We had a little outing to Los Angeles just after New Year’s, and we were down there in time for the Christmas tree burn on the beach last Sunday.
Zach Fromson organized the outing, and there were maybe a hundred or so people at the height of things. Zach and his crew had spent the weekend gathering trees; they had gone all over the Southland in a rented truck picking them up, and then they hauled them all to the beach.
When we showed up, we saw a big truck loaded with trees, so of course we walked over to help unload them. But the guy in the back of the truck looked at me kind of funny and asked, “Are you part of the family?” and I said, “uhhhh … Burning Man?” Then the guy said no, this was a private thing, a family thing, and “the other people are over there.”
The “other people” would be the Burners, of course. But it was a smaller group than you’d think for all of L.A., but although it’s a big, big place, the Burner community seems to be spread hither thither and yon.
We’ve gone viral! Teddy Saunder’s beautiful Dr. Seuss video is the first Burning Man media to truly catch fire. With 800,000 views in just over 3 days, it has been on BoingBoing, The Huffington Post, and the front page of Reddit.
It is gorgeous, well done, and makes Burning Man look AWESOME.
So…are we screwed?
With ticket fears rampant, will our community be able to handle the flood of virgins drawn in by a dust-free depiction of whimsy, smiles and sunshine?
I was asked directly in my podcast this week and share my rambling answer (plus my plan to sell tickets for $1,000,000) here:
**NOTE: I AM NOT AN OFFICIAL REPRESENTATIVE OF BURNING MAN. I am merely a Participant with a passion for the event, people, and principles of Burning Man. Half-baked ideas & views expressed aren’t necessarily those of the Burning Man organization.” **
What did you think about “Oh the Places They’ll Go?”
What do you think this surge of awareness means for the future of Burning Man?
Long-time Burner Philippe Glade has completed his new book “Black Rock City, NV: The Ephemeral Architecture of Burning Man“. This photographic encyclopedia contains 196 examples of the various forms of rugged, functional and temporary desert architecture to be found at Burning Man. Philippe has painstakingly documented these structures over the course of 14 years, from 1996 to 2010. Even if you’re not (but especially if you are) into architecture porn, this book will make a great addition to your Burning Man library.
