Diet Pepsi's Skinny Can

Look! Diet Pepsi makes a can and calls it "skinny". How clever! Unfortunately, there are many in the fashion world that aren't pleased or humoured.

Jill Beraud, chief marketing officer for PepsiCo said in a statement, "Our slim, attractive new can is the perfect complement to today's most stylish looks..."

Jonathan Asher, senior vice president at Perception Research Services International has a different take: It feels like a cheap shot to get publicity and it would be a shame if that’s what it was. I don’t think calling this can the skinny can and associating it with Fashion Week is going to do much to contribute to the very serious problem of eating disorders...”

I ask you to take the can in context. Pepsi isn't saying that the thin can will make you thin. Diet Pepsi has been around for 40 years...we KNOW it wont be a suitable substitute for fruit and vegetables or water. It's a sexy looking can, and EVERY company worth it's salt tries to package their product in a way that is appealing!

Of course, choosing to use 'Fashion Week' as the time and place to make it's debut is clever/not clever. If you are going to make a statement in front of a group that takes eating disorders seriously...you have to brace yourself for the backlash. Sure, it's a media coup...but it looks like some non-fans were made!

Remember - the soda INSIDE tastes the same. So judge the can in stride and remember to drink wisely...especially if you are dieting.

Cola that isn't Soda

I like all kinds of Soda, but I seem to gravitate towards 'cola' when I order one.

Not necessarily "coca" cola....but a cola nonetheless.

But COLA stands for other things and has interests outside of soda.
(Why anyone would have interests outside of Soda is beyond me...)

COLA also stands for Cost of Living Adjustment.
Yeah, you used to get a raise every year just to keep up with the cost of living.
(Can you believe it?! Where I can I get me one of those?!)
The military still honors this yearly increase.
See the table here.

COLA also stands for the Center for Ocean-Land-Atmosphere.
No, I don't see the point, either.
They coulda' just called it the 'Center About Studying Earth" (CASE).
Or how about the "Center Underscoring Studies of Stuff." (CUSS).
COLAS's website is here, if you are interested.

Seattle has non-profit website built around COLA.
But not soda...and not for grunge music either!
This one is for Dogs. Yeah, really.
It's the Citizens for Off Leash Areas.


Further research shows that you can find all KINDS of definitions for COLA.

But I say we stick to Soda.
That's what I'm about...

Who's Drinking them Energy Drinks?!?!

"FDA Expected to Ban Caffeinated Alcohol Drinks" was the headline I read. It's for an article on MSN's website, and you can read it here.

The comment itself didnt really shock or offend me. In fact, I read the article hoping to see a LIST of such drinks, but they only talked up one...a product called "Four Loko". (although they did mention Joose without really talking about them in any detail.)

If you do a little research, you'll see the names of colleges banning Four Loko due to the ill effects it had on students.

But what DID catch my eye was a quote in the article that says, "The drinks are regularly consumed by 31 percent of 12-to-17-year olds."

That means one out of every three twelve year old...and one out of every three 13 year old...drinks an alcohol and caffeine fueled energy drink.

Here is my question: Where Are the Parents?!
I was 12 once, and I have 12 year olds in my yard every weekend. I know what they do all day long...and I'd like to know why they need a beverage that has alcohol and caffeine in it.
Of COURSE a 12 year old is going to want to try one...and of COURSE if the marketing is good (and the can is cool) they are going to keep drinking them.

But where the hell is the parenting?!
Would you let your 13 year old smoke?
Would you let them drink a glass of wine?
Would you let them take pills that keep them 'up'?

Alcohol and Caffeine-laced energy drinks are NOT the same as juice or soda.
Hell, I know a LOT of parents that don't let their kids drink Soda.
To think that 1/3 of the nation's parents let their kids drink energy drinks is amazing.

Don't tell me that the kids run out to the store and the parents don't know.
I know for a FACT that 12 and 13 year olds leave their junk all over the place...including soda cans. (and a shout out to my neighbors who have NOT taught their kids to pick up after themselves! Thanks for all the extra trash...jerks!)

I'm not "capping" my rant at 13 years old.
14 and 15 year olds dont need to drink this stuff, either.
And at 17 you might just be working and buying whatever you want.

But 12 and 13 is very, very young.
Too young, I would think, to pollute a body with caffeine and alcohol.

Just my 2 cents.

and remember to visit Coke vs. Pepsi, where no page of the site was injected with Alcohol to create what you see there...

