As a way to work on hydrating, I’ve invested in the industry of La Croix. I’m not particularly brand-fickle, but this one does seem widely available. 
I’ve taken in every generic brand of sparkling water I can lay my hands on at a low-ish price, and stick to the usual black cherry or grapefruit flavors. Just my taste, no real import, especially considering I have no clue as to what is flavoring these drinks; or, if they’re any less toxic for you than what’s in Coke products, cocktails, or anything else we drink in excess. The only probability this stuff won’t kill me (or you) is that carbonation only has so many negative effects on the body (teeth mostly, from what I’ve read), and the flavoring is most likely less than the amount of things in a cola.
I say I try to be healthy with what I eat, which is why I spend way too much of my free time researching random information that is collected online in the vast array of food forums.
Just the recipes online alone become like that dish of candy in the office that you soon don’t see anymore (how many black bean brownie recipes are there? I would hyperlink them, but I have been so overwhelmed, I’ve stopped attempting to cook things—much less bookmark them—unless I know I will eat it, can take it to a party, or share it with other people, somehow).
So instead of making this blog yet one more recipe-laden porn-rag, where all anyone really wants is a recipe (that’s all I want, give it to me NOW), I am merely being honest, 
with a sprinkling of food and other things to share. I don’t know what to do with this knowledge otherwise, and it’s not bad—yet, nor is it science—it’s the essay of a relationship with food with the online environment, with people who can like posts and comments, and people who can share their favorite (or least favorite) dishes.
One of the reasons I watch so many Rachel Ray episodes online (thank God! Or I would be completely heartbroken without cable) is her relationship to food and the people who cook it. My first assignment to my freshman composition students has been to provide exposition on that very subject, their relationship with food and then turn it into a classical argument. How do you win people over? How do you have a discussion? What are your beginning points, how do you define why your food is THE best?
I left this little personal tidbit to the end, not because it’s unimportant, but this is the crux of La Croix; why does the grapefruit hit that spot? Is it trying to take the place of what’s been a continuous drinking experience, or is it merely trying to cut soda out? The very thing I haven’t had in my apartment more than once a month or so when I can’t get 
a dark, black coffee fix? This is the context, or it’s part of the context. That which starts to unravel all of our relationships with food. It’s not simple. It’s not just taste. But I have no idea why I picked grapefruit, except maybe it’s because it’s slightly sweet and reminds me of when a relative in Florida used to send us some in the winter. I don’t think so, but it’s nice to reminisce.
And I lied – here’s a decent looking black bean brownie recipe. 😉
Ironology and Food Porn 