This is not going to be a full-blown entry. There�s no time man! So this is your official useless entry warning. If you are seeking something of deeper intelligence try some of my previous entries or check out one of the other diaries from my faves list.

What I did want to talk about is Starburst fruit chews. But, not just any flavor. Though the various varieties like Original, Baja California, etc are quite chewy and tasty, the variety I enjoy the most are the Tropical fruit chews. I�m not quite sure what it is about Starburst Tropical, I mean I�m not exactly eating it for the nutritional value, which are pretty much just empty carb and fat calories.

I suppose the obvious attraction would be the flavor, which would ultimately be the correct guess as to my main driving motivation since it is after all candy, but it�s not just the flavor. I think part of it is the symmetry of the product. A rectangular wrapped package containing 4 different flavors of square-shaped fruit chews with 3 of each flavor making 12 squares altogether in a package. When you buy a package you know that 99.9% of the time (accounting for minor glitches in the packaging process of course) you will get 3 squares of each of the four flavors each and every time. This holds true for all the varieties of Starburst however.

Despite there being little nutritional value to this candy if any, I would say the flavors are as pretty damn close to their actual fruit counterparts, with the smooth chewy texture common to all flavors aside, the taste between the fruit chew and the actual fruit(s) is almost indistinguishable to the palate. As for why I like the tropical flavor the best, I suppose it�s due to the psychological association I have to each of the 4 flavors. Each of the flavors basically gives a different taste experience. So below is my ranking of the Tropical flavors and what each flavor reminds me of.

4. Strawberry Banana

This is probably the least exotic of all the flavors, but it�s a good one nonetheless. It reminds me of a smoothie. Strawberry banana is usually the flavor of smoothie that I�d get from a place I�ve never been before, because it�s a staple smoothie flavor that is very difficult to mess up.

3. Pi�a Colada

This flavor easily reminds me of being on a Caribbean cruise, lying out on the pool deck in the warm sun, taking in some R&R from the liquor overindulgences of the night before. The sugary, coconut milk and the tangy yet sweet pineapple juice flavors are present. All that�s missing is the rum and the crushed ice.

2. Mango Melon

Mango is definitely the dominant flavor in this combo, with just a hint of watermelon to round it out. When I think of the sweet, ripe flavor of a mango, I think of the country of my native origin, the Philippines. I�ve only been there a couple times in my life, but there�s just something about that place that feels like home.

1. Royal Berry Punch

This flavor is supposed to be a combination of Raspberry, Strawberry and Pineapple flavors. Although it�s difficult to distinguish the individual flavors, it more or less reminds me of some tropical punch like Hawaiian Punch. I�m not sure why I like this over Mango Melon and the Pi�a Colada flavors, which could just as easily take the number 1 spot, but for some reason the flavor reminds me of a kiss, you know, the kind from a girl who wears lots of berry-flavored lip gloss.

Yeah, I know, I don�t get out a lot and when I do I certainly don�t get very much mouth-to-mouth action, but now you know why I like Starburst tropical fruit chews so much. They are just little squares of finite joy. So anyway, that�s all I have to say for now, until next time...