Coke Zero is good

I try to live a healthy life. I smoked for about 13 years, but quit three years ago. I used to enjoy more than my fair share of adult beverages, but I have become far more moderate. I exercise regularly, and try to avoid junk food - or, at least, I don't kid myself that the junk I do eat is anything but junk.

I do have an out-of-control vice: Coke Zero. I drink this stuff constantly. I only allow myself to drink two 20-oz bottles a day at work because I know I could easy drink four or five. I drink it straight from the 2-L bottle at home (luckily, my wife doesn't drink soda. Lucky for her, that is). I drink it in the morning, I drink at lunch, I drink it before I go to bed.

I think Diet Coke tastes like medicine. Coke Classic actually hurts my teeth. But Coke Zero...I'm hooked. The only substitutes I accept are Pepsi Max or Diet Pepsi.

I have read some awful things lately about the health effects of diet soda, and I'll probably have to quit this stuff pretty soon, too. It seems like growing older is a steady process of quitting the things you enjoy.