Burning Man Themes… Reflecting the Mind of Larry Harvey

January 7, 2016 / Curt Mekemson / 39 Comments

One of four gateways to the 2015 Burning Man Carnival. William Blake’s poem “Tiger, tiger, burning bright, In the forests of the night, What immortal hand or eye, Could frame thy fearful symmetry?” was printed around the edge.

Larry Harvey created the first theme for Burning Man in 1995, ten years after he had co-founded the event. Ever since, he and his crew have been churning out a new topic every year. I picture him sitting somewhere in San Francisco, puffing away on his ever-present cigarette, and waiting for inspiration to strike. Finally, the proverbial light bulb flashes. Why don’t we make this year The Nebulous Entity, or Caravansary, or Beyond Belief? It would be interesting to track Harvey’s thought process.

The first theme was Good and Evil. Undoubtedly, there were costumed angels and devils wandering all over the Playa and Black Rock City. There still are. I recall one year when every other woman seemed to have sprouted wings. Maybe there was a sale on. I ran into a bit of good and evil myself at 2015’s Burning Man. I spun a wheel of fortune and was told, “you will soon discover if you are the good twin or the evil one.” Did I really want to know? Later I found a graphic sideshow poster of how it might look.

A wheel of fortune at Burning Man suggested I would soon find out whether I was a good or evil twin.

Carnival or sideshow art has been used for over a century to pull people into sideshows where all sorts of unusual sights were promised.

I must say, being evil looks a bit more interesting. Carnival or sideshow art has been used for over a century to pull people into sideshows where all sorts of unusual sights are promised.Vintage original art is now worth thousands of dollars to collectors.

Burning Man invites individuals, groups and artists to participate in and interpret its annual theme through their costumes, camps and creative works. Here’s a complete list of themes since 1995:

2016 — Da Vinci’s Workshop

2015 — Carnival of Mirrors

2014 — Caravansary

2013 — Cargo Cult

2012 — Fertility 2.0

2011 — Rites of Passage

2010 — Metropolis – The Life Of Cities

2009 — Evolution – A Tangled Bank

2008 — American Dream

2007 — The Green Man

2006 — Hope & Fear

2005 — Psyche

2004 — Vault of Heaven

2003 — Beyond Belief

2002 — The Floating World

2001 — The Seven Ages

2000 — The Body

1999 — The Wheel of Time

1998 — The Nebulous Entity

1997 — Mysteria

1996 — The Inferno

1995 — Good and Evil

The 2015 theme was built around the concept of carnivals and mirrors. A city of tents grew up around the Man featuring carnival posters, mirrors and games of chance. Four large gateways invited Burners in to where hucksters pushed their games of chance, or just strangeness. I checked my image in each of the mirrors but skipped the ring toss where the posts took on a definite phallic look. I stopped to watch a show where a talented acrobat displayed her skills, and I helped pull ropes that made a giant skeleton dance.

A devilish gateway into Burning Man 2015.

A devilish gateway into then Burning Man Carnival. Note: I arrived early at Burning Man this year before the crowds gathered. Many of the Carnival attractions and other installations throughout Black Rock City were still being set up.

I found this humorous guy hanging out inside.Nice tongue.

Taking a page from Dante's Inferno, this gateway switched the words from

Taking a page from Dante’s Inferno, this circus elephant gateway switched the words from “Abandon all Hope” to “Abandon all Despair.”

The fourth gate into the carnival was this nerdy looking young woman.

A stage in the carnival featured ongoing shows such as this flexible acrobat.

A large skeleton puppet had ropes that Burners could use to make the skeleton dance. Carnival poster art surrounded the Man and what Burning Man called its Fun House.

Following are three sideshow posters that I found particularly amusing including this tattooed cat.

Following are three sideshow posters that I found particularly amusing including this two-headed tattooed cat.

Ancient Aliens…

And a Playa Chicken.

My friend Don Green took this photo of the Fun House entrance. I will be featuring many of Don’s photos throughout this series.

Don seems a little worried about the doctor that was prepared to operate on him in one of the carnivals side tents.

I was taken with the detail in this painting that welcomed Burners into the Fun House. (See Don’s photo of the entrance above.)

A closeup of the face.

And even more detail featuring a gypsy woman.

And even closer shot featuring a gypsy woman with her incredible detail.

