Hello and Welcome... What's your name? Tell me about You...

[Bunns]

Doug from NJ here. 5 years ago, my son (then 12) found out about Burning Man. He is very creative and artistic, and asked me if we could go. I promised him that if he kept his grades up, we would go the summer between his Junior and Senior Year in High School (he will turn 18 in May). Needless to say, I am keeping the promise and two virgin burners (me 51, he a fresh 18) will be making their way to BRC this year. Tickets have been secured, as has an RV....now just 7 months of planning on what to do, where to go and how best to experience this!

Doug this is an amazing things that a father can do for his son and just hearing about it makes me warm and fuzzy, hope you and your son have a wonderful year at the burn and it is everything that he has wished for all these years!

[CornMan]

My name is Zeke Chaparral. Chicks dig me, because I rarely wear underwear and when I do it's usually something unusual. But now I know why I have always lost women to guys like you. I mean, it's not just the costume. It's the stories that you tell. So much fun and imagination. You are a madman. When you stole that cow, and your friend tried to make it with the cow. I want to party with you, cowboy. If the two of us together, forget it.

[OldSoulYoungBody]

Hi There all!

My name is Tanner Johnson, its nice to meet all of you! I'm a 21 year old college student at UNR, but I was born in Sacramento, CA. I'm a pretty relaxed and down to earth type of guy, and I usually get along with anybody and everybody very well. My girlfriend is Irene Doughty and I love her very much, we haven't been together an exceptionally long time but she is perfectly imperfect in just the right ways for me, and I for her. We have never been to Burning Man before! I first found out about the amazing festival of art and life when one of my best friends, josh, in my fraternity got out of a playa dust covered car in 2011. I should clarify, we aren't average "frat guys"! Sigma Nu is a very different place than any other fraternity, and it is the only fraternity I could ever see myself as part of. We are a group of very forward thinking and progressive great guys. Yes we like beer, but we spend just as much time sitting in San Rancho park contemplating our cosmic significance, and the meanings behind the various struggles of life. Anyways, my friend Josh didn't say a word to a single person upon returning for two days, and then eventually he walked into my room and we talked. He told me of experiences and stories of people and relationships and bonding that blew my mind. He told me stories of fun, loss, love, adventure, joy, and everything between. He knows me better than most, and he looked at me at the end of the conversation and appeared actually sad when he said "you would finally be home man, my soul is still there and next year I hope yours will be too". I'm sad I didn't know about BM sooner, I would have liked to have seen it last year before all of this confusion and talk of not going. That being said, I'm an optimist and I believe I will find a ticket for my girlfriend and myself this year. I would like to believe that by the time April rolls around 75% or more of burners will have tickets through the legitimate aftermarket. this my sound too good to be true but I'd like to hope its true.

[Daun]

Hi,

Daun. First time burner. Currently in San Francisco. From South East Asia.

Computer repairman most of the time. Slacker most other times.

Was really happy about getting tickets. Didn't think it would really happen. Has made me optimitic.

Reeling from the possibilities. Straining at the contraints. Hungry for knowledge. Nervous, shaking, fearful and joyous anticipation.

Hugs.

[Savannah]

Hello Heather, Bunns, Emma, Chaz, Jeff, Razor, Doug, Dewi, Tanner and Daun! Hopefully I didn't miss anybody!

Here is a link to Sober on the Playa. Meetings are often announced in the What/When/Where guide and will probably be in the 2012 Theme Camps link on the main site in a few months under Anonymous, and/or possibly on ePlaya in the 2012 Them Camps forum.

http://www.burningman.com/preparation/e ... sober.html

Chaz, I do not personally have experience ordering a Thawb (now I know what those are called . . .cool!) but many people wear those and similar things out there, and having 1 or 2 is probably a great solution. Feel free to browse the Clothing and Playawear forum and post about it if you don't see it already being discussed.

http://eplaya.burningman.org/viewforum.php?f=279

[owl_eyes]

Hellur. I am Jordan. First timer. Flying solo. Any tips?

