What Burning Man means to me.
Beat X-ing and the Beat Police. The giant orange cone which is built upon a golf cart frame, is an art car that Loopy, Douglass, and I and several other camp mates created for Burning Man 2007.
Since the Man burnt at Burning Man last night, I thought I’d take a moment to reflect on it.
I chose not to go to Burning Man this year. I decided to go on this road trip and see some things on my list of things to see and to work on myself and work on some projects that I had wanted to start. For various reasons, it took this road trip to get clarity and motivation and space and time to work on those projects, this blog being one of them. Who knew blogging took so much time?
I think I’ve realized what Burning Man means to me and so many other people. Its taken distance and a different perspective and a lot of reflection to understand what I look forward to and what I miss this year about Burning Man.
- Art: The location of a dry lake bed provides a canvas or gallery to showcase art that might be too big to show in other places. There are also many interactive arts and crafts camps and activities throughout the week as well.
- People: The diversity of the hippies and yippies that attend is pretty cool. Some of the most creative people I know attend and are inspired by the event.
- Food: I actually think I eat better there than I do the rest of the year. Part of the reason is that in our camp for the last several years, a couple of people would take turns fixing a meal for the evening, so we’d only have to be responsible for one night’s meal. I think we all enjoy making our special food or dish for the group.
- Biking: One of the things I get a lot out of is biking around the event. I enjoy riding bikes and its a quick way to cover the event quickly. Last year the city was several miles in diameter.
- Scenery: It is really fun to get away from where you live and be somewhere that you wouldn’t want to live year round. It is a magnificent location, but it is a very harsh environment.
So what is Burning Man? It is a summer camp for adults. It has all the ingredients of what summer camp was for me. Getting away from things for a week. Meeting new people that you may never see again, and also meeting people you want to see as much as possible. Being artistic and creative, and seeing the beauty in the location where camp is held. That is what a summer camp is for most kids and what it was for me.
The view from the center of Center Camp Cafe in 2004.
Click on image for closer view.
I like having a desert summer camp, but this year I needed a wet and mountainous summer camp, which is very much like the camp I went to when I was growing up. It was called Holston Camp, and was located near Banner Elk, North Carolina. I had a lot of fun meeting new people, canoeing, hiking, and getting away from my parents for a week! 
On this trip, I’ve been rafting, hiking, mountain biking, and met some really cool people along the way. I’ve seen some amazing views, and camped in some amazing places… and I’m not done yet! 
Tags: biking, burning man, camp, deep thoughts