For Tuesday - Lifesavers

Lifesavers. Now that's a candy I'd forgotten about. I did, upon my last trip home to California, get really excited when I found Butter Rum lifesavers at the grocery store and snapped them up to bring home to my love who loves rum. Turns out, she doesn't love Butter Rum.

I had forgotten the joy of lifesavers. How as a kid I knew I couldn't choke on one because they had a hole in the middle. My favorite vacillated between the red ones (cherry? strawberry? red?) and the pineapple flavors. But there always seemed to be, in my memory anyway, less pineapple ones that red one (or orange ones for that matter). Somehow the pineapple seemed more rare, precious.

I officially miss those little ring candies.

Peanut Butter M&M's

Guess how much I paid for an American sized (literally) pack of Peanut Butter M&M's: £1.45.

For those of you who haven't done the math yet, the conversion rate on that is £1.45 x 1.5 = $2.18. For a small, rectangular pack of Peanut Butter M&M's. This decision, however, was made before I knew the price.

You see, it's cold here in London tonight. Almost done with February, the rains are kicking in and the winds was frigid. Late off from work, I thought of a Snickers for the Tube ride home. But, no. I had seen the deli in the square had a special basket with special imports from America, and the Peanut Butter M&M's had my name on it.

I paid the man, walked out the door, ripped open the package and popped 2 or 3, I can't remember, into my mouth. The sensational was wonderful. And as I chewed, I thought: Hmm, the chocolate's not as good. It doesn't really taste like Peanut Butter much. Man, how long have these been sitting there?

But my purchase was not in vain. I remembered a friend's birthday party from junior high or early high school, myself gorging on Peanut Butter M&M's and another friend eating way too many Hot Tamales. We felt so ill. And as I walked down the street tonight, finishing my bag of American sweets, I smiled. To be 13 again.

Care Package

Last week, my love and I received a care package from my aunt filled with the best candy America has to offer, the kind of candy you get special just for the movies and you scarf down before the opening scene even starts:

Junior Mints
Milk Duds
Whoppers
Sour Patch Kids
Red Vines
Baby Ruth
Peanut M&Ms

I can hardly think of an instance where I didn't get one of these for a trip to the movies, sneaking it in under my jacket or paying full price at the theatre for the bigger box.

As if enjoying their taste wasn't enough, I have relished in talking about them. Calling them 'candy' instead of 'sweets' and feeling justified because they're not English sweets, like Wine Gums or Smarties or Maltsers, but an all-American spread of candy. It's like I have some kind of Sandlot mentality when I talk about them being the ones you take to the movies--not the 'cinema'--as if buying a box of Junior Mints for the blockbusters were some nostalgic weekly summer tradition of my childhood.

No such weekly summer tradition existed, and often times the actual chocolate of the candy or sweets is better in Europe (see: Ireland's Cadbury), but it seems I still can't help but be excited when I see the tub of candy on the kitchen counter... I think I miss home.