JRS/5:22/7.31.01
July 30, 2001, Burning Man Work Ranch – 22 miles north of Gerlach, Nevada (posted by satellite internet connection from the Ranch House, temp 80 degrees)
Hello Burners. I’m writing to you from a comfy yellow and gold striped chair in front of a beautiful burn barrel at the Beach Club. Why should you care? And what the fuck is the Beach Club? It’s the social center of the Burning Man Work Ranch. I arrived on Friday (July 27), and in the past 3 days have watched as the volunteer and staff crew has trickled in to work. Some are here to build the Man, others are here for a few days, but most have come to stay for the duration. The number of people increases at each meal. Not only are there seasoned volunteers and staff, but an unusually high number of newbie Burners. On Friday I swung by the Greyhound Bus Station in Reno and brought Jesse to the Ranch. He’s from Ohio, and it’s his first Burning Man! He joins other first timers: Pete (Iowa), Donna (Virginia), Tom (Florida), and Gerry (among others) who have come to contribute and connect by working for the Man at the DPW. There were over 55 people here for dinner tonight, and 62 people checked in to work.
The survey work for Black Rock City starts on Wednesday, August 1. At noon we’ll all go to the playa, and pound the first stake in the ground where the Man will be located. The fence work will start on the 10th, and playa occupation will begin shortly thereafter. Less than 4 weeks and the gate will open.
We are all building Black Rock City together.
BURNING MAN HAIKU
When The Winnebagos Roll
Into The Flatland
It Is Time To Live Again
– Mark Henry
(Mark’s not a DPW volunteer.)
TOPICS FOR TODAY:
- POOP and more poop
- Volunteer VOLUNTEER Volunteer (a word from Safety Girl)
- WHAT is a Playa Burn Scar?
- La Rificolona the Giant LANTERN
- Misc.
- Admin on and off the JRS
Every year the community engages in the difficult endeavor of modifying its behavior in a particular area. This year’s effort involves the port-a-potties. If we ALL do our part the toilet situation could be vastly improved. Burning Man has for 2001 contracted with TWO different porta-pottie-vendors. Johnnie-On-The-Spot will be responsible for the 300 toilets in general placement throughout the city. Sani-Hut will be responsible for 48 special placement potties (Medical, Gate, Greeters, etc.) and for RV servicing. The fee for servicing will be $50, and you’ll be able to sign up at Playa Info from 11 AM to 1 PM each day to schedule a stop. You can also flag the Sani-Hut person down to request service. We believe that 2 toilet vendors will more easily handle the demands of the Burning Man population. An RV tips web page has been created and will be on burningman.com shortly. I’ll post the URL with my next JRS.
We all like to talk about shit! After a recent JRS I received a number of comments. Here are some applicable and not-so-applicable chunks of info: (for those with an aversion to bodily functions please just skip ahead)
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A good summary of pottie information:
http://michaelbluejay.com/burningman
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Pottie Patrol at Burning Man
Robbie Dobbs will be leading the Porta-Pottie Poop Patrol each day at Burning Man. It’s sort of a “toilet quality control crew”. She’ll be camped near the Berlin Outpost, and at 5 PM each day the crew will dispatch themselves on an inspection adventure. If you’d like to join, please stop by the Berlin Outpost at any time and sign up. OR, just show up at 5 PM.
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please add this to “dealing with “IT””! I got an identical one at Popular Outdoor Outfitters for the same price. Just add a cushion and you have a stool!http://www.campmor.com/webapp/commerce/command/ ProductDisplay?prrfnbr=13479&prmenbr=226 However, for those of us who do river trip camping, that toilet seat, bucket, bags & 1 Tablespoon Clorox/load works. Would you believe, 2 adults & a 4-year-old produced, in a week, solid matter that compacted into a 5# coffee can!!!. Don’t forget the METAL holder (holds in the unavoidable smells!)
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from Lisa Sunde:
Possibly repetitive of “If it wasn’t in your body, don’t put it in the potty”… but repetition is good.
“IF YOUR BODY DIDN’T MAKE IT
THE TOILET WON’T TAKE IT”
I use both these quotes at my residential children’s summer camp to help save our old septic systems.
