The Ticket Situation

UPDATE:

We will not respond to unsolicited requests to join the camp in 2012. It is clear by the timing and nature of the requests that people aren't looking to camp with us specifically, they're just looking for a means to an end because of the ticket situation. We're under enough stress to find ways to get the crew to the Playa this year without having to decline a bunch of people who have no real interest in our theme camp. It's tough all around folks. Best of luck, hope you make it to the Playa. And if we don't, have a great Burn and we'll see you in 2013.

Regards,
-The Management

Countdown

Camp gear is mostly organized. The new Karaoke domes are complete. The Palace landing team is nearly ready to ship out on Thursday for Friday arrival on the Playa. If the winds ain't too bad The Palace will be open for business before gates open. See you in the dust soon!

We've been placed

Somewhere along 3:30 and Birthday:



Other updates for mid July:

• The Palace has space for people who want to join & participate - are you interested?
• Bruce continues work on the our dual-dome Karaoke venue. The domes are fabricated now we just need some covering.
• We have a snow cone machine and associated permit.
• New platform for our diesel generator - no more lifting that fucking thing!
• We've got 1300 watts of solar panels. Solar is good!
• 500 More songs added to the karaoke catalog! (lazy web admin still needs to update it on the site)

A Matter Of Days

Early June and the website's almost complete - poke around while we finish it up! In the meantime read the excellent post Wisely wrote for his first Burn in 2009...

Adventures in Black Rock City

by Wisely
Saturday, September 12, 2009 at 11:52am

So, just to clarify things a bit... this was my first trip to Burning Man and so I had left my expectations open. Wide Open. I wasn't looking anything to happen (other than enjoying myself) and I had a very good experience (well, a few things were off, but not enough to ruin anything).

If anyone ever asks you to go, or you decide to go to check it out, don't hesitate. As Steph told me: GO TO BURNING MAN. I'm very glad I went. It's a great experience and there is a lot of stuff there... I think I saw about .1% of it :)

A few caveats - Be One With the Dust. You will get dusty and dirty. A lot. All the time. Accept it. It's all good, it's all part of it.

It's loud. There must be a hundred different songs playing at once, all at full volume and it doesn't seem to stop. Each camp that boasts a rave or dance club is going (what seems to be) 24/7. After the first or second day you won't notice, it becomes just the background and at night, with earplugs, is kind of soothing. Kind of :)

While I heard of confrontations between people and run-ins with police, I was never witness to anything like that. Everyone I met - and I do mean everyone - was kind, helpful, happy and fun to be around. On one hand it was a huge 8 day party and on the other it was this giant experimental community with folks more than willing to help each other out - just because. That was awesome.

Now, I'm a guy who likes his solitude. I find time by myself to be healing, soothing and calming; peaceful. Burning Man is anything but. Why did I go?

Because I needed to... I'm not going to go into my personal life, that's boring, but I've had a rough bit of luck the last three years and my self-esteem/confidence isn't where it should be.

Solitude can be healing and reflective, but it's easy to close off. I wanted to test myself, to see how I would fare in an extreme environment and in the midst of a ginormous amount of people ( which normally I would run screaming from). In other words I wanted to Break on Through :)

So -- this is my Burning Man experience


I flew to Seattle and Bold picked me up at the airport. We ran around a bit, going to REI to pick up a few things I hadn't gotten yet (Camelback, etc.) and then back to he and Molly's place to help organize stuff in the garage that will need to be loaded in the truck the next day. It is organized chaos. That evening we go out for Ethiopian food I crash in the RV for the night.

The next morning, Bold, Brian (hereafter known as the Vulgerizer - which is also the name of his metal band) and I go to pick up the PENSKE truck that Vulgerizer and I will be driving for the trip. Bold's a little worried about them freaking if we say we're taking it to the desert for Burning Man, so he coaches us on a story about using it to haul band equipment for a tour through Oregon and Northern California - like I look like any sort of roadie or metalhead.... rrrriiiiigggght. Turns out we never use the story, they never really ask.

