I leave on Saturday for my 11th Burning Man.
But for me, the pilgrimage began 2 months ago.
The preparation weeks are bliss for me.
It’s like I have a Pavlovian response…and I start to CREATE. Ideas fly thorough my head. Everything looks like a part of a sculpture or costume.
My world becomes a fury of paint/glue/fabric/cut/spray/glue/sweat/& love.
My apartment becomes a studio. The foam-cutting knife does not get put away after use. Nor does the glue gun.
Pink fur scraps infest my apartment…like some Fraggle virus.
And the artistic projects fill the house at an incredible rate.
During the pre-burn season I give myself permission to embrace a “Cut first – Measure later” design philosophy.
I let it ‘float more.’
And the stream brings such delights!
This year I’ve been inspired to create (with my mom & girlfriend’s help):
• A sticker design (chosen as the official gate sticker this year. Gifted to EVERY participant.)
• rubber stamp designs (x3)
• Art Bike (“All Hail Snuffleoctopus!”)
• Goggle-head-dresses (x2)
• Stencils (2)
• Tons of customized clothing,
• and now we’re working on decorating a Lounge on the Esplanade!
Plus I have 3 responsibilities for during the week. 1) Bike Ride – Wed. 12:00 noon @ Bat Country 9:30 & Espl.
2) HugNation – Sat. 12:00 noon Center Camp, spoken word stage.
3) And I also act as a Courier.
By “Courier” I mean that I bring things to the Playa for people.
I extend the offer every year on my blog that I’m happy to bring something on anyone’s behalf.
Sometimes it’s a picture to print out. Or old letters.
Letting go of an expectation or a regret.
This year a beautiful young woman sent me ashes of her child.
And a letter of celebration. Celebrating the miracle of the brief life.
She had named her child after Grandpa Caleb.
But he was very premature.
Now Baby Caleb’s ashes are making the same journey as his namesake.
Heavy…
But I can’t help but think that from the perspective of the Cosmic Dance…it is beautiful.
We are born. We live. We die.
We are loved. We love.
The number of breaths we take does not determine the worth of our lives.
Rather, it is the purity of the journey.
So this year’s Burning Man Journey is infused with not only a narcotic creative frenzy, but also a depth.
And a renewed appreciation of the Journey itself.
*** If you are going to Burning Man, I will be camped at 9:30 and Esplanade. No amount of planning can force encounters to happen, but if our journeys do cross paths, please say hello! I’d love to share a magic moment.
Before HugNation officially started, I found myself discussing a topic that is probably NSFW. And probably TMI. And may make you say OMFG, and all sorts of other acronyms.
First I ordered a bunch of animal bones off ebay.
Then a bunch of rubber octopi off various online stores.
After MANY attempts, I finally was able to paint the octopus how I wanted. Black and bone-colored.
Can you tell I’m going for a bit less of a fuzzy-pink fur look this year?
15+ years ago, I started looking for a cool personalized license plate idea.
I stumbled upon the word "halcyon" and thought it would be a great plate. Alas, it was taken.
A week later, in a rave-fueled haze, I introduced myself to people as "Halcyon."
Then I started using it as a pen name. A few years later, I changed my middle name from "David" to "Halcyon." My drivers license now reads, "John Halcyon Styn" and my car plate reads, "HUGABLE."
So it was a bit of a trip to see this plate over the weekend! For a second I thought… it’s ME…in a parallel universe!"
“For a generation burned-out on organized religion, the Web provides a different, transparent kind of congregation & fellowship. We are exposed to the thoughts beyond our school or parents’ bookshelf. Allowing us to question things, over-ride our socialization, & claim the beliefs that truly resonate with us.”
This video shows Caleb watching a video of me falling down. (He was also there in person…and laughed then, too)
He’s 26months and talks a lot. He has an adorable pattern of adding “now” to the end of most sentences. Like he some Eckhart Toll-ish zen master of The Now.
