Wednesday - a great day at the Island

Wednesday is always a treat for me at FI. It is the long-standing night when folks from Tiki Central come by, so I get to see lots of friends. I very frequently get to meet other interesting people too, and such was the case this past Wednesday. It was a fairly quiet start to the evening, and everything was humming along as per usual, when a couple strolls into the bar. As they are sipping their Painkillers, I overhear them mention something about a sailing expedition from here in the Bay Area all the way to Australia, via Hawai'i and the Polynesian Islands... my curiosity was piqued, as I once had a very similar opportunity myself (although it didn't come to fruition). We started talking, and as it turns out, this couple, Steven and Kristin Osborne, originally from Alaska, but now living in Marin County, were gearing up for their last two weeks in California before heading out on this amazing journey. They had been hired to sail a vessel that someone from Long Beach is selling to a buyer in Sydney (the coincidence in this is almost uncanny to the offer I had, just about 2 years ago, that sailboat also having been in Long Beach, and going to Sydney... but in my case the deal fell through. I believe someone else in California ended up buying it).

Steven, Kristin and myself got into a wonderful conversation about all of this. Their plan is to sail to Hawai'i, then down to Fiji and through many of the Polynesian Islands before making it to Sydney. The entire journey will take several months. The idea of the chance to sail the South Pacific is something that has always been attractive to me personally, and I think an opportunity such as this only comes around once in a lifetime. Oh, the amazing things one would see! It can only be described as life changing. After that, I run out of words.

Steven and Kristin Osborne

Steven and Kristin went on to tell me about the name of this expedition, and the name of the new vessel they will build when they return to the Bay Area afterward - Merlin's Revenge. Their wonderful dog, Merlin, who was deaf and was trained using 100% hand signals, recently passed away. They had planned to take him all around the world with them - so this expedition is in his honor and memory.


Kristin's tattoo of Merlin

Check out the progress of Merlin's Revenge as they journey the south seas by following their blog, http://merlins-revenge.org.

I'll see YOU at the Island!

--Suzanne

T-Minus One Week to the Black Orchid Club!

Beginning Wednesday, November 4, 2009, you will be treated to a unique experience... you will be initiated into the Black Orchid Club, exclusively at Forbidden Island. On that Wednesday and for 13 consecutive Wednesdays, you have the opportunity to taste an all unique, all original, all new, and totally exclusive cocktail. Each cocktail will only be available on that specific Wednesday, and will never again be available at Forbidden Island. When you come in and order the special cocktail of the day, you will also be presented with a collectible card, specific to the cocktail. At the end of the 13 weeks, if you have been present for 9 of the thirteen weeks in a row (or at least have cards to prove it) then you will win a prize!

These are the details:

One card, per person, per evening.
Cards may be traded! So, if you can't make it in, send a friend! Also, remember that you only need 9 in a row to win, not all 13. However, if you do collect all 13 cards, you will win an even more exciting prize!

Wild Cards:
Should you miss an opportunity to come in on a Wednesday evening, there are two chances to earn Wild Cards. Wild Cards may be used to fill in any holes in your 9 consecutive weeks, at no penalty. Clues about how to earn the Wild Cards will come from the bar, the cards themselves, and from clues on the new blog, Shakin' Rum and Pineapples... Tales from behind the bamboo stick at Forbidden Island: http://rumnpineapple.blogspot.com, as well as the Twitter feed for the blog, http://twitter.com/RumNPineapple. Bookmark these! Once you have solved the Wild Card riddles, you will be able to come in and claim your Wild Cards, and you'll be able to then order the two Wild Card cocktails... which you can only try by knowing the answers to the riddles.

All in all, we have 13 weeks, 15 all original cocktails, 15 trading cards, great prizes, and much much more!

Good Luck everyone!

I'll see you at the Island!

--Suzanne

Zombies... and cocktails, on a Saturday night

Last night was a lot of fun at Forbidden Island. Instead of mixing drinks, I was there cocktailing, as our regular Saturday evening cocktail waitress, Meg, needed the evening off. Early in the evening, a pair of Zombies found their way into the bar... I was sad that I had forgotten my camera and didn't get the chance to get a photo of them. They were having your typical excellent undead sort of time. Jolly Zombies, these two ladies were!

Lots of conversation was in the air about the launch of the Black Orchid Club, too. For those of you not yet in the know, the Black Orchid Club rolls out on Wednesday, November 4th. Beginning that day for 13 consecutive Wednesdays, Forbidden Island (and yours truly) will present one all original cocktail, never before served at FI and never to be served again. Each Wednesday is all unique, and you only have that one chance to have that unique cocktail. Each person ordering the special cocktail of the day will receive a collectors card specific to that day and cocktail. At the end of the 13 weeks, cards will be redeemable for special prizes... watch this space for more details as the game unfolds.

Today, I'm tightening up the straps on my Halloween cocktail special, the Renfield Cocktail (one of my favorite Halloween characters of all time). Here's Tom Waits as the infamous character:



Come and try this potent delectable on Halloween at FI!

I'll see YOU at the Island!

--Suzanne

This is a test.

Posted on Friday, October 23, 2009 at 10:27 AM by Rum and Pineapples

"This is a test of the Emergency Broadcast System. The broadcasters of your area in voluntary cooperation with the Federal, State and local authorities have developed this system to keep you informed in the event of an emergency. If this had been an actual emergency, the Attention Signal you just heard would have been followed by official information, news or instructions. This station, Rum N Pineapples, serves the entire rum consuming tiki community. This concludes this test of the Emergency Broadcast System."