In the early days, Popcorn was sold largely by young men and boy on the streets. They would sell it popped, by the bag or shaped into a ball, or unpopped for a penny or a nickel at a time. Into the early 1900's Popcorn was becoming a large growth industry where 70 cents on the dollar was profit.

Popcorn turned out to be so popular that they started using it for many things. Holiday decorations became a mainstay in America, that's for sure. As did the various and assorted treats made from Popcorn such as: Pop-Corn" cakes, popcorn pudding, popcorn fritters, popcorn cereal, Cracker Jacks, chocolate covered popcorn and even popcorn brittle.

It became so popular that machines were finally invented and produced for the sole purpose of popping it. That's progress!

Now, I don't believe in many things of a spiritual nature, but I am beginning to question my daughter's ancestral path. Our family is rather difficult to trace back and I've long since given up at ever finding out the truth concerning my lineage. But one thing I have come to be sure of, is that my daughter must have been someone very involved in Popcorn. I'm going out on a limb and saying either one of those boys that sold it by day, or an inventor so enamored with it that he/she helped invent one of the first Peanut & Popcorn machines.

Why? Her love and determination for all things popcorn has proven to be more than a phase that most children go through. She is forceful about her Popcorn, to the point of getting in trouble over it. I truly think she descened from a popcorn magnate of some kind!

The other night my girlfriend and I were watching TV after the Bean had went to bed. It was some time after, so she must have been asleep. We popped some popcorn and settled in to drown ourselves in the ever stupifying world of Television. (she still calls it a tele, hah - crazy Brit) No sooner had we started shoveling popcorn into our mouths then out comes this ferocious red head, eyes all round and I swear she was drooling (OK, she wasn't - but it fits!) through that thick and contagious smile of hers.

"I smelled POPCORN." Her smile got even bigger and she rummaged around in the bowl, shoving as big a handful of it in her mouth as she could, then quite happily wiping it on the Daddy t-shirt she was wearing to bed.

Granted, normally table manners like that get her at least talked to, but I couldn't stop from laughing. My child, the Popcorn nut, had woken up from her normally unbreakable slumber by the smell of some vegetable popping! So a few handfuls later and a promise we'd have more later, back to bed she goes.

Oh yes, my Bean, is surely a long lost relative of some high level Popcorn conisseur. At the least, she's hooked for life. If you don't have stock in Movie companies such as Regal or United I'd advise you get some now - she'll be putting your kids through college with the amount they'll make off of her.