One Item for BM a Day (2010-2012)

Oldguy · Post by **Oldguy** » Mon May 02, 2011 1:54 pm

At the Goodwill Store I got a Scott ski goggles with uv lens. Plenty big to fit over my regular specs, with a nice soft foam edging and no vents...

unjonharley · Post by **unjonharley** » Mon May 02, 2011 2:12 pm

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sold a junk laptop less hard drive 25$.. Gas money for the playa.

wraith · Post by **wraith** » Mon May 02, 2011 5:16 pm

Put ten miles on the now-refurbished secondhand cruiser I'm planning to haul out this year. Going to have to replace the seat, but otherwise pretty good.

Fufa · Post by **Fufa** » Mon May 02, 2011 10:41 pm

At an auto/surplus/sporting goods store, I found $7 plastic welding goggles that should NEVER be used for welding, but are great for the desert! Kinda steampunk looking, with darkened round lenses that flip up to reveal clear ones. Day AND night compatible!

unjonharley · Post by **unjonharley** » Tue May 03, 2011 7:51 am

Fufa wrote:At an auto/surplus/sporting goods store, I found $7 plastic welding goggles that should NEVER be used for welding, but are great for the desert! Kinda steampunk looking, with darkened round lenses that flip up to reveal clear ones. Day AND night compatible!

((swoon))

theCryptofishist · Post by **theCryptofishist** » Tue May 03, 2011 5:02 pm

My masonite panels are here; they should beef up my cigar boxes.

unjonharley · Post by **unjonharley** » Wed May 04, 2011 12:34 pm

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Picked up a bike chain cleaning brush and cleaner..

ohCarie · Post by **ohCarie** » Wed May 04, 2011 4:33 pm

I purchased my ticket for an official precompression next month. Woohoo!

lazerfox · Post by **lazerfox** » Wed May 04, 2011 6:48 pm

Purchased round trip tickets from sunny FL to sunny CA for our awesome adventure aka BM 2011 (less than $350 and non-stop so very happy!)

Post by **Savannah** » Wed May 04, 2011 7:44 pm

Bought 10 rolls of travel-size 1-ply.

illy dilly · Post by **illy dilly** » Thu May 05, 2011 10:07 am

Savannah wrote:Bought 10 rolls of travel-size 1-ply.

Nice where did you score that?
Is it the 'quick degrading' or some regular stuff thats just 1 ply?

Post by **Savannah** » Thu May 05, 2011 10:49 am

It's Charmin 1-ply, 89 cents per roll at Fred Meyer, which I'm pretty sure is regional and might not exist where you are (but it's the kind of place that has clothes and food and an electronics' store, etc). Each roll is the size & length of a toilet paper tube. I find them in the Travel Sizes section. Camping sections sometimes have these too, but they mark up the price because suddenly it's "special".

Seen 'em at Walgreen's too, and maybe Bartell Drugs. Maybe 50% of the drugstores on the West Coast seem to have 'em. The bigger stores have the best chance.

REI has these too, but they mark it up to $1.49/roll. Pff.

This is what they look like. Just for looks--it's hard to imagine anyone buying them from this particular source because the shipping costs more than the toilet paper.

Oh, they do sell it in bulk, too, but I took down the link to a second variety because there was conflicting info on the page about 1-ply vs. 2.

This is why I just buy toilet paper in the real world.

Minxy · Post by **Minxy** » Thu May 05, 2011 10:51 am

FRED MEYERS <3

That's one of the first things I usually do, driving home to OR, is hit up the Fred Meyers in Medford on my way up!

Post by **Savannah** » Thu May 05, 2011 10:57 am

I love Fred Meyer too! I guess that's obvious.

There's one in Klamath Falls I usually hit on the way to the Burn. They're always very nice. One time I spent 2 hours there on (among other things) . . . a week's worth of water, bread, earrings, a pair of antlers, a deli sandwich, a pair of Hunter S. Thompson socks, some shower curtains, limeade, and wine. I love the receipt. Burning Man receipts are hilarious things.

illy dilly · Post by **illy dilly** » Thu May 05, 2011 11:42 am

Savannah wrote: Fred Meyer, which I'm pretty sure is regional and might not exist where you are

minxy wrote:driving home to OR,

We actually just finished up a job in Portland (PGE Park---> Jeld-wen Field), I got to spend some time out there. Though, as a company we had guys out there since March. Fred Meyer, is part of the City Market/Kroger family- if memory serves me. Only Fred Meyer I went in was right of Burnside in Portland...um....

