Silver Burners–Survival

Published on by Kathy Baker Category: Camping Adventures @ Burningman

We were prepared for our days in the desert thanks to my daughters and son-in-law, all of whom had camped at Burningman for years. There were manuals on what to bring, what to wear, what to eat and drink. Teri and I read each article and watched each video with the interest of a student studying for their favorite class. Had we not had our kids’ expertise and skills, as well as their transport of all our camping needs, we could not have done this long distance. A merger camp needs wheels on the ground and they had them.

Brooke is known for her organization and cooking. We had some mighty fine soups, which she is known for, and even filet mignon one night! Many nights we joined food forces with our campmates and had some great quesadillas and breakfast burritos. Energy bars and (my first ever) Ensure were there to fill in the nutrition gaps. The best thing going was Clif Bloks, which provided electrolytes and quick energy.

We picked up our camelbacks in Reno with our tickets, couriered by Brooke and Gage as they drove through on their way to Burningman. They handed it off to my friend, who ran the reunion I was attending the week before. Those camelbacks were on our backs the entire time. The bladders were filled with water/Gatorade and we sipped constantly. Inside the pouches, we carried a headlamp, energy bars, masks, scarf, I.D., goggles, Kleenex, etc. We packed like we would be gone all day when we ventured out on our bikes, unsure of dust storms stranding us somewhere isolated.

My friend had a tough time staying hydrated and when she told me she had had enough to drink, I would tell her to drink more. I am one of those thirsty people who have a drink in my hands at all times, so I never had the problem of hydration. We never felt hungry because it was so hot and had to force ourselves to eat.

We had plenty of dust, but only experienced one white-out while we were out biking. We drank dust, ate dust, showered in dust and slept in the dust. It was tough to keep dust out of our shift-pod and for two OCD cleaners, we never managed to stay ahead of the cleaning game and finally gave up. Our bedding was covered with a shower liner to minimize the dust, but dust seeped into every tent zipper and opening unless we closed it up.

The heat was unbearable inside the tent unless it was nighttime. Gage rigged up an AC unit, but it failed, so he fixed a swamp cooler with a bucket, fan, and wrappings. It was only used a few times, due to the fact we were happier hanging in the shade structure with our campmates than laying in our shift-pod.

My left wrist, still in a brace and bandaged from surgery, ached the entire time. I could not grasp, grip, clench, open, zip or handle a thing with my left hand. Teri was my suitcase lugger, package opener and personal dresser for items unreachable. She was my personal valet and I joked it was why I brought her, but I appreciated all the help I received from my campmates. My three wheeled-bike with a large milk crate attached was a lifesaver. (Borrowed from one of my daughter’s friends and brought in on his camper for me.)

I did apply for a handicap permit for my trip, which allowed me to apply at the DMV (Department of Mutant Vehicles) at Burningman for a handicap flag which was installed on one of the camper’s cars. I was finally good for something on ice runs an art car gas fillings for our friend Jim. Teri and I loved getting in that car with air conditioning! Our job as ice-fetchers was a cool one—we would hug on those bags of ice like they were our best friends, both in the car and on our bike!

We made sure we got plenty of sleep. We never knew what time it was, since all of us had tucked our cellphones away. It was probably better that we did not know the time, but we went to bed when we were tired and slept long and hard. It was cool at night, which made sleeping great, and our single air mattresses were comfy with layers of sheets, quilts, and fuzzy blankets. (Only one night was cold enough for me to sleep in long johns with a fuzzy vest and all three layers of bedding.)

Thanks to our campmates, we were able to merge seamlessly into their camp. They did all the heavy lifting and their trucks brought in all the food, tents, structures, camp stoves, water and carried all of it back out, including the trash. We hopped on a plane and a Burner Bus and settled into a settled settlement with ease and for that, we are and will always be grateful.

Silver Burners–Wardrobe/Costumes

Published on by Kathy Baker Category: Blog, Camping Adventures @ Burningman

I could not wait to wear the outfits that I had assembled with the help of my costume-sewing girlfriend Teri. Both of us had discussed what we were packing for six months and had met up to stitch together all the bits and pieces. We packed warm weather clothes for daytime and cool weather clothes for nighttime. We bought our boots and socks; scarves and wraps; goggles and glasses; hats and headwear; jewelry and accessories. Guess what? WE DID NOT GET TO WEAR ONE COSTUME WE MADE! There will be no photos of us in costumes because it was too damn hot at night to wear them!

