Day 22: Sweets and Memories

Have you ever been walking and stumbled upon a scent lingering in the air that made you stop in your tracks? A scent that caught you by complete surprise and triggered a memory or made you smile? That happened to me yesterday. It was completely random. There was no way this particular smell should have been lingering but it was, and sniffing it took me right back to my childhood.

I can't accurately describe the smell. It was a pleasant one is about as close as I can come. It smelled like the candy my grandfather used to buy at the corner store when we went for walks. Since I know that much I should be able to describe if it had caramel overtones or a chocolaty vibe, but the best I can say is that I smelled a memory.

The minute my nose came into contact with that phantom scent I was instantly transported back to standing by my grandpa at the candy counter in the corner store. The particular goodies he liked came in bins and he would fill up a small plastic sack with a mixture of them. Sometimes he even let me pick what went into the sack. There were chewy things like taffy but not. Candied orange wedges, spice drops, butterscotches and other hard candies. Hands down, those were the best candies I have ever eaten. Maybe it was because we walked a couple miles to get them. Maybe it was because of the company I was in, or the fact that my taste buds were different then. Either way, I have never been able to find those same candies since.Sure, there are the modern day equivalents. They can still be found in bins. They may even be from the same company as when I first tried them, but they just don't taste the same.

But that got me thinking about candy. On the radio last week the DJ took a poll of what were listeners favorite Halloween candies. Before that I’ve seen countless web tallies of favorite candies by state. I disagree with almost every tally or poll I hear, but when I try to think about my favorite Halloween candy I am stumped.  

I don't think I actually had, or have a favorite. Ok, that isn't true, it will always be candy corn, but you really can't compare that to other Halloween candies, so for arguments sake we will leave it out. I know what I didn't like to get in my trick or treat bag. I wasn't fond of the houses that gave out health food. That's the equivalent of getting socks and underwear for Christmas. Sure, you may need them, sure, health food may be, you know, good for you, but you don't hand it out on holidays. That's like the dentists who give out toothbrushes. Buzz kill man. I also wasn't overly fond of popcorn balls. I like them more to play with than eat. They are just too messy.

I remember when I was done trick or treating, I would come home and dump all my loot out on the floor. If it wasn't wrapped it went in the trash. If it was waxy like those lips or some of the really hideous caramels they also went in the trash. I sorted my candy by type, chocolate, fruity, gum, licorice, suckers, stuff I don't want and other. Once my piles were sorted I called my parents in and they took their share. It worked out well. Most of the time my parents loved the things that I couldn't stand and I would happily hand them over, but when it came to the good stuff, I would haggle a bit.

If I had to narrow it down, I would say that my favorite Halloween candies would be the peanut butter cups and tootsie rolls. Wow. It is kind of sad that I can't remember what candy I liked as a kid. I know I had definite favorites, but tastes change. I know that I hated Almond Joys when I was little and now I love them. I also liked pixie sticks and now I can feel my teeth rotting just looking at them. If someone had given me a package of Red Vines back then I probably would have asked if they could adopt me. Twizzlers not so much. Cheap fruity knock offs.

Isn't it interesting what we remember? I have a fuzzy recollection that I liked the candy bars best. I think probably Snickers and Hershey. Dad got the Mr. Goodbars and no one wanted the Krackle unless the candy supply was dwindling and it was the only chocolate left.

So now that I have put some semi serious thought into it, what was your favorite childhood candy? Or if you are having trouble remembering like me, what is your favorite candy now?