Mmm, that sounds good. I'll have that.

As I get older (I'm pushing 24.5, you know), I'm starting to see how my tastes have changed and evolved. Things I used to love I no longer appreciate, while what I used to think tasted like butt is now pretty good. And I'm always amused at what pretty much stays the same.

The biggest changes have, of course, taken place in my appetite. When I was little, I had a wicked sweet tooth. I would've traded M&Ms, a cupcake and a Dr. Pepper for just about any meal. I'm not quite that bad anymore (although I still want that cupcake).

These days, my cravings are pretty balanced in the sweet and savory categories. As often as I want a sizable chunk of pound cake, I also want a Renaissance Fair-style turkey leg.

I mean, look at this kid. He's doing it right.

I used to like sweet stuff in the mornings, too. In high school, I would ALWAYS take a chocolate chip muffin over bacon. Now, I look back and think to myself, "You turned down bacon? What the hell was wrong with you?"

Don't get me wrong, I enjoy my dad's blueberry pancakes on a Sunday morning and I will never turn down a Pillsbury Cinnamon Roll. Never. Sometimes, though, I just want something that I know will sustain me the whole morning.

Por ejemplo, I was getting ready for work this morning and as I was racing around, trying to find my cell phone and deciding if it was too cold for sandals (it was, but I wore them anyway), one word was clearly flashing again and again in my brain: Egg McMuffin.

Mind you, I'm not a big fan of McDonald's. I lived directly above one for two years in college and had the junk to prove it. Point being, I don't eat there anymore... except for the Egg McMuffin. (I managed to talk myself out of it, but I don't know that I'll be so lucky tomorrow...)

Later in the day, I was on a supply run at Wal-Mart when I realized I was in a full-blown stare down with a bag of Dark Chocolate Chex Mix. Naturally, I tore that sucker open and proceeded to eat half of the bag before I even reached the check-out counter.

Even my switch from milk to dark chocolate is pretty telling. I'm trying to remember when I first realized the superiority of dark chocolate, but it really seems like I was born noshing on 80% cacao. Milk chocolate seems mostly worthless to me now. And white chocolate? Ugh, that crap is a disgrace to the word "chocolate".

The other change is in my consumption of vegetables. I used to... not. And now, I do! Hell, I even eat salad now, although it has to be spinach salad with a vinaigrette of sorts. You know, not that I'm picky or anything.

One of my favorite things is green beans broiled with olive oil and lemon juice. And I like them good and burnt. I pop those suckers like candy.

As for things that stay the same, I still love pie and smashed potatoes. I will always feel the way about mayonnaise the way my mom feels about my dad's polka CDs. And God help me, I continue to adore cheese in a way that would make Wisconsinites everywhere blush, and I don't see that changing anytime soon.