I did a rare thing yesterday afternoon. I went to lunch with my husband. One of his freelance employers gave him a gift certificate to the L-Wine Lounge in Midtown Sacramento, so that's where we headed. Unfortunately, the L-Wine Lounge is no longer serving lunch, probably due to the situation with our state furloughs in Sacramento. So, we walked over to Celestin's Restaurant on K Street, which serves up fairly decent Caribbean and Cajun cuisine.
On the way, we passed 3 parking ticket payment machines. In all 3 instances, a person stood in front of the ticket dispenser reading the directions and looking puzzled. I could relate. The first time I used one of these new-fangled machines to get a parking ticket, I was so confused that I crumpled the actual ticket, threw it on the floor of my car and stuck the blank portion on my car window. Of course, I got a parking ticket. It's a stupid system designed by an alien.
After lunch, I asked my husband if he would mind stopping at See's Candy on J Street. Somebody sent me 2 gift certificates to See's a while back. They were dated in December of 2008, and I've been carrying them around ever since. With my hand on the door handle to See's, my cell rang. It was a listing agent, calling to say her sellers had accepted my buyer's purchase offer without a counter offer. Eureka. OK, now I really craved chocolate. But first I had to call my client to let her know she got the home in Sacramento. She's a first-time home buyer, and I knew how much this news would mean to her. So, I wasn't paying attention when I opened the door.
Whoa, that store was packed. Wall-to-wall people. What are all these people doing at See's Candy on a Friday afternoon? Duh, my husband reminded me, it's the Friday before Valentine's Day. I couldn't even see the counter where all the chocolate-covered cherries were probably hiding for all the people in front of it. Instead, I grabbed a pound of dark chocolates, a pound of milk chocolates and headed for the check-out line.
See's Candy was founded in 1921, the year my grandmother had turned 21. It was my grandmother's favorite candy store. Whenever she came to visit me when I was a kid, she'd bring me a box of See's Candy. She said it was the best candy in the world, right next to that peanut brittle she'd buy from those interstate truck stops in Nebraska. As we stood in line, I shared these thoughts with my husband. The woman in front of us turned around and said, "I agree with her; See's Candy is the best in the world."
Now, in case you think chocolate is fattening, let me share something with you. Each one-pound box of See's Candy contains about 24 pieces. Two pieces equal about 160 calories. That means if you were to eat the entire box, you'd have consumed about 1,920 calories, which might sound like a lot until you figure that it takes 3,500 calories above your normal daily intake to gain one pound. Would you be willing to take on a half pound to eat an entire box of See's Candy? Yeah, I think I might.
Photo: Big Stock Photo
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Certified HAFA Specialist
My Sacramento Real Estate Listings
Elizabeth Weintraub is an author, home buying columnist for The New York Times-owned About.com, a Land Park resident, and a Land Park real estate agent who specializes in older, classic homes in Land Park, Curtis Park, Midtown and East Sacramento. Weintraub is also a Sacramento Short Sale agent who lists and successfully sells short sales throughout the four-county Sacramento area. Call Elizabeth Weintraub at 916.233.6759. Put 35 years of real estate experience to work for you. Broker-Associate at Lyon Real Estate. DRE License # 00697006.
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The views expressed herein are Weintraub's personal views and do not reflect the views of Lyon Real Estate.
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What a great post! I love See's candy too. The problem with living in the mid-Atlantic area is that you have to mail order it and it doesn't travel well. Anytime I've shopped at a "temporary Kiosk" it has always been stale. Our good friends live right near a See's candy in San Jose, and we always stop there when we are visiting them.
I wish I could taste it. Knowing you, it must be head and shoulders above the more mundane Godiva's. Wishing you a great Valentine's weekend. You won't have any time to celebrate with all these deals coming in!
Elizabeth: I've had the pleasure of enjoying See's chocolates before. Yum! I think there will be a lot of Happy Valentine's Day recipients in Sacramento from the sound of the jam packed candy store. You can never go wrong with chocolate.
A sale and Chocolate sounds like a near perfect day.
My brother used to always purchase See'sCandy in Denver - very yummy! I agree, it's the best. I don't even consider calories when eating chocolate, that would really take the fun out of it!
Everyone in my family loves Sees Candy. We always have a box at Christmas, New Years, and Easter (eggs at Easter). My favorite are the butter creme chocolate, but I also like any with carmel.
I find those parking meters annoying when it is raining, they take too long to spit out the receipt.
Elizabeth, enjoy that candy! You go girl...the whole box...well when you crave it you gotta have it! Happy Valentine's Day!
My daughter used to send us See's Candy when she lived in California. Now we seldom get any and I miss it!!
I saved all the pieces of candy with nuts in them for my husband. He actually accused me of leaving him the crummy pieces and hoarding all the creamy-filled chocolate. Hey, he has equal access to that chocolate on the counter.
When I was growing up See's Candy was the *only* candy anyone in my family considered giving. The iconic See's box is indelibly linked with memories of my grandparents at Christmas - and the struggle of us kids to avoid picking the dreaded fruit flavored fillings. We took turns picking candy from the box, with shouts of triumph when someone got a cream filled chocolate, groans of dismay when someone picked a fruit filling.
When I go to the mall sometimes I'll stop in at See's and get a couple of maple walnut candies. That's my favorite. And I hinted up a storm about how much I would have loved a valentines box of See's candy. I got an Orchid. LOL! Ah, well ... maybe next year. The Orchid is beautiful and sits nicely on my desk. I hope I can keep it alive.