The truck is then guided into the alley behind Bold and Molly's and awaits the rest of the camp to show up to help with load in. I make another journey out to pick up last minute supplies and costume pieces.

Load in - takes a while, but Bold is a master packer and manages to Tetris everything into the truck. We agree we should be on the road at 8am and I crash in the RV again. 8am turns into 10am before we are on the road.

In hindsight, this should've been a big warning to all of us. The trip to Black Rock City took us 24 hours longer that we had planned for -- the RV broke down, twice and we ended up splitting the party for a majority of the trip.

The RV stayed in Sandy the first night and the Truck and car went onto LaPine. We drove to Alturas the next day and waited there for the RV to catch up.

Saturday morning we all set off for Black Rock and arrived there mid-afternoon. We are greeted by clouds of beige dust and gray-skinned greeters. We allow them to examine the vehicles to make sure we aren't smuggling in freeloaders and then head into the city. We are met next a man in a thin white robe and a nude woman - since I am a Playa virgin, I am given warm hugs by both and they tell me "Welcome home!" the nude woman then has me ring a loud heavy bell and makes me lay down in the dust to make a Playa Angel and then baptizes me with more dust. We hop back in the truck and then begin making our way slowly to where our camp is. We can only go 5mph so this takes about 1/2 hour.

We reach the camp site, and begin unloading. We get everyting out, and begin set up up. The wind is blowing stiffly and clouds of dirt and dust swirl around everywhere. And the music is blaring from a dozen directions and it's hot and I'm thinking... it's gonna be a llooooonnnng week.

By the time the sun sets we have personal tents up and part of the kitchen. The kitchen and the karaoke are going to be housed on Costco barns, prefabricated structures held together with pins and bungie-ties. Oh, and everything has to be 're-barred' into the ground - inch-think bars of rebar are pounded into the earth to keep everything from flying away in the wind and dust. I crawl into my tent sometime after midnight (i guess) and lay there listening to the constantly pounding music and trying not to breathe too much because it's so freaking dusty. I don't remember sleeping, but I do remember waking up because it was hot in the tent... and the music was still going.

Welcome to Black Rock City.

After breakfast we continue to set up the camp.

Let me just say, we ate really good on the Playa. Molly and Bold and Miranda and the others who were working in the weeks before we left did an excellent job of planning the menus, vacuum sealing all the food and making sure none of us went hungry. We usually had bacon and pancakes or french toast each morning, and the evening meals ranged from pulled pork (Thanks Theo!), hamburgers, steaks, chicken, lamb and lentils, etc. We ate good.

The rest of the camp gets mostly set up, but not completely by the time the evening rolls around and I'm still acclimating to the climate and surrounding madness. It's hot, but not blistering and the wind helps cool things off, but the dust is a living thing that is continually trying to hug you.

Sunday night at midnight they open the gates to the non-theme camp folks, but I am already in my tent and trying to sleep. I remember my earplugs this night and sleep soundly. The plugs help muffle the sounds and music and my fears about not being able to sleep are assuaged. I must say, I slept well in the tent and wasn't deprived of a decent sleep the whole time I was there.

Monday - we wrap up getting the camp set up and spend most of the afternoon under the shade structure, setting up the bar and getting ready for Nude-aroke. James has brought an awesome system, including stage lights and speakers -- it's very professional. There are 1850 songs to choose from and we fool around with it a bit, blaring our music out onto the Playa to mix with the blaring music from other camps.

Monday night descends and BRC comes alive with neon illuminated signs, vehicles, bikes and people. Everyone is dressed in elaborate and wild costumes, lit by LEDs or glo-sticks. i am dressed in an orange fur pimp hat and accosting people on the street, urging them to come sing naked karaoke. We begin to draw a crowd and very soon our first nude singer braves the night and strips to sing. James is unhappy because it is a guy, but hey, it has begun.

