Root Beer isn’t inherently gross, it’s just one of those weird local flavors that’s off-putting to people who didn’t grow up with it. We all like different things and also we all tend to like flavors that are similar to what we grew up with. That’s okay! But honestly root beer is pretty unique and, in my opinion, delicious.
One of the main complaints against root beer is that it tastes like medicine. Funnily enough, it was originally marketed as medicinal! This is true for most OG sodas actually. Pretty much as soon as carbonated water was invented, people were drinking it to soothe various ailments. A lot of the original soft drinks were actually invented by pharmacists. I just think that root beer is especially cool because the main flavor came from the root bark of sassafras, a common North American shrub. Because it’s so widespread and aromatic, all parts of the sassafras plant have been used in food and medicine by many different Native American tribes throughout history and was subsequently picked up and used by European colonists. In the 1960s, some studies indicated that that safrole oil, which is produced by the plant, can cause liver damage. Whether or not this would actually remain true after it had been boiled and added to root beer is unclear, but it was really easy to replicate the flavor, so the sassafras in commercial root beer these days is artificial. Another fun fact about safrole is that it’s a precursor in the synthesis of MDMA. None of this information has stopped my childhood habit of eating sassfras leaves right off the shrub whenever I walk past it on a hike. I’m like 85% sure it’s safe and also mmmm yummy leafs go crunch.
Another root beer complaint is that it tastes like toothpaste. I think this is probably because another key flavor in most root beer recipes is wintergreen. I’m assuming that the people who think this are the same people who think mint chocolate chip ice cream tastes like toothpaste. I can understand and even respect that some people don’t like mint and associate it only with brushing their teeth, but like. Mint is a pretty common flavor. I mean I think it’s safe to say that humans have been eating mint flavored stuff for longer than toothpaste has existed… anyway!
Other common flavors in root beer (real or artificial) are caramel, vanilla, black cherry bark, sarsaparilla root, ginger, and many more! There’s not one official recipe, and root beer enthusiasts often have strong opinions about different brands. Some root beer is sharper, with more strong aromatic flavors, and others are mild and creamier.
Another thing I think is cool about root beer is that it’s foamier than most sodas. This was originally because sassafras is a natural surfactant (and why sassafras is also a common thickening agent in Louisiana Creole cooking.) These days, other plant starches or similar ingredients are added to keep the distinctive foam. Root beer foam > all other soft drink foams. That’s why root beer floats kick more ass than like, coke floats.
If you’ve never had root beer before, imagine if a sweetened herbal tea was turned into a soda, because that’s basically what it is. If your first response to that is a cringe, fair enough. That’s why lots of people don’t like it. If your first response to that is “interesting… I might actually like it, though” then I encourage you to track down a can of root beer today, hard as that might be outside the US and Canada. Next time you see an “ew, root beer tastes like medicine/tooth paste” take, know that there’s a reason for that, but also the same could be said for literally any herbal or minty food/drink.
My final take on root beer is that it would be the soda of choice for gnomes. Thank you and good night.
my favorite thing that Clark Kent does is try to figure out how a Normal Human Man would respond to getting injured
like if someone shoots at him he can say “oh he missed” and if someone tries to punch him he can kind of roll with it and barely avoid getting hit so they don’t smash their hand while going “oh ow oof what a punch ouch”
but then here comes the Joker with a comically large wooden mallet and now Clark has to figure out how Normal Human Man Clark Kent could conceivably survive this without making it obvious that he is not actually a Normal Human Man. just “oh goddammit i’ve never even seen someone get hit with one of these before, the joker’s probably seen all kinds of people get hit, he knows what this is supposed to look like but i have no goddamn idea i am so fucked”
superman may have the power of flight and super strength but clark kent has the power of improv
BUT YOU FORGOT THE BEST PART
POLITELY ASKING JOKER TO STOP
you are completely right, clark kent asking people to please stop trying to murder him is definitely way up there on the list of reasons he is amazing
to be honest I think working on a sewing machine strains my eyes as much as being on a computer does. However, I am incentivized to remain alert and focused by keeping my fingers within stabbing distance of a needle making 60 stitches per minutes.
Me: oh boy I can’t wait to have a cool jacket
The hungry and voracious sewing machine: CHUNK-A CHUNK-A CHUNK-A CHUNK-A CHUNK-A CHUNK-A CHUNK-A CHUNK-A CHUNK-A CH
@luxlightly I wanna meet your junki deathmetal ultrafuck, they sound capable of sewing me a tool pouch.
