Post #352008 by Fugu on Sun, Dec 30, 2007 12:24 PM

My parents honeymooned in Hawaii in the early 70s and brought back the tiki shown below. They kept in the basement next to the bar when I was a kid, and on porches and in the backyard as we moved to different houses. I always thought it was so cool and mysterious, but didn't really understand what it was. Their other souvenir was a set of Leilani mugs that we would use for parties and other special occasions. Mom kept them on the top shelf in a kitchen cabinet that I couldn't reach, and I would watch her in the kitchen hoping that she would open that particular cabinet so that I could catch a glimpse of those mugs. So even though it is amongst the most common of the tiki mugs, the tiki Leilani mug will always have a special place in my collection and my memory. Those were my earliest impressions and experiences with tiki. It wasn't until many many years later when I was in grad school and found a Fireside Moai mug for a buck that my interest in tiki was rekindled and the obsession really began. I brought it home (rather timidly because I buy all kinds of weird junk which usually causes my fiancee to roll his eyes). This time though he took one look at the mug and said "that's cool, why didn't you buy more?" That was pretty much the green light to start collecting.