I am amazed at the sights and sounds all around me... it really does feel a lot like Barter Town, the city Tina Turner runs in Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome. Oh, did I mention there is a real Thunderdome here? I'll get back to that. My mind keeps thinking that at night, this place is a cross between Blade Runner, Mad Max and Sodom. But I'm a sci-fi gamer geek, so we all use the stuff we are familiar with. The Man is about half a mile away, glowing in the desert night and surrounded by neon buildings and odd cars shaped like deep sea fish, a giant penis that shoots fire, a flying carpet, a two story pirate ship and more.

A cute girl from Chicago begins talking to me and because I've been out of the game so long, I don't realize that she may be hitting on me. Now, I'm not gonna tell a story about getting all wild and freaky, because, well I'm just too timid I guess... we chatted for most of the night, sang songs and then she left. Only after I was helping break stuff down did I realize , darn it, I probably should've tried for a kiss. But I'm kind of a slow mover in that department, like to take things a bit slow... stupid I know :)

The next day i get up, have breakfast and borrow a bike to ride out onto the Playa... I ride out to the Man, the Temple and a giant slide. I see a giant Rubik's cube, some other odd bits of art, a giant woman made entirely of scrap metal, a tree made of bone, more people than i can count who are just now stumbling home after last night's party, men and women dressed or half dressed in lingerie and other costumes... it's about 11am and the drinking and partying is already in full swing. Tuesday night is pink night, so we all dress up with some pink and head out.

First stop - Thunderdome. Have you seen Mad Max? It is exactly that, but without weapons. Well, there are foam bats, but these guys and girls are wailing on each other with bloody abandon. The crowd yells for more and GnR's "Welcome to the Jungle" swirls all around. Two men dressed as firefighters - not fake costumes either, these guys are in full on fire-fighter regalia, including hats - get hooked up to the bungie cables and go at it, one gets turned completely upside down the the other guy throws three good, quick shots to his crotch. Ouch!

After a while, we move on and saunter down the Esplanade, ogling all the odd and fantastic sights.

Thin of the best party you ever went to; now think of the best concert you ever went to, and think of the best outdoor event you ever went to... and then forget them because this place tops them all. It is like a concert on top of a concert on top of a spectacular event on top of a concert and at the same time it is the biggest house party you have ever been too. Drinks flow and music plays and lights and fireworks and fire-dancers and naked people all mix together and it keeps going and going and going. Each place you go to has something new and interesting to see. It is overwhelming.

We've walked what seems like miles and still we are maybe only at the halfway mark. We make our way back to camp to help break down the karaoke.

The next morning, after breakfast I decide it would be a good idea to try and find the girl from Monday. She had left her drinking cup behind and being the guy i am, I think she would like it back. So I put on my camel-back, fill it with water, grab my camera and head out. I'm on foot so it takes a while to hike over to the 9 o'clock side.
BRC is laid out like a giant C with streets designated by either a letter or clock time, so you hear people say things like, "we are at 4:15 and H" or "I'll meet you at B and 7:30". Also, the Playa gives you a name, usually based on the impression you give people or some other reason. I run into names like Hottie, Dishy, Solies, Mistress, V, Blackberry, Bronco, Tray, Mark Q, Afrosheen and others. I am dubbed Wisely. Well, it's better than Stinky ;)

It's still cool at 11am so the walk isn't that bad, I snap pictures here and there and when i reach the 9 o'clock side I look for the girl, but really, this is a city of 41,000. The chances are slim to none of me seeing here, and not surprisingly I don't. Ah, well.

I head back to camp, stopping by Center Camp where some guy is giving a speech about something and silent dance is going on in the center, it's like capoeira but in slow motion, very beautiful. I reach camp and collapse under the shade structure and banter with my camp mates.

At 2 o'clock, the girl rides into camp. I tell her I have her cup and that I tried to walk it over to where she said she was staying and she is grateful. We are invited to go to a wine and cheese tating at another camp and so we trek over to Bloop Camp, who has two massive 64 foot parachute tents (compared to our measly 32' parachute tent). The cheese is fantastic and wine cold and delicious. We hang for a while and then decide to try and catch an Art-car. An Art-car is a vehicle that has been elaborately decorated and serves as a sort of taxi for the Playa. They are amazing in design and complexity - I saw the following: a two story house, complete with outhouse, a two-story pirate ship, manned by the Titty Pirates, a deep sea angler fish, the Flintstone's car, a giant cat, a flying carpet, a giant skull and there where so many more.