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a recent sign submission:
our potties love peepee
our potties love teepee
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Port-a-potty Haikus for you:
Morning thunder comes
A spring loaded plastic door
The shitcone looms large
People come and go
Solitude of a green box
Broken by a scream
A midnight surprise:
Flashlight glows in the deep dark
Of a 12 inch hole
Tampons intended
For period blood and stuff
Out of place in john
Chemicals break down
Magic funk of human waste
Condoms lie untouched
Rico
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from Martini Man:
“this is a serious site – good for campers etc – and fun to learn because a woman can out distance a man – think of the betting potential”
xo
MARTINI MAN
http://www.restrooms.org/standing.html
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Every year it takes thousands of Black Rock Citizens to build, operate, and clean up the complex infrastructure of Black Rock City. The good karma flying around with everyone helping everyone is A-M-A-Z-I-N-G. If you haven’t already checked out the volunteer web pages (within the Participate section), do so now! There are dozens of different opportunities. Let’s name a few: Art team, Black Rock Gazette, Black Rock Rangers, Empire-Gerlach bus service, camp Arctica (ice vending), Center Camp Café, (including center camp cafe decor!), cleanup, Dept. of Public Works, drummers collective, Earth Guardians, Exodus, Gate, Greeters, Lamplighters, Media Mecca, Playa Information Services, Recycle Camp, san francisco office squad, tech / web teams, and many, many others.
Visit the participate section, fill out a questionnaire, read the frequently asked questions about Burning Man. By filling out a questionnaire, you automatically get added to the volunteers-announce mailing list. We put out regular calls for help on that list– and we Really Do need Your Help.
WISH LIST
PLEASE, PLEASE Check out our Wish List for STUFF
CURRENT NEEDS
Check out our Current Needs for PEOPLE
WALK UP VOLUNTEERING
To volunteer on the playa, without pre-arranging anything…. Take your ” I am ready to work right now” body to Playa Information (Checkpoint) in Center Camp and ask for a volunteer coordinator. The volunteer coordinator will work with you to tell you “what we need right now”. Please bring a hat, water, gloves and sunscreen when you come to Playa Information to get assigned a volunteer job. Muchas Gracias.
Other Questions? volunteers(at)burningman(dot)com. We can help you get in touch with the right team, or answer your general questions.
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Playa burn scars are patches of discolored, hardened playa sediment, caused by the heat and smoke of carelessly constructed bonfires. They are difficult to clean up, and take years to recover. Our goal in 2001 is to leave ZERO PLAYA BURN SCARS after the event. Doing so will assist us in our commitment to be good stewards of the playa.
There are several reasons why playa burn scars spell trouble for Black Rock City. A burn scar left behind takes time and energy to clean bring it back to the original playa state. This goes against the Leave No Trace philosophy, and is environmentally irresponsible. Additionally, burn scars could cause us to fail our site inspections and in turn could affect our permit for future years. We endeavor to leave the playa in as pristine a state as possible each year, and we’re counting on you to help.
We are constructing a number of public burn platforms in 2001. We will be placing these variously sized burn platforms off the esplanade at the end of every street, for everyone’s use. Additionally, thanks to the protection of the giant burn blanket – specially commissioned for The Man, our central figure’s conflagration – you may burn your items on the Man, after it falls. You could receive a citation from the BLM for burning on the unprotected playa.
If you intend to burn something that is too big for the public platforms, you will need to build a suitable burn platform and you MUST follow our guidelines and register your plans with us via the art application form (see link below), so that we can notify the BLM that your burn is approved; otherwise, they may cite you.
To communicate with Burning Man about your plans to burn, see the artist application
Burning Man participants, especially people building and burning art installations, have a number of options available to prevent burn scars. With some clever thinking, preparation, and intelligent use of materials, this can be even be made to fit in with the esthetics of the installation.
Please read up on burn scars here
If you have questions about fire at Burning Man, please contact pyro(at)burningman(dot)com. Thank you for helping to leave the playa as we found it.
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La Rificolona the Giant Lantern
La Rificolona is a massive lantern standing out on the open playa. Built of canvas and bamboo, it resembles two fans with their tips arcing together. This project is looking for light sculptors, shadow players, sounders, riggers, gaffers, riff-raff, and zaggers to fill this great performance space. La Rificolona provides sixteen hundred square feet of projection area and an eight hundred square foot interior. Please help to light the lantern!
Pix and fax at www.rificolona.com.
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I’ve received a large number of requests to post to the JRS. I’m trying to kick out the JRS as fast as possible to accommodate all the information people are asking me to post. Please stand by as I attempt to post another one within 24 hours. Forgive me if I become distracted and am delayed.
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Jack Rabbit Out
Meow
M
—
Maid Marian
Burning Man
jackrabbitspeaks(at)burningman(dot)com (for questions and post requests)
The JRS: guaranteed to be interesting MOST of the time.
—
Maid Marian
Mistress of Communication
Burning Man
marian(at)burningman(dot)com
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