Oh my goddess, it's August 1 and we pick up our RV on August 27. It's countdown to Burning Man time!
I haven't been updating this blog as much as I would have liked. Therefore, I am making the commitment to blog at least once a day from now through August 27. This is the best part anyway--the frantic days of list-making, thrift-store shopping, craft-making, blinky light-buying, food shopping, and everything else that will occupy most of my free time until that magic day when we pile all of the above into our 26-foot RV and hit the road. Black Rock City or Bust, baby!
I've been thinking about Burning Man quite a bit since I last posted on May 8. Admittedly, many of my thoughts have leaned towards my costume and clothing choices, but I also spend a fair amount of time contemplating the idea of community.
The last (and only) time I've been to Burning Man, I was part of a theme camp made up of friends and friends of friends. I spent a fair amount of time in the last couple of months leading up to the burn working on group projects related to our theme camp, Hamok Havok (BM 2002). The first time Mike went to Burning Man he camped with a group that did communal dinners; the last time he went he camped with friends who helped him with his art project, The Quoting, Whirled. Neither time was he involved in a theme camp, and I'm not sure he saw my participation in one as being a good thing. Theme camps are a lot of work and involve a lot of planning and cooperation. Tempers can flair during the planning phase and especially when one is attempting to create a home-away-from-home in 100 degree heat. We were pretty sure we would not have the energy or time to participate in a theme camp this year given the fact we are traveling to Black Rock City with two small children.
But going to Burning Man without a community of friends seemed... well, rather unlike the philosophy behind the event itself. We decided to research the idea of camping with a group of fellow parents and kids in a longstanding Burning Man village called KidsVille.
According to the KidsVille website Burningkids.org:
KidsVille [is] a village within Black Rock City. Our camp has grown tremendously from earlier years and in response to that growth, has now declared itself a Village. Despite its growth, KidsVille remains committed to providing a community for all families and their friends. In 2000, we had over 30 families and over 40 children ranging in age from 8 months to 18 years. We have had families come from around the world, and from all walks of life. In fact, the only thing we share in common is that we all believe that Burning Man is a wonderful family experience.
In May I joined the KidsVille Yahoo Group and introduced myself. I got several replies right away and was reassured that we were doing the right thing--both by joining the group as well as by attending the event with kids in tow. At first, the email traffic was light, but as we get closer to the event that many people look forward to all year, the emails are flying fast and furious. And judging from the emails that are filling my inbox with all talk Burning Man, all the time, I feel that we have found our people.
So now we have a place to camp when we drive our big RV into the the gate of BRC, and a large and welcoming community of parents and kids, of families of all shapes and sizes, to be a part of during our week on the Playa. It feels good.
Coming up tomorrow: Mary calls a family meeting and starts working on THE GREAT BIG PACKING LIST. Stay tuned!
