UNIVERSITY PARK, PA-- Many students living in off-campus apartments took advantage of Thanksgiving break to fight off the borderline malnutrition that results from their often meager diets. As the semester wears on many students find their cupboards growing increasingly bare as both money and the initial parentally-funded stash begin to run out. Lack of finances puts many students into a mode of forced thriftiness, in which they struggle to meet the nutrition needs of their active, stressful lives with the minimum food budget available to them. "I find that I can survive on about $1.65 a day if I only eat rice, pasta, and tuna. I mean, if you've got carbohydrates and proteins, what else do you need?" reports Bryan Brenner (senior - chemical engineering). Other students used their own variations on Brenner's simplified diet. Mike Sprett (junior - computer science) claimed he was able to live on nothing but eggs and potatoes for 2 weeks when his food supply ran out in early November.

Brenner has lost 23 lbs. since moving into an off-campus apartment this fall.

             Sprett, like so many students, welcomed the smell of non-microwaved food and the sight of a full refrigerator upon his return home for Thanksgiving break. "I didn't know what to do. I spent most of Thanksgiving break eating. I must have gained 10 pounds over break. Normally that would worry me, but I still weigh 10 pounds less than when I lived in the dorms. God do I ever miss having all-you-can-eat prepared food three times a day." said Geri Bortner (sophomore - English).

             As if the monetary cost weren't enough to cause dietary woes, there is also the opportunity cost of food storage to consider. "We usually have enough room during the week, but when the weekend rolls around and you've got 2 cases of beer to keep cold, some sacrifices have to be made. I know food is important, but when it comes down to refrigerating meat and eggs or beer, its not even a contest." confessed Jonathan Mosley (junior - food science).

McAndrews is showing more than a little extra pudge as she prepares for the long, harsh Pennsylvania winter.

             Knowing that only 3 weeks remained in the semester, some students took a survival approach to their Thanksgiving break dining. Hoping to save money while fending off starvation, they attempted to pack on enough body fat to allow them to make it through finals week on only one meal a day.

             "Sure, I do it every year. The thing is, most people don't take advantage of semester break the way they should. With 3 full weeks, you really need to pack on the pounds for the long winter ahead. A lot of the younger students will come back from break with more money in their pockets and end up blowing it all on food. Personally, I prefer to put on about 25 pounds during break and eat nothing but macaroni and tuna until March. After 2 months of that kind of malnutrition, I sure look great in a bikini during Spring Break in Cancun. A trip that I finance with the money I don't spend on food, I might add." explained Jessica McAndrews (senior - business logistics).