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There's no easy way to say this, and I'm sure it's going to disappoint a lot of people, but there's really no other way to say this other than to just say it.

I've started drinking soda again.

It's been about 6.5 years since I drank soda regularly. In those 6.5 years, I have had a sip or two now and again, mostly to try some new concoction like Vanilla Coke or Wild Berry Pepsi, but I quit drinking soda as a general rule.

My folks visited me a few weeks ago and I picked up some Sprecher's Root Beer for my dad. When they left, he didn't take it with him, and Sprecher's Root Beer is the second-best root beer I've ever had, and... well, that's pretty much what happened. From there, I decided to re-try some other root beers at Culver's, McDonald's, at A&W... I may not pronounce "root" correctly, but I do love me some root beer.

Since then I've also had some other sodas here and there and I've come to remember why I stopped drinking them in the first place: they don't sit well. I never feel better after drinking a soda, and I often feel worse. And, aside from the Sprecher's, none of them are so good-tasting as to be worth the trouble.

So, yeah, the pendulum has swung pretty far back the other way here, but I anticipate it heading back toward the middle some time soon. I'm not going to be a militant non-soda drinker, but neither am I going to start drinking it on a regular basis, I don't think.

It was a pretty good run, 6.5 years. It wasn't like it helped me all that much, though. I filled the void (my stomach) with plenty of other stuff that was way worse, I'm sure. And, as I'm constantly reminded by pretty much everybody, since I don't eat veggies or fruits I'm probably headed to an early grave already, so why hurry the process along?

So that's it. Probably not earth-shattering to anyone, but I thought I'd let you know. And for those of you who are bothered by such things (approximately 51% of you), feel free to read "pop" instead of "soda" throughout this entry, and those readers in the South can just read "Coke."

Labels: food

8 comments

From The Consumerist:

If you object to George Costanza's habit of double dipping—now you have a scientific study to back it up.

The study was conducted by Prof. Paul L. Dawson, a food microbiologist, who decided to experiment with "double dipping" after watching a Seinfeld re-run in which a character named "Timmy" objects to George's dubious dipping habits.

Professor Dawson told the New York Times that he expected "little or no microbial transfer" as a result of double dipping.

He was wrong.

Double dippers are just as gross as you've always suspected:

The team of nine students instructed volunteers to take a bite of a wheat cracker and dip the cracker for three seconds into about a tablespoon of a test dip. They then repeated the process with new crackers, for a total of either three or six double dips per dip sample. The team then analyzed the remaining dip and counted the number of aerobic bacteria in it. They didn't determine whether any of the bacteria were harmful, and didn't count anaerobic bacteria, which are harder to culture, or viruses.

There were six test dips: sterile water with three different degrees of acidity, a commercial salsa, a cheese dip and chocolate syrup.

On average, the students found that three to six double dips transferred about 10,000 bacteria from the eater's mouth to the remaining dip.

Each cracker picked up between one and two grams of dip. That means that sporadic double dipping in a cup of dip would transfer at least 50 to 100 bacteria from one mouth to another with every bite.

Yuck. So, what now? "The way I would put it is, before you have some dip at a party, look around and ask yourself, would I be willing to kiss everyone here? Because you don't know who might be double dipping, and those who do are sharing their saliva with you," says Professor Dawson.

Germs. You can't trust 'em.

Labels: food, Seinfeld, things I've learned

11 comments

I've done something weird to my tongue. All day the tip of it has felt numb - kind of like after you "test" a 9-volt battery with your tongue, sort of metallic and strange. At the same time, it feels a little like I've just used mouthwash... which I think is the culprit here.

I've been using Crest Pro-Health Rinse for a few days now, the blue flavor. This is actually my second bottle of it, but I used the green one when I tried it before. It doesn't have alcohol in it, so it's better for your gums. I have always equated the "mouth burn" after using Listerine with "clean," but I have it on good authority that it's not the best thing for me.

