The night begins with me throwing a CD in the stereo and sitting down for a quick meal. I soon realize that I'm thirsty, but not quite sure what I'd like to drink. There's an empty two-liter bottle in the trash, so I dig it out and slowly run my finger under the side of the plastic wrapping on the side of it. A small tear shows itself and I unwind the thin jacket off the plastic bottle as static cling desperately tries to stifle my attempts. I run a bit of water over and into the bottle, then shake it off and attempt to dry it off a bit with a paper towel.

After setting the empty bottle on the counter, I begin going through a small pile of assorted flavors of drink-mix that I have in my cupboard. I'm not in the mood for lemonade or anything else citrus, so I cast aside both the orange and lime packets until I arrive at grape. It's exactly the sort of flavor that I was hoping for and even the deep purple of the packaging appeals to my overzealous taste buds.

I quickly set out to the task at hand and fill the bottle up about halfway with cold water before setting it on the counter. In close proximity to it, I place a 1/3 cup measuring scoop, a bag of sugar, and the grape flavored packet of drink mix.

As I tear the top of the small packet off, a slight waft of the concentrated powder hits my senses and I recoil. For several moments, I can smell nothing but the sickly sweet grape that has found its way into my olfactory glands.

I grab a piece of scratch paper from my computer desk and twirl the opposite ends around each other forming a primitive cone. After placing the small end in the mouth of the bottle, I pour the grape drink mix into it and quickly follow it up with 2 1/3 cups of sugar. It creates a strange sort of swirling white and purple dune in the water at the bottom of the bottle.

After tossing the paper and empty packet into the garbage, I fill the bottle with cold water, twist the lid onto the bottle, and shake it vigorously for several minutes. Thousands of small bubbles migrate toward the surface of the liquid and the sugar seems to have finally dissolved. I put it into the refridgerator to cool. Soon, I will have a frosty beverage.

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