From the Founder of International Tiki Day

Set aside all my mirth and mischief during the year, and understand sincerely that I hope you all a great International Tiki Day!

Hope your ITD is filled with lotta fun too Bong.

We wish you a happy International Tiki Day as well Bong and a very Tiki year. Since all our celebrating could not be done in one day, we are stretching it out over the whole weekend. How does it feel to have your idea catch on like it has and to see folks celebrating I.T.D. across the land?
-Duke and Amy

I would like to pose a question.
With all the superior brain power out here in TIKI land.
HOW, can we start to make International TIKI Day truley on the books and calendars of the entire World?
Does anyone know where to get started?
Who do we contact?
United Nations?
And maybe if that is to big we can just start with (no offense to anyone outside our open borders) United States Tiki Day or Orange County Tiki Day?
Then we could build from there.
I really would love it if I went to the book store and bought my 2006 calendar and on the 2nd Sat. in August it said something about TIKI !!!!!
And as far as the founder of ITD, when we find the person truley responsible for this glorious day we will embrace them and hold them in the highest regard !
(no way it's Bong)
To end your pain, I say
Thank you to our hosts Al and Shelly!
This year I was truley blessed with enjoying the best possible group of friends a person could ask for. From 3 pm until 2 am it was conversation with long time friends and Tiki peeps I had just met for the first time. It was entertainment like nowhere else in the world. I laughed until I cried and I marveled at the improvement and confidence that the The Smokin' Menehunes have gained. (they are truley world class now) I was WOWed by swaying hips young and old. Food and drink found nowhere else in the world (there are some very talented chefs in our group) And drinks (since I myself do not drink I can only go by what I saw)they were making everyone so "happy" they must have been great !! Tent city was another smash operation (thank God there are some Scouts in the crowd). The Uke Bongo mouth buzzer jambs were the best I have ever witnessed.
But one thing that still brings a tear to my eye is watching my dear friend Al k. as happy as I have ever seen him. The huge smile that was on his face as he turned to flip me off(in a good way)is what I will always remember about this International Tiki Day.
Thanks again Al and Shelly and all those that helped out.
And thank you, you bunch of outa-whack wierdos that make up Tiki Central.
You are FAMILY !!

I've got the Post ITD Blues....How can such a great time end so quickly?

I'd like to send a special THANK YOU to our hosts Al & Shelly of the Fabulous Lagoon Room for their hospitality. Thank you's also go out to The Linaka Ladies, Iuka Grogg and The Smokin' Menehunes w/ special guest Crazy Al for the great entertainment, Tiki Bird for the brew, Tiki Diablo for the amulets, Tiki Farm for the souvenir mugs, Mr. Dawntiki for bbq'ing all the burgers and dogs, and everyone who generously donated (food, booze and otherwise) so we could make this event happen. The menu was a nice mix of International flavor! Thank you's also go out to those who travelled far and wide to make this a special night - we had visitors who flew in from Arizona, drove down from Northern California, many who drove 100+ miles from other parts of Southern California and of course, the Tikifrog's all the way from Nevers, France!

I'm already jonesing for next year! Now lets see some of those pics!!!

**Poly-Pop ***

He who dies with the most broken mugs WINS!

[ Edited by: PolynesianPop on 2004-08-15 14:09 ]

You'd think Shag would list International Tiki Day on his calender.

A BIG Thank You to Al N Shel! Thanks for your hospitality and for hosting ITD Celebration at The Lagoon Room. I had a great time and loved it. Thanks to all of the Tiki Family/Friends in attendence to make it a successful and fun event!
Aloha!

I only have access to shutterfly for picture posting. I will email this photo to whomever can post a full sized version of if.

I had a great time. Thanks everybody

Mr. Pineapple and I were both a little flu-ish this weekend, so we didn't do much hoisting of mugs, BUT we did plant a lime tree and some mint in our yard, so that next year we can make homegrown mai-tais :)
glad you guys had fun, at various times during the weekend we pondered,
"I wonder how many cocktails Al's mixed?"
"I wonder who is passed out on the lawn?"
"I wonder if there will be a boom of tiki-babies in ten months...?"

Thanks for a great time. It was a short trip, but well worth it. Once again you folks have made us feel part of your Ohana. We'll be seeing you again soon.

AlnShelly - thank you for inviting us into your home. The Lagoon Room is something you have to see in person, it's amazing.

