If it smells so bad it vacates an office floor its inappropriate.
Load More Replies... I'll come to your workplace and microwave a tuna sandwich. See how quick you 'get over it'.
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