Moop Proliferation (?)

theCryptofishist · Post by **theCryptofishist** » Wed Sep 08, 2010 6:23 pm

AntiM wrote:
Packoderm wrote:I could hardly believe the amount of garbage obviously dropped by burner's cars and trucks along the roads and highways on the way home.
I saw a LOT of blown off garbage this year. Packing a trailer is more than throwing the stuff on with one badly tied rope to hold it down. One trailer in the exodus line was so astonishingly badly stacked, we took pictures of it.

With this pulse thing happening, it would be a really good time for people with the skills to help those that haven't tied their load down to learn how.

TwoHott · Post by **TwoHott** » Wed Sep 08, 2010 6:43 pm

[quote="Parasitoid"]Our area wasn't MOOPy because WE kept it clean.

You can't control other peoples actions... but you sure can control your own if you desire to do so.[/quote]

This reminds me of some peoples actions I controlled on playa...

So on like Thursday this RV pulls up not far from my camp. These people pile out and crack open a beer. First thing the guy does is bring out three potted plants and set them next to his rented RV. No shit. I stare at the plants. He says, "Just what this desert needs, some plants." After a conversation with him, the plants remained inside their RV for the rest of the week.

Seems like having conversations with clueless virgins is getting to be a full time job. I'm thinking of a virgin boot camp... could be fun.

thirt33n · Post by **thirt33n** » Wed Sep 08, 2010 6:50 pm

great idea.
it'd have to be a mobile virgin boot camp.(cause if they knew where the camp was they'd be the kind who adheres to playa logic)
a friendly playa correct (pc) police force of sorts just going around correcting and kidnapping the "offenders" and making them ride along until they understand the principles that they decided not to pay attention to. .....hmmm....it'd have to be a pretty large MV but....actually, it's a good idea.

bullhorns, public shame in a ribbing sort of manner, with beer and beef jerky....

mamarain · Post by **mamarain** » Wed Sep 08, 2010 7:49 pm

During the whole year I do efforts to the "Leave No Trace" pack in pack out everything!!

Each camp and each area is graded on their Leave No Trace, the blm permits and fines Burning Man LLC. so keep a look out on what your area was graded!!!

I seen people spray painting right on the ground, glitter about, and feathers galore! Seen a lot but I also didnt stop and pick it up myself, I didnt have energy this year i was happy i could even walk or ride a bike!!

TO me many people where MOOP!

unjonharley · Post by **unjonharley** » Wed Sep 08, 2010 9:22 pm

mamarain wrote:During the whole year I do efforts to the "Leave No Trace" pack in pack out everything!!

Each camp and each area is graded on their Leave No Trace, the blm permits and fines Burning Man LLC. so keep a look out on what your area was graded!!!

I seen people spray painting right on the ground, glitter about, and feathers galore! Seen a lot but I also didnt stop and pick it up myself, I didnt have energy this year i was happy i could even walk or ride a bike!!

TO me many people where MOOP!

I mooped with a walker this year..
More butts than any other year..
Lot of tiny bits of fake fur from those leg things the pretty people wear.. Empty chip bags.. Lots of those blowing around.. And those solor path lights.. They break into a million peases when a car runs over 'em.. Leave them home.. Then there was the bits of toilet paper everywhere.. The place was a fucking mess.. IN years past people would help me pick up.. This year most just stared..Like,What the fuck is he doing

zcassidy · Post by **zcassidy** » Wed Sep 08, 2010 10:08 pm

This was my second burn and I had four virgins camp next to me. Three of them "got it" right away and I never had to remind them to respect the Playa. One of them didnt get it and needed reminders throughout the week. Surprise, the guy who didn't get it ended up not having a good time (how this is possible is beyond me). Some people can't handle the Playa.

I wish there was some kind of radically interactive test done online before one can buy their ticket. Maybe a series of timed questions can be asked, "If the sudden urge to vomit comes over you while you are walking alone through the Playa in a dust storm do you:

A. Make sure to blow chunks while standing upwind.
B. Dig a hole first then proceed to puke.
C. Top off your water bottle with your own brew.
D. It's a desert, fuck it!

