Welcome to Chaos !!

Today me, Chhaya and our friend Jim drove out to Nikiski with another donation from us at the club. This time it was Boss Lady's idea, so she gets all the credit. I was merely the person that delivered the check and of course I contributed to the $ and some treats not shown in the pic. I met many cute dogs and cats today and got to chat with Sue and Tim that operate the Nikiski Animal Sanctuary. They are great people. Once again, do not breed your pets and take good care of the pet/s you have. Be responsible.



I'm so tired.I was basically out all day and didn't get home until after dark. Jim took some pics of me too that I will put up tomorrow. Now I have to force myself to wash my face and take out my contacts and then I'm going to sleep.
Oh and I'm planning on keeping that chipped nail polish for as long as possible, it's a remnant from Burning Man so I'm not taking it off. I don't care if it looks bad.

Well, it looks like I dropped my phone one too many times. Yesterday afternoon it fell face down on some gravel and I am now unreachable. No phone and I'm not sure for how long I will be without it since I don't know if the screen can be repaired here or not. Super annoying. Just one of the perks of living in a small town.



Something else super annoying.....the chain smoking drunkards at work this weekend. I have now words for some of them besides that I am amazed that people like that exist and somehow manage to make it through life. I'm very tired, being around annoying drunks at work for one night is more exhausting than getting by on a few hours of sleep and full days of stuff to do at Burning Man.

OMG, I miss Burning Man so much. I'm thinking back constantly and I'm looking forward to next year. At least there is a next year, I hope! Because you never know how life will turn out.
"Reality" is harsh. There is so much bad stuff going on and I am super sensitive and get sad and upset over everything. Close to tears all the time. So it's been a difficult transition for me. I MISS IT!

How was my Playa living this year? Compared to the other two years when I stayed in RV's it was much dustier and not as comfortable but I managed. After a few days I had a pretty good routine down with washing my face and body in two large bowls and brushing my teeth.
And I used a lot of baby wipes for everything. I "washed' my hair once, if you can call it that.
I dunked water into one of those green storage bins and attempted to wash my tangled tresses in that. My Playa hair was a mess, I could only get a comb through it a few inches away from my forehead until it said stop. Strangely enough people still complemented me on my ropey looking hair. I bought a twin size air mattress for $12 specifically for this adventure and amazingly enough it made it without popping. This year was very windy, strong gusts swept through the Playa and that means that everything gets covered in fine dust. It got pretty cold at night a few times. I was super cold two nights, I mean like FREEZING cold. So I doubled up on socks and slept in my hoodie.
I survived and got out of the Playa in perfect health, probably stronger than I was before. Didn't even catch a cold.







Here is our camp and my Playa home. My tent is the one to the right and my bike is the white one with the pink and white handlebar basket.



Besides a couple of pairs of flip flops I brought my pink fringe boots from last year and two pairs of other shoes. I wore flip flops during the day and stuck to my pink fringes at night.
I think I'm going to get a few more in different colors for next year (Mandy.....take notice!). Comfortable to dance in. Cute too I think. And I ran in to another person that had them too!

So it took some time getting to Burning Man. The line to get in was long and at standstill for hours. We made it in at some point in the morning on Monday August 31. I was sooooo tired since I had traveled from Kenai to Vegas starting late Saturday night and when I arrived in Vegas there was no time for any rest. I had to get supplies, food and a bike.
This year I was in a tent at Burning Man, the two previous years I was doing the RV thing, it's way more comfortable in an RV than a tent.....that I can assure you of. But having said that, I would do it again in a tent if I had to because being at Burning Man is worth any discomfort. So when we arrived we located our camp and set up our tents. I got to meet some new camp mates and old ones and we caught up for a while. Then I changed into something lighter and headed for Center Camp for a refreshing iced latte and to look through the event book.
This year the Burning Man theme was Carnival Of Mirrors.









I also picked up the BRC weekly and indulged in the latest. I love reading it.



Then I had to take a look at the man.......of course.



And in the evening I needed my dancing fix. I've said it before but I LOVE to dance. Dancing is my drug, my therapy, my release. It makes me extremely happy. I'm a danceaholic. I went to Planet Earth for some Depeche Mode and 80's New Wave. SO GREAT!





Then if I recall it right.....I checked on a place I love to dance at called White Ocean before I biked back to my Playa home and called it a night.

Well, I'm back in Kenai now. Reunited with Chhaya, my laptop and my bed. I drove to Vegas from Burning Man, it took about nine hours back to Vegas and flew out of there at 11 am today. Let me tell you, as soon as I got off the plane in Anchorage I felt this heavy feeling of sadness and anxiety come over me and my heart actually ached. It is not easy to separate from Burning Man, at least not for me. Maybe I'm crazy, I don't know. I won't be going to sleep and waking up to beats and bass somewhere close by in the background. I feel SOOOOOO SAD! Maybe I will cry a bit more again. Just like the previous times, Burning Man withdrawal is difficult for me.
My baby spent time in the kennel and although she gets great care there I always feel so bad leaving her there. But she seems happy.



Next Burning Man is just around the corner! Kind of......