It's that time of year...

The holidays are just around the corner, and that means...holiday candy. But it's different this year. Because we have too much other stuff going on, Jess and I will not be making the usual 150 lbs (seriously...150 lbs!) that we usually make and ship to friends all over the country (along with two 20 lb. trays for my work, a 10 lb. tray to Jess' office, et cetera, et cetera). Peanut brittle, cashew brittle, Chocolate Crash (chocolate-covered cashews and Craisins), fudge, peanut clusters, chocolate-orange-covered marshmallows, cherry bon-bons, spiced pecans, coconut dipped chocolates, peanut butter dipped chocolates, chocolate chocolate chip cookies, peanut butter cookies, and white chocolate peppermint bark are just some of the kinds of candy and cookies we produce.

But it's far too busy this year to do that, what with house construction, trying to move and sell Jess' grandmother's apartment, and a hundred other things, so I'm just making about 30 lbs. to give to friends and family...and no mailing it out this year.

People at work are asking "when's the candy coming?" because they have come to expect it the last five winters, and I just love the look on their faces when I tell them that there won't be any this year. It's this incredulous look, like "how can you do that?!" It's so touching. As if I am obligated to make this candy that costs me more than $250 in ingredients alone, to say nothing of the time it requires to make that much candy. What's more, only about twenty percent of the people who eat it bother to thank me for it. The way I'm looking at it now, I may never bring candy to work again!

At any rate, we've finished the first three batches, with about six more things to go - but the weather has not been cooperative! Candy is best made when the outdoor humidity is about 15% or less, and that hasn't been the case for the last few days. And time is short - there are only a few days left before the holidays and candy-making is time-consuming work. So we'll have to work quickly and nearly every night to get it done.

So, do you feel sorry for us? No, of course you don't. See if you get any candy this year! :P