My 1000th post

Well, it took about 5 and a half years, but I finally made it to post #1000 here on Tiki Central.

I may not visit or post on Tiki Central as much as I used to, but I do want to say that this website, and the people who populate it, have been greatly treasured by myself. I can remember way back in 2002, when Swanky first told me about this website at the first Hukilau, held in Atlanta. I signed up when I got home, and since then Tiki Central has been key in enabling me to meet other enlightened tiki folk who live in the D.C. area, throughout the U.S., and all over the world. For me, it was truly the right website and the right community at the right time in my life.

I swear that if I grow to become very old, and look back to this period of my life (2002-2007), I will consider the tiki aspect to be the highlight for that era. It certainly provided more highlights, and more memorable travel opportunities than my work/career or other outlets were able to provide for the same time period. I was interested in tiki before 2002, but it was Tiki Central that really shifted my tiki awareness from 1st to 4th gear.

Many people in the tiki community have touched my heart - some with their kindness, some with their beauty, some (mostly women) with a smile and their sense of fashion, and some with their willingness to reach out to me and serve a mai-tai in a time of need. Some of you I consider close friends, others only a brief smile at the end of a bar, or a witty remark or comment made on some distant thread -- but all of you are treasured by me in some form, and hopefully my presence here as been positive for you too. Some people have left Tiki Central for other grounds and other interests, but others have stayed, and there seems to be a steady influx of people who are only now first discovering tiki. I value each and every one of you.

My hair is now a bit grayer, my body a tad more weary, my tiki room is more cluttered with prints and artifacts, and my photo albums are crammed with memorable photos. But my curious nature continues to grow, as I continue to seek out other avenues of interest. Wherever I may end up, I will always consider the tiki culture, in some form, to be a welcome home.

Please indulge me, as I look back over the past 5 and a half years, and recall a top 10 list of my favorite posts

1. This is perhaps my favorite and most touching post ... about the closing of the Honolulu restaurant.
   http://www.tikicentral.com/viewtopic.php?topic=8520&forum=1&vpost=85654

2. a review of a 1972 Lawrence Welk episode - filmed in Hawaii!
   http://www.tikicentral.com/viewtopic.php?topic=4060&forum=1&vpost=98324

3. thoughts of Martin Denny passing away
   http://www.tikicentral.com/viewtopic.php?topic=13489&forum=1&vpost=144487

4. a photo review of a 2005 January trip to Daytona, that occurred just when I needed the tiki community the most
   http://www.tikicentral.com/viewtopic.php?topic=11388&forum=4&vpost=137394

5. Thoughts on hearing Robert Drasnin perform at the 2005 Hukilau
   http://www.tikicentral.com/viewtopic.php?topic=16823&forum=4&vpost=191700

6. my tiki big-eyed painting
   http://www.tikicentral.com/viewtopic.php?topic=18990&forum=1&vpost=224096

7. My review of the Solomons Island Tiki bar, or as I called it then, the Land of Bosko
   http://www.tikicentral.com/viewtopic.php?topic=19679&forum=1&vpost=234201

8.) a Covarrubias / Easter Island magazine discovery
http://www.tikicentral.com/viewtopic.php?topic=22512&forum=1&vpost=279247

9. an image concerning the Hawaiian War Chant that I still haven't got out of my head
   http://www.tikicentral.com/viewtopic.php?topic=5451&forum=6&vpost=50780

10. and finally - well, hopefully there are still good posts yet to come. Stay tuned, and hopefully I will be able to present you with more good stuff.

Vern

p.s. I guess a special thanks to Hanford is warranted here. You've done something good here with Tiki Central, and I thank you for it.

[ Edited by: ikitnrev 2007-12-26 22:22 ]

Congrats! I'm right behind you, this is post #992 or thereabouts for me.

Congratulations, rev. Without TC, I never would've had the pleasure of hanging out with you at the D.C. area's better drinking establishments.

Bravo Vern. You are one tiki devoted fella, and it's always a pleasure to share a drink with you at the Mai Kai during Hukilau and talk tiki stories.

Congrats Vern...and as usual another great post by you (will check out the links later as I know they will be interesting). I always enjoy reading your posts, you do good research and provide valuable tiki-related intel to one and all. Bring on 1001!!! :D

Congratulations Vern!!! :)

You will always be a close friend. You are one of the true "originals" who helped shape the Tiki Culture as we know it today. I share many memories of hanging out together at the Hukilau, Exotica, and the Hot Rod Hula Hop. TC helped bring a lot of people together in the early days and is still a plethora of information for the enthusiast and/or collector.

Times have changed as we grow older but the friendships we have made will last a lifetime.

Cheers and Mahalo, Vern!!!!

Jeff

Welcome to the thousand post club, Vern! Thanks for linking up the
"Vern Retrospective." It was especially nice to refresh my memories of the "Big
Eyed Vern" and the Bosko paradise. Of course my favorite of yours is the
visit to the Conga Lounge, where you are always welcome!

Vern is one of the few on Tiki Central who's posts I seek out by the person who posted rather than the subject of the thread. Always enlightening, educational and at times hysterical.

Congrats on #1000!!

Wow! Vern, you honor us with your gentle spirit and fantastic mind.