It’s a Juki TL-2000Qi semi-industrial sewing machine and it can probably sew through solid steel.
It does exactly two things, a forward straight stitch and a backward straight stitch, and you’ll be GODDAMN grateful it even lets you do that. You want to do zig zags? Get fucked.
Threading it takes about 10 steps and feels like trying to defuse a bomb. It’s got a side fed bobbin case that takes an additional 3 or 4 steps to thread. If it’s not sharp or strong enough, it’ll snap through a heavy duty needle and without even slowing down, no matter stopping, sending the tip flying through the air at speeds capable of sending a piece of straw through a telephone pole. It’s compatible with exactly 0 of any other parts from any other brand machine except sometimes needles and it has a palpable air of bloodlust surrounding it.
But it’ll sew through 4 layers of denim like a hot knife through butter.
sewing machine fandom has some terrifying blorbos
These machines really are the Toyota Corollas of the sewing world.
I don’t know enough about cars to know what this means. Are Corollas death machines that demand your respect and blood?
Pre-2010 or so a Toyota Corolla was generally considered a reasonably priced car where you could weld the hood shut and drive it for 300,000 miles until the whole thing dissolved around you like a favorite t-shirt.
I think it might be more accurate to call it the Toyota Hilux of sewing machines in that while a Corolla has very low incidences of failure, the Hilux is more famously indestructible (ie the Top Gear tries to destroy a Hilux and fails despite leaving it on top of a building that is subsequently demolished, among many other attempts).
my sewing machine death blorbo is a White VS III treadle machine
it uses a needle size not made anymore and a very specific shuttle bobbin
it goes a forward straight stitch only, but it will sew through anything that fits under the presser foot. anything. plastic, eight layers of heavy canvas, bone, anything
I remember when I first watched this show, I played this part at least 5 times
Narrator: “Water. Unlike other cats, long-haired Persians need regular baths to keep their luxurious coats healthy and fluffy. Reginald doesn’t care if he has a prize-winning coat. He just wants the ordeal to be over.”
Reginald: *meows in distress*
Narrator: Unfortunately for Reggie, there’s one last step. He’s about to learn that getting wet is nothing – compared to getting dry.”
I remember when I first watched this show, I played this part at least 5 times
Narrator: “Water. Unlike other cats, long-haired Persians need regular baths to keep their luxurious coats healthy and fluffy. Reginald doesn’t care if he has a prize-winning coat. He just wants the ordeal to be over.”
Reginald: *meows in distress*
Narrator: Unfortunately for Reggie, there’s one last step. He’s about to learn that getting wet is nothing – compared to getting dry.”
The “disembodied old cowboy over-emoting while singing above mountains” song is Big Enough by Kirin J Callinan, and this is the cat used in a meme edit
Edit: Looks like this cat has been used in other singing memes, but generally with songs that people actually know XD Unfortunately, since it has been memed for so long, the original credit is long lost
If radio wasn’t loaded with ads for the dumbest shit possible, I’d prefer radio to everything else.
I’m going to use this as a jumping off point to mention the AM Radio for Every Vehicle Act.
It’s… pretty much what it says on the tin. Some car manufacturers are phasing out AM Radio from their cars so they can replace them with their own streaming services – this bill seeks to make them a mandatory feature.
As somebody whose day job is in radio, I totally agree that the amount of ads and the quality of the ads is ridiculous. Personally, I don’t find radio to be an amazing source of political news broadcasting.
But do you know what it is really good at? Providing emergency broadcasts during extreme weather events.
I want to make it clear I’m not an expert in this legislation or anything – this is just the stuff I know through working in the industry.
also: donate to your community radio station, give them listenership, volunteer there, fucking make non-commercial, non-profit radio better if you hate what iheartmedia and cumulus have done to commercial radio.
if you are in the US, are already part of a community radio station (which includes tribal stations and college stations), and you are not enrolled in the national federation of community broadcasters, please consider joining. they provide an enormous amount of resources and support to community stations of all sizes and budgets. some of the best people i’ve ever met are folks who work for the tiniest radio stations you’ve never heard of. (shoutout to mark from KGUA, you are a real one my man)
ALT
amhrancas 