Who wants candy?

Written by Melissa Starker
Published by Columbus Alive Online Magazine, September 2003

The website for Pittsburgh's McKeesport Candy Co., candyfavorites.com, lets you be a kid in a virtual candy store by supplying all the confections of your youth--in bulk, no less. As you're considering the snacks for your next summer party, consider treating your friends to a sweet taste of nostalgia.

In addition to giant, rush-inducing Pixy Sticks, rock sugar lollipops, Atomic Fireballs and Swedish Fish, McKeesport can ship 10 pounds of your favorite color M&M, or your favorite flavor of Jelly Belly. Gold-colored sparklers and paper gliders seem a natural for the Fourth of July, but other items have a similar affinity for certain events. Comfest partiers would probably appreciate a candy necklace to go with their tie-dye, and if your Pride Weekend party guests have a sense of humor, you could put out a bowl of Blow Pops.

The site also sells Pez dispensers and gift baskets with toys added to the piles of Smarties and Bit o' Honey (selection is rotated to keep from shipping chocolate this time of year). The website's most distinctive boast is its claim to hold "the Internet's largest selection of edible insects." But the milk chocolate-covered crickets, marbled chocolate discs filled with farm ants and worm-filled tequila lollipops sound like a better choice for a meeting of your enemies.