Poking Holes in Little Boxes

Our family has been the recipient of so much goodwill since we’ve been in Hong Kong that we decided it was time to reciprocate. Friday night all the middle school choirs had their final performances of the year. The concert of course took place in the Lu Kao Hwa theater which is six floors directly below our apartment. We decided to have a few families up after the concert for coffee and dessert.

Several days before, Julie whipped up some homemade baked goods. I ran down to the snack shop by the train station a bought a variety of cheap, packaged snacks. The girls ran down to Park-N-Shop and brought home some 1.5 liters (sorry, this is Hong Kong, no two liters) of pop. Oh, and of course, I bought an assortment of juice boxes.

Friday night shortly after the concert ended, our apartment started to fill up with adults and children. It was standing-room only. After I made sure people had been introduced to one another and that everyone had something to drink, I stepped back into a corner to survey the overall situation. As I did so, it occurred to me that I was seeing something distinctively Hong Kong. Across the room, I could see three adults standing in a cluster and chatting; all three of them were holding juice boxes.

On the sofa, two ladies were making small talk. Each of them was sipping from a juice box.

I have always thought of juice boxes as more appropriate for the back of the minivan after the kids’ Saturday-morning soccer game. But here in Hong Kong, juice boxes are completely acceptable for all occasions and for all ages.

Our school has hosted some fairly formal affairs such as the high school honors art class gallery exhibit. For these occasions, the school puts out some light snacks and a table full of assorted juice boxes including lemon tea, soy milk, and black currant juice.

My theory is that juice boxes are popular in part because of the way they store. In Hong Kong space is at a premium. When you stack cans, you always have that little bit of wasted space in between each can. When you stack juice boxes for shipping or display, no wasted space.

Besides, who doesn't enjoy the challenge of trying to pucture a hole with that little pointed plastic straw?

I’ve had more juices boxes in the last nine months than I have had in the previous 43 years.

Drinking from a juice box makes me feel like I am seven. It makes me want to put on shorts, knee-high socks, and go play soccer. I’ll be done in two hours. Could somebody come pick me up in their minivan?

-Jack