Just outside Bloop camp, an impromptu rave is taking place. A school bus is pumping out some serious wattage and there are dozens of people dancing. We join in and here weare, under the blazing sun, dancing while other dancers spritz us with cool water from spray bottles. The music bleeds from one song to another and it's amazing. A girl on stilts wades through the crowd, body swaying in time to the music; she's dancing on stilts. Wild.

We move away after a time and catch a ride on the flying carpet. We meet a stunning black girl from Zambia. Her voice is melodious and she shares her drinks with us, we trundle around the Playa from place to place, people climbing on and off, from bar to bar, for what seems like a good two hours. Time is odd on the Playa, it really doesn't seem to matter. All that matters is the moment. I am having a ball.

We get off close to her camp and it's close to sunset. She grabs a few things from her cooler some bacon and a few packages of shrimp and we start to make our way back to our camp to cook dinner. It's almost dark by the time we get there. With the help of some other camp mates we get the grill going and make bacon wrapped shrimp. We share it and then we head out into the night. We walk around to the 2 o'clock side to see what's going on there. One camp is filled with tribal drummers, another has a middle-eastern fire-spinning show, another is a giant rave, with several large screens showing snippets of films - Bollywood musicals, 1950's sci-fi, cartoons, all mashed together and running at triple speed. Your mouth is hanging open and the technical marvel that exists here in the middle of the desert. It is surreal and awesome. and this is only day three :)

We walk out to the Temple, passing by the giant Rubik's Cube and climb the steps of the giant lotus-shaped Temple. People have left messages on every inch of the available space, saying good-bye to loved ones who have passed or relationship's that have died or just whatever they need to let go of. Some are poignant, some are poisonous, some are heartbreaking and others seem silly. The place is packed and we are tired so we head back.

As I've said, I've been out of the game and don't pick up on signals like I used to. I think she is getting bored, but she may just be tired. We reach camp sit for a bit and then she leaves after giving me a small peck on the cheek. I sit with Bold and talk about the day and what a doofus I am for not making a move, but seriously, I am dirty, dusty and covered in sweat. I know that shouldn't matter out here, but for me it does.

The next day is hot and I spend most of it under the shade of the parachute. people find out I was on the Power Rangers and I'm a celebrity of sorts. I feel old :) Evening comes and karaoke starts up agin, the girl shows up and I vow to do something tonight. I'm working the bar, so I can't right away, but she asks me to sing a duet with her, so i do. She wants to do it nude so I strip... yep... I'm naked and singing naked in the desert - "I had the Time of My Life" no less, from Dirty Dancing. Can it get any more surreal?

Well, the evening winds down, and the girl is no where to be found. After a while I head to bed. Turns out she hooked up with the Vulgerizer. C'est la vie. I was surprisingly OK with it, I mean my confidence and self esteem took a hit, but really I was having a ball, and who cares? I had known both of them for less than a week... and out in BRC, there are no rules. Sure you can say I wimped out, but really I didn't go to Burning Man to be Tucker Max. I went to see see what it was all about and I am having a good time, even with all the dust and dirt and unending music. It is psychotic and psychedelic -- I'm having a really good time.

Friday - another slow day spent under the shade tent. I got a foot massage and a henna tattoo - a big blazing sun on my right shoulder. Later that day, the Vulgerizer apologizes for moiving in on the girl and I say "Dude, there are no rules, do what you will." He's a good looking guy, long hair and about ten years younger. He spends the rest of the week with her. All three of us head out before dinner to go to the kissing booth at 4:30. On the way there we walk through the 3 o'clock portal, with has a large triangular tower that lights up as a landmark at night. A couple is having sex on the top and is being cheered on by the crowd. They put on a really good show :)

We stop by the Lollipop camp and get KetelOne Vodka shots with a lollipop... they are the sweetest shots I've ever taken. I'm a little buzzed. We get to the kissing booth and the girl is very cute and her name is Dane. It is the first real kiss I have had in over two years and it was amazing. I am happy and grinning like a fool.