[DJ Euphoria]

"Hello, my name is DJ and I'm an alcoholic..." Opps! Sorry, wrong forum. My name is DJ and I'm a Noob, Virgin, First Timer. Take a deep wiff, I still have that new burner smell...and I'm proud of it. You only get to do it the first time once, and I want to make the most of it. I want to embrace the newness of the whole experience from start to finish.

I'm excited to finally be able to afford the time off work and the money to travel to and from as well as experience Burning Man in all it's glory. (That is once I get a ticket...so far no luck in the lottery, but I remain positive and hopeful). I'll be embarking on a solo pilgrimage from a tiny town called Mulberry, Florida in the center of the sunshine state to the gathering on the Playa. I want to fully immerse myself in the experience that is Burning Man.

I'm open to all ideas and feedback on how to make my inaugural year a fun and memorable one. Feel free to hit me up here or on Facebook, under DJ Euphoria.

I look forward to meeting a good majority of you and participating in the Burning Man community and contributing on as many levels as humanly possible to not only mine, but everyone else's experience as well.

A friend who knew I didn't get a ticket under the lotto system sent me a link to a blog entitled "Trilo on Tickets". Within it, there was a link to this board, and so here I am.

[theCryptofishist]

Hellur. I am Jordan. First timer. Flying solo. Any tips?

Read the survival guide; read the first-timer's guide; and if you want anything other than generic answers, ask specific questions.

[FurTile]

Hi! um...

I wanna make you FurTile!

[Savannah]

Hi Owl_Eyes! Hi DJ Euphoria! Hi FurTile!

Tips? Read the items linked in my sig, there. This will help you start a packing and shopping list--and these lists will be somewhat shaped by whether you plan to fly in to Reno or drive, so that's an early consideration too.

Reading the threads in the Preparation forum will help you answer many, many questions. Have a specific question? Google a keyword plus the word eplaya and you will find a plethora of threads to choose from; you can even narrow it to answers that only appeared on the ePlaya site.

The more research one has apparently done, the nicer people here tend to be about answering questions . . . it's the Radical Self Reliance thing; one of the event's 10 Principles.

Welcome to the board.

[Spadge63]

Hello, My real name is Mike. I live in good 'ol Saint Paul, MN near the top of a hill over looking downtown and the mighty Mississippi River. I had always thought of attending and Burning Man and decided this was the year to do it. A friend ( 9 year Burner) in California invited me to join him this year to the festival. Even though I haven't gotten a ticket yet, I'm hoping I can still go and I will only buy one from STEP or the next sale. I DJ in the virtual world of Second Life. I'd like to volunteer to DJ on BMIR and I'm working on a mix to send them. I have a degree in Radio Broadcasting, but never pursued it for a career. I feel Burning Man can give me a bit of a kick start to get back the my positive energy that seems to have been misplaced for the last few years.

[Savannah]

Hi Mike!

The Burn might indeed help you recover your positive energy . . . though the experience varies from person to person, ranging anywhere from life-changing and fantastic . . . to fun camping trip . . . to disaster adventure. Releasing expectations & just seeing what happens is part of the excitement. Good luck with your ticket search. If STEP or the March sale don't work out for you, buying directly from a Burner in June for face value is another consideration. Tell your friends you're looking so they'll think of you if they hear anything.

Welcome to the board.

[tonl]

Hello, tonl here.
first time at burning man and looking forward to honour the tradition.
I think I'll be making the trip down from Victoria.
bikes, costumes, performances and gifts and dancing all in the works.

consider me, thrilled!

[Savannah]

Hi tonl! Welcome to the board.

[worla]

Hi!
Laura and Matt posting from Melbourne, Australia. We will be making the trip over for our first ever Burning Man. Any tips for International travelers?
very much looking forward to it all!