Various mirrors welcomed Burners inside the Fun House. I took this photo of Squirrels on my T-shirt. The caption was "Birdseed, what birdseed?"

Various mirrors welcomed Burners inside the Fun House. I took this fractured mirror selfie of my see-no-evil, speak-no-evil, hear-no-evil squirrels T-shirt. The backward caption is “Birdseed, what birdseed?”

A final shot for today, this one looking up at the Man from inside the Fun House.

The 2016 Theme, “Da Vinci’s Workshop,” is designed to draw a parallel between Medieval Florence and Burning Man in terms of art, technical innovation, and patronage. (No one has ever accused Larry Harvey of being shy, modest, or lacking in ambition when it comes to promoting Burning Man, but seeing Black Rock City as the equivalent to Florence, and as “the epicenter of a new renaissance,” is something of a leap.)

Still, the art being inspired by Burning Man is very impressive. And the 2016 Man being “surrounded by a public square, a piazza lined with workshops, each representing a guild…” with the guilds being “self-invented and devoted to the interactive manufacture of whatever participating artists and inventors can imagine, ” sounds like fun.

NEXT BLOG: We will travel into Black Rock City and out into the Playa to explore other ways the 2015 theme of Carnival and Mirrors was represented.

A Bird-Trap Church and a Cathedral of Photographs… Burning Man 2013

September 14, 2013January 24, 2015 / Curt Mekemson / 23 Comments

A side view of Church Trap at Burning Man 2013.

If you ever caught birds as a kid, you’ll recognize this set up. You would take a wooden box, put a stick under one side tied to a string, and then put bird seed under the box. You get the idea. The name for this diabolical structure designed by Rebekah Waites was called Church Trap. I thought the outhouse was a clever addition.

One summer when I was a child, my mother decided it was time my brother, sister and I got some old-time religion. So we were dressed up and dropped off at the Diamond Springs Community Church for Vacation Bible School. I must have been all of five years old. Marshall and Nancy were older.

One day we were privileged to witness a true miracle in progress. Somehow we had escaped from Vacation Bible School only to be corralled into attending an actual kids’ service. I think it was a graduation ceremony meant to put the exclamation point on our lessons. It came complete with hymns, prayers, a sermon and lots of Amens. Then the big moment arrived.

“Would you like to hear the Lord knocking at your heart?” the Minister asked.

“Oh yeah!” “Wow!” “Really?” What little kid could resist?

“None of you little kids open your eyes until I tell you to,” he ordered.

Twenty little children dutifully bowed their heads and screwed their eyes shut. Three didn’t. If there was to be a miracle, the Mekemson kids wanted to see it. So we watched the preacher with eagle-eyed attention. He tiptoed from the pulpit to the back of the church.

Bang, bang, bang. He pounded on the back door. Yes indeed, the Lord does work in mysterious ways. We watched the minister tiptoe back to his pulpit.

“OK,” he said, “you can open your eyes now. Did you hear the Lord knocking?”

Twenty little sets of big round eyes popped open and twenty little mouths started gabbing all at once. You could almost guarantee that the kids would be eager to come back to church. The minister smiled smugly until his eyes fell on us. We got the glare. He kept us afterwards for the lecture. Unless we changed our ways, we were bound for a very hot place.

I thought immediately of the experience when I saw the Church Trap. I wondered if the minister would have had a sense of humor about it. Probably not…

Another side photo of the church with this one featuring the lonely desert mountains behind it. The church looked like it had come straight out of an Old West ghost town.

Another side photo of the church with this one featuring the desolate mountains surrounding the Black Rock Desert. It was a fitting backdrop for a church that looked like it had come straight out of an Old West ghost town. (Photo by Peggy Mekemson)

A front view of Church Trap with me holding up the trap pole. Does this make me a pillar of the church? (Photo by Peggy Mekemson)

A front view of Church Trap with me holding up the trap pole. Does this make me a pillar of the church? Note the roll of music coming out the top. (Photo by Peggy Mekemson)

Inside, an organ filled the church with the music you saw escaping in the previous photo. Was music the birdseed designed to trap people?

Church Trap designed by artist Rebekah Waites at Burning Man 2013

A view of the music filled church. Tom Lovering, AKA Adios, has been lured inside.

Curtis Mekemson springs the Church Trap at Burning Man 2013.

With enough people inside, I move to spring the trap. And yes, I did catch a bird or two as a kid. They escaped. (Photo by Peggy Mekemson.)

