urn:lj:livejournal.com:atom1:medievalfaerie this is the last night in my body . . . burn for me . . . 2008-04-15T23:32:57Z urn:lj:livejournal.com:atom1:medievalfaerie:377173 2038-01-19T03:14:07Z 2008-04-15T23:32:57Z All Things Considered (NPR) <b><u>Things I Hate #3:</u><br /><br />People Telling Me Not to Drink Diet Coke.</b><br /><br /><br /><br />In the past, oh, I don't know, month and a half, I've had at least five people tell me that I shouldn't drink Diet Coke because it a) has aspartame and aspartame is addictive, or b) has Splenda and Splenda causes cancer, or c) it's bad for your teeth, or blah blah blah. Yes, I get it. I understand. Artificial sweeteners are the devil and bad for your overall health. Tell me something I don't know. <br /><br />The truth is, I fucking like to drink Diet Coke. There, I said it. I'm a diet soda FIEND! I can't get enough of those gassy little bubbles filling up my tummy and making my esophagus go into spasms of carbonated glee. I may end up burping and hiccuping at the same time after each sip, throwing myself into mini convulsions and looking like a weirdo with a mild case of spaz, but I really don't care. I grew up on diet soda -- it's what I enjoy drinking. Regular soda is far too sweet and leaves a gross aftertaste that only makes me thirstier. So, I ask you, why would I start drinking regular soda if I don't like how it tastes? I'm not dead yet, my teeth aren't falling out and I don't have cancer, and quite frankly I think I'd have to drink a fuck load more diet soda for it to come anywhere near causing me cancer, so why all the hubbub? Why all the hoopla? I mean, I really don't appreciate it being insinuated that I'm a bad person for enjoying a can of Diet Coke a couple times a week. Maybe if my diet soda were wine and I were enjoying a glass a couple times an hour, then I'd say you'd have something to worry about. Fortunately, these soda monkeys on my back haven't driven me that far yet.