Post #313852 by mzoltarp on Wed, Jun 20, 2007 6:48 AM

In the end, I think most people who are into tiki do not really care if others like or dislike it. I think what they do care about, human nature really, is to be represented accurately and not to get a judgmental response out of someone else. The difference is "Wow! You really put a lot of effort into your tiki space and I'm glad you enjoy it." versus "Wow! It sure is tiki. I don't know that I would have wasted my time on this." Both responses would be from someone who does not enjoy tiki with the first being more diplomatic. A friend of mine bought a Prius shortly after I bought a Mustang GT. He loves my Mustang so we went for a drive. The Prius makes my skin crawl on so many levels and yet I was offered a drive in his wondercar. I didn't like it any better after I drove it so I framed my compliment based on my perception of how it made him feel. Learning to accept the bizarre differences people make in their choice of style as nothing more than variation, as opposed to right versus wrong, results in more happy people.

People who classify a top-notch tiki bar as tacky tiki deserve a smile and a nod because they cannot get it and diving into their lack of expansive thinking will go nowhere.