“It’s the biggest thing I have ever done,” Mike Garlington said of his Photo Chapel, a 40-foot tall cathedral where Mike featured his photographs of family, friends and fellow DPW (Burning Man’s Department of Public Works) volunteers. His contemporary work had a feeling of age, like photos that were taken in the late Nineteenth or early Twentieth Century. “I collect old photos and these are terrific,” a young woman standing next to me said. Like her, I had assumed the photos were taken from an earlier era until I saw Larry Harvey, the founder of Burning Man, staring out at me from one of them.

Mike Photo Chapel from the rear. Larry Harvey is on the bottom right.

Mike Garlington’s Photo Chapel from the rear. Larry Harvey is on the bottom right.

The back of the Photo Chapel at night with Larry Harvey at the bottom center.

A front view of the Photo Chapel by Mike Garlington at Burning Man 2013.

A front view of the Photo Chapel. (Photo by Peggy Mekemson.)

The steeple of the Photo Chapel at Burning Man 2013.

Looking up at the Steeple of the Photo Chapel. (Photo by Tom Lovering.)

A side view of the Photo Chapel at night.

A view from inside the Photo Chapel. The person featured is Joey Jello, a member of Black Rock City's Department of Public Works who die in an auto crash just before 2012 Burning Man. His motto, shown below, was "Never Betray." It referred to his core values.

A view from inside the Photo Chapel. The person featured is Joey Jello, a member of Black Rock City’s Department of Public Works who died in an auto crash just before 2012 Burning Man. His motto, shown below the photo, was “Never Betray.” It referred to his core values. As for the horses, I don’t have a clue.

Photos on the Photo Chapel at Burning Man 2013 taken and processed by Mike Garlington. builder of the chapel.

A close up to provide a closer look at some of the photos. Mike Garlington, photographer and creator of the chapel is on the upper left. Larry Harvey on the lower right.

Photo of chimp on Burning Man 2013 Photo Chapel.

I’ll conclude with this chimp who appears to be praying.

NEXT BLOG: A visit to Center Camp.

Weird, Wonderful, Civic Minded, Burning Man… Burning Man 2013

August 23, 2013January 24, 2015 / Curt Mekemson / 11 Comments

I love things that are unique and humorous. This suave sphinx at Burning Man made me laugh.

I like unique– even more if it’s strange or amusing. Burning Man qualifies. First time visitors to Black Rock City, aka Virgin Burners, can be overwhelmed by the experience. At least I was. I walked around like a South Dakota farm boy in New York City. Or maybe it was more like a chocoholic in a chocolate factory. After ten years the newness has worn off, but I still find much that intrigues me.

Most of all, I love the art; but I also like the elaborate costumes, the magical nights, the mutant vehicles, the performance art, and the characters. Ah yes, the characters– the nature of the event almost requires you be one to participate. Imagine 50,000 together in a raging dust storm. Scary, isn’t it.

The art at Burning Man can be spectacular, such as this tall, nude woman.

Thousands of hours can go into the creation of unique works of art found on the Playa. This ship from last year is a great example.

The art can be uplifting, like this 2006 sculpture…

Or ferocious like this dragon…

Or humorous like this dog.

The costumes and the characters also have great appeal.

As do the mutant vehicles like this mammoth.

And the thousands of performing artists.

Burning Man becomes almost magical at night.

And then there is the culture. I don’t mean the sculpture on the Playa, or the opera you might find at Center Camp; I am talking about the ten principles that Larry Harvey and his devoted band of organizers promote: inclusion, gifting, decommodification, self-reliance, self-expression, communal support, respect for the environment, civic responsibility, participation, and immediacy.

Most of these are self-explanatory but three can use further clarification.

Decommodification means that you can’t buy or sell things at Burning Man. Nor can you promote products or companies. There are no sponsorships; there is no advertising. In addition to being self-reliant (having what you need to survive for a week in the desert– water, food, etc.), gifting is the response to decommodification. Everything from free drinks, to food, to bike repairs, to entertainment, costumes and much, much more is given away in one huge potlatch. And everyone is expected to participate by also gifting.

My friend Beth Lovering, a master bike mechanic, provides free bike repairs as part of her gifting at Burning Man. I have always thought of the work I put into this blog featuring the people and art of Burning Man as my gift back to the event.

