I am back from the Playa! [Update: Photos - here!]

Burning Man was an awesome experience, and while I had a lot of fun, I am definitely glad to be back. There was a lot going on prior to the trip, and after about a week taking a mental vacation [No cell phone or internet does wonders!], I am ready to move ahead at full speed. For most of the week, we took things fairly easy. We didn’t try to do everything just because it was there to be done, but just proceeded at a casual pace. We’d take walks or ride our bicycles around when the dust storms weren’t too terrible. At night, we’d go dancing, jump on art cars, hang out at the bars, or check out art installations. We didn’t stay too long after the Burn itself, and I’m actually back a day earlier than originally planned. We were there from the beginning, so it was just time to pack it all up and make the long trek out.

I think that it is a different experience for everyone who attends. You take what you want from it. Some people try to do too much at once and get burnt out pretty quickly. Others undergo some revelation or spiritual experience that they tie to the burning of the Man and of the Temple. For me, the highlight of the week was spending time with RV. Sure, I already see him every day, but I think having to live in Black Rock City for the week, dealing with dust storms, crazy winds, heat of the afternoon, and cold of the night, brings out another side, and it seems that even with those extra colors showing, I like him just the same, if not more…

Other fond memories:

- Art installation hopping. I’m certain that we didn’t see ALL of the art installations, but there are just so many! They pop up all over the Playa at different times; one day all you see is dust, and the next day something amazing is in that very same spot.

- Full moon party on Friday night. That was pretty much the only event that I was adamant about attending all week long. It was a great reminder of all the parties I’d enjoyed in the past, and of course, it always feels awesome when you’re sharing great music with friends and dancing your legs off.

- An older gentleman dressed in a suit and carrying a briefcase approached us and asked if we would like free money. Considering that there is no currency in Black Rock City, we weren’t sure what to expect when he placed into our hands something folded and told us not to open our hands up until he’s at least ten feet away. After waiting for him to step away, we opened up our hands and found in our palms $50 each… :-o

- One event I attended on the Playa involved ripping apart various stuffed animals and sewing them back together in different combinations. What I ended up with was a giraffe with a bear’s body wearing a koala hat. The bear’s body was apparently part of a bear-Minnie Mouse combination from the year before, but the participant’s dog had torn off the head, and so the body was at the event for round two. I rescued a giraffe head after someone else tore off its body, and the koala head was laying around, waiting for its fate as a hat. A little twisted, but still adorable. I think RV was impressed by my sewing skills, and from what I was told later on, my creation was quite the hit! The funniest part was figuring out how to transport the creature home. He was too large to stuff in a bag or use as a bicycle seat, so we strapped him onto RV’s back with a bike lock.

I really enjoyed my first time at Burning Man, and already, RV is planning on what to do for the next. There were certain things we weren’t quite prepared for, but I think being in an RV our first year certainly made things easier on us. We had a default place to go to escape the dust and the heat. Even if we’re in tents next year, we have a better idea of what to expect since we’ve been out there. Heading out there this year was definitely worth the time/money put into it.

Recent 101 in 1001 Accomplishments:
001 – Buy a bicycle. Ride it.
085 – Full moon party for nostalgia’s sake.
090 – Attend Burning Man.

When it rains, it pours! That seems to be the consistent theme in my life this week. One bad thing leads to another. One good thing leads to another. I canceled one trip in order to have more time to deal with things, and it looks like I may be canceling more in the near future.

For now, I’m concerned with packing and getting ready for Burning Man. I made a tutu [on the left!] the other day with random materials purchased. It ended up costing less than $10 to make, which is about the price I found the cheapest tutu at the store for. Of course, making it also meant I could choose which colors to use. I also did some last minute bulk shopping today, so hopefully I’m prepared. Jessica and I drive up tomorrow with all our stuff to meet up with RV and his dad’s RV.

So exciting!

I have plenty of other news to share, but I want to wait till everything’s settled down before writing about it. I’m already probably jinxing it all by talking about it. Anyway, see you on the other side!

I haven’t updated in about a week, but I feel as though there is a lot of catching up to do. While the market is still in the shape that its in, I’ve dived in head first in a few personal projects.

1) Slightly Delightful – This is a domain that I’ve used in the past for my personal blog. Since I switched over to this SuperDuperFantastic, it’s sat there in silence. I’ve always liked the name, so I couldn’t bear to part with it just yet.

I am now using it as a shopping blog to document all my neat finds!

I decided on gearing it towards items that cost $50 or less since that still remains an amount that I might be willing to splurge now and again. I was, of course, inspired by a lot of the shopping blogs I’ve come across on the internet and just really wanted to start my own. RV helped me out with the graphic design, and I altered a Wordpress template to get what I wanted.

The site was born on the first of this month. It’s slow going for now, but I’m hoping it will grow!

2) #2 on the 101 in 1001 – Go on a week long camping trip.

RV’s father’s family is having a reunion up at a campground along the Oregon coast, and I’ve been invited. It’s a week-long trip up in the RV [hahaha]. It’s not really camping though because this RV is decked out. His dad basically likes to travel with his entire house.

3) #90 on the 101 in 1001 – Attend Burning Man – just to check it out.

With more time this year than the past, we’ve decided to borrow the RV and join in on the Burning Man fun. We have our tickets and bicycles, so I guess that means we’re going. Sure, driving an RV in won’t exactly be roughing it, but when you’re in that amount of heat in the middle of nowhere, a little comfort should be okay. I don’t think we will be joining a specific camp, which I think will work out just fine as long as we have everything we need. A friend of ours is joining us too and plans on creating t-shirt art to be distributed to the people we meet. Should be fun!

4) In conjunction with the item above, we’ve bought bicycles! So guess what? I’m crossing #1 on the 101 in 1001 off the list – Buy a bicycle. Ride it. as soon as I’ve assembled the bike and rode it around a bit.

5) I’m helping out with Twestival SF this year. They were looking for a Merchandise Manager, so I volunteered. This year’s beneficiary will be 140 Smiles. Operation Smile is a private not-for-profit medical services organization providing reconstructive surgery and related health care to indigent children and young adults in developing countries. Medical volunteers travel on medical missions to repair of cleft lips, palates and facial reconstructive surgery in 34 countries around the world.

It’s going to be a busy few months. I hope that by the time I resurface, the market will have changed in my favor… Who knows? I remain optimistic as always!

I had hoped that there would be several degrees of separation between JM and me, but alas, that is not the case! We are separated by ONE, just ONE! He came out to Christopher’s birthday party on Saturday at Lucky 13, and it turned out that he was an acquaintance of one of my friends. It’s a small city. He got to meet most of the people who make regular appearances in my life. I’m probably breaking every dating rule there is out there on how long one should wait to introduce the person to the circle, but hey, I’m learning! And so far it hasn’t backfired on me yet…

I actually do like the pace that we’re going at the moment. I’d rather not move quickly along or jump into anything. I am definitely still self-conscious. It’s still that “I hope this person still likes me… even though I [fill-in-the-blank].” I could fill in the blank with so many off-the-wall things. *sigh* He’s off to Burning Man next week, so probably will be incommunicado.

Other news, work schedule is crazy. I won’t be getting the time off that I’m wanting in October. In fact, I’ll be a busy bee until December. It’s madness but will be a good experience. I hope. I’ll be driving a LOT in the next half year…