As a species, we are driven to take sides. We divide into tribes ... Democrats vs. Republicans, Bears vs. Packers, Catholics vs. Protestants, Mac vs. PC, Anchovy lovers vs. Anchovy haters. The litany goes ever deeper into the minutia of every day ... Tide vs. Cheer, Coke vs. Pepsi, boxers vs. tighty whities.
No single idea, concept, philosophy, theology, or creation of Mankind or Godkind, however, has proven more divisive than the Circus Peanut.
Circus Peanut, circa 9:57 pm, June 6, 2015.
Dating back to the 1800s, Circus Peanuts (CP) debuted in 5 and Dime stores as penny candy. They're orange, somewhat peanut shaped, vaguely banana flavored. These characteristics are probably at the root of the CP debate. Holding a CP, you just don't know what to expect from it. In fact, at first glance, you don't know what to do with it. Is it an eraser? An ear plug? A suppository?
Technically, the CP is a marshmallow confection, though its shape, color, and consistency make it hard to believe it's a relative of that key 'smores ingredient.
Circus Peanut, circa 9:57:02 pm, June 6, 2015.
These days, CPs are manufactured primarily by the Spangler company, renowned also for the Dum Dum lollipop, although Brachs, Melser, and probably a host of other candy companies are in the ring as well. (It's hard to believe that CP demand warrants so many suppliers. I would have thought this to be a niche market.)
Circus Peanut, circa 9:57:03 pm, June 6, 2015.
Lest you think that your CP choices are limited to the orange banana species, another think is in order. They're also available in pink (cherry), white (vanilla or peppermint), and yellow (lemon). Where can I purchase these confectionery jewels? I hear you asking (or maybe that's just a strange ringing in my ears). At Amazon, of course, the world's general store.
Circus Peanut, circa 9:57:04 pm, June 6, 2015.
People with whom I've broached the CP issue over the years fall into two camps: those who took a tiny bite when they were kids (probably from a CP buried deep in the Trick or Treat bag) and streaked immediately to the bathroom, and those who developed a serious addiction after their first taste. I myself am a member of the latter camp (I'm also fond of candy corn and those little candy-cornish pumpkins available around Halloween).
For many years, my CP addiction was in remission until one evening in Berlin, of all places. Mary and I and two friends had traveled to Germany on a brief vacation. While there, we visited my sister and took her and her family out to dinner at a restaurant called 'Attila' (I kid you not). Attila is owned and operated by Croatian immigrants to Germany, and as part of their hospitality they serve a postprandial cordial called Kruskovac, a bright orange liquor served in a tiny sippy flute. I was unfamiliar with the drink. Couldn't identify the flavor. I flipped through the card catalog of my brain (it hasn't been digitized yet) looking for a corollary taste to help me identify what was in this Kruskovac stuff.
CP came the closest.
Once again, the demon roused within me.
Circus Peanut, circa 9:57:05 pm, June 6, 2015.
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