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Buring Man (Before the Rain)

2023 marked my third time at Burning Man. I would be there from Monday, August 28, to Monday, September 4. This time I was associated with two camps, one at the airport and the other near Center Camp. It’s a long story why, which I won’t get into.

At the airport, I paid in advance for two means a day at the canteen. It was also required I serve kitchen duty at least two meals. I was allowed to camp at the airport, for which I had to also serve some time. I’m not sure the exact rules, but I served two shifts of “road control,” of four hours each.

My other camp was called Jipangu, which served green tea and sake. It was a small camp of only nine people with an outstanding location at Center and 10:00, which is directly across from Center Camp, two camps away from Artica, where they sell ice.

Much of my time my first four days was spent going back and forth between the two camps, to get my meals or serve time at the airport. In good conditions, it is about a 15-minute bike ride between the two.

The airport was a very nice and comfortable place to spend time. They had a free coffee shop in the morning, always featuring a live keyboard player, who was very good. In the afternoons there was various kinds of entertainment on the stage. This included me doing a magic show on Tuesday. Around 4:30 PM, the bar would open which poured generous drinks of various kinds. Then there were two meals served at the canteen, which started out to be outstanding, but I must say the quality trailed off as the week went on. All the while, there were plenty of rich pilots to chat with as well as people in the other 99% of the wealth curve who were friends of the pilots.

Meanwhile, Jipangu, my other camp, was right in the center of the “city” as they described the rest of Burning Man at the airport. The location was very central. While my own camp was very quiet it was surrounded by noise from all directions. Fortunately, I took along ear protection muffs, like the kind heavy machinery operators use. I offered to help serve green tea and sake, but we didn’t get much foot traffic, so my services were not needed.

My time outside of the airport was spent riding my bike around the Playa (where artists put their art), visiting other camps I was friendly with from the 2022 Burn and doing miscellaneous activities listed in the guidebook. One thing I did was visit one Wonderhussy. She mentioned on Facebook that she forgot to bring a fan. I happily delivered one to her as well as a New York license plate to help decorate her New York Pizza themed camp. She mentioned I was one of only two people to deliver a fan and the only one that was rechargeable.

All things considered, my time at Burning Man from arrival to about 6PM on Friday, when the rain started, went very well. The weather was pleasant, I ate very well and had a lot of fun. From here, I’ll leave you with some pictures taken before the rain started.

campmates
This picture was taken with some campmates on our way to the Cacophony Society cocktail party. The formal event that is a Burning Man tradition that goes back many years. Today, I think it’s mostly a gathering for long-time Burners, not that I consider myself one of them.
huge_block_of_water
Here I am in front of a huge block of water containers inside of metal holders. Note the man on top on the right side, kneeling down, to get a sense of the size of it.
picture_of_me_on_the_top
Of course, I had to climb the thing. Here is a picture of me on the top (photo credit to Svetlana).
monocle
Those who know me in real life know I like to wear a monocle as a necklace. Imagine my delight when I ran into this gentleman actually wearing one without assistance. I’ve tried, but it always falls off my face. My first guess was this man was Prussian military, from the helmet with a spike on top, but he said he was a member of some special regiment of the British Army that I never heard of. I only pixelated the lower part of his face, which pained me to do so, but I really wanted to retain the monocle in the picture.
obstacle_course
This camp offered an obstacle course to be taken in a wheelchair and on crutches. I think it was meant to convey how difficult it is to navigate simple things like steps or curbs. It was strictly against the rules to let your feet touch the ground. If I may toot my own horn, not only was I successful, but had one of the fastest times.
barbie_death_camp
Here I am at the Barbie Death Camp. I’m still not sure what this thing is supposed to be. Maybe a musical instrument or one of those click-clack things.
vulva_throne
Here I am at the Vulva Throne in Center Camp. Last year it was called the Vagina Throne, but after a little anatomy lesson, it would seem the current name is more appropriate. I would later meet the artist Alisa Sokolov after the rains. More about that in a future newsletter.
road_control_duty
Here I am on road control duty. My main duty was to keep unauthorized cars away from the airport and authorized one for immediate passenger loading and unloading only. Should you ever wish to pick up a passenger flying into the airport, you must have a Mutant Vehicle license plate and the passenger must be confirmed in the waiting area. Otherwise, park by my guard station here and walk in.

In my next newsletter I’ll pick up where I left off and tell the story of what happened after the rain started on Friday, September 1.

Written by: Michael Shackleford