My friend Beth Lovering, a master bike mechanic, provides free bike repairs as part of her gifting at Burning Man. I have always thought the work that Peggy and I put into this blog featuring the people and art of Burning Man as our gift back to the event. People from 170 countries around the world have stopped by here to learn more about Burning Man.

Immediacy borders on spiritual. In the words of Burning Man: “We seek to overcome barriers that stand between us and a recognition of our inner selves, the reality of those around us, participation in society, and contact with a natural world exceeding human powers. No idea can substitute for this experience.”

Nothing captures the spiritual side of Burning Man like the Temple where Burners leave thousands of messages to loved ones. (Photo by Tom Lovering)

The burning of the temple on Sunday evening sends the messages skyward. Always noisy, Burning Man is silent for the burn.

Maybe the most unique thing about Burning Man is that it tries to live up to these principles. For example, there is none of the trash floating around that you find at most large events, even the tiniest piece is chased down. The wilderness ethic of ‘leave no trace’ is serious business at Black Rock City.

So while Burning Man is indeed a huge party in the desert with its share of people who come and party for seven days straight, it is also more. I am quite comfortable with Harvey’s ten principles and believe that most are goals we can all strive for. But tell me truthfully– assuming you have never been to Burning Man, did you expect civic responsibility to be one of the ten?

NEXT BLOGS: I’ll be out this coming week at Burning Man so I am pre-posting three more blogs on my trip up the Alaska Highway that Peggy and I returned from this week. First up I want to look at Road Houses. Once essential on the long road to Alaska, they are becoming an endangered species. Second, we will visit the sign forest at Watson Lake in the Yukon Territory with its 70,000 plus street signs. Finally, on our way back through Washington State last week, we stopped off at Mt. St. Helens, one of the modern world’s most famous volcanoes. I actually flew over the volcano a few weeks after it blew its top in 1980.

And finally, to those who visit this blog (thank you), and to the blogs I follow, I will be off the Internet next week. I will catch up with your comments and blogs afterwards.

Starting on September 2, I will begin my series reporting on Burning Man 2013.

I’ll close with a couple of my ‘strange and wonderful’ favorites. These cool cats…

And this crazy rabbit worthy of Alice in Wonderland.

From South Africa to Texas… Burning Man 2012 Regional Art

September 17, 2012January 24, 2015 / Curt Mekemson / 4 Comments

This bull rising out of the sand is titled ReinCOWnation by the Houston, Texas Burners who created him for Burning Man 2012.

Larry Harvey, the founder of Burning Man, is a visionary with long-term plans. What started as a local burn on the beach in San Francisco in 1986 has grown into a worldwide phenomenon with local Burners from South Africa to Texas reproducing regionally the experiences they have had in the remote Black Rock Desert of Northern Nevada.

This regionalization was demonstrated at Burning Man 2012 when 34 wooden effigies designed and built by local groups were placed in a circle around the Man. They were burned simultaneously on Thursday night in an impressive ceremony of just how far Burning Man’s roots have extended.

I am going to introduce several of the regional art works today and include links to where more information can be found about each piece. In my last blog on Burning Man’s 2012 art, I noted that I was limited to a few representative pieces. This is also true of the regional art. Go to Burning Man’s art core project to learn about the overall effort and other included effigies.

In my next blog, I will cover Thursday’s fiery end of the regional art.

I never realized that queen bees were amply endowed. But apparently they are according to Utah Burners who built this sculpture named the Secret of Bees. (Photo by Tom Lovering)

This was my view of the lady bee. Each year Burning Man selects a theme for the year. In 2012 it was fertility. Most of the regional art is tied to this theme.

Speaking of fertility, South Africa Burners brought Jozi to Burning Man 2012. This sculpture is a replica of an African fertility god.

Native Americans historically turned to Kokopelli for help with fertility. Ancient rock art representations of this trickster god and his large, um appendage, can be found from Canada to Mexico. Versions found in gift shops throughout the West have been sanitized. New Mexico Burners were responsible for bringing Kokopelli Rising to Burning Man. (Photo by Tom Lovering)

The end result of all this emphasis on fertility is of course a baby, or Baby Bon Temps Brulee, as named by New Orleans Burners. It is easy to picture King Baby on top of a Mardi Gras float.

Moving away from the Fertility theme, the Burners of the Great Lakes region created Soul Train for Burning Man. (Photo by Beth Lovering)

Making its way across the Ocean and US, the Viking ship Naglfar sailed into the Black Rock Desert courtesy of Burners from Denmark and Sweden.

