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To most, this is probably just another 7-11. To me, this represents my first taste of independence.

Being back in St. Louis over the weekend, I took some time and drove by my childhood home. I drove by old friends’ houses and this place, a mile away from home, where starting in third grade my mom let me ride my bike unsupervised with friends to get a Slurpee in the summer.

Little did she know that when we hopped off our bikes we’d usually run inside and grab a bottle of Nitro cola, a Jolt-like drink that came in a clear glass bottle and looked more like beer than soda. We’d sit on the curb and get drunk on sugar and caffeine before riding home, sweaty but satisfied.