It was fun reading all of this, especially since it goes back to '06. That first post of Lars with the cherry cream soda...yummmy. I only consume coffee if it's ice cream, Kahlua or some other dessert. I like tea, black, green, but not any spiced teas. Really dislike mint too. Mostly I drink flavored unsweetened seltzer, iced tea or lemonade. Occasionally I'll have a fruit soda, but I find them too sweet these days so I mix them with my seltzer. Alcohol? Not really. Don't like wine as a rule. I can deal with a little champagne or Asti. Will drink vodka, that Kahlua making it a Black Russian. Smiles. I can go several years or more without having any alcohol. Last year I turned my current [at the time] vodka into vanilla. This fall an old friend from high school came to visit and brought a bottle of vodka. I had 2 light Cape Cods and when he left I turned the Svedka into vanilla. LOL. In winter in the evening we either have hot tea or hot cocoa often. I do love hot chocolate made with cocoa or even a nice chocolate bar.

Got anybody handy you can pull a Tom Sawyer on? "Oh come, now, you don't mean to let on that you like it?" The brush continued to move. "Like it? Well I don't see why I oughtn't to like it. Does a boy get a chance to whitewash a fence every day?" That put the thing in a new light. Ben stopped nibbling his apple. Tom swept his brush daintily back and forth - stepped back to note the effect - added a touch here and there - criticized the effect again. Ben watching every move and getting more and more interested, more and more absorbed. Presently he said: "Say, Tom, let me whitewash a little." I've been waiting for the vacuum to magically appear in my hand! :)

Thanks homepro - I'll give them a shot. The prices seem reasonable. I like the Waialua coffee grown here on Oahu, just don't buy much Kona these days as all the stores (including Walmart) are overrun with tiny 6 to 8 oz. bags of 100% Kona, or a million flavored Kona blends, for the tourists. There are a couple of blends labeled as made for well known local restaurants which are OK - but they are 10% Kona only. Most the blends are only 10%. I want to use real beans and get real flavor! Sharon - just what I need, another gadget! LOL! Maybe I'll try when I'm retired. Too busy to start another hobby right now! Terri, this one could be promising. It could probably arrive from WA within a couple of days. Maybe the pachamama mentioned by arbenson too. I want to try a few over a period of a couple of months to try some new roasts. Then I can set up a standing order with the ones we like best.

I like rooibos teas. Also, hhireno, that fake mojito sounds great! My problem with stevia is that it doesn't taste remotely sweet to me. I'm thinking it may be like cilantro: some people appreciate it but others have the genetic make up that makes it taste like soap to them. So anyhow, stevia tastes like old socks (or how I'd imagine them to taste) to me. I'm of the cautious opinion that the only healthy sugar substitute (if it really is sweet to some) is stevia... All the other fake sugars have a long lasting aftertaste... making me extra thirsty... so I just do seltzer water with splashes of citrus or whatever. Or unsweetened teas and rooibos.