Maine Burners appropriately brought “Happy as a Clam” to Black Rock City. In fact many of the regions, like the Danes above, created art that was representative of their area.

If you have ever driven or walked through downtown Reno, you will certainly recognize the inspiration for “Gateway” created by Nevada Burners. Reno has claimed the title “Biggest Little City in the World” for decades.

Dallas Burners brought a sculpture, the Hatchery, to Burning Man 2012 that produced fire art at night. Much of Burning Man art is designed to light up the night.

The Dragon Lotus from Denver.

My favorite among the regional art pieces was the lighthouse created by Burners from Northern California. This work of art was created from driftwood found along the North Coast, one of my favorite playgrounds.

Another view of the lighthouse. North Bay Burners titled their work “The Twisted Upright House.”

A final view featuring the stained glass windows on top. The windows were removed before the lighthouse was burned on Thursday night, an event which I will show in my next blog.

Burning Man: It’s Not for the Faint Hearted

August 8, 2012January 24, 2015 / Curt Mekemson / 12 Comments

Burning Man’s roots go back 27 years to the burning of an 8 foot tall statue on Baker Beach in San Francisco. Today’s man stands some 40 feet tall and rests on a 60 foot pedestal. The wooden man and his fiery demise symbolizes the annual event that takes place in the remote Black Rock Desert of Nevada.

Finally I have lucked out and scored a ticket to Burning Man. Now I have to scurry about and get ready. The event is three weeks away; it is serious countdown time. This means my usual blog is going on vacation. For the next three weeks, my posts will be all about Burning Man. I am going to reblog some of my most popular Burning Man blogs and include many of my favorite photos.

Afterwards I promise full coverage on what the 2012 event was like. You are invited along!

I discovered my passion for deconstructing pumpkins in 1992 and came to accept Halloween as an adult holiday. I still had a major hurdle, though; I refused to wear a costume. Even as a kid I resisted dressing up for Halloween. Somehow it seemed un-cool.

Five trips to Burning Man have changed my mind. If you are one of those folks who can’t wait to morph into Count Dracula or Suzy Siren, you might want to visit this annual event.

Burning Man is close to Libertarian in its rules. You are, however, highly encouraged to wear a costume. These range from the simple, such as this guy wearing a neck piece and a bowler, to the more fanciful such as the woman with high shoes and a bikini bottom. Expect some nudity.

But be warned: Black Rock City, the home of Burning Man, is not for the faint hearted.

Temperatures can rise to over 115 during the day and drop to freezing at night in this instant city located in a remote section of the northern Nevada desert. Dust storms whip across the Playa creating zero visibility and coating everything with a fine layer of dust. Eyes, ears, lungs, clothes, tents, vehicles, cameras and laptops become instant victims in this environment. Cleaning up afterwards is a weeklong process, so serious that some RV companies refuse to rent to Burning Man bound celebrants.

A huge dust storm makes its way across the Playa creating close to zero visibility along the way. (Photo by Don Green.)

Just when you believe you have mastered the heat and dust, it rains and you find two inches of mud caked on the bottom of your shoes or bike tires.

None of this seems to deter participants. They come in the thousands to this happening, which runs for a week including Labor Day. Burners, as they like to be known, come from all over the world to see and be seen, to party and perform, to enjoy and create art. And they get there in almost every conceivable mode of transportation including ancient busses, trucks, autos, bicycles, airplanes and over 3000 RVs – all loaded down with the paraphernalia necessary for a week of desert survival.

Overnight, a community of 50 thousand plus rises out of the desert, making Black Rock City the fourth largest city in Nevada for its one week of existence. Burners arrive to a well laid out semi-circular street system, some 450 port-a-potties, a Center Camp Café, the 40-foot tall Burning Man statue (perched on a 60-foot plus base) and little else. Everything they need must be brought with them.

This year a city of 60,000 people will appear and disappear in the Nevada Desert during Burning Man. This photo illustrates what it looks like early in the week. There are still spaces. My van Quivera, is in the foreground. (Photo by Ken Lake)

Center Camp is one of the few structures Burners find set up when they arrive. Here it is operating full tilt as shown by the hundreds of bikes (BM’s primary mode of travel), which are parked outside.

With the exception of coffee, tea, lemonade and ice, nothing can be bought or sold. There is zero commercialization.

