Consider this economic indicator

I am an incorrigible optimist, even in the face of some disheartening layoffs in my industry -- and at my newspaper. I see an uptick in the stock market and want to declare the recession over. The glass is one-quarter full! OK, but there are undeniable signs of improvement. You just have to know where to look.

Candy sales are through the roof all over the country. Cadbury reported a 30 percent rise in profits for 2008, Nestle’s profits grew by 10.9 percent, and Hershey, which struggled for most of 2008, was up by 8.5 percent in the fourth quarter. Some specialty shops have reported jumps of as much as 300 percent. “All is well in candy land,” Jamie Hallman, owner of the Sweetdish candy store in San Francisco, told the New York Times this week. I'm behind that! Put me down for 100 shares of Swedish Fish.