Did anyone have a positive time at Burningman?

geospyder · Post by **geospyder** » Mon Sep 20, 2010 4:47 pm

Based on all the negative threads on ePlaya as of lately I was wondering if any of the ePlayans enjoyed Burningman this year? My campmates and I had a great time. Everyone we met seemed to be having a great time. Maybe I live in a different universe but I didn't see any negativity - but then again I wasn't looking for it.

robrob · Post by **robrob** » Mon Sep 20, 2010 4:57 pm

i raved and raved about how awesome my time was here:
http://eplaya.burningman.org/viewtopic.php?t=36805

but in general, i think it's the fucking internet, so you're gonna see bitching.

real playa = rollin + huggin
eplaya = trollin + hatin

Post by **Eric** » Mon Sep 20, 2010 5:07 pm

Sure we bitch. Venting is part of the fun!

But I've said it before & I'll say it again:

Best. Burn. Ever

I had an amazing time, and the good times from the playa have creeped into my real life.

But that doesn't mean I won't bitch about it.

FIGJAM · Post by **FIGJAM** » Mon Sep 20, 2010 5:08 pm

YES, alot of mixed mesages.

"Everything was horrible, I loved it, see you next year."

Elliot · Post by **Elliot** » Mon Sep 20, 2010 5:10 pm

I've been thinking the same thing; what on earth is going on with all this negativism on E-playa these days?

And I believe Robrob is on the right track -- the Internet, although very useful, has a dark side that sneaks up on people. We must be vigilant! Three cheers for Burning Man!

kman · Post by **kman** » Mon Sep 20, 2010 5:14 pm

This poll needs a HELL YES! option.

robrob · Post by **robrob** » Mon Sep 20, 2010 5:21 pm

geospyder: if it helps warm your heart a little bit, here's an actual email i sent today, after finding this guy's email address from the Chicago Regional Steering Committee minutes.

Hey _____ - I met you at your space while unloading gear; I made an offhand comment about "hating" chicago compared to the playa, and you corrected me and told me it's up to us to bring our energy and enthusiasm and make things awesome (paraphrased). I've been thinking about that a lot, and then I saw your email address in the BURN Powwow notes. Of course you were right, and I'd like to ask you if you personally need any help with any of the things you do for the chicago burner scene. And if not, do you have any pointers for someone that might?

My first trip to the playa was certainly transformative, but meeting so many awesome new folks around town has been too (i had fun at dustoff, and can't wait for (your party) to bring the bunny suit out!). I want to be able to put in as much as i'm getting out- and i'm getting a lot out.

Rob

so, the postive has really carried over and it's manifesting itself in very real ways.

that doesn't mean i'm not going to grit my teeth and get my flame on in "gun confiscation at bman" thread! fuck that guy

mudpuppy000 · Post by **mudpuppy000** » Mon Sep 20, 2010 5:39 pm

Maybe everyone's just cranky that they have to wait another 348 days.

FIGJAM · Post by **FIGJAM** » Mon Sep 20, 2010 6:00 pm

Thats a long time to have pre burnsral syndrome.

Just_Joe · Post by **Just_Joe** » Mon Sep 20, 2010 6:49 pm

Coincidentally, I ended up camping across the street from Geospyder. I can confirm without reservation- he had a great time.
So did we.

Post by **AntiM** » Mon Sep 20, 2010 7:52 pm

I had a good time! Not a genki year for me, overall suckage, but that's not the event nor the playa, that's my life right now. But I wouldn't miss a dusty day because I live to see your dusty hearts and hugs.

Never mistake eplaya for the playa.

bluesbob · Post by **bluesbob** » Mon Sep 20, 2010 8:11 pm

My friends ask "How was it?" and I bitch about a couple problems I had....but then I say "IT WAS AWESOME!"

bigbluedoggy · Post by **bigbluedoggy** » Mon Sep 20, 2010 9:22 pm

My instant answer when asked "How was Burning Man?" by the many people who inquire when I return is "Incredible!"

