Day 87, March 28: Sweet!!

The Evolution of

My All-Time Favorite

Store-Bought Snacks

I am a huge snack guy. However, if you recall from my Jan. 4 posting, I stay slim because I don't overdo any snacks in any one sitting. If I buy a small bag of M&Ms from the vending machine, they will last two days. The same with a candy bar. But, as I said, my favorite snacks when I was younger are different than they are today. Here is the chronology, dividing my life evenly into 10:

Ages 0-5.4: Definitely a Tootsie Roll, and I used to make a huge mess when I sucked on them.

Ages 5.5-9.9: Nestle's Crunch bars. I remember riding my bike down to Bakken's, the corner grocer, buying one for a nickel and thinking that I was finally eating a candy bar with peanuts in it

(I was wrong, of course).

Ages 10-15.4: Do bakery goods count? While in junior high, I'd walk downtown to Fosdal's Bakery and buy a couple of Long Johns that had a pink swirl of frosting in them. Wow they were good!

Ages 15.5-20.9: Little Debbies. Even at that prime age of physical prowess and conditioning, I usually ate just one package in one sitting. My parents often packed them

into my college care packages.

Ages 21-26.4: Ding Dongs. My favorite Little Debbies - the thin brown ones with icing in the middle - were taken off the market

so I rebelled.

Ages 26.5-31.9: M&Ms. They've always been there and always will be. But two young sons joined in on occasionally "drafting" colors from a bunch laid on the table as we shared them together.

Ages 32-37.4: Kit-Kats. Another favorite of my sons, I grew to really like them (I split them every time before I start eating them.

Do you?)

Ages 37.5-42.9: Hershey bar. Again, this one will be with me forever. I especially remember emptying out the boys' Halloween bags and having another "draft."

This bar usually went No. 1.

Ages 43-48.4: Famous Amos chocolate chip cookies. One pack has more than I'm used to eating, but they all go down -

usually with a Mountain Dew :-(

Ages 48.5-54: Dry Roasted Peanuts. Perhaps I'm finally weening myself from sugary treats. Kind of like when I want a healthy fast-food lunch, I'll get a sub sandwich :-)