Welcome to Chaos !!

The first place I went to after getting some sleep the day I arrived at Burning man was Center Camp. I loved Center Camp, they even had a coffee shop there I was happy to discover so I developed a routine of starting my day with an iced latte and some down time there.
That was the only place I spent any money. The cost of a latte was $4 plus I always tip.
One other expense at Burning Man is ice, in case you want to keep your food and beverages chilled you know. Center Camp was also open at night, I made it over there for a late night chai a few times.



My latte!



How to describe Center Camp.....it is a large communal area where people gather to relax, get a coffee or chai, do yoga, sleep, talk, make new friends, they had performers and people that held speeches there too. There was also lots of art to look at and some political stuff to read up on. A great place to be in other words. You can easily spend hours there and not become bored.





It was on my second day at Burning Man while sitting down with my latte and a book at Center Camp that I met the photographer that took some amazing pics of me.....more pics coming soon. He also gave me an empty glass vial that I filled up with playa dust during the burn of the Man. Here I am with my glass vial, feeling happy to have it.



I also got a spiritual cleansing done by Neil. He and a girl were blessing and cleansing stuff and I got a cleansing too. How sweet!



I miss having my latte at Center Camp!

I am a FLEXITARIAN......that means I am very flexible, more so than most people. If you could only see how flexible.....you would be amazed....how else do you think I make all my money.....and it is lots of it too.
No but really, on a more serious note, flexitarian means that I eat mostly a vegetarian diet but I do eat meat occasionally. Not often. I did have some chicken the other day, I made stir fry.
It was delicious.



So yes, I do eat meat once in a while, rarely actually. I can't remember last time that I had beef. And I DO feel bad for the chicken, I do. I saw that there was some article on yahoo today and yesterday about the dog meat trade in the Philippines. I did not read it, I can't. It will make me cry. It is absolutely possible to survive and live well on little or no meat. Look at me, do I look malnourished? Lately I have been eating lots of super yummy veggie sandwiches that I make at home. It's simple and cheap, you can make them too and skip on eating meat at least a few times a week.



One more thing. I don't like it when people try to "force" me to eat meat or some other stuff that I don't want to eat. I don't do that to others so do not do that to me. I am old enough to decide for myself what I eat or do not eat and no, I am not missing out.....thank you.
It's about 1 am here.....I am about to sleep soon I think, unless I find something interesting to read. I finished Dan Brown's Inferno . I liked it, it brought up the important topic of human overpopulation, a topic I have strong opinions on and that I have written a few blogs about (what have I not written a blog about?) I am absolutely for birth control and a limit on how many kids people can have. No, I do not support a family like the Duggars. Or any other family or single person, woman or man that feels the need to breed like a rabbit. I'd rather live in a world that can sustain it's population and at 7 billion and counting we might (or already are) be pushing our luck.

So some might wonder if Burning Man is all about getting wasted and high. Well.....for some it might be and for others definitely not. I brought a whopping six pack of beer with me to Burning Man, drank two and gave away the other four. I also had two mouthfuls of somebody's gin and something mixture. And I was TIPSY and very happy. I am a light weight for sure.
Then I also found a very interesting package of something in the dust while walking around on evening, I picked it up, inspected it briefly and ripped it open. Whatever it was it looked like rock candy, so I proceeded to eat three pieces that tasted just like candy. YUM!



The candy also contained hemp oil and after a while my legs felt like heavy logs, I definitely couldn't dance anymore (although I wanted too), I kept on getting unexplainable but very fun laugh attacks and felt really, really good - like a total body buzz. When I finally laid down in my bed my heart area felt like it was on fire and I could hear the music outside in detail, I could also make out other people talking in the distance. Quite interesting. Looking back now,
I should had dragged myself to go and watch the sunrise on the playa somewhere......instead of laying in bed. Mountain High Suckers it said on the package.....some form of cannabinoid.



Look, I am no prude when it comes to drugs. I have tried various things but I do it rather sparingly and I don't just want to get wasted only to get wasted. I am trying to make something meaningful out of my experiences with drugs (usually, unless I unexpectedly find strange packages on the ground and devour the contents.... ) and I have even written down descriptions of most of them.
I got offered all kinds of fun stuff to ingest at Burning Man but I didn't. I didn't feel comfortable because I wasn't there with people that I knew would be there for me 100 % if I needed them to. But next year I am planning to have at least one extra special night! I am absolutely for the legalization of drugs btw. People do them anyways, legal or not.
Making drugs legal would make it more safe just to mention one benefit. Plus, hello alcohol is just as much of a narcotic as anything. I know this, I have one beer and I can totally feel the effects. Also, just because something is available and legal doesn't mean that you are going to do it. I LIKE being sober. I don't even think about it. Drugs is something that you can use to enhance your life with, if you are smart about it. And learn from......get valuable insights about yourself and the world. That is how I look at it.