Monkeyman - thanks for hooking us up with the tent and sleeping bag. It was above and beyond and we appreciate it.

ITD Organizers - thanks for puting this together. The whole experience was great. We loved falling asleep to the awesome sounds of the bongo drums.

SeekingTiki & vwtikigirl

Alnshelly, thank you so much for a great party. Too bad it is over. Hope to see everyone in the near future, thanks for making us feel at home. Tiki Bong and PolyPop thank, Cutiki and I had the best time.

Bong, Mahalo! After spending the day with many of the mid-west tiki ohana I am so glad you worked so hard to do ITD and it is what is because of you.

Bongy!
Look at all the special people you, Al, Shelly and Pop have brought together.
I was there in spirit.
Best to ya Bong, and all the rest of TC!

A Tiki Cheers To You

[ Edited by: Unga Bunga on 2004-08-16 14:40 ]

Party picture link -
http://www.mutantqueens.com/international_tiki_day_2004.htm

What a party....I'm still hungover 24 hours later. I remember sobering up three times last night. Al and Shelly have a great house for a party, and they really know how to let everyone have a great time. Except, of course, for the blue pancakes and pink eggs which made me think I was having a Mescal flashback. Then I saw the king's face, and I knew everything was normal. Any way, here's a link to some pictures from ITD 2004. Most of these were taken early in the evening because later I was in no condition to find the camera. Good thing the scouts were there to set up our tent for us, cause I was seeing double by then (ten degrees of seperation).

I can't believe it, but I have experienced two equally excellent ITDs. It couldn't have been better.

I am reviewing my bit of tape and I am pleased to report that I captured Baxdog's dramatic fireside performance of "The Nutsack" dance.

Florentina, you should have been there, that was really funny. Extremely funny.

Here is the photo from Monkeyman. photo is huge so I will just post the link

http://www.tikibug.com/ITD/group.jpg

[ Edited by: SeekingTiki on 2004-08-16 00:48 ]

What a great time. Can't wait to do it again next year!!

Just a few photos....

Tiki Rider, Floratina, Baxdog & Al

Shelly made this great ITD 2004/Birthday cake. It was yummy too!

The dancers were lots of fun.

You can see more pics here:
http://share.shutterfly.com/osi.jsp?i=EeAN2TFw4aMWzuo

Thanks to Al & Shelly for opening up their beautiful home, Smokin' Menehunes for playing, Tiki Diablo for the amulets (oh, the power) and everyone for making ITD 2004 a great day.
:drink:

:tiki:
Alnshely, Poly Pop and Tiki_Bong, we had a wonderful, wonderful time! Thank you so very much for everything. For the drinks, the beautiful dancing, the drinks, the yummy food, the drinks, the AM-U-LET, the drinks, the goodtimes with friends, the drinks, the mystical sounds of paradise floating thru the night air AND the drinks. It was magic! That or it was the Agwa :P
Thanks for allowing us to be apart of your International Tiki Day celebration! MAHALO! - DawnTiki

I want to add my thanks to Al n' Shelly for hosting a wild party in their beautiful Lagoon Room. The food, drinks, music, dancing, and spirit of tiki were all in abundance. Thanks to all the people who made this happen. I'm a fairly new member of the tiki central bb, and I'm still amazed at how much fun you guys are having. I can appreciate how much work goes into these events, and it's all done with such a generous attitude. How cool is that? With all the bad craziness going on the world, the tiki people are like a delightful little island oasis.

Alnshely, Poly Pop and Tiki_Bong, thank you very much for a great ITD! Alnshely you both were great host & your tiki home is excellent. Bong, the Smoking Menehunes never sounded better, & PolyPop your hula rocks!

Thanks again!

Tbird.

A big thanks are also in order to Tiki Farm for supplying us with mugs for the event.

Well, I am finally able to write, but still suffering from a two day hang over.. but need to say, for only my second tiki event, this one was a blast. The home brew was top notch, and bird had a nice presentation. The music was great, but why doesn't Crazy Al give us some of that stuff he is on, glad he did not pick me to dance with. It was nice to meet most of the TIKI CLAN. But AlnShelly, that was above and beyond. Thanks for the ranging good time and food and Al I am proud of you for not getting upset when someone else manned the Lagoon Room Bar... We all know it is your sanctuary and you remain the Kahuna...... more when my brain kicks back in.

