What Did You Learn at the Burn?

topic posted Fri, October 9, 2009 - 11:47 AM by 
Share/Save/Bookmark
Advertisement
I've been kicking around this idea anyway, but the cupcake thread really made me want to articulate this. "We" (and I hope we can escape the whole "what is 'we'" conversation by stipulating that it's not a precise term in this context) put a lot of time, effort, and money into the burn. Are we changed by it? I'd argue yes, although I admit it's possible there's a whole lot of interpretation of the word "changed." I do find myself telling myself "radical self-reliance" when I face some problems. And it does help me focus my thoughts.
So, have you learned anything at the burn? Something that's not about universal brotherhood or some hazy thing like that, but something that's concrete?
Just curious.
posted by:
Advertisement
Advertisement
  • Re: What Did You Learn at the Burn?

    Sat, October 10, 2009 - 11:07 AM


    This year I learned that I had to "evolve" (like the relevant reference?) my style of experiencing/handling the event.


    • Re: What Did You Learn at the Burn?

      Sat, October 10, 2009 - 6:19 PM
      Geez, where do I start?

      I learned that in certain environments where you are free to be without hassle or question, you do things you wouldnt normally do.

      I learned a lot about art that I hadn't taken the time to learn in the big world.
      I learned to focus differently
      to appreciate things I didnt as much before....

      I learned a LOT about music and the new dimension of bass and electronic.
      I learned how to enjoy music I didnt before (any kind)

      I learned to dress up and do my hair differently. I learned to make clothes.
      That day glo shines thru a different kind of dust,
      and that altoid tins make good ashtrays.
      I learned how to prepare really well for, well, anything I guess.....

      I learned that I could be close and party and communicate deeply with people that werent in my social community bubble elsewhere.

      I learned some weaknesses and some strengths....

      I learned the more I give the more I get, in a much more intense way than I have in the past.

      Sorry Burning Man, bacon curing hangovers I learned at music festivals. :)
      • Re: What Did You Learn at the Burn?

        Sat, October 10, 2009 - 6:21 PM
        "This year I learned that I had to "evolve" (like the relevant reference?) my style of experiencing/handling the event."rob


        ME TOO.....very much so indeed!!!
        • Re: What Did You Learn at the Burn?

          Mon, October 12, 2009 - 11:33 AM
          I learned to be more positive and affirming to others. I got so much of that from others and it was really contagious. Just a little thing of hey I like your jacket or hat or bike or whatever... really was a great thing for me in my life. I have tried to bring that home and utilize it regularly - I just want to be a more positive person!
          • Re: What Did You Learn at the Burn?

            Mon, October 12, 2009 - 1:31 PM
            I learned something that I thought was truly fascinating.

            They had a gentleman who was purported to be the head of Nevada's chapter of the National Speleological Society as one of the guest speakers over at Earth Guardians. He reported to me a piece of news that I thought was incredible.

            There are currently people in Nevada looking at, and mapping caves, associated with the NSS. This gentleman said that one possibility that was very real (and I happen to agree with him that the conditions are there for it to be a very real possibility) is that crystals as big as or larger than the 13 - meter long crystals in the Naica, Mexico caverns are in the area of the Black Rock Desert, in caves that they've discovered and are looking into.

            That kind of news made me sit back in total awe and wonder. Wow.
            • Re: What Did You Learn at the Burn?

              Mon, October 12, 2009 - 2:02 PM
              That would be awesome. I recently saw a documentary of the caves in Mexico. It seems that yes, the conditions just might be right under the Black Rock Desert.
              • Re: What Did You Learn at the Burn?

                Mon, October 12, 2009 - 2:08 PM
                "is that crystals as big as or larger than the 13 - meter long crystals in the Naica, Mexico caverns are in the area of the Black Rock Desert, in caves that they've discovered and are looking into. "


                That is sooooo cool!


                One year I gave out small quartz crystal points as gifts... a big hit but it was dumb of me... I was carrying around almost 20 pounds of accordion PLUS a bag of rocks!
                • sa
                  sa
                  online 47

                  Re: What Did You Learn at the Burn?

                  Mon, October 12, 2009 - 2:48 PM
                  I learned more in three days at Xingolati ("Burning Man meets the High Sierra Music Festival"?) than I can recount. Two biggies, though:
                  1. Piss + wind can be incredible. I was at the rail taking a leak. The stream started as your every day stream, just streaming downward, until the passing breeze below caught it and broke it into thousands of golden droplets hanging a hard left ~ Zoom. Zoom. Zoomzoomzoom. Zoomzoomzoom... . . .

                  2. The connection between us can be universal and magical and wonderous and amazing one night and practically nonexistent the very next morning.
                  • This is the maximum depth. Additional responses will not be threaded.

                    Re: What Did You Learn at the Burn?

                    Thu, October 15, 2009 - 3:25 PM
                    I learned to make sure I double check the adapter plug for my gennie before I get to the playa so I have the right one to run a/c in the camper. Not really much of an issue with me, but it kinda harshed my wife's buzz initially ;)
            • Re: What Did You Learn at the Burn?

