Sweet Memories

I'm sure most people are well aware of the popular website A Quarter Of. It has been purveyors of sweet memories for a while now. A browse around the on-line shop is a short cut to your childhood.

Today, I took that feeling of nostalgia one step further. A short walk from our house is a sweet shop. And it is just like stepping into the sweet shop I remembered when I was at school. There was a counter with a glass front, with trays of cola bottles, liquorice laces, flying saucers, fried eggs, jazzies, black jacks et al. On the shelves behind the counter were jars of cola cubes, choc lick, acid drops (not that kind), midget gems and millions.

Now I've been in those syndicated sweet shops that sell all the old sweets. You know the ones I mean. They are on every high street or in all the shopping centres. Well I find them a little bit of an oxymoron. Whilst the products that they are selling are authentically traditional, the surroundings are entirely modern and plastic. There's nothing wrong with that but if I want to be reminded of my younger years by contenting myself with a suck on a Kopp Kopp or lick of a Dip Dab then it makes sense to me to go and recreate the whole shopping experience. Polished chrome fittings and a smoothie come ice cream bar were never in the sweet shops of my childhood.

Of course, now that I am an adult, I have an enhanced sense of responsibility, so I refrained from standing in front of the penny counter pointing at each individual tray and saying in a long drawn out breath "One of those. Two of those. One, no two of those. How much is that so far?" I'm sure the eight year old in the queue behind me wouldn't have had the patience that was afforded to me when I was that age.

I emerged with a quarter of (not 250g note) strawberry bon bons and some cola bottles and fruit salads. I have also avowed to return to stock up on sweets ready for next weekend when I am being left home alone with the two mini me's and the Eurovision Song Contest.

So any suggestions what should be included in my next shopping bag from Sweet Indulgence? Chocolate footballs, ice cups or milk bottles from the penny tray? What about raspberry ruffles, sour apples or American hard gums? And maybe some fizz whizz, highland toffee or parma violets?

What would you pick up if you were on a nostalgia trip to sweetie heaven?

I haven't been asked to write a review of this shop and I am sure there are independent sweet shops in your part of the world that will strike a chord with you like this one did with me. The only money that exchanged hands was my payment for the purchases I made.