Token · Post by **Token** » Mon Sep 20, 2010 10:12 pm

Look at all the hippies trying to mellow my harsh!

This year sucked, plain and simple.

Everyone was lovey-dovey, hugs, and smiles.

The oontz was pervasive.

The ravers were high as kites 24/8.

Not enough megaphones.

The art was all 1:3 scale, unoriginal and meh, save for a few pieces.

And fucking DPW was all nice and polite. Whiskey Tango Foxtrot!?

willyloafofphora · Post by **willyloafofphora** » Tue Sep 21, 2010 12:30 am

Burning Man was horrible and boring. There was nothing to do and nothing cool to look at. Everyone was boring and stupid and ugly. The weather was awful. The food was terrible. There was not even one tiny little bit of good music and the rainbow was gay.

willyloafofphora · Post by **willyloafofphora** » Tue Sep 21, 2010 12:32 am

Burning Man was horrible and boring. There was nothing to do and nothing cool to look at. Everyone was boring and stupid and ugly. The weather was awful. The food was terrible. There was not even one tiny little bit of good music and the rainbow was gay.

Trishntek · Post by **Trishntek** » Tue Sep 21, 2010 12:58 am

I could not even say anything negative on the negative threads! I went in with no expectations and figured if 20% of what I planned actually materialized, I would consider it a worthwhile venture.

We left blown away, overwhelmed with a sense of belonging and gained over a dozen close friends. It was the human factor. For us, it is all about the people. Sharing, serving, smiling celebrations of life's little surprises.

It was all so over-the-top that what I planned merely planted the seed for the tree of happiness. Self acceptance and no bullshit relationships were built in the unpretentious atmosphere of in-your-face interaction and candor rarely experienced in defaultia.

willyloafofphora · Post by **willyloafofphora** » Tue Sep 21, 2010 1:16 am

Oh whatever, hippie. There weren't any cool people at burning man.
WORST RAVE EVER.

C.f.M. · Post by **C.f.M.** » Tue Sep 21, 2010 6:13 am

Token wrote:Look at all the hippies trying to mellow my harsh!

This year sucked, plain and simple.

Everyone was lovey-dovey, hugs, and smiles.

The oontz was pervasive.

The ravers were high as kites 24/8.

Not enough megaphones.

Maybe you should have left Deathguild once or twice.

Token · Post by **Token** » Tue Sep 21, 2010 7:31 am

And leave the protective wubby shield? Never!

I actually came to visit you a couple times but you were out. It's OK though; I scored an enema kit, sparkle pony and a beer!

MistressSybs · Post by **MistressSybs** » Tue Sep 21, 2010 7:40 am

Eric wrote:Sure we bitch. Venting is part of the fun!

But I've said it before & I'll say it again:

Best. Burn. Ever

I had an amazing time, and the good times from the playa have creeped into my real life.

But that doesn't mean I won't bitch about it.

Exactly! You've said it best as far as I'm concerned! We too had an awesome time and will return, smarter, more gifts, more fun, etc. Sure there were snags that we could have done without but you all know what? It's all part of the experience right?

Eplaya is a great place to share experiences so someone else gleaning information can do so... I know that's where we got 50% of our information for this camping trip - the other 40-50% from the survival guide but the survival guide doesn't haggle out the differences between doing something this way or that... that's why I like reading about peoples experiences, good or bad.

so negativity, no matter how looked down upon has it's place too.

Token · Post by **Token** » Tue Sep 21, 2010 8:01 am

A week on the Playa is just like a week on any other part of this rock we live on. It can be grand, it can suck or it can be anywhere in-between.

What we end up doing on Playa is loading the dice to try and make it grand. Most of the time this works but often at a cost of pushing the envelope and comfort zone for many attendees.

