Jrs V10 I01

JRS VOLUME #10; ISSUE #01

JRS of September 22, 2005

Dateline:
September 22, 2005
Gerlach, Nevada

THANK YOU!

Thank you! Thanks to everyone who did something to bring Burning Man 2005 to fruition. What a wonderful successful event. How about that weather? As you know there are artists, volunteers, theme campers, performers, staffers, agency cooperators (law enforcement, health department, etc.), vendors (medical, dust abatement, toilets) that participate in the event.

It is impossible to thank everyone, however I have to give a public shout out to the wonderful friends and strangers who brought me gifts. A significant number of those gifts were either leopard print or cat-related. Even a “meow” necklace that I’m wearing right now from a couple I’ve never met before. MEOW! The biggest gift was the cat car designed by Tom Kennedy with help and assistance from a bunch of people. It changed my entire Burning Man experience. WOW. Big meow to everyone. www.nytimes.com Then search for “Burning Man art cars”. It’s the only photo with the article, can’t miss it! Any of you who stopped me and took photos it have a chance please forward! Tom finfetish(at)hotmail(dot)com and I would love to have playa photos of the car, please send along. Thanks.

DEFAULT WORLD? BURNING MAN YEAR ROUND!

So, you’ve returned to the Default World? Wondering when and how you can maintain your Burning Man experience? Well, from my perspective it’s possible to be a “Burner” year-round, and it’s more than possible to take the culture you experience in Black Rock City and infuse your neighborhood and community with it. READ ON!

PLAYA-BASED KATRINA DONATIONS:

Burners are in motion helping the hurricane Katrina relief efforts. You can read about where your over $35,000 in donations are going, and who’s doing what to help and where on this web page. There’s some really amazing stuff happening, and members of the Rangers, DPW and Temple crew are all involved in different projects. The latter group is rebuilding a Buddhist Temple in Biloxi!

DPW PLAYA WORK WEEKENDS

There are work weekends still happening at the event site. If you’re jonesin’ for the playa, the wide open space without 35,000 people, or want to find that necklace you lost on burn night, this is the time to come back and help the crew that’s left MOOPing (Matter Out Of Place) the playa. The line sweeps started on the 21st, and go until the BLM inspection date in early October. This bunch won’t go to the San Francisco Decompression until all the little specks of wood chips, screws, bottle caps, q-tips and pistachio nut shells are off the playa surface. It’s an archeological adventure and each day the best MOOP is compared at dinner. Word so far from Coyote is that you all did FANTASTIC job of cleaning up your camps after yourselves. Give yourselves a pat on the back. Possibly best it’s ever been. Leave no Trace works! It’s harder to keep the public spaces clean, like Center Camp and Esplanade, and that’s where the focus will be first. Come HELP!

Read about what’s been going on in Gerlach as we’ve built and are taking down the city: The Hun is the writer on site workin’ her tail off all day and writing in the shadows of the evenings.

If you’d like to participate in one of the two upcoming work weekends (Friday 9/23 night’s dinner is a progressive dinner in the trailer park — think anything in cans — and Saturday 9/24 is “casino night” at the social center) contact mayfield(at)burningman(dot)com and he’ll give you the 411 so you can join the fun. Sept. 23-24 and Oct. 1-2. Please do not arrive unannounced. It messes everyone up. Gerlach office number: 775.557.2200 if you take off and need to call en-route. Recently Tony Perez (aka: Coyote) who’s the City Superintendent responsible for Event Installation and Restoration, sent an appeal to the various staff/departments that make up the civic infrastructure of the event. Here is an excerpt of a reply from Blue who oversees the Recycle operations in Center Camp, and is also responsible for San Francisco HQ to Gerlach transportation operations:

<start from Blue>

Tony-
You will see me soon again…..these were my first thoughts on 2005, early this morning, after leaving the city yesterday and spending the day unloading the truck. I thought I’d share them with you and everyone else….. I left the playa last night, for the second time, dust in every pore again, down my throat, in my eyes and ears. I was slowly being assimilated until I finally broke free of her grasp. Recovery is forthcoming, my voice returns little by little with every breath of dust free air. This was my best year yet, I saw things and did things for the first time and loved every minute of it. It still gives me chills that the more I put into this special little camping trip, the more I get out of it. Five years now and it’s still changing my life. The “Thank Yous” and other kind words from participants make all the hard work worth it. We warped people’s minds out there and they still left wanting more. Success is a beautiful mistress. Thank you everyone here and to all your crews and volunteers and to all those that venture to our city on the playa.
Peace,
Blue

<end from Blue>

BLACK ROCK ARTS FOUNDATION

If you’re not able to make a work weekend, maybe you’d like to help the Black Rock Arts Foundation install some of the pieces from Burning man 2005 in other urban areas. This week the Executive Director of the Black Rock Arts Foundation, Leslie Pritchett, is meeting with staff from the Mayor’s office, SF Arts Commission and Neighborhood Parks organization to discuss which art installations might fit in locations in San Francisco. Ever since David Best’s Temple was installed in Hayes Green in June http://tinyurl.com/bm6lq San Francisco has been embracing temporary interactive art of the kind that Burning Man is expert at creating.

The DPW staff lovingly moved the “Passages” installation by Dan Das Man (mother and child figures with foot prints in the playa) to the Burning Man owned “Black Rock Station” storage and staging property. Here’s a time lapse of the move and installation on our property. However, you know as well as I do that this installation should be seen by more than the caretakers at our work ranch.

Get involved in the Black Rock Arts Foundation. We are engaging in outreach to the Burning Man Regional Network, recruiting volunteers for a variety of roles, and we need to fund our efforts. Please donate now and help us keep the art out there to be seen.
http://www.blackrockarts.org

FEEDBACK

Hey, let us know how your Burning Man experience went. Toilets, law enforcement, and the amount of art seem to always be favorite topics. What would you like to let us know about? Inquiring minds really want to know.
http://bmpublishing.wpengine.com/blackrockcity_yearround/misc/feedback/

GREAT WEB SITES WITH OUTSTANDING IMAGES

Wow, holly shit, not only is this super cool, but extra points for naming the projects and crediting the artists:
http://www.lennyjones.net/burn2005/comicbook2005.htm

Rick Egan, a professional journalist now in Iraq has been shooting the event since 2000. See just a few of his images for 2005:
http://www.moonski.net/burningman/

I’m not really familiar with this photographer (Pixie), but in order to get these excellent images I think she must have been taking photographs morning, noon and night and been everywhere all the time.
http://www.pixievisionproductions.com/gallery/bm05

Gabe Kirchheimer first shot images at Burning Man in 1998, and for Rolling Stone in 2000.
http://www.gabekphoto.com

Patrick adores the people of Burning Man:
http://webbery.com/bm05

DECOMPRESSION PARTY ANYONE?

San Francisco Decompression 2005

Sunday, October 9th, NOON
Indiana Street
Between Mariposa and 21st
Main Entrance: 19th and Minnesota

http://bmpublishing.wpengine.com/blackrockcity_yearround/special-events/decompression/decom2005/

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

Okay. Th th that’s all folks. Getting up in 3 hours to fly to Frenchtown, NJ and the christening of my sister Melly’s twin baby boys. Then to Buffalo to visit the father. Hugs to my Aunt Jay who’s not yet been able to return to her house in New Orleans, and warm hugs to my sister in Houston who’s battening down the hatches with her husband and three little girls and cat.

May every one of you be safe, and have your loved ones near you.

Meow

Maid Marian
Jack Rabbit Speaks
Bad Kitty
jackrabbitspeaks@burningman.com