This Is Work?

"One of our first rules, especially amongst our membership, is drink it out of a glass," Christman says. "If you're drinking a Budweiser and hanging out with Miller guys, you don't want to offend anybody. Keep 'em guessing."

Susan Fussell, 33, Arlington

Vice president of communications, National Confectioners Association

So . . . you guys get good dental coverage?

"Candy is no more likely to cause cavities than any other fermentable carbohydrate," says Susan Fussell, pristinely on point. "We believe there's a place for candy in any healthy, active lifestyle."

Amen. Walk into the National Confectioners Association offices on the third floor of a drab building in Tysons Corner and you'll see a big gumball machine with the word "FREE" slapped where "25¢" would be anywhere else. The lamps are made of cookie tins. Shelves of Toblerone, Mike and Ike, and Altoids line the temperature-controlled storage room. Boxes of gum are stacked like gold bullion.

Cubes of cocoa from Ecuador sit on Fussell's desk, spoils from a recent trip to South America, where she toured cocoa fields, met cocoa farmers and drank chocolate liquor (chocolate in a pure, unsweetened, non-alcoholic liquid form).

"Please, have some," she says.

No, thank you.

"Go on."

It's against company policy to accept gifts.

"Please."

Okay.