I saw two puke splatters on the playa this year and that really bothered me (I would gladly puke into my own shorts first). I also heard from a friend he caught some girl squatting to piss... Some people... I can't say it was bad or worse this year due to my limited exposure but I would like to see and hear about more responsible people.

Sinja · Post by **Sinja** » Wed Sep 08, 2010 10:12 pm

Yes, the tourist factor was considerably noticeable. Lot of MOOP and the toilet conditions were some of the worst I have ever seen. Who steals toilet seats?

I was asked a lot of questions that were easily answered by reading the Survival Guide and opening the Greeters package.

I saw so many young newbies with no coats, water, googles and dusk masks in the evenings. I talked to several who said they had hit the wall mid week. Tsk.

shiva_dance · Post by **shiva_dance** » Thu Sep 09, 2010 4:32 pm

last year we came upon a bar by a soundstage which was offering drinks in exchange for one piece of moop. their area was spotless. i suggest others steal this idea.

picking up moop can totally be fun. it makes the desert happy and sometimes you are rewarded with gifts. i found like 3 feather earrings, tail sticking barely outta the sand. also it's fun to re-gift useful moop to tripping people, you just gotta find the person who will appreciate it: like those rainbow-glasses, or a tiara, or a sparkly glove w/an (unused) condom in it... just sayin'...

i'm just a second-year this year but last year did notice lots more potty-poetry. the potties are such a great place to spread messages. i <3 gonzo.

Risky · Post by **Risky** » Thu Sep 09, 2010 5:46 pm

shiva_dance wrote:last year we came upon a bar by a soundstage which was offering drinks in exchange for one piece of moop. their area was spotless. i suggest others steal this idea.

That's a great idea.

MistressSybs · Post by **MistressSybs** » Thu Sep 09, 2010 6:17 pm

theCryptofishist wrote:
Parasitoid wrote:Our area wasn't MOOPy because WE kept it clean.

When you see a pile of MOOP you are supposed to set the example by cleaning it up. It makes you feel good and it makes the area look clean.

Alternatively, you can wait to see how many people piss you off by walking past it and then complain anonymously to a bunch of people back in default while the remaining burn crew cleans the playa.

You can't control other peoples actions... but you sure can control your own if you desire to do so.
*clap, clap*

this is what we did too... we kept our camp clean and did regular clean mooping duty where-ever we were... the one thing we didn't pick up of someone else's was a rug the rv behind us left behind... we didn't have room for it and it bugged the shit outta me to not take it. =(

cahlm · Post by **cahlm** » Thu Sep 09, 2010 6:59 pm

Coastburner wrote:I was really surprised as well at the number of people that didn't do anything to participate. I saw so many gray outfits, meaning, shorts, pants, gray tops and camelbacks that I was actually surprised of the number of people not actually trying at least a little to participate.
Coastburner

Wait a minute there. Just because I'm not dressed in some "crazy" over-the-top outfit I'm not participating? In all my years as a BRC citizen, I have never put a costume on. I'm too busy building shit for others to interact with than to care much about my attire. If I knew that participating meant putting on some faux fur boots, I could have saved a lot of time and money. There's always next year I suppose...

FireShaman · Post by **FireShaman** » Sun Sep 12, 2010 6:01 pm

New MOOP response:

If you SEE someone MOOP, throw it at them. If it's heavy, they shouldn't have left something so heavy behind.

MistressSybs · Post by **MistressSybs** » Sun Sep 12, 2010 8:44 pm

zcassidy wrote:This was my second burn and I had four virgins camp next to me. Three of them "got it" right away and I never had to remind them to respect the Playa. One of them didnt get it and needed reminders throughout the week. Surprise, the guy who didn't get it ended up not having a good time (how this is possible is beyond me). Some people can't handle the Playa.