One warm night I slid into my butterfly costume, created with wings attached to the bodice of an old dress. My friend Stephanie created the most amazing milkweed pod and paper mâché monarch butterfly necklace. I had a headdress of blue butterflies lit with tiny LED lights. I had lost 12 lbs. since it was created for me. I could not get it on. Teri and I finally realized we had been hydrated with so much Gatorade and energy cubes with sodium that we were bloated! Screw that. I was like a teenager. I went for the sea creature outfit with shiny lurex fish-scale leggings and a long-sleeved blouse with fins, complete with seashells and blue glass beads wired together for my headdress. I just about fainted from the sweat just getting my ass into those slinky pants. Off they came. I finally ended up in a sleeveless top and mesh pants that breathed, so I could breathe.

My steam-punk outfit will be there for Halloween. A black skirt held up in folds with brass hoops, a black velvet jacket with loops of red ribbon crisscrossing my back and black and white striped long socks with my black buckle boots would be topped off with a punky assemblage of jewelry. (Black and red leather bird on a chain and a handmade safety pin necklace.) I also had a perky little black netted fascinator hat and a black brace on my left arm from my broken wrist which was to be decorated with steampunk charms. Packed away.

Our fur coats were in a huge bin, but only two of them were used. I had the floor-length coat from Haight-Ashbury that never got used. Teri wore her pink fur and I wore my fuzzy cape, but others lay sadly in their bin safely away from Playa dust. Girlfriend and I would have loved loved loved cooler weather, as we are always hot even when others are not, but it was not to be.

 

We headed out on the art car one night for the burning of the man and were happy to be comfortable on a cool night with our coat and cape, but saw younger people wrapped in fur with very little underneath. They were not in the throes of personal summers due to their age, but I am quite sure some were hot and stripped down once the man was set on fire. (Had I had mascara on, the heat would have melted it.) The fashionistas of both sexes brought their faux furs and probably decided they would rather suffer with their coats and vests on rather than having an incomplete look. You go, girls and guys, while I fan myself.

Silver Burners–Shenanigans

Published on by Kathy Baker Category: Blog, Camping Adventures @ Burningman

I met the head of the orgy dome waiting for my Burner Bus. She invited me to come for a visit and I mutely nodded my head as I tried to picture myself in that environment. I knew there would be a little of something for everyone at Burningman, as I had studied hours of videos and read plenty of articles on the alternate lifestyles that would be represented. I suspended any form of judgment for lifestyles that were not of my own choosing and embraced the love and friendliness of this happening. Everyone I met gave out hugs like candy and it was so refreshingly spontaneous.

Our camp had one adult game, which only received a minimal amount of attention. I think our campmates wilted under the noonday sun and did not advertise to passersby as much as they desired their rest in the shade structure. The “Office Space” game was a hit, which was based on the movie by the same name. Flair buttons were passed around, a baseball bat was handy to beat the copy machine to smithereens and adult beverages were passed out as people described why they loved the movie, hated their jobs or loved the mat out front with the “Jump to conclusions” game.

I am quite sure my second-born daughter wanted to be there with me to make sure I played safe and did not do anything silly. Trust me, my desire for being in the moment at this event included no drugs and no drinking anything that I was unsure of, as in the days of my motherly admonishments to my own four offspring. I had plenty of opportunities, but also witnessed the aftereffects of some who had bad trips and over-excessive drinking. Not for me. One barefoot hippie wandered through our camp and asked if I wanted LSD and I said, “I have the best thing going right here in this cup with some great boxed Chardonnay.” (I”m pretty sure he was undercover.)

We did have some fun and games out there. While riding around in the blazing sun on our bikes, we took advantage of every person with a sprayer in their hands and received many “knee-gasms”, which included sprays behind the knees. Individuals would bark outside their campsites, especially on the marvelous Esplanade, to come in for massages, essential oils, or doctoring. Teri and I finally succumbed to Dr. Playa, where we received a cat scan (fluffy stuffed animal patted all over our bodies), a dognastic test, eye chart reading between our legs, ear, and nose cleaning for dust and finally and injection. (vodka-infused with wonderful flavors). We laughed for hours.

