20th anniversary of The Burn, and black rock city was BUZZIN'.
there's a strong connect out there in the dessert. everything's electric. i mean, tricked out electric. and alive. so alive.
and yet there's no electricity. and next to no living things. an occasional moth perhaps. and the good luck dragonfly who selectively dive bombs the chosen few.
one guy said he saw a bird once. but he changed his story thrice under cross examination.
be that as it may.
it's the people. super creative, curious, communal people. getting it on in the middle of nowhere. brilliant.
yep, this year was clever.
and then everthing went dark...
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ROOKIES... let it be said: this year's freshman contingent was strong. SO STRONG. we had a recruiting class like you dream about, and it mattered.
ART INSTALLATIONS... man, the art was back this year. big time.
THEME CAMPS... 477 or so theme camps, all of them with a different angle. yoga, yogurt, ice, ice cream, war, warlocks. it would take a month to visit them all. or a year.
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ART VEHICLES... a dobule decker caboose, a ferris wheel, a flame throwing grapefruit, and two darting cup cakes. and that just captures what i saw on one trip to the bathroom.
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THE TEMPLE... the temple downsized this year. and god damn if that wasn't exactly perfect.
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THE MAN... yes, yes, the man went down. as he must. has to... so we can do it again next year. save the man, burn dicky.
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SUNRISE SALOON... but really, this was the year of the saloon.
bitches, i'm normal
not a whole lot to it. doorframe, bar to the right, card table to the left. key ingredients: western doors. crickety sign. whiskey.
and, oh hot mama, it was jelly.
whiskey, whiskey, and whiskey
our first visitor trickled in during set up. should have snapped a picture. never really expected to get more than a few stragglers given our remote locale.
one for the road
officially, the saloon was open from 5am til 8am (more or less).
but there were no officials. and open just meant you were there.
and with a capacity of 40,000, we had room to breathe.
the first night we left a bottle of jack on the bar with two shot glasses.
next morning, the jack was gone. and a nice bulbous bud was left as a tip.
and morning 1 was... a surprise. we were not alone on the fringe.
customers.
charlie, what's the special?
shot and a carrot
it was cold that first morning. cold in that the two mile ride to the saloon was cold.
but fun. and fun and fun and fun.
no burners
and things spiraled on from there.
an organism was born, and a life of its own ensued.
in retrospect, we lost control of the saloon the second we put her down. bigger, Bigger, BIGGER than us.
ladies morning
morrning 2 was rowdy roddy piper.
but alas, paddywhacks or consequences?
consequences.
uh, so, whiskey, whiskey, and whiskey. what got ya?
whiskey.
ah ha.
A-corn and i rode out to the saloon late friday night, but we couldn't find her. we were just trolling the outter playa coming up empty. hey, let's ask these folks, "have you seen the sunrise saloon?"
oh, well, yes. it's right over there.
bunch of jackasses. of course the well-lit entity they were pointing toward couldn't be the saloon. we only have one light at the saloon.
and it flickers at best.
but ok, let's go see.
a closer look, and oh my. a chuck wagon. with a generator. and xmas lights all over the bar. the saloon is decked out. and shining.
you' ve been here for 5 hours?
topless girls dancing on the bar?
shots of hams?
did he say hams.
i've got tools
day 3 was the biggest.
peaking.
and that's right, wisconsin, with that deep ten gallon lid. serve 'em up.
and ride the snake... to the finish line day 4.
use the door
and a 15 foot character on stilts did just that. and if i ever find that disposable camera, i'll have proof.
yes, yes, and yes.
shout out, good patrons, wherever you may be.
and stay out
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sobering news upon arrival back in reality. a smacking Katrina of a hurricane punished th Big Easy.
not good.
and how to reconcile in the wake of the ludicrous debachery we just experienced?
of course you can't.
but we care. we care from the heart.
an article in the sf chronicle actually addressed the issue head on. and the scribe, mark morfor, shaped it right.
life is fleeting. get it when you can. as best you can:
more. more. more of that.