Gumballs in the future

I am on a roll.

I found another awesome and innovative use of gumballs. This time, it's not microfinancing.

It's LEGOs.

Some LEGO nerds apparently constructed a contraption dedicated solely to the sorting of gumballs. And, the best part is: "If you are an obsessive compulsive this LEGO Mindstorms Robot that sorts Gumballs by color may be able to save you countless hours of work! Just think no more late nights spent hunched over the coffee table sorting gumballs into their respective colors." [Hackedgadgets.com]

To all of you who thought "Gumballs? How could he blog ONLY about gumballs?" - I hope that I'm beginning to prove you wrong. Gumballs are everywhere! They're in the future. They're making the world a better place. And, my oh my, do they taste great.

Hope this has been an enjoyable visit to Maison de Gumball.

Come back soon.

Excellent cause with...gumballs?

Yes, friends. Gumballs can actually do good for this world. Look no farther than an emerging organization on the Stanford University campus as well as many others across the country.

Gumball Capital is "inspiring entrepreneurship for social impact with our microfinance benefit competition — The Gumball Challenge.

Participating teams receive $27 microloans and 27 gumballs from Gumball Capital. After a one-week creativity spree in November, the teams donate any revenue to a microfinance-related organization of their choice.

We offer the Gumball Fund as one option, for students interested in supporting developing-world entrepreneurs through microfinance." [Gumballcapital.com]

Their homepage has a very fun of video of gumballs interacting with their environment called "Gumballs Making Change." Definitely check this one out.

Also, turns out my supplier of gumballs, Gumball.com, is supplying the gumballs for Gumball Capital, as well. From their video and logo, it looks like they're using the assorted gumballs.

Gumballs for a cause. Quite a concept and an honorable one, indeed.

My Second Review

Wow, I can't even believe that I'm in my second week of blogging. I'm really having a great time with it, and I especially hope that all of you out there have been enjoying your time at Maison de Gumball.

Now before I begin with the review, I'd like to go over the grading system I'm going to introduce with this second of many gumball reviews. In my first review, I mentioned a number of factors that may contribute to my ultimate rating of a gumball, but now I would like to *attempt* to focus on 4 key factors. Here they are - flavor, composition, aroma, and look. Each will be graded on a 5 point scale. Then, with some arbitrary rounding and imprecise math, I will assign the gumball an overall score out of 5 (scale of 5 "balls").

Also, as a reminder, all of the gumballs I buy will be from Gumball.com. They carry gumballs from every major manufacturer, and that should keep me busy for awhile. And now, onto the review.

Maison Review #2 - Fruit Freaks Gumballs

These gumballs were, well, fruity. Yes, that may seem quite apparent from their name "Fruit Freaks," but the aroma of the bag when I first opened it up was a touch overwhelming. As you can see from the picture, the gumballs are very bright and colorful - fun to look it, but would they be delightful for the taste buds?

Well, not exactly. Both the aroma and the look of the gumballs were clearly on the extreme side of the color and scent spectrum. These Fruit Freaks gumballs made themselves known. And once they really got to introduce themselves to my mouth, they certainly lived up to their gaudy outward appearance. Like the first time I smelled them, the first time I tasted them all I could think was "fruity." The overwhelming power of the fruit took me aback, but once I finally settled down into the rhythmic chewing of the gumball, I found it to be more or less pleasing. An enjoyable treat indeed (once I recovered from the initial shock of the fruit-filled atom bomb that infiltrated my unsuspecting oral cavity).

Grading time!

Aroma - 4. This one was a shocker but nonetheless enjoyable.

Look - 3.5. Fun but a touch on the gaudy side for my taste. Also, speckles generally connote spoiled food - not a pleasing sight on a chewy confection.

Composition - 4. Didn't really talk about this one in the general review, but I found this ball's composition to be quite enjoyable. Sufficient chewiness and taste did not subside for approximately 13 minutes and 46 seconds (what? you don't keep a stop-watch with you when chewing?).

Taste - 3.5. Just a little too much for me. I did enjoy it, but a slightly reduced flavor load would have allowed my olfactories and taste buds grasp the complex fruit flavor.

Overall, I give the Fruit Freaks gumball 3 and 3/4 balls out of 5.

