2002-10-30 | 7:11 p.m.

corduroy licorice was proud to stand on his own two feet. sure, at less than a square yard, it was the smallest parcel of land in the county, but property is property.

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today i found the finishing touch to my frida kahlo halloween costume. i'd been looking around for one for a couple weeks with no luck. i figured my outfit would be fine without it, but it would have been a clever accessory to really make my get-up authentic. alas, no store i checked profferred such an item.

what was this holy grail i searched for yon and hither? a monkey of the stuffed toy variety. frida had pet monkeys and featured them in some of her self-portraits.

since it was already lunchtime the day before halloween, i figured i was out of luck. i stood in line at the grocery store and felt a twinge of regret that my frida was to be monk-less. bored while waiting for the elderly woman in front of me to buy her buttermilk (why do the silver-haired enjoy such throat-coating curdleness?), i noticed something furry hanging from the "10 items or less" sign above the cashier.

could it be? such a windfall? YES! it was a stuffed toy monkey with long arms and velcro hands that clasped together over the post of the sign. his fuzzy little face grinned at me as if to say, "can you believe your good fortune? who knew such a happy fate awaited you in a random supermarket express line?" (chatty little fellow.)

"how much is the monkey?" i asked the cashier, expecting to hear an outrageous amount for such thunderstruckingly convenient wish fulfillment.

"4.99. you want it?" she queried, reaching for his pale belly.

"yes, please!" i trilled, happily slapping an extra five dollars on the counter. my costume was complete without a tremendous cash outlay! serendipity doo times two!

i walked out of the market with a little skip in my step and song in my heart. it's amazing how a wee, foam-filled primate can instantly restore one's sense of hope.

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