I wish there was some kind of radically interactive test done online before one can buy their ticket. Maybe a series of timed questions can be asked, "If the sudden urge to vomit comes over you while you are walking alone through the Playa in a dust storm do you:

A. Make sure to blow chunks while standing upwind.
B. Dig a hole first then proceed to puke.
C. Top off your water bottle with your own brew.
D. It's a desert, fuck it!

I saw two puke splatters on the playa this year and that really bothered me (I would gladly puke into my own shorts first). I also heard from a friend he caught some girl squatting to piss... Some people... I can't say it was bad or worse this year due to my limited exposure but I would like to see and hear about more responsible people.

puke splatters??? I saw some twit shit on the playa during exodus! I might have video of this piece of work... will have to look to see how it came out... didn't wipe... didn't clean up her skat just walked back to her vehicle... guys pissing on the playa in the distance... and they did this all within walking distance of port-a-potties... un-fucking-believable!

Coastburner · Post by **Coastburner** » Sun Sep 12, 2010 8:55 pm

Cahlm,

I apologize for my comment as I've seen in many responses that I rushed to judgment. It's funny how easy it is to judge others and not really focus on yourself. After the many comments, it's made me realize that I need to think before writing any comments as they've been pretty judgmental after I've reviewed them. I love burning man and appreciate all that's done to make it happen. I've chosen to participate in costume in my eight years and
I help others in various ways. I did stay and help at the Deep End one year and it was a lot of work -- more than I could have imagined. The moop and bikes left over on Sunday was pretty overwhelming. My mistake in my case was seeing not wearing a costume as not participating. I'm humbly corrected and will be more aware in the future. Please accept my apology.

Coastburner.

cahlm · Post by **cahlm** » Mon Sep 13, 2010 1:08 am

Coastburner wrote:Cahlm,

I apologize for my comment as I've seen in many responses that I rushed to judgment. It's funny how easy it is to judge others and not really focus on yourself. After the many comments, it's made me realize that I need to think before writing any comments as they've been pretty judgmental after I've reviewed them. I love burning man and appreciate all that's done to make it happen. I've chosen to participate in costume in my eight years and
I help others in various ways. I did stay and help at the Deep End one year and it was a lot of work -- more than I could have imagined. The moop and bikes left over on Sunday was pretty overwhelming. My mistake in my case was seeing not wearing a costume as not participating. I'm humbly corrected and will be more aware in the future. Please accept my apology.

Coastburner.

No worries, man. I've actually thought while walking on the open playa how "normal" I look, for BM standards. Some focus more on the costumes while some focus more on the larger, but no more important, aspects. Apology humbly accepted.

crumpets · Post by **crumpets** » Mon Sep 13, 2010 3:45 am

2010 was my first year, and I was mooping pretty much every time I stood outside.

One day, I spent a couple of hours walking up and down 4:30 between the Esplanade and Athens picking up endless cigarette ends and bits of trash. There was a broken glass bottle, shards of glass everywhere.

It took me what felt like forever sweeping and resweeping and examining the area for any bits of glass. Not just because it's moop, but because it's GLASS on a busy part of the street. A lot of feet and a lot of wheels pass over that area, and I'd hate for someone to get badly hurt or for an art car to be put out of action.

Five people said "thank you" - and four of those were Rangers. A lot of people just looked at me puzzled, and two people even said "interesting art project" ... I mean, seriously?!

Oh, and one person said "you missed a bit" - and that REALLY pissed me off.

But still, I didn't do it for the thanks. When I finished, I felt good that not one single shard of glass remained on the street. Feet, wheels and the Playa was saved for another year (at least in one tiny area).

Leave No Trace is a very powerful and important ethos for me, both at BRC and in Default. I'm thinking about volunteering with the Earth Guardians for my next burn.

Artemis · Post by **Artemis** » Mon Sep 13, 2010 11:34 am

Maybe it was just the luck of location (out around H&I) but my neighbors and I were amazed by how little moop we found when searching around our hood Monday morning.