As for what the event is, it can be almost anything an individual wants it to be. The only requirements are that you pay the entrance fee and follow a few basic rules.

I asked my friends to describe the event. Their answers included 1) Las Vegas glitter with a new age twist, 2) Haight Ashbury, Woodstock and Mardi Gras rolled into one, 3) a medieval fair dropped into an ancient Greek Bacchanal, and 4) a frat party with avant-garde art.

I view Burning Man as one of the greatest shows on earth. It ranges from the whimsical, as represented by this rabbit, to more serious themes.

My own take is that Burning Man may very well be the greatest show on Earth, a modern-day ‘Hippy Happening’ of gargantuan proportion. New age idealism combines with personal liberation, art, exhibitionism, holistic healing, self-discovery, environmental awareness and partying. Step aside Barnum and Bailey.

The event reaches back 27 years when an eight-foot version of the ‘Man’ was first burned on Baker Beach in San Francisco. Legend has it that Larry Harvey, the creator of Burning Man, was mourning a lost love.

Revisionist thinking suggests something deeper was involved, a search for meaning and unity in our Post-Modern world. And there is an element of that at Burning Man. Certainly much of the art is reflective of Post-Modern thought. There is also an underlying Utopian fervor among the BM true believers that the event can create positive change in the world.

Next Burning Man Blog: Beware of Large Bears with Tuning Forks

When I think Burning Man I think art. This colossal woman appears to be celebrating the event.

It’s Not Kansas Anymore, Toto… It’s Burning Man

August 25, 2011January 24, 2015 / Curt Mekemson / Leave a comment

Of the dozens of candidates for the Wizard I found among my photos, I opted for the Green Man.

What if Dorothy landed at Burning Man instead of Oz? Would she have known the difference?

No doubt she would have found a wizard and the odds are high she would have discovered a number of good and bad witches. There’s even a chance she would have stumbled upon a scantily clad, very, very bad witch wearing black leather and carrying a whip. (I think I have a photo.)

This woman, I decided, would make a great witch.

As for rusting tin men, cowardly lions, and uncoordinated scarecrows, they’ve probably all visited Black Rock City. Think of tens of thousands of people dressed up in costumes.

I can even imagine Larry Harvey, the founder of Burning Man, hiding behind a large psychedelic screen and yelling at Dorothy in a booming voice, “Gift me the witches broom and I’ll gift you a trip to Kansas.

And for some reason, I'm not sure why, I selected this young woman for Dorothy. Maybe it's a sense of innocence.

Gifting is big at Burning Man. So is radical self-reliance. Dorothy and her bosom buddies would have been on their own in searching for the broom without a corporate sponsor to be found. Nor would she have been able to buy food, water or even a new axe for the Tin Man. Consumerism is a no-no.

And how would Dorothy get home? “Follow the yellow brick road, sweetie, and tap your ruby slippers together,” was sound advice for Oz but what about Burning Man?

She’d be better off looking up the Midwest Burners. They are bound to have at least one Fairy Godmother who would happily gift Dorothy and her scruffy dog a ride home to Kansas… after the Man has burned. (BTW… Dogs aren’t allowed at Burning Man. Dorothy might have been sent packing as soon as she arrived.)

It’s serious countdown time here on the Applegate River in Oregon. Burning Man is four days away. The Emails are flying back and forth between the Horse-Bone Tribe.

The Horny Princess is planning on coming in on Tuesday and leaving on Saturday ‘depending on the dust.’ This is absolutely her last Burning Man she announces for the third year in a row.

“Don’t worry about the dust,” Sailor Boy responds. “There’s plenty to go around.”

Luna is picking out her hat; Pumpkin (our second year Burner) is bubbling; Scout is just glad he doesn’t have to cook. So are we. I heard from a spy in the Bigger Sacramento Book Club that Scotty was modeling his latest outrageous Burning Man get-up at the book club meeting.

Details, details, details… like where are we camping, who’s bringing what food, when are folks arriving and what walkie-talkie channel will we be using.

But that’s easy stuff. We are, after all, Burning Man Veterans. Thirty minutes of chit-chat and everything is settled.

My thanks to all the folks who have followed my Burning Man Blogs this year. And special thanks to WordPress for featuring the blogs prominently. This is my last one before the event but I will be back immediately afterwards with photos and stories from 2011. This year shows promise of being one of the best ever.