ePlaya

I know this is jumping the gun here but I have had to sell my ticket now twice do to unfortunate events. I had a ticket this year but then my house was broken into and my paycheck was stolen so I was unable to attend. I haven't been since 09' and I been trying to make it every year since then so I am deteremined to make it next year. I am starting to save money now so even if something stupid happens I should still be covered.

Anyways I would love to find a camp to make life easier. Perferably one that is located in the San Francisco area so I can get to know campmates and help participate in getting things ready and any fundraising needed. Again I know this is way too soon but just wanted to get on it asap. How does one go about finding a camp? The year I went friends and I camped on our own and then an other year I was supposed to go the camp I was with ended up breaking up. So I would love to find a reliable camp.

Patience, patience, patience.

Wait until the 2014 sub-forums come up.. do some reading.. get a feel for what people are planning.. and the opportunities and openings will present themselves.

You make careful arrangements ahead of time with a camp that has local connections and out of state.
When you can't locate them, because they did everything except register at playa info, you cross the street and ask the camp there if you can camp until you find your camp.
Then, when you locate them by word of mouth days later, you are having such a good time with the great people there that you don't leave, even though the original camp is wonderful too.

You may take a different approach.

Meet locals. There are several Bay Area groups. I suggest you join all of them (check FB, too) and look around and attend some events--any or all that appeal--until you find folks you click with.

http://regionals.burningman.com/

I moved this to 2013 Theme Camps because that's the closest we come to having a proper forum for this question. Q&A Tips & Tricks might have been okay, too.

If a camp is a really good fit for you, but not SF based, write to the contact, anyway. I suspect that I could serve as a contact for Dye with Dignity, even though the leader is in Fredricksburn, Texas.

Jeseabell wrote:I know this is jumping the gun here but I have had to sell my ticket now twice do to unfortunate events. I had a ticket this year but then my house was broken into and my paycheck was stolen so I was unable to attend. I haven't been since 09' and I been trying to make it every year since then so I am deteremined to make it next year. I am starting to save money now so even if something stupid happens I should still be covered.

Anyways I would love to find a camp to make life easier. Perferably one that is located in the San Francisco area so I can get to know campmates and help participate in getting things ready and any fundraising needed. Again I know this is way too soon but just wanted to get on it asap. How does one go about finding a camp? The year I went friends and I camped on our own and then an other year I was supposed to go the camp I was with ended up breaking up. So I would love to find a reliable camp.

You should first narrow down what kind of camp experience you're looking for, which tends to boil down to what kind of people you want to camp with. There's no wrong answer, but different people burn different ways. Be honest with yourself. Are you looking to rage w/ an EDM soundtrack? Are you looking for a meditative acroyoga experience? What are your feelings on bacon? Are you an undercover cop? Or maybe you just want to hang out at orgy dome?

These are all questions you should ask yourself.

As for how you find a camp, it, again, kind of depends on your goals. Some camps, particularly large ones, are explicitly open to people the camp may not know yet. Others are about friends and friends of friends.

Burners are, as I hope you've gathered, much friendlier than this forum might generally exhibit (though even the malcontents here would likely be super-friendly if encountered en playa). If you're good-natured and willing to pitch in to help, most camps will welcome you.

Jeseabell wrote:I had a ticket this year but then my house was broken into and my paycheck was stolen so I was unable to attend.

Huh? Who else can cash your check? Can't you just get a check replaced? This makes no sense whatsoever.

Captain Goddammit wrote:

Jeseabell wrote:I had a ticket this year but then my house was broken into and my paycheck was stolen so I was unable to attend.

Huh? Who else can cash your check? Can't you just get a check replaced? This makes no sense whatsoever.

Perhpas she/he gets paid in bearer bonds. All 1980s Miami Vice and shit.

Lots of weirdness this year, like all those lost and found posts where people lost their PASSPORTS while burning -- including US citizen passports (WTF?!). Who carries that stuff around?

Jeseabell wrote:Anyways I would love to find a camp to make life easier.

surprised no one jumped on that yet.
good luck.

So true. Life will not be easier with a camp. After you pay to be part of the group you will have to participate by some assigned duty. You may enjoy it or not. It may be easier to wing it.

If you like 80s music, being on the esplanade, and being part of a camp that has a real life indoor nghtclub, then give Planet Earth a shot. We're always looking for new enthusiastic camp members who can contribute. We also have our act together, most of us are 10 year+ burners, so we've got it down to a science when it comes to backstage infastructure (Power, shade, kitchen, Portas, shower, etc.)

Shoot me an email if you're interested, I can fill you in and add you to our Facebook camp list.

Captain Goddammit wrote:

Jeseabell wrote:I had a ticket this year but then my house was broken into and my paycheck was stolen so I was unable to attend.

Huh? Who else can cash your check? Can't you just get a check replaced? This makes no sense whatsoever.

I'm still stuck on this… WTF. But apparently Jeseabell's computer has since been stolen.

Hummmmmmm, Maybe her paycheck was stolen and cashed. Then it took so long to sort it out that she missed out. Maybe they payed her with a stolen paycheck. Got me. I would have had another check the following day.

BBadger wrote:Lots of weirdness this year, like all those lost and found posts where people lost their PASSPORTS while burning -- including US citizen passports (WTF?!). Who carries that stuff around?

I did...
I lost my I'd the day we left. My passport is all I had for id's. I'm not going to not drink all week.

That's why you photocopy it and blacken out the ID numbers. It's not like bars must check for original and unaltered ID documents; it's more about good-faith checking if the person looks suspiciously young.

If you must, just bring along your own booze that you brought for your own bar. There is no reason whatsoever why anyone should be carrying a vital ID document like a passport around while at Burning Man.

BBadger wrote:That's why you photocopy it and blacken out the ID numbers. It's not like bars must check for original and unaltered ID documents; it's more about good-faith checking if the person looks suspiciously young.

If you must, just bring along your own booze that you brought for your own bar. There is no reason whatsoever why anyone should be carrying a vital ID document like a passport around while at Burning Man.

So true... enlarged photocopy. Pack a couple just in case. Store your original somewhere safe during the burn. Carry your own booze as well.

Just a heads up, if bars are following the rules and don't want to risk getting their camp shut down, they won't take paper copies. By Nevada law, you can not take paper photo copy id's as legal id tender. They can be photo shopped quite easy. It must be a hard copy for it to be legal.

Please don't give out bad/not legal advice. It can lead to bars being shut down or people not being served.
At our camp I have laid the law down and no paper id's will be taken. No plastic, no drink.

Captain Goddammit wrote:

Jeseabell wrote:I had a ticket this year but then my house was broken into and my paycheck was stolen so I was unable to attend.

Huh? Who else can cash your check? Can't you just get a check replaced? This makes no sense whatsoever.

It might have to go through a process that takes time, and she decided to cut bait.

I'm only trying to help.