I guess I never really looked for travel size toilet paper.
I've always taken some off the roll and stuffed into a baggy in my day bag, encase of emergency... (Such as you happen to share a meal with some very nice vegan folks- and quickly learn your body doesn't know what to do with that much vegetable and fiber at one time. sorry TMI)

Savannah wrote:Burning Man receipts are hilarious things.

That would be a great 'scrap book' project for a camp, have people come past their funniest receipt into a book. With all personal info cut off of course. Then figure out who got the most items for their dollar. Compare who found the cheapest toilet paper, beef jerky, and who spent the most for limes, condoms, batteries.
If you don't take it I am!

Minxy · Post by **Minxy** » Thu May 05, 2011 11:57 am

Bahaha, that is funny, BM receipts. I never thought about that!

That is an awesome idea for a scrap book project! Dang, wishing I had more of my receipts now...

illy dilly · Post by **illy dilly** » Thu May 05, 2011 12:06 pm

Minxy, I wouldn't worry I'm sure you'll get plenty over the next couple months!

unjonharley · Post by **unjonharley** » Thu May 05, 2011 12:08 pm

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WE have a Thai (12th grade ) teacher house gest. He is taking summer class at the local U..He spent one whole day in Fred Meyer's.. Just could not believe all the stuff.. Meye being a German name gave him a little trouble.

Yesterday he went to the Woodburn Outlet Mall ha ha ha His friend called it the Moneyburn Mall.. Then they went to Mt. Hood and snow.. Long way from the warm jungels..

illy dilly · Post by **illy dilly** » Thu May 05, 2011 2:20 pm

unjonharley wrote:/

WE have a Thai (12th grade ) teacher house gest. He is taking summer class at the local U..He spent one whole day in Fred Meyer's.. Just could not believe all the stuff.. Meye being a German name gave him a little trouble.

Yesterday he went to the Woodburn Outlet Mall ha ha ha His friend called it the Moneyburn Mall.. Then they went to Mt. Hood and snow.. Long way from the warm jungels..

Thats awesome!
Its always great to see people's reactions to things they've never seen before.
I take snow for granted, but when we were up in Portland we made a point to drive to the coast to check out the ocean.

The Hustler · Post by **The Hustler** » Thu May 05, 2011 2:26 pm

I camped on the non-oiled Gulf of Mexico with my Coleman tent and Kelty shade thing in a constant 30 knot wind, on sand, last weekend. I have photos on Flickr.

EVERYTHING was damp and gritty from blowing sand and the humid, salty air. Add to that, it's been very dry here so the sand was soft.

To stake anything, I had to dig down a bit to the harder, compacted sand below the soft stuff. The tent barely moved except for the more gnarly wind gusts.

The Kelty shade did OK as well. I later noticed I had one of the legs waaaay out of square, which exaggerated the effect of flexing from the wind. The thing is more than big enough to fit over a picnic table, but the sides are lower. It's like a combination of a tent and the cheap, square sun shades. It's supported by crossed, aluminum poles and stakes in the corners and by guy lines about half way up. It doesn't have a floor or walls, but the corners have provisions to hang or attach stuff like lights and there is a large D-ring in the middle of the top for a lantern.

I set up the camp in haste, but I soon figured out I should have swapped the tent and the shade.

I lighted the stakes with 4 solar LED walkway lights so I didn't trip over the cord and to give some ambient light.

I camped a million times, but this was the first on the beach. The constant wind and grit gave me a good idea of what to expect in BRC, sort of. I know it will be drier and hotter and dusty, as opposed to gritty. I imagine windier also.

The shade gives in strong wind and is a pain to set up, but it seems like a solid performer, especially since it was half-off and had no shipping or sales tax. The tent was equally solid - more so, actually, and also half off with no shipping or tax.

I used a hand-crank lantern and the solar lights to see what I was doing, which worked stellar.