This stuff takes a little getting used to, but I had gotten through a whole bottle of it previously, so I've had some experience. But today, for some reason, that right-after-you-use-it feeling never left the tip of my tongue, and it's affected my sense of taste. Nothing tasted like it should today, and I haven't enjoyed eating anything. Now, granted, we went to Ryan's for lunch today, so that's not a good judge of taste (seriously, it had been close to seven years since I'd been there, and I'm hoping it's at least seven more before I go back!), but I had dinner at Melissa's and the only thing I could tell about it was that it was spicy.

I'm no gourmet by any stretch, but I do enjoy the taste of food I like. I'm hoping a night's sleep will cure me. If it doesn't, I guess I might as well start eating foods that are good for me, since I won't be able to tell how much I dislike them.

Labels: food

4 comments

I'll be the first to tell you that I don't understand what makes a person want a particular food at a particular time. It stands to reason that if you're thirsty, your body's telling you it needs water, and it also figures that if you want chocolate-covered pickles, your body's telling you you're pregnant. Aside from that, I don't understand it at all.

What I do understand is that there are certain foods I want frequently. I don't want all of them all the time, nor do I want the same thing several days in a row. In fact, I've ruined many a good thing to eat by having it too frequently, a lesson I hope I've learned and won't have to repeat.

Here's a list of my current favorite things to eat. Keep in mind that if I go to the restaurant I've mentioned, I will get what I have listed next to it 99% of the time.

• B-Dub's - Boneless wings with Honey BBQ (probably the spiciest thing I eat) and buffalo chips with ranch dressing
• Cracker Barrel - Chicken & Dumplings with mashed potatoes
• Culver's - Burger & fries
• Julie's Ranchhouse - Coconut cream pie, ham & beans (this is a local place, so you'll have to come here to try it out)
• McDonald's - Filet O' Fish, Arctic Orange milkshake (I don't allow myself to get the FoF very often, and the orange milkshake is a special that they very rarely have available)
• Monical's Pizza- Thin-crust cheese pizza (with French-like dressing for dipping, oddly enough)
• O'Charley's - Loaded Baked Potato Soup (with rolls, of course! Also: for reference)
• Olive Garden - Fettucine Alfredo (only I get the farfalle pasta instead, as it holds the sauce better and is easier to eat)
• Panda Express - Orange Chicken (also spicier than I would normally like)
• Roly Poly - #39: Turkey Applejack, minus the onion, mushrooms, and basil mayo
• Texas Roadhouse - Sirloin steak (6 or 8 oz., depending on the day)

Yes, I realize that you can read that list and instantly recognize why I'm in the shape I'm in. I've made it somewhat better by leaving off all the snack-like things I crave. If I'd put those on here, too, you might have had a heart attack just from reading the list. I've also left off any homemade items, as it's just not fair to you to talk about the cinnamon rolls Melissa makes if you're not going to have the opportunity to try them.

Labels: food

9 comments

First of all, thanks to everyone who responded to the roll call - there were a lot of familiar names but there were also some new names and some surprises. It was great to hear from you all, so thanks!

Second, I'm sick. I started getting a sore throat yesterday and it got progressively worse as the night wore on, then the stuffy/runny nose kicked it, and the overall weakness and soreness and... well, I pretty much haven't moved from the couch today. I played a little World of Warcraft and watched a lot of TV (finally finished ALF Season Four, which ended up not really being that good and actually kinda soured me on the first three seasons which I liked a lot).

But now I'm hungry. I had a bowl of cereal this morning and the only thing left in that box is the crumbs. Problem is, I have NO other food in the house. Literally. My fridge has half a gallon of milk and some condiments... and that's it. I wish I could say it's because I'm at the end of my grocery schedule and being sick caught me off-guard, but I can't. This is pretty much Standard Operating Procedure around here. The only cooking I do is frozen pizzas and the occasional microwaveable meal, so I don't tend to keep food here.

So now, even though I want to stay right here on the couch, I have to go get some food. I am not looking forward to this at all - last I remembered, it was cold outside. This should teach me to keep food on hand, but it probably won't.

Labels: food

17 comments