Coke, Pepsi and Cholesterol

I had my Cholesterol checked today.
Yeah, I do that every 10 years or so.
Good to stay on top of it. ;)

It's almost exactly where is was 10 years ago.
Only a few points above 200...and I have MUCH more 'good' Cholesterol than 'bad'.

 I guess all that Taco Bell hasn't killed me yet.
And Being an authority on soda hasn't ruined me either.
At least not yet.

Side note:  I used to always mix up HDL and LDL, but a girl once gave me some great advice about how to remember which is "good" and which is "bad". Ready? HDL = Helpful Dudes Laughing. LDL = Lazy Dudes Laughing.  When it comes to the things going on inside your body, do you want your cholesterol atoms and molecules to be Helpful or Lazy? Riiiiiiiiight...


But while it's fun to snub my nose at the health nuts and say 'look at ME. I'm FINE!' I suppose it's fair to give them a fair say. After all, I'm NOT in the majority. My good health is an anomaly. (Maybe I'm an alien. Not like the yellow sun gives me powers or anything but...)

SO...since it's 'Check your Health' day, I bring you:
1) What Soda Does to your Body - personally, I think the article is a cross between 'Scanners' and mass-scare-tactic...but her intentions are good.

2) 1 Daily Soda may boost Heart Disease - what?!?! Don't let this medical journal scare you off! Everything in moderation, right?!

3) Can Diet Soda increase Cholesterol Levels - ok, well you can blame DIET soda...I don't drink diet soda. But still, stop blaming the can of pop, will ya?!




Drink Soda, Enjoy Life.
It's not like we're Jimmy Dean or something...

You Can't get a Pepsi at McDonald's

Really, you can't.

McDonald's carries Coca Cola products, so the idea of the 'other' brand showing up within the Golden arches is nil.

The Minnesota Twins only serve Pepsi in their Target Stadium.
No Coke to be found there.

But certainly no one chooses their Fast Food restaurant or favorite ball team by the soda they serve, or don't serve.

Cola, despite millions of dollars on branding, is unfortunately indistinguishable amongst the masses. Sure, when they are side-by-side you can tell the difference in a taste test, but the difference is NOT so drastic that it would ruin your meal.

A waitress at a diner I frequent recently insisted that she has had customers walk out of the establishment because they wanted a Coke and was served a Pepsi.

Even my favorite China Buffet serves soda in tall red glasses that have the Pepsi logo on them.
(surely you can see the irony...why not Blue glasses?!)

In fact, when I order a 'Coke with no ice, lemon' with my meal, the waitress will ask me if Pepsi is "OK" if that's all they serve. (Surely they are concerned that I'll make a fuss like the before-mentioned senior citizen did...). No need to worry. I can tell the difference, but it wont ruin my meal.

Do folks in Atlanta feel pretty strong about the flavor differences? I understand they do more so there than elsewhere. Atlanta prides itself on being the home to Coca Cola, and has been drinking the product for over a century. Those taste buds are pretty well tuned in.

But when Average Joe makes a stink in a New Jersey restaurant because he wants a Coca Cola and not a Pepsi, I'm confused.

Or maybe I'm just so in love with soda that it's made me more accepting?
Hell, don't we always accept the flaws and short comings of those we love?
I'm a huge fan of contact sports, even though I know it's violent and sometimes bloody.

But alas, I digress...

Coca Cola and Pepsi are smart to form agreements with fast food chains and other establishments, but I don't think it's an issue of 'conversion'. If you can only get Pepsi at Taco Bell, and you eat at Taco Bell once a week, it doesn't mean you'll in short time stop drinking Coca Cola because you are 'conditioned' to.

No, in fact the smartest part of the exclusivity arrangements is that it ensures you 'x' cases of soda will be sold each week...because a LOT of people order a soda with the meal! So why give the customer a chance to NOT buy YOUR soda? Keep the competition the hell outta there!

Soda exclusivity in fast food restaurants.
Score one for good business, score none of cornering the market of one's mouth.


Footnote - my thanks to Seth Godin for the title. His recent blog post inspired me to write the article, even though it wasn't the basis of HIS thesis.

Third Anniversary Coke vs. Pepsi Top 7 Stories

Happy Belated Birthday!

Coke vs. Pepsi turned '3' last week...and like any bad Father I completely missed it's birthday because I was preoccupied with other things.