Okay, there had been an RV nearby that seemed to have left a bunch of bags of trash behind. But then a truck came by later and picked it up. It appeared to be something that they had arranged...

robrob · Post by **robrob** » Mon Sep 13, 2010 11:43 am

zcassidy wrote: "If the sudden urge to vomit comes over you while you are walking alone through the Playa in a dust storm do you:

A. Make sure to blow chunks while standing upwind.
B. Dig a hole first then proceed to puke.
C. Top off your water bottle with your own brew.
D. It's a desert, fuck it!

without getting too graphic, let's just say i was real pleased with my decision to bring a backup WIDEMOUTH nalgene along in my bike basket one night

junglesmacks · Post by **junglesmacks** » Mon Sep 13, 2010 11:53 am

You know, go ahead and berate.. I don't care.

But, let's be real here. We are talking about a giant dry lakebed in the middle of the desert that gets how many metric tons of snow and ice dumped on it every year, not to mention the runoff from the surrounding mountains. Personally, (and this is just me talking) I don't see what the huge deal of peeing on the playa is. Not that all 50k people should do it.. yeah.. that could mess with some eco systems. But seriously, a puke splatter as an emergency or a piss in the dark because you are trapped way the f out there and have no other options will harm things about as much as a fart in the wind.

Yes yes the respect for our surroundings.. all for it.. but if you are trying to tell me that some pee spots and a random puke (which are natural, dust to dust expulsions of our body.. not a pound of PVC pipe shavings) are going to seriously effect the eco-system.. I would have to politely disagree.

Now.. the gross factor and the fact that we are a city and we all have to live in our city, yes. Absolutely. But.. accidents happen and duty calls.

I know I'll get blasted and yelled at and hobbled at the kneecaps for this post, but so be it.

unjonharley · Post by **unjonharley** » Mon Sep 13, 2010 12:06 pm

junglesmacks wrote: Personally, (and this is just me talking) I don't see what the huge deal of peeing on the playa is. Not that all 50k people should do it.. yeah.. that could mess with some eco systems.

Are you going to stand out there and judge which should pee?? Did'nt think so.. So it boils down to all or no one..

Had the meaphone and spotlight but did not get on the open playa in the night.. Mabe next year.. With a the light on a peer yelling into meg phone..

WHAT ARE YOU DOING.. HEY THAT GIRL/BOY IS PEEING ON THE PLAYA!!
EVERYBODY COME WATCH THE SHOW

junglesmacks · Post by **junglesmacks** » Mon Sep 13, 2010 12:12 pm

unjonharley wrote:

Are you going to stand out there and judge which should pee?? Did'nt think so.. So it boils down to all or no one..

Absolute zero judgement. We all should use the porta-potties. Of course. I'm not condoning open and intentional defamation of the playa in any sense of the word. Not even a little. What I'm saying is that is an emergency situation when you honestly are way too far from a porta potty to make it back, that I personally don't have a problem with you relieving yourself. Stuff happens, and you gotta take care of your business. How about do us a favor and do the ol' walk n spray so that it doesn't puddle. Lol..

Homiesinheaven · Post by **Homiesinheaven** » Mon Sep 13, 2010 12:28 pm

i volunteered at Greeters and 90% of the virgins we spoke to had no idea what MOOP was, wtf? i thought the city was relatively clean but there was lots of MOOP in the middle of the playa this year.

unjonharley · Post by **unjonharley** » Mon Sep 13, 2010 1:00 pm

Homiesinheaven wrote:i volunteered at Greeters and 90% of the virgins we spoke to had no idea what MOOP was, wtf? i thought the city was relatively clean but there was lots of MOOP in the middle of the playa this year.

I'm a morning person and moop then.. Many are to hung over to wave as I pass.. Want to think my example is followed.. By mid after noon I sit quiet in camp.. People come by and ask if I will take care of small amounts of moop they have picked up.

