P2N2

Recently, I went on a spring outing. The weather was very bad, and the rain was falling irregularly. The first hour was sunny and hot, and the second hour was windy and chilly. But even though the weather was bad, it was still a joy to have one less day of classes! With this mindset, I went with the flow and wandered aimlessly in the park. When the teacher said a question was easy, they often said, "If you don't run into the house when it's raining, you're a fool. Only a fool can't solve this question." But that's not always the case. When the rain stops, it's actually quite enjoyable to stroll leisurely in it - at least it can cultivate a sense of fearlessness in the face of danger. Regardless of whether there is a rainbow after the rain, it is important to have the realization of Su Shi's poem "Why not sing and stroll slowly".

Before, when I wrote about the "clouds tearing apart, revealing the blue sky" scenery, it was completely made up. Living in a big city in the south, the sky is not blue and the clouds don't tear apart like that, it's strange and scary, at least I have never seen it. But after going out for a walk, I discovered that this kind of imagination that almost deviates from the principles of climate can actually be fulfilled in surprising ways. For a moment, it felt like I had walked into a story I had made up. People often say that writing is about recording the beautiful things in life. In my opinion, besides recording the things in life, sometimes it's better to have a little rebellious imagination and see if nature will slap you in the face or satisfy your unreasonable demands. And when nature fulfills this wish and you can enter your own imagination, you will also lament the emptiness of your imagination. It is so empty, depicting the scene of clouds tearing apart so attractively, but ignoring the hot weather that comes with it, and the feeling of being drenched in heavy rain, it all disappears. But words cannot express everything, and it's not a record of nature, but rather a playful prediction.

Spring outings organized by schools are probably all the same, lunch is up to you. Either bring snacks from home (of course, there are also self-heating rice, hot pot, or similar products), or spend a lot of money to enjoy the park's food. But as far as I know, at least no one in our class is crazy enough to do that - although someone did spend forty or fifty yuan to buy two bells that can be bought online for six yuan. Of course, the park's food refers to hot meals, main courses, and those small snacks are completely different. There are many small shops on the roadside, with cheap decorations, but the things they sell are overpriced. Speaking of snacks, various beverages and fried foods are indispensable. Another classmate and I couldn't resist the temptation and bought some tasty snacks (just a pronoun, tasty doesn't necessarily mean delicious food). He ordered four yuan fried fish, each piece about half the size of a 3.5-inch hard disk, packed in a paper bag. I ordered a cup of Sprite, which looked like a large portion, but I don't know if it's because of the special structure of the plastic cup. The fried fish cost 20 yuan, Sprite 10 yuan, with student discounts, and we ate and drank as if we were eating and drinking our blood and sweat, leaving no leftovers. It seems that the classmate who was tricked wasn't satisfied yet, and spent 20 yuan to buy an ice cream cone. Later, during the gathering, I heard from other classmates that there were many people who spent 8 yuan to buy a 2 yuan bottle of mineral water.

So I have to say, those truly delicious things. Good quality and low price. I believe that very few people who can read this article are too lazy to pay attention to the products available in supermarkets. So let me, from the perspective of a student (the kind who cares about health), share some of my shallow thoughts.

The conventional foods that we can buy in supermarkets, or that students can afford, can be roughly divided into three categories according to taste: sweet, salty, and spicy. But none of these three categories accurately describe the specific taste of each type of food, especially when you look at the ingredient list on the packaging, you will be even more confused about the true taste of the food.