[mervet98]

Hello,
My name is Shaun. I am a veterinarian from Idaho falls and an avid biker. My 18 year old son and I are both noobs and are making our first foray into the world of burningman. Any advice would be welcome but as I read, I understand it may not all be legit. Feel free to send me b.s., I plan on completing a great deal of research between now and August so hopefully I'll weed out the pranks and keep the valuable stuff. Looking forward to seeing and experiencing all burningman has to offer.

[Mojojita]

Hi Shaun and welcome!

The way to get information that is accurate is to read the Survival Guide and the First Timers Guide - links to each are available on the main page and in Savannah's sig line above. Start making some lists to cover the issues of water, shade, food, safety, etc.

Also, there is a wealth of good information here in the threads covering just about everything you can think of. When in doubt, ask! We don't bite much and if we do, we'll try to make it pleasant at least for one of us.

Welcome to Laura and Matt too! In addition to the above advice, you may want to check your regional contacts as there are a whole lot of Aussie burners who can give you tips.

[Savannah]

Hi Laura and Matt!

Here's a handy thread about flying into Reno you might like:

Costs & Logistics of Flying to Reno
http://eplaya.burningman.org/viewtopic. ... 86&t=52826

Regional Contacts for Australia (meet others who have come so far before):
http://regionals.burningman.com/au.html

There might also be a Facebook group.

Hi Shaun (and Son)! Don't know what you mean about advice that doesn't sound legit (feel free to message me; 'cause now I'm intrigued!) . . . so I'll simply tell you to stay out of the "Rumors" thread for now (it's silliness), and read the links in my signature. The Survival Guide and the First Timer's Guide won't steer you wrong, and once you've read them backwards and forwards it will be pretty easy for you to spot anything completely wrong-headed. (We do like jokes about the unicorn stables out by the trash fence, and the declining quality of Burning Man food court, and the difficulty in keeping dust out of the many public swimming pools.)

We argue techniques & materials all day on ePlaya, but generally it's a pretty honest (and blunt) place.

[homo ardentum]

Greetings fellow Burners! I am Homo Ardentem (Latin for Man of Burning). My friend and I made it through the Burn of 2010 with flying colors and I am ready to head back to contribute beyond expectations. Given all the issues this year, my fellow burners and I from Camp Carnivore (all meat 24/7) will be there and will be determined to make this burn as special as all past events.

Fertility 2.0 may be giving birth to a burn forever changed, but it WILL be fantastic!

[Savannah]

Welcome to the board, Homo Ardentem!

[BarShirley]

Hello My name is Cheree, I'm from Sydney, Australia. We are yet to get tickets to this years burn.

The wait has been long and emotional. We have planned our Playa Wedding for the 31st Aug (somewhere amongst the dust)
A few of our bridal party were lucky to secure tickets. Now just waiting for the Bride and Groom to RSVP.

Still going ahead with our plans and praying to the Playa Gods.
Has anyone been to a playa wedding? I would love to hear about their wonderful experience.


XoxOxOX

[theCryptofishist]

How about my so-so experience?

[BarShirley]

Sure If your willing to share.

[gnossos]

I'm Kelli. Assuming both of us can actually get tickets, my fiance and I couldn't think of any place more appropriate to get married than Burning Man 2012. It's been calling both of us for years. Other festivals and gatherings just haven't quite cut it, we're really excited to see how it goes down on the Playa. We're currently living and slaving away in Florida to get up the funds to make it out West to settle down and get back to our indiginous roots. We want to learn to self-sustain to escape Babylon.