In the 4:30 sector, we were invited to a Gay Party. One daughter came with us and we had a ball filling out a questionnaire to determine what persuasion we were, before getting our “gay card”. The party was in full swing and we missed the genital imprinting on aprons. (Oh, dear me!) What we did not miss was the fun and conversation with two friends who invited us for a lovely cold pear margarita laced with laughter. Their large camp contained many vintage airstream trailers with outdoor spaces of gauzy curtains and shades. I was informed at the end of our stay that I was really a gay man in a woman’s body due to my wit.

Another local party, across from our camp, had great music set to a light creation that hung from a dome-shaped tent. Resplendent with curtains, large pillows, and cushy seating, we all sat mesmerized with the lights as we met new people. It was cooler in the evenings and nice that we could just walk a few feet to our tents and crash when we wanted to leave.

We meet people from all over the world, many who were there for the first time. Half of the people I met had been there multiple times. Their stories were wonderful. How they came to Burningman or why they decided to do this for the first time or why they continued to come. My project included sending four moleskin journals out with the question, “What Brings You To Burningman?” and I hope they end up back in my possession for a future story. Besides the art installations, I came to be energized by meeting new people.

Silver Burners–Art Installations

Published on by Kathy Baker Category: Camping Adventures @ Burningman

Art on the Playa is on a grander than grand scale—as in climbing height grand and extraordinarily creative grand. The first day I arrived, my daughter and husband guided me onto the Playa to view the installations. Traveling by bike meant it was impossible to see them all in one day, but I had a preview of the scale of the desert city and the installations on that first day.

During the daylight hours, the art stood out on the desert, despite the khaki desert color of everything else in sight. At night, they took on an entirely different appearance with lights and music and movement. I cannot even begin to describe how spectacular each one was, but I admit to having a few favorites.

Teri and I loved the swinging clouds, which were whimsical and functional. I handed my I-phone to a stranger, who took some shots of two grandmothers, acting like kids on the swings positioned below the clouds. At night, they were beacons of light and landmarks for us to find our way home.

The Folly, a wooden structure built by 20-year burner Dave Keane, was one of the most impressive structures. The intent of his creation, built by carpenters, engineers, and design artists, was a massive 24-room tunneled, secret- roomed building in the style of an old Irish fishing village. We climbed up the clock tower and wandered into the rooms created from recycled and reclaimed wood. One room had an old typewriter to type messages to be left behind before the building was burned, and I was the last person to use it. (I impressed a young crowd with my typing skills:)

My favorite was the Monumental Mammoth. Created from metal objects which had been dumped in the desert near fossil beds, the idea for the project was from 18-year old Girl Scout Tahoe Mack for her Gold Award project. The entire art project was inspired by the story of the volunteers’ named Protectors of Tule Springs, who work to rescue the ice age fossil beds near Las Vegas. The mammoth structure will be permanently installed at the fossil beds, which will become a new state park. I returned three times to run my hands over levers, locks, knobs, scraps and metal that fashioned this tactile creature and was fortunate enough to meet the head of the project.

Day and night, in addition to the art we viewed, art cars of all shapes, themes, and sizes could be heard and seen. Music, dancing, fire, sounds, and lights emanated from roving vehicles. Sometimes they stopped to pick up passengers wandering the desert. Some were moving dance parties, and others were people-movers with room to attach bikes. We were fortunate to make a friend with an art car and he ferried our campmates to parties, sunsets and sunrises, and the traditional burning of the man and temple on two separate nights.

Art and creativity existed in every shape and form, from the camp decor and themes, to the outfits burners created and wore for their days and nights. People watching was almost as extraordinary as the art installations! We were never able to see every piece of art in the city, but even today I cannot conceive of the work and money that poured into the brilliance of the artists.

Silver Burners—Personal Playa Hygiene

Published on by Kathy Baker Category: Blog

Ok. Let’s talk about staying clean in alkaline dust, not sand, on a 95-100 degree desert. Talk. That is all it is. There is no real hygiene. Let it go. Let it go. Let it go!

“What are the things you worry about the most?” asks Gage of his favorite mother-in-law and girlfriend. “Heat, and the fact we love two showers a day.” Settled. Swamp cooler installed, since his resurrected A/C unit failed, a case of baby wipes, antiseptic wipes, and boogie wipes and VOILA! a shower in our camp!