What a great event, thanks again to Alnshely for hosting, Poly Pop, Bong, Bax & Sarah for organizing, Smoking Menehunas,Iuka Grog, Pop Ylop, King Kukulele, CB Howlie for the entertainment, Tiki Diablo for the amulets, Monkeyman & Krustiki for the photography, and to everyone who atteneded and made the event so much fun, especialy our Nor-Cal and French Tiki Centralites that made the long journey.

Looking forward to next year!
Mahlo,
Ran

On 2004-08-16 15:41, kick_the_reverb wrote:
Smoking Menehunas,Iuka Grog, Pop Ylop, King Kukulele, CB Howlie for the entertainment

Pop Ylop was there and I missed him? Dammit!!

Whew.... The big mess is now all cleaned up and Al is taking a much needed nap. I really had a lot of fun and it was great seeing all my tiki peeps again!

Thanks so much Bax & Sarah, you really came through with all the decorations & food. Thanks to everyone who brought food, booze, ice and cool gifts. Wow! Moki, that Kaluah Pig was awsome!

Thanks to Bong and the Smokin' Menehunies for really tearing it up. You guys were kickin'. Oh, Bong, I need my panties back! Also thanks to Judd, Poly Pop, Crazy Al & the King for additional hilarious entertainment.

And thanks again to the King & CB Howlie for FINALLY leaving on Sunday at 4:00 pm. Geez!

Really, it was great having so many people sleep over! But did you all have to come and wake me up like that? The blue pancakes were really great, sorry you missed them Bax. Monkey Man, you really out did yourself! My fridge is stocked with two gallons of milk, 10 pounds of grapes, 4 packs of hotdog buns, and two dozen eggs, so I guess I won't be going hungry. In additon Al and I have been enjoying a dog or two! Thanks Frank you were awsome!

Thanks Tina for helping us get set up & broken down all through the weekend. Speaking of broken down... about that screen door... just kidding!

To the SF crew, wow, thanks for making the trip! We were honored to have you. Come back again when you can't stay so long!

In addition only a few lost items have been recovered from the wreckage. So far I have found one pair of platform sandles, (very cute, but not my size!), one pair of sunglasses, and of course lots of Tupperware and such. Anybody missing stuff just shoot us an e-mail or pm.

Well I am starting to get a little bored here all by myself so if anyone wants to come over and help me polish off some of this extra rum...feel free! The Lagoon Room is always open!
I love you all, my TC Ohana, -Shell in the Pacific

On 2004-08-16 17:10, Alnshely wrote:
To the SF crew, wow, thanks for making the trip! We were honored to have you. Come back again when you CAN'T stay so long!

I love you all, my TC Ohana, -Shell in the Pacific"

Do you mean us Noiti Toitis OVERSTAYED our welcome?!?! snif!

Another fantastic event brought to you by fabulous TC hosts... A&S Rock'a Hula!

Only thing to say is I now know how seared Ahi is prepared with out cooking the tasty inside. I did a 'Grasshopper' # on my leg with the fire pit caldron... no tiger marks to show my Myers's induced bravery however.... but no damage done 'ither.

The Menehunes really kick some ass these days and I was supper stoked to enjoy the Myers's buzz along with their show. Music is magical and the Menehunes cast a great and powerful spell.

Lizzy finally let it all hang out at a tiki event!! She said she had a great, fun time talking to everyone, but doesn't quite know what was said...
I know better then to stop her when she's on a role, just better to jump on and enjoy the ride.
(ooo... that didn't come out that good) Anyway... What a time with all of you.

Till next year, (when I master the 'Reed' Mouth Harp AL gave me)...
A long and Happy Tiki Year to you all!

[ Edited by: crazy al on 2004-08-16 18:30 ]

Many thanx to our hosts. I was desperatley in need of some tiki events in my life. I had a great time at Al and Shelleys and will definitley see you all at Long Beach Tiki Fest.

["Lizzy finally let it all hang out at a tiki event!! She said she had a great, fun time talking to everyone, but doesn't quite know what was said...
I know better then to stop her when she's on a role, just better to jump on and enjoy the ride."]

I don't think I will need another lap dance my entire life!
My right ear has been whispered off!
My upper lip was almost removed!
And no they were not strings (full panties)
And yes some day Sara will get over it?
What a party! ! ! !