[rachright]

Hi guys!
Rachael here, first timer attending with my boy Aaron. We're Australian doctors who have packed in the career treadmill, and for now our future plans are to live out of our backpacks somewhere in the depths of South America until we make it up to BRC in August.
We ARE first timers who were lucky enough to get tickets, something I confess I feel a little guilty about after reading all the JRS updates the last few weeks and feeling the emotion reverberate through the online community. However, the call of BM has been there for 6 or so years now, sparked somewhere in the past after reading old magazine articles on the original camps, and this year just happened to be the year we decided we'd had enough of working for the man. My original desire to become a burner was consolidated after a friend of mine returned from a trip 5 or so years ago, having fallen into the man and burning his hands, leaving him unable to work for some time, he still had nothing but love and excitement to relate about the experience. Oodles and oodles of it.
He returned last year and got married at BRC, something which makes me smile everytime I think about it. His photos are poignant and beautiful and awe-inspiring, something I just cannot wait to feast my eyes on in person.
Aaron and I were planning on flying solo but after hearing about all the ticketing issues I feel that I would really like to be able to participate/volunteer/contribute something as newbies. I'm no artist, but we're both photographers (Aaron is much better than I, even insisting on carrying his 4kg medium format film camera around with us for the indefinite future, to the detriment of his wardrobe capacity) and can bartend/cook reasonably well. I guess if we were forced to, we can also admit to being medically skilled
I'm planning on re-posting on the Aussie forum as well, but to be perfectly honest, sometimes it's nice to hang out with people who aren't and experience something new, one of the reasons we've left the country for now.

Anyone with thoughts on ways we can help out, or things we could contribute, let me know.
Can't wait.

p.s. this is also the first time in my life I've posted online, so sorry for the bareboned technology. I don't have a clue what half the symbols scattered around the webpage mean...

[theCryptofishist]

If you want to volunteer at medical you should fill out the regular volunteer form and the special esd form after it.
There's a common recommendation that newbies shouldn't volunteer for their first burn, that there's too much overwhelm.
And please don't feel bad for getting tickets. Just don't.

[Savannah]

Hi Cheree, Hi Kelli, Hi Rachael & Aaron.

Rachael, medical types may volunteer in the link below (indeed, as Fishy suggests, be conservative with your volunteer hours your first Burn; medical shifts are usually either 8 or 12 hours. (On the playa, that's a large amount of time where you could be falling in love with the city instead, if you're lucky--and there are lots of other ways to volunteer shorter amounts of time, or to commit to things once you see how you do out there). I skipped volunteering my first Burn, and I don't regret it. The city was smaller then, and needed less, but I was also a dazzled newbie, and didn't know how to use my time at all.

http://www.burningman.com/participate/emergency.html

You could instead use your medical background as a plus, if you want to join a theme camp (which is optional).

[gabrj]

Gabriella here. I first heard about Burning Man 5 years ago when my brother went for the first time. I've watched the transformational effect it has had on his life that year and the following years he has attended. He's been telling me for a while that I need to go there - that these are "my people". With my own life in upheaval at the time (divorce, single motherhood, going back to school...etc.) It's taken me time to rebuild my life and get to a place where I can leave my family, school and work for a week. This year my new husband and I lucked out on tickets. Sadly my brother did not. He is excited for us though. Our 1 year Wedding Anniversary will be in September so we're very excited to celebrate it at BRC!

I am a Massage Therapist and licensed ULC Minister. My husband is a Web Master/Lead IT and was a Bike Mechanic for 5 years. We're hoping to help out and possibly join a camp they may put us to good use. Just happy to be a part of this amazing community!

[MJSpace]

Howdy
I'm Judi Space.
Been wanting to go to the playa for years now and decided that 2012 was the year to do it......
Didn't win in the lottery, but hope never dies!

Long time volunteer with the Philladelphia Folk Fest - but BM will take it to a whole different level.
I love vibrant communities.
I love the spectacular.
I spend my working days in a very left brain environment - I need to balance with right brain stuff.

[PurplMyst]

I've randomly posted from time to time, but I suppose I should properly introduce myself.

Hi!

I first set foot on the Playa in 2003 and I've only skipped 2 years since. My Burning Man experiences have ranged from going solo, to being a part of a large sound camp. I'm a sucker for interactive art, large expressions in fire, shiny things, blinky lights, the untz untz untz, and pretty much anything in purple.

Nice to meet y'all!