sweetener

Yesterday, my mouth salivated for a London Fog, even though I wasn't feeling well. And so of course, I got one. I even tasted it before walking away.

But after a couple of sips, something didn't taste right. I soon realized it was the bitter after taste of artificial sweetener -- that they'd added sugar-free vanilla instead of regular vanilla syrup. Yuk.

I remember back in high school when I used to drink cases of diet pop every month. I had diet yogurt with sweetener. Everything I ate was full of sweetener. I was a teenager and obsessed with losing weight.

In university, I slowly got off the sweetener until I wasn't having any at all.

And now the whole London Fog experience was ruined with fake sugar. It's amazing how one's taste buds can become accustomed to something.

I'm glad for people like my mom who's a diabetic who'd rather not have to take insulin for her Starbucks. Now she can enjoy a sweet beverage without the pain. But for me, it's just not an acceptable trade off.

And that's my sad Starbucks story.