The PMS Issue

Chocolate is of course a PMS staple. In recent years a lot of chain pharmacies have gotten smart about stocking it-- not just your regular Mars & Co. candy, but the GOOD stuff. I am convinced that every female chocoholic in the neighborhood has discovered the holdings of the 24 hour Duane Reade on my corner. I know this because of WHAT they are constantly out of: Lindt's 70% extra fine dark. This is the ultimate in self-medication through chocolate. The cocoa content is high enough that it delivers you a good, clean hit without packing in too much sugar or extra crap (as opposed to your regular candy bars, which are basically flavored vegetable fat) and low enough that your eyes don't bug out of your head from the bitterness (which they would with Lindt's 85%). Literally, you walk in, and there are bars from all the other brands-- Ghirardelli's, Hershey's Special Reserve, Scharffen Berger, etc-- but there is a conspicuous gap where the Lindt's 70% should be.

I suspect that this is because I am not the only one who does the PMS run at this particular 24-hour Duane Reade.... last time I went there to buy a package of Kotex and two slabs of chocolate, the cashier was trying not to laugh. She knew.