The Cotton Candy Maker

Recently, I volunteered in an Eid celebration event to help out. Somehow I ended up behind the popcorn and the cotton candy machines.

In no time I became a pro! I got the hang of it. Don’t be fooled, it is a tough job. I mean, when making the popcorn, you gotta make sure you put the kernels at the right time, before the butter sizzles and burn. And you gotta watch out for splashing hot butter, that burns! Oh, and you gotta keep a close ear to the pan, so you would know when to flip it over, before the popcorn gets all dark and stuff.

The cotton candy was even trickier. I started out twirling that cone really fast, so I can come up with a full volume shape, but your arm would tire out a couple of minutes. Also, it’s a challenge determining how “full” to make the cone. Kids can easily play a trick on you and go “that’s not fair, his was bigger than mine!!” In which case, I ended up giving free refills… what you gonna do! The trick is, when you twirl that thing, make the circle bigger, that would build the cotton on a more fluffier form, and give a bigger shape.

It was fun. I mean, where else would you find it rewarding to make faces at people? (well I had to entertain the kids). I thought to myself “man, I would ditch my desk job in no time and do this for the rest of my life…. maybe not the rest of my life, but probably few months of my life”.

It does take marketing skills though. I figured it’s easier to make popcorn than cotton candy, so I started convincing my little clients that popcorn would actually do them better than the cotton candy- as cotton candy can decay their teeth and stick to their faces, while popcorn would probably last them 25 seconds more than what it takes eating that cotton candy. It worked on some, but not the others.

It is pretty rewarding working with/for kids. I mean, seeing their eyes widen at the view of that HUGE cotton candy cloud ought to make you smile. Oh, and when you promise them you’re making them the biggest cotton candy ever, and they go “THANK YOU SO MUCH!”.

Funny people, kept me entertained:

“my mom would love you for making me that popcorn”- 7ish year-old boy… no idea what he means.

“that is so cool, I wish I had your job”- a 10ish year-old girl. I replied “yep, me too”

“you must be eating cotton candy all day”- 5ish year-old boy.

“how does the sugar turn into cotton?”- 9ish year old boy.

“how does the cotton change colors”- same boy.

“can I make mine? is it dangerous?”- 6ish year old boy.

“my mom is telling you give me popcorn for free!”- 8ish year-old boy.

Here I am, on a Monday, working on a desk all day long, dealing with boring people whose demands are much more than a bag of popcorn or a cotton candy cone. Makes me think how when I was young, when asked, I always said that I wanted to be an Engineer when I grow up! What was I thinking? Why a cotton candy maker didn’t cross my mind?