My soda-holism began in a highschool cafeteria at the tender age of sixteen. I had two quarters that were burning a hole in my pocket, so I approached the vending machine and took a look. Chips were a little steep at seventy-five cents a bag, while a can of cola – brilliantly sparkling behind the vending machine glass – fifty cents!

Within weeks I was drinking a can a day, then two…and soon enough I began spiraling out of control with nothing but sugar and caffeine in my belly. The overbearing sweetness, the fizz that softly tickled the roof of my mouth at the first gulp – it was heaven on earth.

I had a problem and I knew it. It was time to be an adult, and so, after chugging a 2L bottle of cream soda in one sitting, I called it quits.

I recently started drinking pop again after discovering the BLUE SKY brand in Whole Foods. They make several soft drinks – among them – organic sodas. My personal favourites include the New Century Cola, Black Cheery Cherish, and Root Beer Encore flavours.

There are NO preservatives, additives, artificial colours, flavours, or caffeine in the drinks. And…these USDA certified organic sodas are sweetened with organic cane juice, as opposed to that high-fructose corn syrup crap. The rest of the ingredients include filtered carbonated water, caramel colour, and citric acid. That’s it! Not so bad compared to the shopping list of unutterable ingredients found in regular pop which are said to dissolve a nail in 4 days!!!