I had many MOMENTS at Burning Man.....you know when you suddenly get overwhelmed with an emotion like extra happiness or sadness, just feel more alive and aware in that moment. Let me tell you about one moment in particular. I was out riding my bike and exploring the playa during the day, it was hot, I was thirsty. I came across two large containers, one filled with some sort of Gatorade or something and another with water. Cold. Some nice person had out of the goodness of their heart put the containers there for people to quench their thirst and get refreshed. Lots of similar random acts of kindness at Burning Man and totally FREE!



So I stopped for a drink, it tasted soooooo good. Well, after a while it was me and three other people there drinking. And we had a moment. A group of strangers that shared a few minutes of connection, conversation and a group hug. I was so moved that I cried a little and I know that at least one of the others cried too. It was......beautiful. It made me feel so happy and I will never forget that, I cherish that memory. We were all from different parts of the country, Kenai, Philadelphia, San Diego and San Francisco but we were there at Burning Man together and had a moment.

It's been two weeks now since I arrived at the playa located in Nevada's Black Rock Desert. Burning Man is held up in northern Nevada just outside a small town called Gerlach. I left Las Vegas Monday afternoon and arrived at Burning Man around 1 am Tuesday.....then it took about three hours in a slow moving line to actually get through the entry gates to camp.
For one week I stayed at 7 50 and G......and I would gladly loooooveeee to be back there right now for another week because the fun was over before I knew it. The first thing I did after getting there was to hop on my borrowed bike and head towards something......I just wanted to SEE and FEEL what was going on and this is one of the first pics that I took. The Man, on top of his craft. I knew within my first few minutes on the playa that I was in for a great experience, I could feel it in my whole being.



What do you need to bring to Burning Man to get by? Well, the very obvious, you need shelter, water and food. I was lucky and stayed in a rather comfortable motor home.



But there were plenty of people there that stayed in tents. So that is also perfectly doable, although I think I would prefer some form of RV for comfort. And many make shaded and comfortable lounge areas in their camp by the help of tarps, flowing tapestries, pillows etc.
I already have a theme and color idea for the camp I want to make next year.
Another thing you need is a bike. The playa is large and it saves you a lot of time if you bring a bike. I am the kind of person that wants to see and do as much as possible. I encountered a few people at the event that basically only hibernated in their camp, took a daily trip to the porta-potties and then made a trip to see the Man burn, that's it. Eeeeeh what? I think you need to get out there and see what Burning Man has to offer, because it is A LOT.
Here is my bike. Note my very cute backpack. It got a lot of attention for being so cute.





This is Sarah aka Wonderhussy, being fabulous as usual. We shared camp. Camp ChakaLaka that you can see in the background of the pic. You can read her very fun, amazing and informative blog here
She has some great Burning Man stories up right now......! That is how we met a few years ago, through our blogs.



And here I am with Sarah, her sisters Anna and Eliza and some other person.



A lot of people transformed their bikes into moving artwork. There is lots of wonderful creativity at Burning Man.







Here are some random cuties, there were lots of cuties to look at too.



Here I am pedaling my way around the playa one night.



I have much more of my Burning Man experience coming up. I want to break it down in pieces. Besides it is latte time!

Another week came and went.....it is late Sunday here and I think that time goes by way too fast. It's almost like it is speeding up. I spent my Sunday doing errands, the never ending errands.....and doing fun stuff with Chhaya, we went down to the beach earlier to catch today's last rays of the sun. Of course I took pics. I always take pics.









Some late night thoughts......I think it is really lame that a lot of people are coming down so hard on Miley (Cyrus). Hello, the girl is 20, she is full of life and happiness. It is obvious.
IF anything then criticize that nerd Robin Thicke with his lame songs about de domesticating women and giving it to them (eeewwwwww) and his even lamer video with naked chicks.
He is a middle aged married guy. What is HIS problem? That suit that he stuffed himself into at the VMA's wasn't too hot either. Why bash Miley and not him....if anything. I think Miley should have fun.....and wait to get married, she is too young. She is far from the only celeb that put on a somewhat controversial performance. And come on.....it could be a lot worse. Sure her "twerking" is kind of funny looking and she will soon realize that sticking her tongue out like that is not so flattering. On the other hand Gene Simmons used to perform with his tongue hanging out and that was ok? But at least Miley is doing SOMETHING......music, the girl can sing! Why is Kim K famous again? Oh, for having a sex tape out......wow......THAT is so NOT impressive, not to mention her quickie for cash and more fame marriage to that neanderthal Kris Humphries. And people look up to her? I sure don't. I'd rather be Miley.....she seems like she is having fun. My kind of fun.