Welcome home, everybody! It’s time for this month’s riveting newsletter to our Villagemates, friends, and ex-pats.
We did some digging and found this article which mentions our wonderful camp. I don’t necessarily condone the behavior of the author, and frankly feel it puts TTITD in an otherwise dubious light, but hay, all publicity is good, right? But don’t say I didn’t warn you.
First off I want to give a few thank-yous where they are due. A couple of the items on our Wish List have been granted. Ygmir, who some of you may know especially if you ever visit the ePlaya on the Burning Man website (it seems you can’t swing a dead cat without running into one of his witticisms or observations), has agreed to furnish us with a burn barrel. Thank you for that.
A big thank you goes out to Drew who will be making an evaporation machine so our wastewater from our shower doesn’t overflow, something we have sorely needed for several years. This is what it is supposed to look like.
Now that we have a burn barrel, the next thing we need is firewood. Happily Frank the Vintner has volunteered to supply us with between 1/4 and 1/2 a cord, which should be sufficient. We may need some help hauling it out to the playa, but we will cross that bridge come July or August.
We are still in need of a design for this year’s t-shirt. I made a mistake in the last newsletter; I incorrectly said that Sunset designed 2008′s shirt. In reality Felony Arson did (boy did I catch hell for that oversight) and Sunset actually designed the 2007 model. So, who will be our artist-in-residence for this year? We need to have the design in by sometime in July.
OK, dues are due. For those of you in Barbie Death Camp & Wine Bistro, Eden, Black Rock City Body & Paint, and Clan O’Crash, dues are $50 per person until July 1, when they increase to $75. We do not want to collect dues on the playa! The only exception to that rule will be for international travelers, and absolutely no early-entry passes if you are delinquent on your dues. Please remit your checks, made payable to me. We have already collected from 11 of you, so thank you for that.
We are beginning to organize the annual Barbie Death Village Pancake Porkout, which will be held Wednesday morning, September 1st. We need to know who will be donating what (pancake mix, syrup, bacon, OJ, champagne, Bloody Mary mix/vodka) and who our chefs will be. We will need up to eight chefs with (preferably) gas griddles. Last year the use of electric griddles taxed our generators to the breaking point, so we are trying to avoid that problem this year.
We are also doing something New! And Improved! this year: A birthday party for people born on December 30 to be held on Monday, August 30. That would be me and Felony Arson. Anyone else a New Year’s Eve’s Eve baby? Hay, it was her idea; who was I to argue?
On an unrelated subject, but one that is important, one of our new campmates Stacie, AKA MamaCow, is (and I am quoting her here): “Fund raising for boobs.” She is participating in the Avon Walk For Breast Cancer (they’re against it) and for any donations given from our campmates she will be putting your name in a raffle for 1/2 spa treatment “Roman Style”. What that entails is 1/2 spa day on Thursday, September 2nd before the Meet & Greet, complete with a foot wash and massage, back massage, and hydrating facial. You will be treated to total playa indulgence that you will only find in the desert. (LUSH products used.) So please support MamaCow and make sure you let her know that you are from BDV. You can make a pledge here or here.
News on the Boston Marathon. First the good news: I will be runner number 24898. You can access the Boston Marathon website, enter my bib number, and you can follow me during the race. The bad news is I have a badly pulled hamstring muscle which still hasn’t healed. It happened over a week ago and has stifled my training. I will still be in the race, but it is slowing me down by over a minute a mile (closer to 1:15 per mile), which means that I will hobble across the finish line somewhere around 5 hours. Maybe 5 1/2 hours. Not exactly blazing speed. I plan on starting off slow, then tapering off.
I would like to welcome to our little slice of paradise on the playa some new people. We are always looking for new campmates and we have a few candidates to introduce. First there’s Ansel, a friend of CJ’s from Colorado. Another friend of CJ’s from Davis is Sarah. And a newbie burner from the Boston area KMama, who I will be meeting in a few weeks. Drew, Mindy, Kat, and I will give her the twice-over to see if she is worthy. Many are called, few are chosen. Please make everyone feel welcome.
And finally, with April here, it’s time to begin working on the art truck. It is at Ericka’s house in Orangevale and we will probably begin work either the last weekend of this month or the first weekend in May. We need to have the registration filled out and submitted by Memorial Day (just to be on the safe side). CJ is heading up the art decoration and we are looking for mechanics to make sure the stately vehicle is in proper working order. Anybody handy with a wrench?
Have a wonderful Spring everybody, and thank you one and all for your support.
Doc Pyro, MOBDV