I’ve mentioned I’m addicted to Diet Coke.
It is, in a word, crack. I’ve tried to ban it, to no avail.
Ironically, I grew up drinking very little soda and if anything, it was regular Coke and drank sparingly.
In fact, I never even tried Diet Coke til 2005 when, at work one day, I decided to see why my boss was so obsessed with (he drank it like it was going out of style).
Then suddenly, I couldn’t get enough. Coincidentally (or not so coincidentally?) I started gaining weight around then (OK, not really gaining, but I stopped losing and then later, gained).
Anyway … I live in one of those lovely states (Michigan) that charges you $0.10 for every can/bottle of soda consumed.
If you return it to one of a myriad of locations that accepts returns, you get that $0.10 back in the form of store credit (see image at right–no, that’s not my hand!). Hurrah, credit!
In theory, this is a great idea: it encourages us to recycle; I mean, no one wants to lose $0.10 on every bottle or can they’ve bought! (Think of it this way, a 12-pack of Diet Coke costs you an extra $1.20 up front — of course you want that $1.20 back!
But in practice, it scares the hell out of me. How so? you ask.
Well, I keep all my bottles/cans in my work locker, and yesterday I took two ginormous (reusable!) bags to the grocery store to do a return.
While I pushed bottle after bottle, can after can, through the slot, suddenly I was blindsided with visions of all the chemicals and nastiness I’ve been putting into my body. We’re talking a LOT of chemicals.
The machine spit out a credit of $3.90. I stared at it in disbelief. 39 cans or bottles collected in a matter of weeks …
Ouch.
I know I need to stop drinking Diet Coke; if I want to start a family in the next year or so, I especially need to get over this addiction to chemicals. Because that is what it is, an addiction. And it’s not something I can continue into pregnancy someday.
I know it’s not good for me. I k now it’s ruining my teeth, my bones. And I know it’s bloating my tummy every day.
But all the same, I can’t seem to stop.
Today, I’m going to try to go one day Diet Coke-free. And then I’ll see if I can make it two days, three. If I could just give it up, I know I’d save money.
Actually, I have a great idea that might benefit me in two ways.
You see, my husband and I are considering visiting my brother in S. Korea early next year, late Jan./early Feb. (he’s there teaching English through June 2010), but we need to see if we can swing it.
Well, my hubby is a diligent saver and would have no trouble, but I’m a spender. So if I could put the money I’m spending on my daily Diet Coke fix into a jar toward a Korea trip, I bet I’d have hefty savings for a plane ticket … AND save my body from destruction, too!
See my wheels turning?! Hmmmm … I’ll keep you posted!!!
How about you? How did you get over your soda addiction, if you had one? od!
It is, in a word, crack. I’ve tried to ban it, to no avail.
Ironically, I grew up drinking very little soda and if anything, it was regular Coke and drank sparingly.
In fact, I never even tried Diet Coke til 2005 when, at work one day, I decided to see why my boss was so obsessed with (he drank it like it was going out of style).
Then suddenly, I couldn’t get enough. Coincidentally (or not so coincidentally?) I started gaining weight around then (OK, not really gaining, but I stopped losing and then later, gained).
Anyway … I live in one of those lovely states (Michigan) that charges you $0.10 for every can/bottle of soda consumed.
If you return it to one of a myriad of locations that accepts returns, you get that $0.10 back in the form of store credit (see image at right–no, that’s not my hand!). Hurrah, credit!
In theory, this is a great idea: it encourages us to recycle; I mean, no one wants to lose $0.10 on every bottle or can they’ve bought! (Think of it this way, a 12-pack of Diet Coke costs you an extra $1.20 up front — of course you want that $1.20 back!
But in practice, it scares the hell out of me. How so? you ask.
Well, I keep all my bottles/cans in my work locker, and yesterday I took two ginormous (reusable!) bags to the grocery store to do a return.
While I pushed bottle after bottle, can after can, through the slot, suddenly I was blindsided with visions of all the chemicals and nastiness I’ve been putting into my body. We’re talking a LOT of chemicals.
The machine spit out a credit of $3.90. I stared at it in disbelief. 39 cans or bottles collected in a matter of weeks …
Ouch.
I know I need to stop drinking Diet Coke; if I want to start a family in the next year or so, I especially need to get over this addiction to chemicals. Because that is what it is, an addiction. And it’s not something I can continue into pregnancy someday.
I know it’s not good for me. I k now it’s ruining my teeth, my bones. And I know it’s bloating my tummy every day.
But all the same, I can’t seem to stop.
Today, I’m going to try to go one day Diet Coke-free. And then I’ll see if I can make it two days, three. If I could just give it up, I know I’d save money.
Actually, I have a great idea that might benefit me in two ways.
You see, my husband and I are considering visiting my brother in S. Korea early next year, late Jan./early Feb. (he’s there teaching English through June 2010), but we need to see if we can swing it.
Well, my hubby is a diligent saver and would have no trouble, but I’m a spender. So if I could put the money I’m spending on my daily Diet Coke fix into a jar toward a Korea trip, I bet I’d have hefty savings for a plane ticket … AND save my body from destruction, too!
See my wheels turning?! Hmmmm … I’ll keep you posted!!!
How about you? How did you get over your soda addiction, if you had one? od!