For all the fruit fans out there, this gumball is certainly a treat. Gumball fans in general - be wary. This is one freaky fruit.

Meet the king of gumball helmets

Welcome again to Maison de Gumball,

Browsing around for gumball related news, I found a great story about a man deemed the "king of gumball helmets."

Check this story out here at ESPN.com. This guy has one hell of a collection. I think it's great to be such a dedicated collector. Plus, you can use them with gumballs! Totally cool. I think it would look great if he displayed the helmets with solid colored gumballs in the team color.

Anyway, read the story; tell me what you think. More great tidbits like that to come later.

Although it was quick, I hope you enjoyed this first/second/third stay of what I hope will be many at Maison de Gumball.

Over and out,
Shmoel

The First of Many Gumball Reviews

Hello all!

This post will be the first of many dedicated to reviewing gumballs - the simple ones, the tasty ones, and the downright strange ones. The gumballs that I will be reviewing all come from Gumball.com. They've got a great selection of flavors and varieties. Check it out!

Now, onto the first review!

Maison Review #1 - Sour Cotton Candy Gumballs

The Sour Cotton Candy Gumballs came in a case of 850 (standard 1 inch gumballs) and were in 4 different colors - a bright blue (almost cyan), a faded green, an arctic blue, and a red-ish almost maroon color.

Before I jump into an analysis of the flavor, I must note that I hold cotton candy in very, very high regard. It was perhaps my favorite food as a kid, and I ate the stuff by the truck-load. Basically, before I bit into that first gumball, I had lofty expectations.

So, the pressure was high on these gumballs, and they most certainly delivered. The authentic cotton candy taste was there, and the slight sour flavor added a whole other level of complexity to the overall taste and composition of the ball's flavor. Honestly, the sweetness of the cotton candy flavor might have been a little overwhelming if not for the addition of the sour. The two balance each other quite well, and the result is an excellent example of gumball handiwork.

A little more background information is needed now - at the end of every product review I will conclude with a rating of the gumball that reflects a number of factors including taste, flavor, composition, sweetness, savorability, tang, zest, and aroma.

I give the Sour Cotton Candy Gumballs 4 balls out of 5. An all around tasty product that I'd recommend to any gumball aficionado or lover of candy.

Nietzsche...blowing bubbles?

So, my last post got me thinking. Nietzsche - did he blow bubble gum bubbles?

Well, I set out to find out. My research began and ended at Wikipedia. Unfortunately, there was no information to be found regarding Friedrich's chewing habits. I did, however, come up with an image of what Nietzsche blowing bubbles would have looked like.

I think if Nietzsche had chewed gumballs, he would have chewed Dubble Bubble pink gumballs from Gumball.com.

That is all for now.

I hope you have enjoyed your stay at Maison de Gumball.
-Shmoel

Welcome to Maison de Gumball

Hello fellow bloggers and gumball fans!

Obviously, this is my first post. I'm very excited about this opportunity to share my thoughts with you about one of my favorite topics: gumballs. Yes, gumballs - that saccharine globe that carries with it flashes of childhood exuberance.

The gumball has, in fact, permeated many media, and in this blog I hope to share those instances in which the gumball has attained a position as perhaps more than simple piece of candy. I have seen the gumball used as a symbol of childhood (in window displays at high-end fashion stores) and of technological process (more on that to come).

Yes, "gumball" may seem like a limited concept. In fact, you may be asking yourself: Shmoel - how the hell do you expect to sustain a blog on GUMBALLS? My friends, the answer lies in the gumball's sheer simplicity and flexibility of use. Think of a gumball not as a malleable piece of chewing rubber but instead as our civilization's progress. Current and future uses of the gumball will reveal the inner-workings of a complex and evolving society - one that turned a rock into a wheel and wound up with the car. Perhaps in a pink, 1 inch sphere lies the future of our very way of life.

Wow, I drifted a little off topic. Honestly, this blog will be a space for anything gumball - and that generally implies fun (and not philosophy -- interesting side-note: did Nietzsche chew gum? or, better yet, did Nietzsche blow bubbles?).

Now, please - grab a chair. Sit back, and enjoy. And, WELCOME to Maison de Gumball.