I head back for dinner and stop into the Damn Fucking Texans camp to introduce myself. They welcome me with open arms. I get back to camp and James, our karaoke DJ offers me some of his magic chocolate. It's about the size of half a snickers bar. I gobble half of it and then help with karaoke, playing barker on the street to get people to come inside. Four members of our camp are from Denmark and they are all pretty cool. Tony, Nigel, George and Maria. Maris is dressed like a techno viking and asks me if I want to go to a rave. I say yes and we head out. She doesn't like the music so we head to Thunderdome. Maria says she wants to fight in Thunderdome. We get there to see the opening ceremony, it's all very goth and Dead Can Dance, with sparks and weapons and people screaming for blood. The chocolate kicks in and everything is bright and fun. I scream along with the crowd as we watch fight after fight. Maria has to use the facilities so we wander off, making our way back to camp. The lights waver and shimmer all around and it's like something out of a move. The world has suffered an apocalypse and everyone is just partying until the end.

Back in camp I hook up with Bold and we walk across the street to where friends are. We drink and talk about everything. Bold decides he wants cheeseburgers and heads off to light the grill. While the meat is thawing we walk up to the Esplanade and stand in the street while the odd mish-mash of humanity, vehicles and dust swirls all-around. Tomorrow night the Man burns and the party is raging.

We head back and Bold wrestles with the grill. it won't stay lit, but he will not be defeated. I sit in a chair and trip. He yells in triumph and moments later I am chewing a delicious combination of meat, cheese and bread. People fade and I eventually crawl into my tent, techno thumping and my brain throbbing. I eventually sleep.

The dust storm. They've been talking about white-outs all week, and we finally get one. It lasts most of the day and it is nothing I have ever seen before. I have a surgical mask on and it is inescapable. Hours and hours of blowing billowing dust. The Burning of the Man is delayed. i consider just staying in camp, but no dammit. This is why i came... I want to see the Man burn up close. I trudge through the storm to the Man and the huge crowd gather around. We wait and wait and wait while the procession of fire-spinners does some show I can barely see through the crowd. And then it begins, with the circle of art-cars blaring a cacophony of techno and trance, the fireworks start and the fire ball shoots up, setting the man and the base structure a-blaze. The heat washes over us and it is blistering. It is the biggest real-life fire I have ever seen. I am a little disappointed. It is very much a spectacle, but I was hoping for a little more ceremony or substance, but it is still very cool. It takes the man nearly an hour to fall.

The next night is Temple Burn, but we spend a majority of the day breaking own camp, getting ready for the Exodus the next day.

The Temple Burn is solemn and touching. There is no music blaring, no yelling no partying. Everyone sits on the ground and watches and the small fire turns into a giant conflagration. People are weeping and holding one another. It is quite moving.

We head back to camp and spend the coldest night on the Playa, I was shivering for most of the night, unable to get anything close to warm.

The next morning comes way too early and we are up and working, breaking down the rest of the camp, loading up the truck and MOOP-ing. Burning Man is a 'leave-no-trace' event, we cannot leave anything behind. We sift through the dirt and dust to find the smallest bit of trash or man-made thing to throw away. Finally at 2:30 we head towards the gate. They tell me this the shortest Exodus they have ever seen, a mere two hour wait in line to drive out to the highway.

Burning Man is over and the trek home begins.

We drive to Cedarville, which is packed with other Burners and grab dinner. Then on to the hotel and a hot shower. It is glorious.

The next day is long, a fourteen hour drive, with stops and starts to get to Seattle. I collapse into the hotel at 10:30 and sleep like the dead. The next day, I take Bold and Molly to lunch and we have some delicious Indian cuisine. Mmmmm Tiki Masala.

That night we unload the truck, say our goodbyes, hugs and exchange e-mails. I get back to hotel, shower, pack and sleep. The next day I get on the plane and head back to Texas.

The adventure is over, but not forgotten.