Steve Jobs wore a black turtle neck with jeans. Mark Zuckerberg wears a gray t-shirt everyday. Their reasons are the same. They don’t have to think about what to wear. They wake up and get dressed. No stressing about what to wear, what’s clean and what it matches. They get up, dress and get on with their day.
Alan Martin bought a 6-week pass to Olive Garden has the right idea when it comes to meals. Man eating nothing but Olive Garden speaks out: “I have not had one meal that was not just perfect”
I hate meal planning. I hate trying to decide on a menu the week before I eat it. Figuring out lunch is more taxing. If there are leftovers, I can take them. If we make a big batch of food during the weekend, there’s plenty for lunches. But most of the time, if we’ve eaten out or not made extra food, I have to decide what to take for lunch.
I’ll buy something either at the cafeteria at work or at a local restaurant but that gets expensive fast. If I think about it, I’ll make a sandwich the night before, or more rarely, the morning before I leave.
If I didn’t have to think about lunch or dinner, I would be in heaven. And while I love food, I can happily eat the same thing everyday. I’ve lived for weeks off peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for lunch. Having multiple jellies and jams helps, but I’m still a creature of habit when it comes to food. I’m too tired to think about what I want to eat. I just want something ready for me. If I had a job where lunch was provided, I would jump at the chance. If there was a platter of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches provided, that’d be perfect. I don’t need gourmet food. Just something to eat and get me through the day.
Alan Martin has taken advantage of this deal, which was only available to 1,000 people. He paid $100 for the card from Olive Garden.
It’s not about the food for him, it’s about the money.
I’m at about $1,600 in value and I’ve got four more days to try to get another couple hundred dollars out of the Olive Garden. Right now, I would really love to get to $1,800. If I could say I collected $1,800 in Olive Garden meals, that is big. I don’t know what city you’re in or anything, but in rural North Carolina, that’s a big deal.
That’s a big deal anywhere you are. And he’s not eaten every single meal he’s picked up.
Last week I was driving by and I stopped at a corner and a man was there, a homeless man with a sign and I said, “Come over here.” And he came over to the car and I opened the door—I’ve got a sliding glass door on my van—and I pushed the button to open the door and I said, “Get that Olive Garden bag. It’s got soup, spaghetti and meatballs, everything you need to have a great meal.” And he was so happy, and he took it and he went over and sat out in the woods and started eating that Olive Garden meal. I felt good about that, helping him.
In addition to handing some of them out, he’s been saving some for later. He’s able to pick up two meals on weekdays and three on the weekends.
I have been freezing some [meals]. I can’t eat ‘em all and they start stacking up in the refrigerator so I vacuum seal ‘em and I’ve got about thirty out there in the freezer that I will eventually eat.
That’s some major food storage and easy meals for later when they don’t feel like cooking or when money is tight.
Last year, during the government shutdown, I took part in Chick Fil-A’s First 100 event. Say what you will about their politics, I camped out at a store opening during October in Maryland. It poured rain on us for most of that time. The rules were we had to stay on the store’s premises but not inside the store (save bathroom use.)
So we huddled in tents and under umbrellas. What did I get out of it? I got three meals from the restaurant for the 24 hours I was camped out there.
But the main attraction was the “free meals for a year.” Which was 52 free meal coupons. This was good for a Chick Fil-A sandwich, waffle fries and a drink.
Then, for the next year my wife and I would walk in to the store, ask for “Two Number 1s” and hand over two coupons. I got a smile on my face watching the $12.xx reduce to nothing with the coupons.
My savings was only about $300. But for the weeks I was out of work, it gave us somewhere to go and get some free food. It was nice to get out of the house and have a meal out that we didn’t have to pay for.
They’re good for a year and we used our last two in September. This is my way of saying I absolutely understand where this guy is coming from and his desire to get as much out of this deal as possible.
I salute you Alan Martin. Collect your meals. Stash them away. Save yourself the money, time and decisions free food can offer.