Believe it or not, the United States Postal Service (USPS) does allow ordinary citizens to mail a coconut without any additional packaging required. It is just as easy to mail a coconut as it is to ship a standard package or crate. The USPS views a coconut as a self-contained unit, one which cannot be easily tampered with by criminals or readily examined by postal inspectors. As long as the coconut contains both a proper address label and sufficient postage, the USPS will literally mail a coconut for you.

We have the Hawaiian tourist trade to thank for the ability to mail a coconut. Visitors to Hawaii can often purchase a souvenir coconut instead of a traditional paper postcard. These gift coconuts may be elaborately decorated with local scenes or other traditional Hawaiian art. All that is required to mail a coconut souvenir "postcard" is an address and proof of postage. Hawaiian branches of the USPS are accustomed to helping tourists who wish to mail a coconut back to the mainland.

Although Hawaii or other tropical locales may be the most common places from which to mail a coconut, there really are no restrictions on the practice within the United States. Anyone can literally pick up a coconut from a local grocery store and affix a mailing label to it. The local mail carriers may not be entirely thrilled to lug a coconut around all day, but it is perfectly legal to mail a coconut instead of an envelope.

Of course, there may be a few flies in the ointment if you should decide to mail a coconut instead of a first-class letter for all of your correspondence. The novelty of receiving a mailed coconut is bound to wear off quickly, and not everything can be safely delivered via a system straight out of Gilligan's Island. While it might be considered a nice gesture to mail a coconut to your frozen relatives while vacationing in Hawaii, try not to get too carried away the rest of the year. Even postal loopholes have limits.