In 1784, William Murdoch - a Scot working in Cornwall servicing Boulton and Watt beam engines - began making models of what may well have become the first self propelled steam vehicle after Joseph Cugnot’s experimental steam military tractor. Employed by Boulton and Watt - who were possessive of their patents - Murdoch was said to [...]

I’m told the raising of the “king posts” used to be a pretty big deal.

The king posts are the 11 big beams that hold up much of the rest of Center Camp. The whole shebang is really a stationary sail, Devo told me, and he oughta know. He’s not only been working on the Build for years, but he also knows his way around boats. (He’ll be teaching disadvantaged children the joys of sailing when the Burning Man event his finished.)

So last night, after the big barbecue at the Saloon hosted by Camp Q (and oh god was it good: ribs, chicken, steak, mashed potatoes … completely fantastic. Absolutely delicious. And  they worked liked dogs for four hours to  feed the DPW crew after another back-breaking, sun-baking day of labor. The lines for the food sucked, but hey, even the liquor was free, and what’s wrong with that? Nothing.)

So after the big feast, we went back out to the playa in the gathering gloom. The sun was already down, and the big big sky had all those shades of pink and purple and blue that make a light show even before the first generator is fired up.

There was a time, Builder Joe and Nikko were telling me, that the raising of the beams was a pretty major deal. Everyone would be partying, and after each post was laid in the ground, it’d be time for another round. That didn’t sound too bad, honestly.

But last night, no. There was only a pretty small crew out there in the gorgeous night. There wasn’t a hint of wind or dust as Joe and Nikko and Sticks and Devo and Blondie and Jamie and me went about digging the holes and distributing the beams and then hoisting them into place. Let’s put it this way: There was plenty of work to go around. And me, being merely Picture Boy out here, I’m not much good at anything except shoveling and pulling and pounding. I don’t have the skills that the DPW people have. (And as Nikko likes to say, DPW’s reputation has come  a long way. “You can say it stands for “Doing Professional Work” now,” he said leaning on a shovel.

We finished about midnight and then hit the Jameson’s pretty good  (thanks Nikko!) and chased it with maybe a couple of PBRs. The quarter moon had already turned orange and then sunk below the horizon before some of us headed back to Gerlach.

That was an adventure, too. More than a little on the trippy side, if you want to know the truth. There aren’t many lights out on the playa yet. Two, to be exact: The ones set up near Center Camp so we could work, and the flashing red tower of Johnny on the Spot.

But you know what? Trying to get from the red blinking light all the way back out to the highway in total darkness with no road to follow, and with the headlight on my scooter putting out about as much light as your average LED penlight … well, it took awhile. Plus, the tires on the scooter aren’t really meant for playa dust. There was plenty of rocking and rolling.

But we made it.

building the fence

The work was hot and dry and dusty and hard, but at the end of the day, there was an awful lot to show for it. ….

True, you have to take steps to keep your hands from getting wrecked when you are pounding posts into the playa all day.

But not everyone sees it as an opportunity for radical self-expression.

Don’t get in this man’s way!

Greetings friends!

It’s been awhile since I’ve posted anything. I just have to share with everyone how freaking excited I am getting about the creation of Everywhere Lane on the playa.

Everywhere Lane is going to be located at 6:15 and Esplanade and is THE place to stop by to find out what is happening in the Burning world year-round.

The Regional Network Center will be open from 10:00 AM - 6:00 PM daily with real, live Regional Contacts on hand to answer your questions and help you get connected to your local burner community.

Burners without Borders, the Black Rock Arts Foundation and Black Rock Solar will be our neighbors.

We’re working hard to collaborate and create a unique way to meet the folks working to keep the fires burning year-round.

Not long now. We head out next week to start construction on Everywhere Lane. More coming soon.

Until then.

Giddyup!

MOOP, in Burning Man speak, is Matter Out Of Place.  Trash such as paper plates, beer cans, bottles, cigarette butts, grocery bags, etc. often hit the ground and become MOOP.  Basically anything at ALL that isn’t native to the playa is MOOP, doesn’t belong there, and needs to be picked up off the ground by you and me.

All are welcome at Burning Man, and in Black Rock City (our playa home), we LEAVE NO TRACE.  Each and every one of us is responsible for the impact that we leave on the Black Rock Desert. At Burning Man, there are no public trash receptacles. You take your trash with you, and you take it off the playa with you. Radical self-reliance.  This has always been at the very core of our culture.

Of the tens of thousands of citizens in Black Rock City, perhaps the folks hardest hit by MOOP fallout are the Theme Camps, those hardworking people who create those special places for you to rest, heal, eat, imbibe, dance, and party.  As you can imagine, their already-difficult job is made much harder when you, citizens of Black Rock, visit their camps and leave behind your MOOP for someone else to clean up.  So, don’t do that.

“But,” you may ask, “how do I do that (especially while I’m busy having a good time)?”  Well, I’ll tell you.

Very simply: CARRY A MOOP BUCKET.

A MOOP Bucket is any mid-sized handy receptacle that you can carry around with you and into which you can stuff your personal MOOP.  The best MOOP buckets are made from cutting a can-sized hole into an empty plastic gallon jug and tying a strap around the handle, but any receptacle (like a backpack lined with a plastic bag) will do.

As you roam the playa, deposit crushed empty cans, plates, and butts in your MOOP bucket! Also, pick up random MOOP that you come across on your adventures.  Ideally, everybody in your crew should carry one, but at the very least have one person designated to carry the MOOP Bucket for the day.

So, show some love back to those hard working Theme Campers and do your part to Leave No Trace by carrying a MOOP Bucket and picking up after yourself.

It’s only through our common commitment to Leave No Trace that we are able to make Burning Man happen.  It’s a core principle of our community, and we thank you for being part of it.

DA
Playa Restoration Manager
Department of Public Works
Black Rock City, Nevada USA