Drinks — Blog — Healy Chen

Give them what they want

The university I work at is facing a prolonged budget crisis. A revenue source that the campus can draw from is selling what is called “pouring rights”. As the name poorly suggests, it’s about non-alcholic beverages. The university signs a contract with a drinks company, be it Pepsi, Coco Cola, Red Bull, whoever, and that company have exclusive rights. If Pepsi inks a deal and you prefer Coke, well that’s too bad.

At the recent budget meeting the pouring rights topic came up, and certain folks voiced concerns about the healthiness of the beverages sold. Incredible: we are facing a mathematical shortfall, and people can still find ways to virtue signal. As if offering healthier drinks will somehow make the university more money.

Despise capitalism all you want, but that’s the framework we operate in. Should California spend more on public educaiton? Sure, but until that happens, universities will do accounting just like any other private corporation. It’s not personal, it’s just business. You cannot spend more money than you take in.

I couldn’t care less if the university signs a contract with Coco Cola, and all the vending drinks are the tasty sugary stuff. If that is what generates the most revenue, then that is the way. The lone goal here is to make money.

And let’s not infantilize full-fledged adults. If you’re old enough to sign up for the military, then you’re old enough to make your own choices about what to drink and what to eat. College students don’t need to be coddled and restricted. If junk food is what sells, then by god we should sell all the junk food and take in that much-needed cash.

Besides… GLP1 agonist medications are thing now!

Stock up!

One of the things I greatly miss about Japan is the sheer availability of drinks vending machines everywhere. You literally cannot go a few blocks without spotting one of them at a corner, ready to dispense refreshments. These vending machines are a godsend during Japan’s notoriously hot and humid summers. It’s also quite nice, too, to be able to have ice cold coffee practically anywhere, anytime, at a moment’s notice.

Obviously, such a concept of street-side vending machines everywhere would never work here in America. Our culture of rugged individualism would never allow such an enterprise to flourish. The machines would get vandalized and items stolen so quickly that they will never make any money from it. It’s a shame that we can’t have such convenience, though I guess there’s always the neighborhood Walgreens or CVS. Assuming the one local to you haven’t shutdown due to… vandalism and theft.

To sort of replicate having an arsenal of drinks at my disposable, I make weekly runs to Costco to stock up a on variety. Green tea is a given, plus cans of both Diet Coke and cold-brew coffee, and an aloe-vera drink. Whenever I’m hankering for something other than plain water - which is almost always - the cache of drinks is right there. Probably costs less than getting it from an actual vending machine, too.

Of course, it would be cheaper still - free, even - if I simply drink water from the tap. But that’s a terrible way to live: I make money so that I can enjoy tasty refreshments here and there. Until I actually move to an Asian country somewhere down the future, stocking up drinks at home is the way to go.