Getting Ready For The Burn

stillwalkn · Post by **stillwalkn** » Wed Mar 18, 2009 12:38 am

Hello BM people. Me and my sweetie are coming to BM for the first time this year. I checked out the website and I can see this is going to take some preparation. Mental as well as physical. I'm here for orientation. And to make new friends.

Post by **Sham** » Wed Mar 18, 2009 1:13 am

Welcome to eplaya. "Some preparation" is a slight understatement. Make lots of copies of the first timers guide and read them all every chance you get. NOW is the time to start gathering your stuff to bring with you. I have been going for 9 years and I have been pulling things together since last September.
See you on the playa!!

lordgrizz · Post by **lordgrizz** » Wed Mar 18, 2009 6:53 am

Preparation is an understatement. I spend all year either planning, or researching, or building/rounding up stuff for the burn.

Don't let that stop you though. Yes, its a shit-ton of work, but the pay off is amazing. Hope you make it!

Post by **Elderberry** » Wed Mar 18, 2009 7:25 am

Hey there, welcome to eplaya!

JK

pinemom · Post by **pinemom** » Wed Mar 18, 2009 7:39 am

Welcome home Stllwalkin

Here ya go....best advice to get...........

First things first...go to the front page(main page of Burningman .com)
or here, Ill even make it easier...
go here...study like your life depends on it...well, because it really does!

http://www.burningman.com/first_timers/

now after you can recite that backwards...go here

http://www.burningman.com/preparation/event_survival/
Now this one...will be your daily reader...for the next 5 months! post a copy in your bathroom, one on your night stand, one in your glove compartment of your car, no car, no worries...in your backpack/purse/wallet.Good reading in buses and taxi's.
This one will ensure the likelyhood that you will survive your B'irgin yr.

Do not...I repeat DO NOT!!!!!!! reley on another person for anything!
This is a RADICAL SELF RELIANT event.
First off, it promotes a very important thing in one self...being self reliant means your never going to have to figure anything out..cause you have it already covered...right?!

You need a PLAN, now that you have a plan...screw with it, because if your dont figure out the difference between a plan and a guideline...your doomed!

Plan: A plan is typically any procedure used to achieve an objective. It is a set of intended actions, through which one *expects* to achieve a goal.

Guideline:A guideline is any document that aims to streamline particular processes according to a set routine. By definition, following a guideline is never mandatory (protocol would be a better term for a mandatory procedure). Guidelines are an essential part of the larger process of governance.( ok this was from wiki and it sucks!

"Basically, if things dont go according to plan have a guideline of the basic idea, something that is not totally firmed up in writting, that can be slightly manipulated to suit the need or want at that time."
...My percieved notion of what a guideline is

*EXPECTS*

Moving onto the expectation part of this lecture....

LOOSE all formed expectations of what this event is already meaning to you!
You need to come to this event with no preconceived notion of what burningman is...kinda like a newborn coming into the world...no one preps that baby for what its about to experience...therefore the child is more likely to roll with the punches...
and if your lookinmg at it that way, why most adults cant deal with advercity...because they have a preconcieved notion of what the WORLD is suppose to do/be/say...
how many people get frustrated with the world failing THEM?

Its not the world...its the person.

Post by **mdmf007** » Wed Mar 18, 2009 8:50 am

The only expectation you should have is to expect the dust, wind, sun and heat. Everything else is going to be unpredictable.

The environmental factors, and BRC being there is the only constant.

misfit · Post by **misfit** » Wed Mar 18, 2009 9:43 am

>>>>if your dont figure out the difference between a plan and a guideline...your doomed! <<<<

fuck,,, we're all screwed.

also, we are not directly responsible for your death......

stillwalkn · Post by **stillwalkn** » Wed Mar 18, 2009 3:31 pm

OMG. I have a lot to do, don't I? You guys are amazing. Thank you so much for your replies and good advice. It sounds like there are two kinds of preparation here, mental and physical. I feel pretty confident I can put physical survival together for a week. Mentally, there's a big part of me that is both excited and a little bit scared by the prospect of so much freedom and self-expression. But it's irresistible and I can't wait.

mojo · Post by **mojo** » Thu Mar 19, 2009 10:32 am

Remember - it really is just a camping trip in the desert with about 50k new friends who are all there to play.

Relax and don't take yourself (or us) too seriously. The only thing to take seriously is the survival guide. Oh, and BACON!

I think you may just have the preparation thing backwards - mentally there is really nothing to prepare for while physical prep is another story altogether - this is not your normal "desert". Really. There are a lot of things that make camping on a prehistoric alkali lake bed FAR more challenging, and require some special thought and preparation. Search the threads for discussions on respirators, playa foot, goggles, dehydration, grey water, etc, etc.....

oneeyeddick · Post by **oneeyeddick** » Thu Mar 19, 2009 11:59 am

I have found one of my biggest challenges out there every year is NOT catching myself on fire.

Sail Man · Post by **Sail Man** » Thu Mar 19, 2009 12:10 pm

oneeyeddick wrote:I have found one of my biggest challenges out there every year is NOT catching myself on fire.

Well, here OED, let me help you with that.....

Stillwalkn, welcome to the jungle

Pinemom gave you some great advice, pay heed and read.

Now start packing, times a wasting...

bx1 · Post by **bx1** » Thu Mar 19, 2009 5:45 pm

Did someone say jungle??

stillwalkn · Post by **stillwalkn** » Fri Mar 20, 2009 3:02 am

We are bringing our 28 ft. trailer and lots of flip charts and marker pens, so our neighbors can write poetry and hang in on our walls. Or we can use the words to build costumes or decorate our bikes.

bx1 · Post by **bx1** » Fri Mar 20, 2009 5:36 am

stillwalkn wrote:We are bringing our 28 ft. trailer and lots of flip charts and marker pens, so our neighbors can write poetry and hang in on our walls. Or we can use the words to build costumes or decorate our bikes.

Werd. Catch ya at the Burn.

Simon of the Playa · Post by **Simon of the Playa** » Fri Mar 20, 2009 7:26 am

Or we can use the words to build costumes or decorate our bikes.

i'm afraid you need a license for that, words are considered dangerous chemicals in Nevada.

ygmir · Post by **ygmir** » Fri Mar 20, 2009 7:48 am

Simon of the Playa wrote:
Or we can use the words to build costumes or decorate our bikes.
i'm afraid you need a license for that, words are considered dangerous chemicals in Nevada.

and, don't even get started about ingenuity and independent thought..........

slvrnmph · Post by **slvrnmph** » Fri Mar 20, 2009 10:53 am

This will be my fifth trip to the playa. I have a notebook I use for planning the trip every year. I bring it with me to the playa and add to it as I discover or think of things that will be useful for next year.

Sail Man · Post by **Sail Man** » Fri Mar 20, 2009 12:08 pm

bx1 wrote:Did someone say jungle??

[youtube][/youtube]

Getting Ready For The Burn

Getting Ready For The Burn

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Poetry Slam

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