:music: Bluuuuue... Poooooo... :music:

Wow! Sounds like a great time was had by all. (As if I expected any less from a TC party.) Sorry we couldn't be there. Atomic Cocktail is still in NYC (hangin' with some old film crew buddies at the Met tomorrow!) and I was home hangin' with MamaVintage who's having some serious health issues. (After a medically scary and stressful week I kinda needed the rest too.) But I still thought of you all while fixing dinner and drinking some fruit juice and rum concoction I made. And I, too, wondered how many drinks Al had made at that point.

On 2004-08-16 20:27, Doctor Z wrote:
:music: Bluuuuue... Poooooo... :music:

It's all true! Incredible! Terrifying!

We had a great time. Thanks so much to A&S for the amazing hospitality. The drinks were fantastic, the Menehune's sounded great, and it was great to see everyone and meet some new folks as well. Thanks also to Bong and Pop for all the help planning. Rebecca really appreciated all the birthday attention and had a great night.

Mahalo to all!

On 2004-08-17 08:59, martiki wrote:

On 2004-08-16 20:27, Doctor Z wrote:
:music: Bluuuuue... Poooooo... :music:

It's all true! Incredible! Terrifying!

mine was green!! I must've had more eggs than you folks.

International Tiki Day is now my new fave holiday! Mahalo to Al & Shelly for hosting (Fabulous Lagoon Room should be upgraded to Fantabulous!) and to everyone who put so much effort into making this celebration a smashing success. The hospitality, music, dancers, food and drinks were da best. And the TC Ohana are always a pleasure to hang with. Had a great time...see you all again soon.

I had a great time in Seattle, but I was so sad I couldn't be there with you guys. Thanks for getting that group shot, at least I have a nice family photo now. :) It makes me feel all squishy inside knowing I've got such a close 'ohana. Glad you had fun, and it was nice to talk to Al & Sabu on the phone (I found my party after giving up and stopping in at a Kinko's!).

Baxdog and Tiki Bong
If you would like for Tiki Day to further blossom, there are ways.

The two ways to insure people will copy the Tiki Day idea is to build an easy to copy festival model which would make it like Oktoberfest or St. Paddy's in which municiplaities would knock-off the event.

or

Make it profitable, using 501(c)(3) "not for profit status", and fee waivers. This model would be more like Highland Games, which are a boomng business. Some are funded by clubs, others by groups who only exist for the event itself. There is about 1 new Highland Game a year starting now because they are fun and profitable.

I think it would be possible to plan a large party, convince a medium sized town to sponsor it, and get some corporate sponsorship. The key would be careful planning, especially choosing the city, then convincing all parties that they will get what they want out of the event. Towns want positive noteriety, newspapers want cultural diversity, colorful photos, sales and exposure. Alcohol distributors want people associating thier product with fun...

If people are serious about wanting the tiki Day to grow in this manner, it certainly can become it's own discussion topic.

Bong sets up

There were so many cameras there - where are all the pictures?

That Bong shot is from a camera phone. Not bad, eh?

Sounds like it was a lovely celebration. Wish I would have been there, kids. Sniff.

Here's some nightvision captures from the Lagoon Room event:

Tent set-up time (in the Haunted Mansion?)

King and Al

Bax dances The Nutsack

The King and Captain Al

Al 'n Shelly, you are the most wonderful hosts and your house is a work of art as well as a labor of love AND the supreme party pad of the Western World! I loved the Swank Tank too...like a little bit of Futura House dropped out of the sky into your Tiki paradise. Thank you SO MUCH for a magnificent ITD!!! and I hope to see you both again soon! XOX tikivixen

p.s. I have no idea why, folks, but those tinted foods had Absolutely No Effect upon me At All. Kinda disappointing...:wink:

we had an awesome International Tiki Day (Weekend) ~ Thanks to Bong for creating the best holiday, since Christmas.

It's better than x-mas...no stress at all!! Thanks Bong!!! Ah shit he can't read this.

why not?
you dont have to be a member to read TC, just post.

Jeff(bigtikidude)

When Spermy says "can't", it's not that he means Bong is unable to read TC, it's that Bong steadfastly chooses not to. Tiki_Bong has better things to do, unlike us plebeians.

Thats why when he saw Hanford he was asking him to let him back on?
:wink:

Jeff(bigtikidude)