              Mon, October 19, 2009 - 10:53 PM
              do you have any info on this? What similarities? the more technical the better. I've found some very large k-spars in the granite range, and there are nice opals that come out fom the northwestern margin of the black rock. But I've not heard of any such large crystals or caves round those parts
              • Re: What Did You Learn at the Burn?

                Mon, October 19, 2009 - 11:12 PM
                nevermind, i did some quick poking around. yeah I could see giant selenite crystals being somewhere under the area. Whats in Empire, gypsum company and geothermal plant, that means hot water and selenite.

                Rob you should try being a geologist I'm carrying rocks almost anywhere I go. My friends hate helping me move.
                • Re: What Did You Learn at the Burn?

                  Mon, November 2, 2009 - 1:27 PM
                  AHA! I call ABSOLUTE TRUTH! [As to calling "bullshit"....this is the OTHER end of the spectrum.]

                  "Rob you should try being a geologist I'm carrying rocks almost anywhere I go. My friends hate helping me move. "

                  I can't GET people to help me move without paying them a king's ransom. Snowlover, that hits the proverbial nail on the head!
                  • This is the maximum depth. Additional responses will not be threaded.

                    Re: What Did You Learn at the Burn?

                    Mon, November 2, 2009 - 2:00 PM
                    l learned "Fuck what you know" put the sticker on my water bottle to save saying it yet at times shared "Fuck what l know" too....
            • Re: What Did You Learn at the Burn?

              Thu, October 22, 2009 - 7:38 PM
              "There are currently people in Nevada looking at, and mapping caves, associated with the NSS. This gentleman said that one possibility that was very real (and I happen to agree with him that the conditions are there for it to be a very real possibility) is that crystals as big as or larger than the 13 - meter long crystals in the Naica, Mexico caverns are in the area of the Black Rock Desert, in caves that they've discovered and are looking into."


              That is absolutely aweome, ii just learned that from you!!

              This year I learned that Burning Man is NOT for everyone, and that you have to be picky sometimes about who you camp with (we had a person in our camp that did not adjust well at all to everything going on around them, first time i've had any issues with a camp mate)
  • Re: What Did You Learn at the Burn?

    Thu, October 15, 2009 - 4:17 PM
    speaking of radical self reliance:

    I learned that in case of emergency, you can get many decent sized strips from one of the cardboard toilet paper tubes in the porta potties by separating it into it's component layers, and the results really aren't any rougher than the cheap paper you find in there in the first place.

    Probably not a good experiment for people with deficient fiber intake, though.
    • Re: What Did You Learn at the Burn?

      Thu, October 15, 2009 - 5:41 PM
      WOW that crystal stuff is so way cool!!! I wouldnt doubt if there were large quartz formations by Black Rock. I LOVE the granite beneath me, hence why I live in the Sierras and would rather go up the hill than to the coast. That would make sense :)

      sa, Xingolati cruse, that sounds like a super crazy moment in Festy Time, didnt that cruise only happen once? Too bad, I would of loved to of checked it out. Speaking of, you are the only other person I have ever seen mention the High Sierra fest on this tribe besides me. I fucking love that festival, far superior to many others IMO. :)

      Quartz Granite Crystal Grounding + High Sierra +Desert = a lifetime of bliss for me :)
      • Re: What Did You Learn at the Burn?

        Thu, October 15, 2009 - 9:12 PM
        " I wouldnt doubt if there were large quartz formations by Black Rock."

        Nope. That's why it's called BLACK ROCK. It's basaltic, meaning the magmatic mix from which it was crystallized was undersaturated with respect to quartz. Quartz and potassium feldspar, though they are the most common minerals worldwide, don't crystallize under silica undersaturated conditions. In the Granite Range? Yes. Black Rock? No. Selenite Range? No.

        The Sierras tend to run from a granitic to quartz monzonite in composition, so they can have a lot of quatrz.
  • Re: What Did You Learn at the Burn?

    Thu, October 15, 2009 - 7:13 PM
    that a hot solar shower is the best medicine for playa encrusted bodies.

    that fresh albacore tuna wrapping in bacon, then grilled is damn near good as sex.

    to listen to those that warn you from experience to go easy on the brownies, unless temporary paralysis is what you seek.

    ease up on the alcohol, drink more water. pretty damn simple, for this slow learner.

    while exiting on monday, leaving at 630am is not bad.
  • Re: What Did You Learn at the Burn?

    Thu, October 15, 2009 - 8:46 PM
    I learned lot of little and medium stuff, some of which I'm still processing, but as this was my first burn ...

    (1) How to do it.

    (2) I want to do it again.
    • Re: What Did You Learn at the Burn?

      Fri, October 16, 2009 - 2:57 AM
      that if you are dyslexic, 'evolve' is a palindrome
      • sa
        sa
        online 47

        Re: What Did You Learn at the Burn?

