pencils and gum?

Walking down michigan ave in chicago today during lunch i came across a man dressed in a full-length pencil costume handing our Wrigley's Spearmint gum. Pencil Man! What do pencils have to do with gum?
Tom Saaristo of TOM TOOL food fame suggests "it's gum AND an eraser. Chew it and then erase. You're sure to get an A+! Matt, your paper smells so minty fresh! A+!"