I'm a bad shopper. If I don't know exactly what I'm looking for, I wander through department stores aimlessly, never stopping where I should, and lingering over the ridiculous. On a recent search for a birthday present for a relative, I strolled into the candy department, and came face to face with a gift from years ago. Sitting on the shelf, in a nice box, was a giant Hershey Kiss, wrapped in foil. When I was a kid, these mutant sized chocolates were first produced, and I was transfixed by them. Remember, back in the 70s, we hadn't yet seen mini Oreos or Reese's Pieces, plus these Hershey Kisses were gigantic, just the way I like my chocolate. With my precious saved up money, I went into Marshall Field's and purchased one of these treasures, not for myself, but for my grandmother. Happy Birthday to me, though, because, who was I kidding? Grandma was not a fan of chocolates, and certainly not the gargantuan brick I bought for her. her version of sweets was nasty little hard candies she kept in a red glass dish on a coffee table. Most frightening were those pieces I would choose on a Sunday afternoon visit, which turned out to have a soft jelly like center. No, a giant Hershey Kiss wasn't really the appropriate gift, but Grandma showered me with kisses, and opened up the box, inviting me to take the first taste. Just as I had hoped, of course, but if you've ever had a giant Kiss, you know that getting a bite isn't so easy. So, a big production began, as first my uncle and then my dad came up with ideas. Eventually, a large serrated knife was used to slice off chunks and slivers of the Kiss. The whole thing was rather difficult and messy, but I was happy. "I used to gnaw it," says Deb, an editor, of her prized block of chocolate. "It was like a rat was eating it." Our family stuck with the knife, and at the end of the night, my grandmother sent the rest of the Kiss home with me. I don't think grandma ever actually had a bite. "Mine had teeth marks all over it," says graphic designer Kent. "It was all scratched and a weird shape." These days, it would be easy to take a bite. It's the size of your fist, not your head, and that just isn't so giant.