Many folks do stuff on Playa that they could never dream of doing in hometown USA. New situations that they don't have physical or emotional experiences with or even coping mechanisms, well, it can easily load the dice the other way.

lucky420 · Post by **lucky420** » Tue Sep 21, 2010 9:10 am

my first time was amazing, incredible and weird. Before i went i read alot of stuff on eplaya and other sites. One thing that really stuck out to me was that everyone was so in love with the "dust". People wrote how they couldn't wait to get dusty, lust for dust and all that. I thought to myself "wtf"? dust sucks. I live pretty close to BRC and I sure as hell don't enjoy dust. Anyways a few days after i got home and was cleaning off bikes and stuff i got covered in dust again. Even though it had been less than 2 weeks since returning from BRC i had pangs of nostalgia. WOW, i now understand the lust for dust....

Fire_Moose · Post by **Fire_Moose** » Tue Sep 21, 2010 9:14 am

It was hot mildly dusty and it RAINED!

Windstorms made it so we had to physically hold our shit DOWN!

the fire was hot

the e-ed out raver girls were HOT

lots of douches in and out of the portos

the portos stunk

Lost my head lamp

It was way better next year.

oneeyeddick · Post by **oneeyeddick** » Tue Sep 21, 2010 9:18 am

Token wrote:And leave the protective wubby shield? Never!

I actually came to visit you a couple times but you were out. It's OK though; I scored an enema kit, sparkle pony and a beer!

so that's where Risky's enema kit ran off to.

I guess it is her fault for leaving it next to the meat&cheese tray and the ladyfinger eclairs on the table out front.

She wants it back as soon as you are done with it.

Post by **Savannah** » Tue Sep 21, 2010 9:24 am

It was way better next year.

Nice twist.

I had my best Burn ever.

Never mistake bitching on the internet for reality. Never! Especially on ePlaya, in which our uniting characteristics are homesickness, obsession, rusted bike chains, and withdrawal. When's the last time a person jonesing for a cigarette (or some playa) was well-balanced and serene? I ask you.

For that matter, bitching is a sport, and rather a fun one, at which ePlayans are particularly accomplished.

(ePlayans only keep their Amateur Bitching status as a formality, so they can compete in the Summer Olympics. Of Bitching.)

SilverOrange · Post by **SilverOrange** » Tue Sep 21, 2010 11:26 am

I had an incredible burn.

I got to help fix a campmates art installation that had gotten vandalised, had a bike that had been lent to my girlfriend disappear due to a friend repeatedly borrowing it and not locking it up, camped with a theme camp that I had only met approximately 3% of, watched frat boys throwing glow sticks out onto the playa on Friday night, and witness four people attempt to vandalize and one steal the art car I rode out to the burn on.

All of these things probably had a total negative effect of probably 45 minutes on my burn. The rest was just fucking awesome!!!

(I have to admit that I made a game out of trying to hit the frat boys in the head when I "returned" their glowsticks to them and getting to call the burn night offenders "dirty fucking hippies" did give me a not so small feeling of joy.)

I also ended up camping with the best group of people! A lot of people that will be friends for a long time...and one sparklepony.

Geospyder, did you come and get your head painted at Camp Tsunami this year? You look familiar.

1durphul · Post by **1durphul** » Tue Sep 21, 2010 11:32 am

My good to bad ratio this year was probably in the realm of 60% good to 40% bad. It was a good year. (I've had years that tilted the other direction.)

My concern about LEOs and their behavior are by and large my biggest concern with the event. And all things considered, the BRC LLC is doing a good job (except for fucking gate entry taking 4 hours... peak capacity increases should mean more gates to process people in a timely manner.)

Fire_Moose · Post by **Fire_Moose** » Tue Sep 21, 2010 11:51 am

Savannah wrote:

(ePlayans only keep their Amateur Bitching status as a formality, so they can compete in the Summer Olympics. Of Bitching.)

Summer Special Olympics. Of Bitching. ***

Remember we ARE burners.

C.f.M. · Post by **C.f.M.** » Tue Sep 21, 2010 11:52 am

I didn't have one bad second.

Did anyone have a positive time at Burningman?

Simple poll - Did you enjoy Burningman?

Did anyone have a positive time at Burningman?

Re: Did anyone have a positive time at Burningman?