My one issue was my cooking arrangement. I had a small charcoal grill (with cherrywood charcoal) and some fancy burger patties and related stuff. I decided no to even attempt the grill and had a Powerbar and Buttersnaps pretzels for dinner. If I had a small camp stove or an MRE, that would have been a better choice.

It was a learning experience since most of my camping was in the woods of New England.

One funny note, aside from how much sand and brine film covered EVERYTHING (including the car, inside and out) was how fast bare ferrous metal started to rust. The hardware on the grill, posts of the car's windshield wipers and other bits started to rust overnight. My shades were covered with brine in minutes, taking them off has sand blow into my eye. The brass hardware on my Tilley T-3 hat oxidized.

It was one of the most difficult camps to set up so far, but it was a blast. Hopefully I can go again before BRC. (Is beach sand and brine moop?)

[edited for misspellings and because the CIA and NSA are reading this. Not really.]

illy dilly · Post by **illy dilly** » Thu May 05, 2011 3:01 pm

Well done Super Evil Brian!
I've never beach camped and now I know why.

Regading the cooking- Once I bought my first jet burner deal that twists onto the top of a propane can, I wont go camping with out it, a pot, and some canned foods. I've got the cheaper model, not the real fancy name brand backpacking one, but it still kicks ass! And it boils water faster than my stove at home. Since it burns so small, and is easy to manage, I wouldn't be afraid to use it in a dome tent either- haven't had to yet, though.
Its exactly like this coleman, but some knock off brand https://secure.armysurplusforless.com/p ... hp?id=3620.

C.f.M. · Post by **C.f.M.** » Fri May 06, 2011 6:30 am

"The constant wind and grit gave me a good idea of what to expect in BRC"

Eh. Beach and playa aren't very similar (aside from both being a pain in the ass).

People compare playa dust to baby powder...it's much more compact and harder to dig in than beach sand. And much more prone to get everywhere. And give you chemical burns.

Post by **AntiM** » Fri May 06, 2011 7:57 am

C.f.M. wrote:"The constant wind and grit gave me a good idea of what to expect in BRC"

Eh. Beach and playa aren't very similar (aside from both being a pain in the ass).

People compare playa dust to baby powder...it's much more compact and harder to dig in than beach sand. And much more prone to get everywhere. And give you chemical burns.

All he has to do is explode a bag of flour in his shade structure the moment he arrives. That would be closer to playa reality. A big bottle of talcum powder even more so.

The Hustler · Post by **The Hustler** » Fri May 06, 2011 8:02 am

C.f.M. wrote:"The constant wind and grit gave me a good idea of what to expect in BRC"

Eh. Beach and playa aren't very similar (aside from both being a pain in the ass).

People compare playa dust to baby powder...it's much more compact and harder to dig in than beach sand. And much more prone to get everywhere. And give you chemical burns.

And much drier. It doesn't draw the moisture out of the outrageously humid sea air. The Gulf breeze left puddles and everythign was damp. The water condensed on the tent screen to the point of dripping.

I meant, the sand gets everywhere, especially the finer particles. It's in the car windows, cameras, shoes. I see bits of sand everywhere.

But one can't make concrete from beach sand and one doesn't get chemical burns. Beach sand doesn't compact as well.

It was a sloppy and loose comparison, based on something I've seen a lot with something I've only seen in photos/videos and read about. From what I gather the playa has some similarities to the ground in central Texas, loosely. I doubt I'll get a chemical burn or "playa foot" if I wanter around barefoot, but it has a lot of limestone and the dust has the consistency of baby powder and the mud from it is sticky and corrosive, dries to comething like concrete (dries, not cures like concrete).

I don't want to seem like some sort if ignorant "know it all."

It was a huge pain in the ass and uncomfortable and I can't wait to do it again. I relly like difficult conditions. Any asshole can stay in a cushy hotel, it takes a real phycho to camp in a storm or the high desert.

Minxy · Post by **Minxy** » Fri May 06, 2011 8:03 am

A bag of flour AND a container of baby powder. Annnnnnnd a big fan on the high setting. Get naked and dance around in it. After a shower so you're wet.

Then try to make a cup of coffee right there in the wind.

You'd never have to leave home!