Those fur legs thing make a mess if they catch on something.

moonrise · Post by **moonrise** » Mon Sep 13, 2010 8:05 pm

We had a MOOP Nazi in our camp, not that it was needed, everyone knew OR had READ LNT pracitce. The camp prides itself on getting a "green sticker" bigtime!

I took out 12+ bags of trash, some from our camp, some I collected from people who didn't have packs but knew not to litter and some I picked up everywhere. I expected it and saved room in my truck and had volunteered to stay over and help with trash/MOOP-ing

The strangest sight of MOOP-ing was a gal who was peeing right next to an unlocked, super well kept potty...huh? I was too tired to pick/clean THAT up...ugh..I guess she had her hand on the potty for balance? She was THAT close to the terlet...hey B*tch you were NOT that good lookin'

The worst; we were told some F*cker in an RV dumped the waste tank of their RV onto the playa...I thought I was smelling potties after many camps had packed and left...maybe less wind break but Nooooo...I was informed that was the situation. Awful!

@homiesinheaven...awesome photos! The captions help me remember and the RV with the map..gracias...it helped me a few times

DoriumLux · Post by **DoriumLux** » Mon Sep 13, 2010 10:16 pm

sunkenstate5683 wrote:
As far as mildly dressed hiking pants & camelbak wearers - not all are non-participants. They may be serving dinner for the temple crew, washing dishes for DPW, lighting lamps later that night, or passing out vitamins and dust masks in a storm. That's how I gave back anyways.

I work out their. My boyfriend works out their. After shift, sometimes dressing up is the last thing I feel like doing...And is NOT a requirement to participate.

mars · Post by **mars** » Mon Sep 13, 2010 10:49 pm

I saw a lot LESS moop out there this year. I'm our camp Moop Nazi and I think they were sick of my bitching cuz they did a great job this year. I usually am the last to leave our camp and I moop our area, the road immediate neighbors area and my local porto pottie. This year, our area was a breeze, then neighbors weren't bad, the street was spotless to begin with and though the porto area was bad, it was a lot less bac then I've seen in previous years. I did consider that perhaps the wind blew it elsewhere and, yes, that might be the case, but even on the trip home, there was a lot LESS on the side of the road than I have seen in previous years.

perfecto insecto · Post by **perfecto insecto** » Tue Sep 14, 2010 11:07 am

i was a greeter this year (2010) as well and i too was not impressed with how many people did not know what MOOP was.

many people (virgins and non) also thought "if it didn't come from your body, don't put it in the potty" was clever, and asked if i made that up myself (sad face).

there were virgins who did not read their Survival Guide and had no lights for their bikes or their body at night.

on the plus side, every virgin at least seemed ok with ringing the bell and doing playa angels. that at least gives me hope for that portion of their participation.

next year i will greet and i think i'll have a top 5 (maybe 10?) list of things that i'll ask in a fun quiz form. it'll cover some of the principals as well as helpful hints, from gifting to not riding your bikes to the burns.

anyone have good tips to call out? we could compile it here and then everyone can spread the word.

moonrise · Post by **moonrise** » Tue Sep 14, 2010 1:41 pm

yup, bring the gate and greeters frozen coconut juices and cold Pabst in cans...like I did! Bring about 12 of each...they loved it! (or cold drinks of any kind! raid your coolers!) Some FORGET to bring water and that can save them big time...they are volunteers afterall! (and any left overs you might have can easily be consumed inside the fence later on)

I rang that bell 18 times, HARD and LOUD..bent the rebar wand..one for every year I was too crippled/suffering chronic pain to attend! I was told by my local Northern Nevada burner friends I can climb on top and bang away if I wanted to but I am partially disabled sooo..can leave that to the healthy young strong virgins...hint hint! (one in particular does it every year..hahaha..and is not a virgin...more like a monkey kid!...go carzy wild and climb on and clang away as they say!)

