First off, thanks to everyone who left birthday greetings in my comments. I appreciate that many of you seem to think I appear younger on the Internets than I am in real life, and everyone agrees that I am somewhere between "old as dirt" and "older than leftover broccoli that's gone putrid in the fridge." Go me!

As Humuhumu notes, lighting is crucial to achieving the proper mood in a tiki bar, and I've had that in mind since long before construction began on this project. Yesterday in Stillwater, I found an old lamp made out of a coconut shell and palm fronds that'll look fantastic alongside the abalone shell and pufferfish lamps I picked up earlier. The electric cord was frayed and the plug was broken, so I spent a couple of hours rewiring it this afternoon. Wouldn't want to burn down the bar before I've even had a chance to use it.

I also bought a bottle of 10 Cane Rum; I'll be giving that a try later on.

You'll note from the photos that the bamboo coverings are now up on the walls. Very nice.