But like any GOOD Father, I acknowledged it as soon as I noticed it, drank a cold glass of cola and sat down to research the Top 7 Coke Versus Pepsi stories.

The Top 7 Stories is based on the number of times each page has been visited.
I can confirm fro first-hand experience that a few spammers have found 2 specific blog entries that they like to comment more than others...but a win is a win. There must be a reason why they picked THOSE entries (I'd like to think it was the great writing, gripping stories, fascinating content and witty catch-phrases I use. But who knows...?)

So, Happy Birthday Coke vs. Pepsi!
The Top 7 Stories this blog hosts are:


#7) Coke or Pepsi? Smart or Silly? (5/3/08) - this quick entry talked up 2 other websites that debate the Coke versus Pepsi preference we all have...but we found to be somewhat 'girlie'. I was quite pleased to receive a comment from the site's publisher explaining WHY It was girlie.

#6) History of Coca Cola and Pepsi...and Google! (8/21/07) - this article quantifies and explains the differences of 'Coca Cola' information and 'Pepsi' information when making searches on Google.

#5) Coca Cola Prices Going Up. Pepsi Next? (7/18/08) - and the heels of a price increase, we discuss the options and the consequences of a Cola pricing increase.

#4) 7 Most Relevant Coke vs. Pepsi Stories of the Last Year? (8/20/08) - The debut of our 'Top Stories' list. (yeah, I remembered our FIRST Birthday...every Good Father does!).

#3) Andy Warhol Coca Cola (9/12/08) - Would-be SPAMmers love this entry, which makes me happy and sad. I'd happy that whatever content I shared here gets enough public visibility that SPAMmers think it's worth commenting on. But I was hoping for a higher-brow audience.

#2) Pepsi and Coca Cola Sales Drop Drastically (4/08/09) - There seems to be a correlation between Cola blog traffic and articles about Cola Pricing. Which would speak to the higher-brow audience I alluded to in the above comment.

And the #1 most Relevant Coke vs. Pepsi blog entry as of this writing is.....

#1) The History of Coca Cola Prices (9/29/08) - High-brow audience wins again!!! Glad to see the most visited blog entry was something that didn't have the word 'MILF' or 'Dude' in the title!

I always enjoy compiling this list each year and looking back on how much traffic this blog gets.
Sure, it would have been nice for some '2010' posts to get on the list, but it's been a busy year and perhaps I just need to put more thought into future posts this year.

Next post should be titled "The History of Coca Cola Pricing Increases and the Google Searches about Pepsi Sales Decreasing that are equally Relevant"

...or something...!

No one cares about Concrete Resurfacing

I understand that some people will spam the 'comments' section of a blog in order to promote their own products and interests. It's just a fact of life that bloggers have to deal with.

I'm fortunate that no one can comment my blog unless I approve the comments first. As a result, you'll find SodaIsGood to be spam-free.

I is happy. :)

Usually a spammer will try once...maybe twice...and then give up.
Good for "learning"!
If once you don't succeed...go pester someone else.

HOWEVER...some dufus who runs a Concrete Resurfacing site has been trying ENDLESSLY to get his comments on this blog!

Want to know his website URL?
No Chance.
But I can tell you it's doesn't end with a "dot com" or a "dot net" if that helps.

AAAAAANYway....I was thinking about how I could have him contribute to THIS blog without giving him any credit or any publicity. And then it dawned on me.

(drum roll please....)

Go to Google...look up "Concrete Resurfacing + Cola"...and what do you get?

Today's blog entry will talk about Cola Stains on concrete!

www.ConcreteNetwork.com is a great site and shows the Cola-colored stain made by Kemiko here.

www.RockinJConcrete.com shows the Kemiko colors (including Cola!) here.

www.CompleteStoneServices.com is a very thorough site...and if you scroll halfway down the page you can see all of their stain colors. Cola IS shows, and while it's not listed as a Kemiko brand it seems to me that the colors shown with it are also Kemiko. Check it out here.

Just who IS Kemiko?! Check out www.Kemiko.com!

www.ConcretePolishing.com has great information on how to CLEAN concrete that has been stained. Let's assume you spill a can of Pepsi on your concrete patio, or a can of Coca-Cola on your sidewalk. These are the guys to go see.


So what is today's lesson?
Today's lesson is that if you continually spam this blog I will heavily promote your competitors!
LOL!!

Drink soda and enjoy the Labor Day weekend!!!