Nows and Forevers

Turns out soda does go bad. And sooner than you think.
I never really thought of this, as my soda intake (more than it should) is predicated on the drink-it-now strategy. I can’t remember the last time I had bought more than a 2-liter bottle and kept it.
It’s in, then out. Or consumed relatively on the spot.
We found a six-pack of Dr. Pepper that had been forgotten downstairs. (My daughter used to like Dr. Pepper.) I didn’t think much of it, other than to take one with me today.
I opened it, began to drink, and wondered where all the fizz went. It tasted … flat. Is flat still a word that’s used for soda?
Because that’s what it was.
There had been no carbonation in it, a lot like it would have been if the soda had been left opened on the counter for a day or two. Except here, I was the first to open it.
Puzzled for a minute, until I looked at the expiration date: October 2023. That’s not quite a year. If I had bothered to look, I probably would haven’t even bothered to drink it. But since I did, now I know why.
There really are expiration dates on sodas.

It’s the lightning, not the thunder.

You were so cool that you not only had a mega hit song in ‘81, when it came time for Weird Al to parody your song, you did a cameo in that video too.

RIP, Greg Kihn.

When I am all done I shall relax but not until then. My life isn’t very long and I must get one good book written before it ends. — John Steinbeck

I love this show. It’s fun, charming, and almost as lyrical as the best of TOS, with great acting top to bottom. Can’t wait to see the third season.

Almost makes you forget the horrible fate that awaits the main character.

One of the more fun festivals in Pittsburgh is Picklesburgh, the three-day celebration of all things pickled in the Steel City.

They really lean into the pickles here, whether it’s pickled beer and cocktails (and not just Bloody Marys), pickle ice cream and a pickle juice drinking contest. Plus you can get fried pickles, all variety of pickles, and whatever else you might want there.

If you’re lucky, you’ll even get a pickle pin.

It’s a fun festival here in Pittsburgh, which is known for the founding of H.J. Heinz Co. in the 1800s. I guess I don’t think of Heinz when it comes to pickles — I think of ketchup — but it’s a pretty fun time. And I’m a fan of pickles.

Picklesburgh has been happening here every year since 2015 — not including the pandemic year — and it has been getting a lot of love. (USA Today named it the best specialty food festival three years in a row.)

I went this year and I found the pickles wonderful and the place absolutely hopping. I believe the 200,000 or so attendance, and many of the people weren’t even from Pittsburgh. There were a lot of Philadelphia fans, for the Phillies were playing the Pirates at PNC Park on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

All I can say is, it’s hot.

Two F-16s fly the South Carolina coast.

What happens when you combine Levi Stubbs, The Four Tops, Holland/Dozier/Holland and the Motown Sound? You get this hands-down 2 minute and 40 second classic, which was No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 59 years ago this week.

And, actually, I just looked it up, No. 1 two nonconsecutive weeks in a three-week period. How great a song do you have to be to reach No. 1, decline, and then coming roaring back?

Levi, the legend. That voice.

It’s hard to pick favorite Motown songs because so many of them still smoke, all these years later. You don’t think a song titled “Sugar Pie Honey Bunch” would have this much going for it, but it’s anything but inconsequential lyrically.

And that bridge. Wow.

I wish I could write as punchy and as sharp as this song, all the time.