Burning Man! Party(er, ah enlightenment) in the desert! (1 Viewer)

[shadrap]

anyone ever go?   Former college roommate has been going for 12 years.  For those not in the know it's a gathering of about 120000 people in the desert in Nevada for a week.   Most dress like the "Mad Max" characters,  drugs abundant, & music everywhere.   He sent me a bunch of pictures & it looks pretty cool.  Apparently it is now really hard to get into.

 

[FairWarning]

It has long jumped the shark.  I don’t think it was intended for the 1% who bring celebrity chefs.  

 

[rockaction]

It has long jumped the shark.  I don’t think it was intended for the 1% who bring celebrity chefs.  

I think it was, for a time, for those who wanted to get away from their own private celebrity chefs.

 

[Apple Jack]

This is still a thing?

 

[Tom Servo]

anyone ever go?   Former college roommate has been going for 12 years.  For those not in the know it's a gathering of about 120000 people in the desert in Nevada for a week.   Most dress like the "Mad Max" characters,  drugs abundant, & music everywhere.   He sent me a bunch of pictures & it looks pretty cool.  Apparently it is now really hard to get into.

It's in the desert AND hard to get into?  Does not compute.

 

[shadrap]

It's in the desert AND hard to get into?  Does not compute.

Not hard apparently.  You just have to get your ticket quite early.  It's only 70000 that get in.  Lot of info here:

https://www.businessinsider.com/what-is-burning-man-theme-tickets-dates-outfits-2018-8

 

[FairWarning]

I think it was, for a time, for those who wanted to get away from their own private celebrity chefs.

Roughing it sounds good in theory to the 1%.  Katy Perry goes to this for god sakes.

 

[rockaction]

Roughing it sounds good in theory to the 1%.  Katy Perry goes to this for god sakes.

I hear she's quite the naturalist.

And limber.

 

[huthut]

It is all tech executives and stuff now. There is little traffic in the bay area during burning man. 

 

[jvdesigns2002]

My watchmaker has been a few times and he really enjoys it.  He did say that it has changed in more recent years. He said that it used to primarily be hippy artist types back in the day--but more recently the crowd resembles that of Coachella more and more.  You have some people that legit go out there and camp in tents and sleeping bags--but then you have those that bring luxury RV's out there.   He invited me to go one year--and I declined.   Unless they build a hotel out there that has nice air conditioniong where the housekeepers put a mint on my pillow every night-- sleeping in the desert for a week is not my thing.  

 

[Zow]

This is still a thing?

Pretty big deal out by me. I know a few colleagues that go and plan their trip way ahead of time. 

 

[shadrap]

they do have an orgy tent event-so there is that.

 

[wikkidpissah]

People from Reno used to use the Black Rock Desert to give Viking funerals to their cars. If you could get your beater up to Gerlach, NV, there was this hippie dood who'd meet you out on the saltflat and rig your buggy up so you could light a fuse to the gas tank, put it in gear & put a brick on the gas pedal and watch it sail away across the lake bed til it exploded, then he'd haul off the "car"cass. i did it to the car i moved to Reno in in the 80s. He became the hippie-artists' contact man for setting up Burning Man (he was an artist himself, one of many creative desert rats who'd set up an artists' park - a trail connecting art installations in the hills above the lake bed) when they moved it up from San Francisco and became too high & mighty to do car funerals anymore.

But even that didn't motivate me to give Burning Man a try, mostly because, without the hippie freak-o-rama stuff, Santa Fe had been doing a similar thing, Zozobra (Old Man Gloom is stuffed w slips of paper and mementos signifying what "grievers" want to have burned off), to kick off their annual fiesta for 100 years and i was still flying out there to do that as a reunion w my old NM pals (not a bad shrooms/tequila party itself backinaday). So even as a hippie northern Nevadan when the Burning Man phenomenon began, i never connected with it.

 

[Joe Mammy]

Ever since that guy fell in the fire I think they call it "Burning Men" now.

 

[Tom Servo]

Not hard apparently.  You just have to get your ticket quite early.  It's only 70000 that get in.  Lot of info here:

https://www.businessinsider.com/what-is-burning-man-theme-tickets-dates-outfits-2018-8

I mean, who's going to stop me from walking in? It's not like there's a front gate or anything?

 

[shadrap]

I mean, who's going to stop me from walking in? It's not like there's a front gate or anything?

Bet you $5.00 you can't do it.  So there.

 

[Long Ball Larry]

my watchmaker?

 

[Long Ball Larry]

Interesting article about its logistics now. https://www.nytimes.com/2019/09/07/reader-center/burning-man-paul-romer-economist.html

separate summary if you can't get behind the paywall: https://www.cnu.org/publicsquare/2019/09/16/international-vision-street-grids-inspired-burning-man

 

[eoMMan]

What do they do for restrooms?  Showers?  And medics on hand for drug ODs?

 

[General Malaise]

Went in 1997.  I left early.  I can see why it's very popular but it wasn't for me.  Whole lotta very creative people out there.

 

[Major]

It's been on my bucket list for a while now.  All of my friends that have been either kept going every year after or highly recommend it.   I may just bite the bullet next year.  It sounds like it's all about the camp or tribe you're with.  Certain ones are filled with beautiful, scantly clad women and great food but of course you need to be invited to those.   And while money doesn't exchange hands within Burning Man, attending BM isn't cheap especially if you're with one of the nicer camps.  

 

[jvdesigns2002]

my watchmaker?

I know that sounds weird- but I manage a jewelry store.  We have several watchmakers.  

 

[Tom Servo]

Bet you $5.00 you can't do it.  So there.

Sez you.

 

[Long Ball Larry]

I know that sounds weird- but I manage a jewelry store.  We have several watchmakers.  

ahhhh, i thought you meant like your personal watchmaker, like "my doctor" or "my mechanic"...

 

[Binky The Doormat]

My watchmaker has been a few times and he really enjoys it.  He did say that it has changed in more recent years. He said that it used to primarily be hippy artist types back in the day--but more recently the crowd resembles that of Coachella more and more.  You have some people that legit go out there and camp in tents and sleeping bags--but then you have those that bring luxury RV's out there.   He invited me to go one year--and I declined.   Unless they build a hotel out there that has nice air conditioniong where the housekeepers put a mint on my pillow every night-- sleeping in the desert for a week is not my thing.  

the guy that hand-weaves my lounge slippers also said it was "pretty cool".

 

[wikkidpissah]

my trans whiskerscaper didn't care for it at all