I truly cherish your trip to Daytona and my chance to spend quality time with you. As cold as that night was (we Floridians are lightweights with cold weather), it will always be one of my warmest memories.

Keep up your fascinating posts!!

*On 2007-12-27 06:09, Kenike wrote:*Vern is one of the few on Tiki Central whose posts I seek out by the person who posted rather than the subject of the thread.

Ha! Me too, Kenike! I always know it will be valuable, thoughtful and enlightening - and very well written. His title could be "New archeological find on Rapa Nui" or "Poo-poo in your pants," but I will still click his thread before any other.

That kind of worthwhile-ness is also why it took you longer, Vern, to make it to 1000 than many other TC-ers; your posts are not "Yeah, cool!" posts, but rather a whole photographic essay on the demise of a beloved tiki establishment or sharing a heretofore unknown tiki treasure. Of course, "Yeah, cool!" posts have their place (especially in "Creating"), but you know what I mean.

I'll not wax rhapsodic here on your wonderfulness (you didn't die, after all!), but thanks for so many of my favorite memories in Tikiland. And thanks for documenting them so well on TC.
Formikahini

Cheers Vern,
Thank you for your insight, your perspective and your love for all things Tiki.
Mahalo,
Al

nreV yeH

.notgnihsaW orteM ni pu gnippop trats lliw secalp ikit emos ebyam ,kcul yna htiW. NRsseripmaV ksa ,raey a ni stsop 0002 ekam ot woh nrael ot tnaw uoy fI .ton epoH .gnivael si ohw enoemos ekil sdnuos tsop ruoY

Thank you Vern for being here, your research and posts always bring new inspiration to this board. After so many veterans have dropped by the wayside, it sometimes feels lonely trying to keep classic Tiki culture alive here, but you are a true man-in-the-know who still lives it, and contributes valuable insight and information.
I understand that many TCers living in less Tiki-rich states than California might have little else than yet another new Tiki mug to get excited about, but you demonstrate that even a D.C. castaway can keep the Tiki spirit alive. Your understanding of not only Tiki but also other related genres of fringe pop culture has enriched this community, where else would I have found out about the Jack Lord estate auctions for example. While still in Africa, I ordered three "I am Cuba" box sets on line after your post, which made some nice Christmas presents, thank you.
I too am glad to have met you, Mahalo for the mana.

You know full well that I enjoy your company even more than your posts.
Hope to see you again soon.

Vern, you're one of those soul brothers out there I have met by way of this community. That's what makes this place great is that Tiki is a central lagoon where many of the lovers of the strange and wonderful aspects of America congregate. Its like an extended family and I feel like I now have relatives in just about anywhere I want to travel and that I'll find new friends and unique things when I get there. One of these days I really want to visit your home. The pictures are oh so intriguing!

Vern, we only spoke briefly at Hukilau 2006 and although I saw you onstage at Hukilau 2007, I didn't get a chance to talk with you. And I had to miss that Daytona trip (still bummed about that). However, I feel I know you through your posts. Thanks for adding a considerable amount of value to Tiki Central. As others have already said, I look forward to your posts because I know they will enlighten as well as entertain. Here's to the next thousand!

Rock on Vern!

A thousand posts???
What a loser. Get a life!

:) Glad your here.

Thanks for the kind words, everybody, as they do mean a lot to me. My 1000th post came around right at the end of the year, a time when I tend to reflect on the past and think about the future. Your words help me understand what is important in this world.

Vern

Pheew, another mid-life crisis averted! Vern, stay with us now! Vern, VEEERN! Aaah, thank you baby Jesus, another soul saved.

I am fascinated by what makes Tiki veterans fall by the wayside. So far, the single most destructive force here on TC seems to be the dissolution of relationships...which is caused by another reason for Tiki-tiredness: People change, and people look for new games to play.

In my case Tiki was the actual escape-world that saved my sanity because just when my first marriage went down the toilet, I finally got the greenlight to make the BOT a reality, which as a task actually saved my sanity...well, or shifted my insanity into another area.

On 2007-12-28 09:52, bigbrotiki wrote:
So far, the single most destructive force here on TC seems to be the dissolution of relationships...which is caused by another reason for Tiki-tiredness: People change, and people look for new games to play.

F*&k you Sven! GROG tired of your bullshit! Kiss GROG' ass goodbye TC, GROG outta here!

P.S. Congrats on your thousandth post vern. :)

G-g-g-grOG! Did I say something wrong, hit a nerve? I was simply being my pragmatic old self.

I thought you were wisely following the way of the bachelor: If you are not a into Tiki as a COUPLE, you will not forsake it upon breaking up, because....you cannot brake up!...right?

Anyway, we should not soil this lovely thread full of genuinely heartwarming positive energy which such unseemly and rude language, BAD Grog!

We're not a couple? How come nobody tell GROG these things? Well, if GROG can't break up with Sven, then GROG still here.

But, still----congrats Vern, you're still stuck in Hanford's evil plot to take over the world and cause the downfall of the western civilization through this website.

Awreet Vern! As anybody will tell ya...it's not quantity, it's quality that really counts and in that area you outshine me by a light year. Although I've logged a shitload of posts, probably 75% are drunken ramblings, obscure quips and mindless psycho-babble posted in the Bilge and Beyond corridors of T.C. Keep up the good work man. We appreciate your input.