        Fri, October 16, 2009 - 7:03 AM
        <<sa, Xingolati cruse, that sounds like a super crazy moment in Festy Time, didnt that cruise only happen once? Too bad, I would of loved to of checked it out. Speaking of, you are the only other person I have ever seen mention the High Sierra fest on this tribe besides me.>>

        Yes, that Xingolati was a crazy weekend, alright. They lost their a$$ -- I guess high profile acts like the Lips, MMW, etc. and lots of tickets given away when they couldn't sell 'em just killed the promoters. I think they lost one or two million dollars (but a few hundred people had one HELL of a time!). FTR, while I would love to check out High Sierra, I"ve never been. That was a description I found online.

        Back on track ~ Something I learned at a Burn: A guy in a straightjacket can operate a properly modified motor vehicle.
        • Re: What Did You Learn at the Burn?

          Fri, October 16, 2009 - 9:10 AM
          "that fresh albacore tuna wrapping in bacon, then grilled is damn near good as sex. "


          That kind of sex is illegal in 7 states... but surprisingly not in Alabama or Texas.
          • Re: What Did You Learn at the Burn?

            Fri, October 16, 2009 - 1:15 PM
            >>"that fresh albacore tuna wrapping in bacon, then grilled is damn near good as sex. "


            That kind of sex is illegal in 7 states... but surprisingly not in Alabama or Texas. <<




            Even if wearing a straight-jacket?
            • Re: What Did You Learn at the Burn?

              Fri, October 16, 2009 - 2:45 PM
              "That kind of sex is illegal in 7 states... but surprisingly not in Alabama or Texas. <<

              Even if wearing a straight-jacket? "




              Gay or straight, if you are wearing a jacket, it's still illegal. Period.
  • Re: What Did You Learn at the Burn?

    Fri, October 16, 2009 - 4:30 PM
    I learned to ... actually I learned to learn to ... more accurately I learned to yearn to learn to shut up my fucking brain and talk more to more people more. More! Keeping a lifetime of inside-my-head inside my head is bad ju-ju.
    • Re: What Did You Learn at the Burn?

      Fri, October 16, 2009 - 7:11 PM
      I learned that I don't need to stay for the burn anymore. Its... zzzzzzzzzzzzBoring! I also learned running a theme camp on the esplanade is alot of work and when you have lame ass camp mates who think they do thier share but don't makes your work even harder.
      • Re: What Did You Learn at the Burn?

        Sun, October 18, 2009 - 6:50 PM
        This was my 3rd year... and the first year I didn't stay for the burn... I left early because of my job... which I lost a couple weeks after burning man anyway... oh well... I learned it pays to be in good shape at burning man to get the most out of it... I learned that you can't get around your own bullshit at burningman so you might as well go with a plan to deal with it... family kind of makes that happen... burning man is a great place to remind yourself what you believe and push those boundries.
      • Re: What Did You Learn at the Burn?

        Tue, October 20, 2009 - 2:29 PM
        >>>>i don't need to stay for the burn anymore.....lame ass camp mates<<<<

        next year's burn is a new chance to do it differently.

        no theme camp.

        sniff out (kinda like dogs do) better camp mates before venturing onto the playa. meet for coffee or beer, administar a voit-kampf test, or watch america's most wanted to see if you recognize them.
  • Re: What Did You Learn at the Burn?

    Mon, October 19, 2009 - 8:12 PM
    This was my 4th Burn, but my first as a single woman, in a predominantly female camp. With no dude to rely on, I set up (with the help of campmates and friends) a camp shower, a camp beacon and electrical system, a giant shade structure, a Playatech bike rack, my tent... It was incredibly empowering. I learned not to fear all the "guy" stuff that I'd previously relied on the bf to take care of and I actually started to feel pretty good at it. I learned what an inverter is and how it is used. I hooked up and started a generator for the first time. I researched solar systems, although fundage prevented me from taking the leap this year.

    I also took a small step towards learning how to forgive, and truly let go of my ex-relationship with a healing/clearing ceremony out at the Temple. A good friend recently remarked, "it has served you well."
  • Re: What Did You Learn at the Burn?

    Mon, November 2, 2009 - 3:13 PM
    I remembered that it is not my job to make sure you have a "good" burn.
    • Re: What Did You Learn at the Burn?

      Thu, November 12, 2009 - 3:13 AM
      I learned that, in the world of Burning Man, nothing is *ever* over.

      I also learned if you go there on a natural feelgood high, the place will jerk you right up to the stratosphere and the rise can be dizzying.

      That the main difference between a Nevada cop and a bag of guano is the bag.

      That Gerlach is closer to civilization than my hometown in Virginia.

      That memories of a town full of beautiful girls wearing almost nothing can keep you going fifty straight weeks.

Recent topics in "Burning Man"

Topic Author Replies Last Post
Playa Emergency: Food 1derful 16 Today, 9:15 AM
Fuuuuuuuuuuck 1derful 9 Today, 9:03 AM
Dating Burners 53 Today, 9:02 AM
is there still a burner elders tribe out there? jameseye 90 Today, 7:21 AM