UNDER CONSTRUCTION

My Personal )^( History

The first question people ask upon hearing that I've been to Burning Man is "How did you find out about )^( ?" My answer: "Weird TV". Unfortunately it was too late in 1995 to attend so I made plans to attend the '96 Burn.....but a car accident sucked down all my cash and I had to forgo the trip despite having a ticket for the '96 Burn. The silver lining in this is that I had another year to prepare myself that much more.
One of the first things I did was to go online to the )^( Web Site and read Everything
The next step was to join the Mailing List and introduce myself. There I found a whole group of interesting people with all sorts of tips and advice to share.
After the '96 Burn, the listizens started talking about the increased population of BRC. Since )^( is about an experiment in Community and Self-Expression, we decided it was time to force the next step of a city's evolution.....Creating an enclave of allied and affiliated Theme Camps, a Village. Thus, the Blue Light District was born. Many more emails later and we had plans for Community Events, Barter Bars, our Communal Kitchen, and the edict that Blue Light District was to be a 'Gong Free Zone'.
Although the majority of the Village is comprised of Bay Area residents, I was not deterred from joining being so Geographically Challenged from the LA area. I had been emailing these people for over a year and felt a genuine friendship with them. My mom thought I was crazy, I had never met any of these people in person, save Sister Dana Van Iquity and Sister Kitty Catalyst of the famed SF Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence!

)^( 1997

I pull into the BRC one day before the festival starts. I've got everything crammed into and on top of my '93 Honda hatchback! For this feat of engineering I've been given the T.A.R.D.I.S. award by the Blue Light District for the most crap in the smallest car. The city's so small that our village is right next to the outer ring road that encompasses Center Camp.
This place is so full of absurdities. Despite our Village's Bulletin Board proclaiming us to be a "Gong Free Zone" doesn't stop some gent from walking into the centre of our space and banging his gong once before running off.....around 6PM Every Day!
Just a very short way down from my camp we have TWO Barter Bars right next to each other, the Lake Lahontan Country Club and Chez Newt's Slow Toxic Amphibian Lounge. As we're setting up our communal kitchen there's some dreadlocked gent on a bike wearing lederhosen and crying "Ricola" through his digiridoo! It's amazing just what walks by your camp on a daily basis!
Out on the open playa someone has roped off a space and has it labeled "Media Free Zone" and there's someb Mediacritterdoing a stand up right outside making a report.
Speaking of the Media.....This year was the invasion of the Networks! Almost everywhere you look there's a Media Triad (Reporter, Guy with big ass camera, & guy with big fuzzy mike on a boom)getting in the way.
Some denizens of our village find out that CNN is parked behind us and organize a posse to call them out of their camper and do a firing squad by supersoakers!
I set up my camp right near the Village Bulletin Board. I've got Carp Camp (not affiliated with Blue Light Ditrict) separating me from the outer ring road that encircles Center Camp. A few days later a 20' tall rocking horse appears on the other side of my camp. Across the street I have Seussville and the Absinthe Den.
It's while i'm visting fellow villagers in the Absinthe Den ~24 hours after my arrival, being introduced to the Green Fairy for the first time.....and a van pulls up to my camp. It's my older sister Celina and an aquaintance she's gotten a ride with!

)^( 1998

Postman of the Playa Camp 2.0

)^( 1999

Postman of the Playa Camp 3.0

)^( 2000

Postman of the Playa Camp 4.0

)^( 2001

How you do )^( with a Honda Hatchback

Return To My )^( Main Page
Self Portrait as Terran 23¢ Stamp

PENFOLD
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