November 2008 Among the multitude of blessings I gave thanks for during this month of giving thanks is the blessing of coconut water on demand. Fresh tender coconuts are often easy to come by in India, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Costa Rica, Brazil, and many other tropical countries, but only recently have they appeared, trimmed for quick opening, in the natural and Asian groceries of the United States. At the justifiably renowned Ta Lin Market in Albuquerque (on Louisiana just south of Central) they sell for $1.08 each – one-third the price of a latte!

Should you wish coconut water to be supplied to you in easier-to-open packaging, you can now choose the can (“Amy and Brian” brand, from Thailand) or the tetra-pak, from Brazil. Vita Coco is one of at least three Brazilian brands; another is O.N.E., which also offers cashew juice in a tetra-pak whose front panel offers a photo of the widely-regarded-as-bizarre cashew fruit assembly, the nut with its poisonous inner shell sitting entirely outside the fleshy pulp (which is commonly preserved in India by converting it into the highly spirituous liquor known as feni).

Avant-garde fruit juices are now more available than ever, thanks to companies like Bom Dia, and their açai with mangosteen and with cacao; and Bossa Nova, whose mangosteen with cherries and red dragon fruit has to be tasted to be believed.

Easy availability of quality films is also thankworthy; noteworthy movies of the month (in alphabetical order) included Australia, Bolt, The Boy in the Striped Pajamas, I’ve Loved You So Long, and Madagascar 2.

My greatest thanks go to that Providence which has seen fit to provide me with a full complement of limbs; though were some missing, I could inspire myself to overcome my limitations by employing the internet (for which we give thanks) to take me to http://www.rightfooted.com, where I would learn of motivational speaker Jessica Cox, who though born armless drives cars, is a Tae Kwon-Do black belt, and has even, mirabile dictum, learned to pilot an airplane. May such wonders never cease, and may we all ceaselessly express our gratitude for them!

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