Aw, thanks Robin! And Jilli. Will send e posthaste.

Okay, I've looked at the dioxin data, but since it doesn't sound like they know if splenda becomes this in the body, I will take it under advisement that splenda may not be totally benevolent. They went back and forth on a lot of the other artificial sweeteners for years and most of them are still on the market. The only thing I was really worried about was my Crystal Light, but it uses aspartame, so I'm good to go. I'll still keep splenda in the house for my dad and others who like it in their coffee. I only use it when I run out of raw sugar for my coffee. Which happened recently, but I'm now all sugared up and happy.

What does it taste of?

Well, the easiest way to know is to do a taste-comparison with sugar. That said, here's what I recommend:

If you live somewhere near our southern border, you can probably find a specialty soda store that sells Coke in 500 mL glass bottles and smaller, with an English label pasted on top of the Spanish label. Heck, the convenience store at my school had it sometimes, in Pasadena. I believe the local BevMo (Beverages and More) did as well. This is imported Coke, from Mexico, and is made using cane sugar (sucrose) instead of high fructose corn syrup (which, to be totally technical, is also sugar, with a tad bit of extra stuff. It's just fructose instead of sucrose.) You can probably also order the stuff from somewhere on the internets.

Buy such a bottle. Buy a bottle of American Coke (preferably in a glass bottle.) Chill both to as cold as you possibly can, because mmmm... cold coke. Then drink some of one. Wash out with water and cracker. Then drink the other. Then you will see.

They DEFINITELY taste different. I personally prefer the sucrose, but if the coke is cold, and served in a glass bottle, it's a close call. Since I've never actually had warm or plastic-served Mexican Coke, I can't compare in less ideal Coke-drinking situations. And since I've never tasted cane sugar Pepsi, or Dr. Pepper, or Sprite, or so on (though many of these are also available at said specialty shops)

And I'm fairly sure the sugar price is high because of something to do with our Cuba boycott. At least, that's what I hear.

Where's my kickback, Stoneyfield??

Oh my god I've been saying this for YEARS. I proselytize out the waz about their fatfree yogurt. SO good. I'm so very in love with the lemon and the smooth (no seedy fruit on the bottom) blackberry.

I almost quit drinking Coke in Brazil because it was too sweet for the temperature (and they aren't big on ice so I could never get it cold enough).

I've given up Coke (and all soda, actually, except root beer) while nursing, but today I broke down and had about 3 oz of Coke over ice. It was SOOOOO good.

t tangent

When I rule the world, sellers who add the term "boho" to Victorian and goth or gothic in their item descriptions will never, ever be allowed near a computer again. That is fast becoming my #1 eBay pet peeve.

t /tangent

We've been spoiled by going to Yum and getting original formula Dr. Pepper made with Imperial Cane Sugar. Mmmmmm.

They also have imported Coke from Mexico also made with cane sugar. That's not that hard to find in San Francisco, though. I can get that at my local tacqueria.

In fact, none of their sodas are made with corn syrup.

Bitches, seeing Allyson makes me think I can get help from you. [Allyson's request, not Allyson. Allyson is nifty.]

Right now I hate my body. I'm up 30 pounds and I have a big ol' pot belly. None of my old clothes fit, and the clothes I bought to drape lightly over a lissom body are starting to look unattractive over the pooch. Skirts are looking worse and worse because I have a short waist and they hike up.

What looks good when you have a lump in the middle but are NOT pregnant?

In a dishwasher, everything goes point down, so that people don't fondle the good end, but also -- if you keep only like silverware with like silverware in the little dividers in the dishwasher silverware rack? It makes unloading them really easy, as you just grab everything in a single area (they are all the same now) by their handles, lift them out, and deposit them in the silverware drawer in their proper slot.

No, you shouldn't load them in the dishwasher like that Sean, because then they all spoon with their like kinds, and don't get as clean. /freak.

What looks good when you have a lump in the middle but are NOT pregnant?

Long, flowing skirts, worn with jackets (or over-dresses) that taper in at the waist and then immediately flare gently out over the belly & hips. Yes, I know, that's my answer to every fashion problem. But, speaking as someone who apparently carries almost all of her excess poundage in her belly (where is the Liposuction Fairy, dammit?), those are the sorts of lines that work best.