OHHH Super Evil Brian you're going to LOVE the playa.

illy dilly · Post by **illy dilly** » Fri May 06, 2011 8:22 am

Sand vs. Playa (if only considering the obstacles and not the fun to be had)- I'd take playa! Its easier to clean off. I find that sand in my socks chaffs and grinds my feet vs. playa doesn't tend to get down into my shoes, and as long as what does get in is cleaned off the skin daily, its all good.
In the wind sand hurts as it hits your skin, playa just gets ya dirty.
And like Brian said it will compact and is easier to walk in.

But like I said I've never been beach camping, I'm only comparing it to sand dune sand. And lake beach sand is totally different than ocean beach sand.

But which smells better, Baby Powder or Playa?

C.f.M. · Post by **C.f.M.** » Fri May 06, 2011 8:42 am

Sand you can just brush right off. It doesn't layer and stick, like playa dust. It doesn't stain clothes and shoes, like playa does. I spend a few days at the beach, no laundry to do. I come home from BM, and things need a wash. I spend a few days at the beach, I don't have to wipe sand off to reapply sunscreen, just brush sand off. A few days at BM, I'm covered in a fine, filmy layer of dust.

Man, now I really want to go to the beach...oh, and Burning Man or whatever.

ETA: Ugh, anything smells better than baby powder. Even patchouli.

unjonharley · Post by **unjonharley** » Fri May 06, 2011 9:56 am

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Prefume in baby powder close my lungs down..

Corn starch is baby pwder without the smell..Corn starch around the testys is good for bike riding.. Ti can be used to stop bleeding also..

illy dilly · Post by **illy dilly** » Fri May 06, 2011 10:08 am

C.f.M. wrote:Sand you can just brush right off. It doesn't layer and stick, like playa dust. It doesn't stain clothes and shoes, like playa does. I spend a few days at the beach, no laundry to do. I come home from BM, and things need a wash. I spend a few days at the beach, I don't have to wipe sand off to reapply sunscreen, just brush sand off. A few days at BM, I'm covered in a fine, filmy layer of dust.

Lol, and to me that feeling of sand on my body is just terrible, where as playa doesn't bother me too much. Could be that sand gets in my hair and feels gritty, where as playa is just there- I see it but I don't really feel it.
Could be that in CO I don't really 'go to the beach' we might go boating, and walk across the beach. Or go fishing and sit on the beach.
I thought, hate for sand was pretty common, maybe its a regional thing.

Playa smells brings back memories of fun and debauchery, baby powder brings back memories of changing diapers, yuk!

The Hustler · Post by **The Hustler** » Fri May 06, 2011 10:16 am

C.f.M. wrote:Sand you can just brush right off. It doesn't layer and stick, like playa dust. It doesn't stain clothes and shoes, like playa does. I spend a few days at the beach, no laundry to do. I come home from BM, and things need a wash. I spend a few days at the beach, I don't have to wipe sand off to reapply sunscreen, just brush sand off. A few days at BM, I'm covered in a fine, filmy layer of dust.

Man, now I really want to go to the beach...oh, and Burning Man or whatever.

ETA: Ugh, anything smells better than baby powder. Even patchouli.

It was more humid than normal and the 27 knot wind was the lull. The issue is the salt in the blowing sand and floating in the air in finer particulate matter. I had to wash everything to remove the salt. Everything was damp from the salt, and not from rain. We're in the middle of a pretty good drought actually.

Grit crept up my sleeves (I had an army-issue shirt on with the sleeves rolled twice, it's comfortable in bright sun and good for bad weather), up my shorts, into my socks, in my tent, car (the sand was in PILES EVERYWHERE). I was gritty and damp, I had grit in my ears, around my eyes, eyebrows. Sand is in my house, on the front dirt/lawn. The sand accumulated around the cooler under the shade.

If it were less humid and hotter, then I would be clean. The sand has a good way of abarading and absorbing filth mysteriously (including the big soy sauce spot on the front seat).

I look forward to the dryness and crazy dust of the playa.

Of course I say that now hahah! I'm pretty stoked to go.

Unjohn - Cornstarch and baby powder are two different things. Talc comes from gound-up soapstone (or something like that). The dust from that is oddly slippery and very fine. Cornstarch is what one uses to make a vat of a non-newtonian liquid. They both absorb bag-leg-stick-causing moisture.

There is a mind-numbingly detailed thread somewhere here about the chemical composition of the lakebed. It's fascinating.