An autistic adult is reported to have learned that stickers on fruit are there to aid identification and pricing, and are not, in fact, a little present from the distributor in recognition of just how arduous eating fruit can be.
Jay Chester, 26, has so many fruit stickers on their laptop that to uncover the bottom layer would require an archaeological dig. They report feeling disappointed that the stickers are not medals of honour commending them for their bravery in risking a tangerine that could potentially destroy them in body and soul.
Chester said: “I deserve to be rewarded for eating fruit, because frankly it’s a high-stakes spin of the sensory roulette wheel every single time. If you pop open a pipe of Pringles, you know exactly what you’re getting, but biting into a banana? Anything could happen.”
“Will it be sweet? Sour? Firm? Mushy? Aggressively and disconcertingly wet? The suspense is unbearable,” Chester continued. “But, if you opt out entirely, you’ll get scurvy like an eighteenth-century sailor, lose all your teeth, perish, and be thrown overboard to be eaten by sharks.”
“It’s all so stressful. I should be given a sticker, a lollipop and a cuddle whenever I have to think about my vitamin intake.”
Like what you’re reading? Make us your new special interest! Help us grow The Daily Tism by sharing our articles, following us on Instagram, Bluesky, Threads and Facebook, shouting us a coffee on Ko-Fi or joining our bonus-content-packed Club for Terrible Autistics by subscribing to our Patreon. We also now have merch! Check out your favourite headlines in comfy wearable form over on Teemill.
Our audio sitcom by and for autistic people, It’s a Superpower?? is out weekly wherever you get podcasts! Binge the whole season early and ad-free on Patreon.
You can also watch episodes one and two of our sketch show, The Daily Tism News, in collaboration with Turtle Canyon Comedy, or listen to episode three in audio form – and tune into our podcast, Autistic Women Oversharing to find out WAY too much about our writers.
We also now have merch! Check out your favourite headlines in comfy wearable form over on Teemill.