The miracle of a shower cannot be underestimated. If I was stranded on a desert island, God forbid it was a huge island far away from water. I would crawl to it. Baby wipes are awesome, but some bits and pieces just need a little more:)

Grab your towel, get to the public camp shower without losing it. (Some cared not.) Hop in and spray yourself with a spray nozzle resembling a pest control sprayer, before dousing yourself with Bronners. Peppermint! OmG someone tell me why my hoo-hoo is on fire! (Sorry for details:) Where is my organic hemp Castile soap???? I screamed. I hopped around. I survived. I learned.

The porta-potties are evil. One young campmate decorated the potty on the left with flowers, tropical murals, and anything sweet-smelling and put caution tape on the door, hoping most would avoid like the porta-plague. It was our special place, but we still came armed with extra toilet paper and in my case–purse-size Lysol. I will never ever ever ever love a portable toilet.

The smartest thing we ordered from Amazon was our “She-pee”, as we affectionately called our amazing in-house portable toilet. Number one great find! Women do not want to stagger two blocks in the middle of the night to pee, and it’s not like we had a forest with trees to pee behind. We bow before our goddess of peeing throne for its usefulness. Bless the inventor.

Silver Burners—White Wednesday

Published on by Kathy Baker Category: Blog

Tutu Tuesday was a miss for us. I had a multicolored ribbon tutu that I had planned to wear, but it flew high on my bike pole with LED lights and a Chinese lantern. Trust me, it looked better up there and not on my child-bearing hips:) Teri and her tutu were not to be seen:)

Since Teri and I were not present for camp set-up and striking camp, we were the designated ice retrievers and water fillers. Teri was due in on Wednesday on a Burner Bus, but we had no clue when she would arrive.

My temporary handicap sticker was validated at the DMV (Department of Mutant Vehicles) with a camp-mate who drove her car. What a great feeling to know I was going to be an asset to the camp with a pink Burner handicap flag! (I could not lift, carry, pull or push anything with left arm)

We headed down to fill up our 5 gallon collapsable water jugs and tried not to slip in the “slip” of playa dust and water resembling a pottery studio. We turned around to leave and spotted Teri across the way–groping her way around the bus depot as she waited for her luggage! Serendipity! We filled her four jugs and headed for camp.

Teri and I settled into our Shiftpod in the burning heat of mid-day. As any post-menopausal or thyroid inflicted female knows, heat, humidity and sun are not our best friends, but we are not whiners. We opened our tent flaps and tied wet scarves and neck fans around our necks to organize our mutual space and went to work.

We are OCD and anal housekeepers. What a joke. Playa dust. Tight space. Two crazy cleaning fools trying to organize costumes and suitcases filled with more than we needed and our she-pee area .(More on that later) And where do we put our dirty, dusty boots?

A ” Camp Nailed It” sign with our names graced our entrance. We had our own trash bag and were instructed NO MOOP (matter out of place). Federal lands prohibit any speck of sequin, feather, paper, crumb or particle be left behind! We were conscientious “moopers”.

The camp hugged and embraced my friend and we hung under the shade structure watching the parade of humanity pass by. Many stopped by for adult beverages as we tried to stay hydrated with good old water in this new harsh environs. Our camelbacks were our best friends, filled with water, snacks, dust masks, head lamps, goggles, chapstick, Kleenex/toilet paper and our ID.

Tuesday night was white night. How spectacular is it to see 80,000 people dressed all in white? Feathers, sequins, body paint, naked, glitter ponies and hippies dressed in white– all trooping to the Esplanade for the dance parties. We were so excited to be part of a happening of epic proportions for two beautiful friends of my daughter and her husband.

Friends of the future Mr. and Mrs. gathered at the Playground for the rave under a dark desert sky. It felt like the largest indoor dome laser light show imaginable. I felt like i was in the 60’s and 70’s on steroids. Beautiful bodies dressed in beautiful outfits. Music reverberated through our bodies and souls. I wanted to be 20, but i was so glad to be 70. The energy was magnificent. (Fun reading your blogs:)!

Correction: The White Night was at “The Playground” for “the White Party”. Distrikt (known for day parties) is the camp nearby to where Dawn camped and on the other side of the Playa.)

The circle of fifty friends encircled a tall, handsome, fabulously-dressed friend, waiting for his butterfly to stop flitting and return to the circle of friends she thought were gathered in camaraderie. When he knelt on bended knee and proposed, we all cried with her. What a special way to celebrate!

We floated home in our hearts, as we cycled back to our tents. It was a magical evening.