Who Thought of That?

I was doing a fairly simple (and indulgent) thing today when it occurred to me that someone somewhere had done some major thinking in order for me to be having that simple (and indulgent) moment. 

My niece is officially of the age to be a girl scout.  Out of great loyalty to her cause, I bought a few boxes of girl scout cookies from her this year.  I am currently working on the Tagalongs, taking a couple as an afternoon treat each day at work.  Today, I decided to have a little coffee with them, and as I strolled back the quiet hallway to my desk, it occurred to me that my favorite chocolate combination is probably that with peanut butter.  And then it occurred to me that chocolate and peanut butter don't simply exist naturally.  Someone, somewhere, at some point in time (thank goodness!) thought of the brilliant combination.

Naturally, I traveled the interwebs to figure out the history.  First, I found out that the Reese's brand of peanut butter filled chocolate has only been around since 1927.  Shocking!  I can't find a lot of information on other brands of cups that may have existed prior, so I'm assuming this was the first creation.  Then, out of further curiosity, I searched and came to find that the modern day version of peanut butter was only founded a few centuries earlier.

Peanut butter is a staple food in my world.  So, this simple passing moment of wonder led me to realize that even the simplest of things required innovative thought by someone, somewhere.  It's pretty amazing to think of all the thoughts humanity has produced over time.  Granted, some of those thoughts have been below par on the morality scale, but the pairing of peanut butter and chocolate, in my book, rates up there pretty high.