The Question of all Questions

A friend of mine has a 10 year old son who has a form of autism called Aspergers Syndrome.  He is not a big fan of change so in order for him to be included on our occasional double dates for dinner (which differs from their normal at home habits), they have to start getting him use to the idea days before hand. 

About a year or so ago, we met up with them for lunch but as the lunch was wrapping up, there was talk about going around the block to one of those new fangled bakeries that specializes in only cupcakes, called The Cupcake Station.  When he got wind of this, he started to have a bit of a meltdown and asked the question that still sticks with me today:  "Is that necessary?" Seeing as that I had only been there once and looooved the Coconut Blitz cupcake, I naturally thought it was necessary.

Somehow they were able to get his mind around going to The Cupcake Station and I got my beloved Coconut Blitz cupcake (Hello?  Can you blame me? Check out that work of art):

But the strangest thing happened:  it wasn't as good as it was the previous time I had went.  It completely put the kabosh on my cupcake urge and lead me to decide that for any future decisions (life altering or not), I may have to ask the 10 year old what he thought.  If he asked me if it was necessary, I would know that it was not a wise decision.

Off and on over the year, I've asked myself that question at random times such as when I'm cleaning out closets or thinking about buying something from QVC.  Most of the time, I find myself answering with 'no, it is not necessary'.  I'm not sure if I'm happy about this.

Speaking of food, I tried a new recipe last night:  Chocolate Peanut Butter Pretzel Cookie Bars courtesy of King Arthur Flour:

A little sweet, a little salty, a little peanut butter adds up to one great little treat.  Even better than the Coconut Blitz cupcake...maybe.