Pop vs. Soda

A Study in Dialect - Pop vs. Soda
4/1/09

Alright, enough is enough. I decided I would try and win an un-winnable pop vs. soda argument so, I did some searching on the internet...(yeah, that's how I roll during the workday!)

It appears that Chunk and I are not the first or only people that have ever opened up this debate! There is actually a website out there called popvssoda.com that has opened up a nationwide survey on this very subject! And the conclusion? People who say Pop are much cooler! (Seriously, it's what it says!)

Want to know who says what where? Here's a COUNTY-BY-COUNTY breakdown of carbonated beverage references for the ENTIRE country!

Click on the image for the full version

(Also note on this map that our entire listening area consists of "Pop" drinkers!)

Conversation #2: Sloppy Joe vs. Taverns

More internet research, yes I am actually getting PAID to do this!

From wikipedia.com:

The origins of this dish are unknown, but recipes for the dish date back at least to the 1700s. It dates in print to 1935. There is probably no Joe after whom it is named - but its rather messy appearance and tendency to drip off plate or roll makes "sloppy" an adequate description, and "Joe" is a name that would suggest, to an American, a person of proletarian character and unassailable genuineness, similar to how having a cup of 'joe' referred to coffee. There are many individual and regional variations on the dish.

Similarities to other sandwiches in the USA

In the Midwest (particularly in the state of Iowa where Roseanne Barr popularized the name Canteen style sandwich) a variant known as the loosemeat sandwich exists. In other parts of the Midwest, these are known as looseburgers or as Maid-Rites. This version of the sandwich is made with only seasoned ground beef, and does not include a tomato-based sauce.

According to The Encyclopedia of American Food & Drink, it was created in 1934 at Ye Olde Tavern Inn by Abraham and Bertha Kaled

At least now we have the origins of the argument! I (and a few other's I've talked to) still maintain that it is INDEED a sloppy joe!

So in conclusion, I am indeed right! The Internet says so! And if 26 years on the earth has taught me anything, it's that you should believe EVERYTHING you read!

-Punk