Most mornings, kids get into their cars dreary eyed and definitely not looking forward to spending most of their day at school. But one thing that many kids do look forward to is driving their car straight to Dunkins. That rich coffee, warm sandwich or crispy hash browns encourages them to get through their day or at least get them through the next hour.  It seems that Algonquin does run on Dunkins.

Like so many others, my mornings always include a Dunkin Donuts cup in my hand as I walk into school. Dunks is my morning habit which I rarely stop to think about. But when I do stop to reflect, the amount of times I go to Dunkins before school is actually a bit excessive. It’s gotten to the point where at least two workers there already know what I want before I even walk in. They ring up my regular small caramel iced coffee with skim milk only without me having to say a word.

Yes, my Dunks routine helps me get through my moring, but everyday I spend at least seven dollars if I add in a bagel. That’s 210 dollars a month, 2,555 dollars a year.  And according to the company’s website, every morning I mindlessly ingest 710 calories.

Should I really be running on Dunkins? Should we?

Each morning on my short walk from the H200 parking lot to my D200 first period class, the amount of Dunkin Donut cups and bags I see is crazy. Orange and pink is everywhere, as students and teachers sip into their coffee or tea looking more refreshed and possibly more awake with every gulp. Is it worth it to have our bank account go down with every dunks purchase and put our health at risk just for the short happy moment of Dunkin comfort in the morning?

Maybe Dunkins, in a way, actually brings us together? Not only is it students and teachers around school who depend on their daily munch to get them through the day, I also sometimes see parents day after day ordering their same old coffee or donut. They’ve become familiar faces in my morning routine, parents who I would have never met if it wasn’t for our Dunkin Donuts craving.

Now, I’m not saying eating Dunkins every couple days is bad, because trust me it has been a personal morning life saver. But maybe think about this, on some days we could take a little break, make our own coffee and bagel at home and save a little money. It might be difficult to not have Dunks in the morning, but in the long term you’ll save money and that doesn’t hurt.

But who am I kidding? Algonquin sure does run on Dunkin.