Re: Gibby. I agree, Crunch Tators were some pf my favorites too. When I was in our West Marketing they were very popular in Los Angeles small stores -- people would come in and ask for the gator chips.

Re: Dave Crider. Thanks for sharing your story. I remember the Casa Grande plant well from my time in the West -- the excellent product quality and outstanding service to sales.

Great advice. I was telling my friend Dwight this morning while biking that I gained 5 pounds on a recent vacation to Italy and have not been able to lose it, despite increased exercie. I am worried about gaining even more weight over the holidays, but now I'll put your blog on the refrigerator for inspiration. Thanks.

Hi Jill and Zimmy: I'd recommend trying the new Doriots Tacos At Midnight. I had them last weekend, and the taco seasoning reminded me a lot of the original taco seasoning -- only more substantial.

Re: Blythe. Thanks for the comment -- how fun that you remember Topples. I actually liked Rumbles the best. I doubt Frito-Lay will bring back Topples, but I recommend that you try TrueNorth pistachio crisps -- they're delicious.

Re: Andress; Thanks for your comment. I agree and hopefully the SunChips and National Geographic partnership will be a model for other companies to follow.

Hi Paul: Thanks for the kind words. I'm just starting to get the hang of retirement, and everyone tells me it will take awhile before it really sinks in. I think my wife Janis is having the hardest time adjusting -- she is a bit surprised to see me around the house during the day. You'll be glad to know that as I left Frito-Lay, Product Supply was still doing a perfect job in rolling-out our new products to Manufacturing.

Re: Yvette; Good question. The "madehow" Web site offers a good history of cheese puffs -- http://www.madehow.com/Volume-5/Cheese-Curl.html -- saying that they were invented in the 1930s by a company who made corn-based feed for livestock. An operator took some of the cornmeal ribbons, added oil, salt and cheese and invented cheese puffs. Wikipedia tells this same story, yet also offers a competing version of how cheese puffs were invented -- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cheese_puffs. At Frito-Lay, we started making Cheetos Puffs in 1968, complimenting the line of Crunchy Cheetos that had been available since 1948. Thanks for your question!

Re Diane: Thank you for your comment. We value the excellent partnership that Frito-Lay has with the vending industry, and will take your feedback into consideration moving forward.

Re: Suzy. Doritos CTSB promotion would make a great case study. The Doritos CTSB contest started with a consumer insight -- that today's teens and young adults want to be in control -- and that they have a command of technology that allows them to control how and when they consume media, or even create it. This is the 3rd year we've done the CTSB contest, and we were one of the first companies to use consumer-generated ads. Marketing info and details about the program and our win are best captured at: http://www.usatoday.com/money/advertising/admeter/2009admeter.htm CTSB contest overview info at: www.snackstrongproductions.com Thanks for your interest, and please let me know how the class goes.

Re: Dee: I appreciate your candid feedback. The "Free Doritos" ad was selected as the winning ad by consumers as part of the Doritos Crash the Super Bowl contest. Again, thanks for your comment.

Re Angela: Thank you for your comment. I appreciate the feedback you've shared.

I volunteer as a member of the Brand Leadership Council for the United Way of Metropolitan Dallas(http://www.unitedwaydallas.org/), and agree with your comments. I really support the new United Way campaign -- Live United -- and its mantra of Give, Advocate, Volunteer. It is more holistic because it addresses the points that you raised -- advocating and voluneering. Frito-Lay is a strong supporter of the United Way, both in giving and with our employees volunteering.