As far as angles & spankings went, too risky for my bad back BUT asked to get christened (we did that with some dust, it was fun..and YES it does not matter you WILL get plastered with dust eventually...might as well start sooner rather than later!) and I also asked to use the nearby potties...BUT hell yes, I saw plenty of virgins getting the full blown angel ritual and they were in costume (also, I think they arrived in an RV...me just a truck, so only partial costume/outfit)

Why the F don't people know to bring more than a stupid head lamp for being lit up? I say the website and mailer stuff needs to put it in HUGE text...I had plenty and in a strange twist was asked to gift out 5000+ glowies...that was a blast...my midget cart worked great for that "job" and I learned to find the less fortunate kids on playa and the dusty back streets...gave them cannisters in BULK...they were sooo happy. Some dpw and major sparkle ponies (god forbid they cover an inch of those 2k outfits) wouldn't touch the glowies..lol..one dpw yelled MOOOOOOP! at me...sorry gang! I still managed to gift every last one out! I did TELL the darkwads do NOT MOOP these glowies!

Thing is if they don't have the glowies blinkies EL wire kits (EL wire is easy!) and leds at gate how do they get them? Turn around and go to Gerlach..lol...they need to be told BEFORE arrival...they COULD go back to Gerlach buuuut,,,what a hassle...the townies would love the biz so if you forget yea, try to buy in Gerlach before arrival or turn around? Yikes!

The website has awesome places to order that stuff..NOT promoting any of them but just saying it's where I found best stuff for good, no GREAT prices...some/most brick n mortar stores charge waaaaaaay too much, rip offs...the online places had PRIMO pricing therefore burners can AFFORD a dozen glowies PER NIGHT! or more!
And EL wire kits...great way to go..EL wire! plus leds, blinkies etc can be re-used,,,, more green...get extra batteries and remove between burns and they'll keep for regionals and future burns...glowies suck as far as green (do NOT bitch at me for gifting 5000+ glowies btw..it was not my gift idea...I was only the semi able bodied conduit asked to help out)

Don't all the greeters ask the MOOP, LNT and such n such type of questions??? I would stress, please pick up MOOP when you see it on the ground etc because some people space out where they left/dropped things (or just don't give a hoot..btw, cans of beer/liquid were tough to pick up..duh..anything else was easy for me to pick up)

Sorry if I drifted a bit BUT wanted to share some funny stuff I knew and is still a tradition! Also, online ordering of a LOT of lighting is best pricing and it's FUN to be lit up and you then become part of the moving/roving semi confusing night light show! Don't be cheap skates and spend some doughsky...it'll be well worth it if you go out at night well lit up! If you leave your blinkies on "flash mode" they should last the entire week! Changing tiny batteries isn't fun but it can be done...EL wire kits with AAA batteries those are sweeet!

If the website and mailers GRILL!!!! LNT, MOOP, LIT YOURSELF UP ETC ETC into the heads of virgins, then the greeters and Virgins can have MORE fun with tradition!! DUH!!

brody · Post by **brody** » Wed Sep 15, 2010 11:54 am

moonrise wrote:yup, bring the gate and greeters frozen coconut juices and cold Pabst in cans...like I did! Bring about 12 of each...they loved it! (or cold drinks of any kind! raid your coolers!) Some FORGET to bring water and that can save them big time...they are volunteers afterall!

Actually, those of us who are volunteering for Greeters and Gate do NOT forget to bring water. We are volunteers, we've all been to Burning Man at least once (and some of us, many many times).

But yes, a cold drink is appreciated and thanks for thinking of the volunteers.

C.f.M. · Post by **C.f.M.** » Wed Sep 15, 2010 12:19 pm

I'm going to take a special stash of booze and food to hand to DPW on my way out, next year.

I was really surprised at the amount of feathers - sequins, too, but I guess people don't go "Oh, sparkly! But all those sparklies can and will fall off, better not wear it at Burning Man!" like I do.

Feathers, though, seems pretty easy to know that's going to "gift."

Moop Proliferation (?)

Virgin moop

More than MOOP

Re: More than MOOP

Re: I totally Agree!!!!

I stand corrected

Re: I stand corrected

i was a greeter too...