The real TAB

A comment by Ade inspired me to write a post about TAB. When I think of TAB, I instantly think of my mom in the 80s. Mom now is your average 50-something baby boomer business woman. She has the second husband of 19 years. A daughter with whom she attends U2 concerts and other cool events. Political savvy. Clothes from Chicos. The suburban Barbie dream house with stainless steel appliances and corian counter tops. Essentially, my mom is your typical loving, caring mom/wife who needs at least one Diet Coke to get through the day. It wasn't always like this though... before there was the second (rockin'!) husband, the beautiful suburban home, the U2 concerts, the Chicos and the Diet Coke, there was just me, Tab and my cool young mom.




My mom drank TAB. I don't just mean a TAB every now and then. She always had TAB. The cup holder in our ancient Toyota Corrolla was magically and perpetually filled with TAB (sorry about leaving crayons in the back seat during an Arizona summer day). After her high-impact aerobics class at the Nautilus Center, there was a TAB in tow. There was something regal about TAB. It was the drink of the trendy mom/cool single woman. My mom was both. She had style, flair, shoulder pads and TAB. If I could remember when my parents were together (they 86ed that arrangement when I was 3), I would have been able to instantly peg that their relationship could have never flourished. Dad was a regular Coke (not New Coke) man (he has since moved to Diet Coke because of sugar issues - which my mom doesn't have because she drank TAB!). Even though Diet Coke emerged in 1982, I remember my Mom as a loyal TAB drinker into the mid-80s. Alas, Diet Coke blew the TAB market away and it all but disappeared....until now!

I recently read an article that Coke is coming out with a TAB energy drink early next year! So Mom, strap on your shoulder pads, get ready for some high impact aerobics and grab a can of TAB Energy! It will no doubt be marketed toward the trendy/cool single woman of 2007, who will become the cool suburban business women of 2037.