Sweet is actually the simplest. The majority of beverages fall into this category. No matter how tempting the description is, and even if it claims to have sea salt, most of them taste sweet. And because it is sweet, if you don't want to have sticky hands, especially for carbonated drinks, you need to be extra careful when opening the lid. As soon as you twist it, there will be a sound, which is a warning that some of the carbon dioxide is eager to escape. Some people are as impatient as the carbon dioxide at this time, thinking that they are faster than the rate of decrease in gas solubility, and they can not only take a big sip before the liquid gushes out, but also at least have a plan to prevent the liquid from dripping everywhere. However, when you actually do this, you will find that you are too arrogant. Just as writing imagination can let nature slap you in the face, nature can also challenge your confidence when it comes to carbonated drinks. When the process of carbon dioxide fizzing sounds relatively stable, you need to keep a close eye on the height of the liquid in the bottle, making sure that the rising height does not exceed half of the original distance between the liquid and the bottle cap (most carbonated drinks have enough space at the top, the opposite of mineral water, but if there is no space, you can only rely on luck). When a large amount of foam surges out, don't think that those are just carbon dioxide bubbles, those bubbles are still liquid. And they look quite fluid, but when they reach your hand, they will change their tune. So when you see the bubbles churning, you should be prepared for a gush in the next second. Should you quickly tighten the lid or take the risk of a head-on collision between atmospheric pressure, internal pressure, and your hand speed? This is a decision that requires both courage and wisdom. In recent years, some beverages have switched to artificial sweeteners, but the problem of stickiness has not been solved. A few days ago, I saw some black technology that claimed to eliminate the need for artificial sweeteners (of course, there is not much sweetness left), but even if this kind of drink spills on your hand, the strong aroma of artificial flavors is definitely not appealing. So it is necessary to act conservatively. The experience of the older generation with beer seems to make sense, but their descriptions are unbelievable. My grandfather told me that when you encounter a carbonated drink, you should quickly open the lid, then dip a little soup with chopsticks, touch the surface of the water, and the gas will disappear on its own. It sounds like I'm listening to a book of legends, and I can't imagine how agile they must be, and the mysterious ingredients in the soup.

Talking about how to drink sweet is a common topic, but talking about what to drink in the sweet category is the immediate concern. Actually, it's hard for me to recommend a specific brand or specific beverage. Just based on a student's ramblings, there won't be any advertisers paying attention. What you really want to drink in the sweet category is dopamine, a sense of pleasure, not just sweetness, but another kind of feeling beyond sweetness. So the first thing to exclude is pure sugar water, if conditions allow. Sugar water doesn't necessarily mean a mixture of sugar and water, all kinds of monotonous "fruit-flavored drinks" that claim to have various flavors, or drinks that don't even bother to disguise themselves, are all representatives of sugar water. When they enter your mouth, they are just sticky, and it feels like a film has been stuck in your mouth, which is very uncomfortable. Those who drink these kinds of beverages might as well drink water. If you drink plain water according to the method of drinking these beverages, you will find that tap water is also addictive in the same way - the more you drink, the more you suggest to yourself that it tastes good, the more you want to drink, and in the end, it tastes like there really is some flavor in your mouth. In fact, it's just tasting an oxidized compound.

Carbonated drinks are famous for their "gas" or "refreshing" sensation, which is another kind of feeling beyond sweetness. In fact, to put it bluntly, it's adding carbon dioxide (carbonation) to sugar water, but this makes them more attractive. When you pour it into your mouth, the first thing you taste is not sweetness, but a kind of spiciness, a kind of fizzing sound that makes your teeth feel corroded, and a slight emptiness in your throat, but also a desire to express something. This is one of the reasons why I said none of the taste categories accurately describe each type of food. People who are used to drinking soda may be used to simplifying this process into a synonym for pleasure, but I rarely drink soda, so I only experienced this spiciness when I ordered that cup of Sprite. Actually, it's more accurate to say it's sour, and the sourness is not on the tongue but on the teeth and other parts of the mouth. In the end, it's uncomfortable, but just like eating spicy food, it can be a kind of enjoyment. Perhaps the difference between humans and other creatures lies in the slight biological difference in humans' "masochistic tendencies"? But this has never been clear. Because if humans want to resist abuse, they can also do it in a grand and earth-shattering way, right?

(To be continued, please see the next episode)