It’s July, and you know what that means!  Burning Man is next month!  So it’s time to really get serious, get our collective acts together, and get ready for another wonderful week on the playa. This is another rather long newsletter so get ready to be inundated with way too much information.  At least we’re organized.

But first, we always like to see something Barbie Death Camp related, and this month is no different.  We have two articles that mentions our little slice of paradise on the playa.  Always nice to get some good publicity.

http://www.sfchron.com/cgi-bin/blogs/culture/category?blogid=3&cat=128&o=30

http://bingethink.blogspot.com/2009/01/barbie-death-camp-and-wine-bistro.html

And now, on with the show.

We begin with logistical concerns.  One of the biggest problems is getting everyone to and from the playa.  We are going to try and coordinate transportation where possible.  If you have any openings in your car, van, dune buggy, or hot rod, please let us know.  We have a number of Villagemates from not only across the country but from around the world.  If you can offer a ride or help with carrying out material such as water, shelter, or beer for me, please let us know.  One of our members, Josh from Nebraska, will be flying into Reno Wednesday morning.  If any of you are passing that way, he would really appreciate a ride. We also have several campmates who need to get to the Reno airport fairly early on Sunday after The Burn.  Let me know if you are heading that way and might have room.   And for those of you flying or taking Amtrak into Sacramento, the AVIS dealership in downtown Sacramento is very burner-friendly.  The manager, Steve G., not only will give you the best deal around, but he won’t hose you for cleaning fees, as long as you don’t completely trash the car or van.  Tell him I referred you and that you are taking the vehicle to TTITD.

Tracy is beginning to design the Village map.  Not only will each camp be clearly placed, but where possible individuals camping within their own camp may also be placed.  If you know how much space you need (for example, two people with an RV or trailer, some shade, and maybe a goat would ask for a space 30′ X 10′) we will try to accommodate.  We anticipate the BMOrg giving us our request of 105,000 square feet.  If they do, everyone should be taken care of.  We will have the map out probably by the second week in August.  There will also be a large centralized map of the Village posted at Barbie Death Camp so when visitors drop by, they can be directed to the proper camp whether or not you know the person.  Also if you have any special needs requirements (i.e. must be on the street because of an art vehicle, or want to be hidden deep within the Village simply because you’re ugly) please let us know that as well.  We will try to honor most reasonable requests.

JR has given me a list of what he thinks the art truck will need in the way of maintenance and repair before it gets out to the playa.  It needs a tune-up, oil, and lube.  It absolutely needs a radiator shroud, whatever that is. He also says we should get several small 12 volt fans, considering the idle speeds, weights, and temperatures it runs in.  We should also change the transmission fluid and have the clutch checked and adjusted if necessary.  For those of you in the Sacramento-Orangevale-Auburn area who are mechanically inclined, we need your assistance.  Please let me or Felony Arson know if you are up for this necessary assignment.

Speaking of the art truck, we are still in dire need of somebody to haul it out to the playa.  It is drivable (and then we would need someone to drive it) but it would be so much better if it were either towed on a double-axle trailer or towed with a T-bar.  If you can manage to do either of these things, we will pay for your fuel both up and back to the playa, and you and your passengers will have top priority for early arrival passes.  But if you say yes, we are going to hold you to it.  Anyone?  Pretty please?

We have had some good progress with the All Village Pancake Porkout, which will be held on Wednesday, September 1st beginning at 9:30.  We have enough syrup (3 gallons) and pancake mix (35 pounds).  Hottie is supplying Bloody Mary fixins and OJ, Sharen is bringing BM mix and champagne, and we have two propane griddles secured.  We need four or five more griddles, preferably propane.  We are also needing bacon and sausage, Irish whiskey for Irish Coffee, more champagne, OJ, more Bloody Mary fixins, liquor in general, paper plates, and plastic utensils.  We will also need assistance with clean up afterwards if you are not cooking or donating food.  Or even if you are, we need the manpower.

We have another contribution to this year’s T-shirt design.  Summer came up with the design below.  Frank is checking out to see if having the shirts in color is financially feasible.  If you have a vote (say between Barb’s design and Summer’s) let either me, Frank, Felony Arson or CJ know.  And this segues nicely to the fact that shirts and hats are for sale.  Shirts, either regular or tank top (S-XXXL) are $20, hats are $15.  All proceeds (profits, actually) go directly to help defray the cost of the wine that Frank supplies.  Shirts can be ordered with or without your name/nickname/playa name and need not be paid for until August.

Dues are due. We have collected from most of you who are staying in Barbie Death Camp & Wine Bistro, Eden, Clan O’Crash, Black Rock City Body & Paint, and Loose Nutz.  (Boosh, Preserved In Time, The Alaskans, and Camp Wet Dreams have their own dues structure.)  Dues are now $75/person and increase to $100 if paid on the playa.  We really would rather not collect any dues money on the playa! (International travelers are the only exception to this rule.)  All dues must be paid prior to being awarded an early arrival pass.  We have collected from 63 of you, so for that we thank you.  And hay, even if you’re not going to camp with us or even show up on the playa, you should still cough up for the dues.  You think we like eating rib eye instead of filet mignon?  And Silver Oak cabernet doesn’t exactly grow on trees you know.

There have been some snafus with the Annual Nude Bike Ride & Pub Crawl.  First it was on, then it was cancelled, then it was going to be on Thursday, then on Wednesday, and so on.  Well they finally got their stuff together and it will be held again beginning at 11 a.m. on Wednesday.  We are likely going to be the third stop, which means the 200 or so very naked cyclists will be wheeling in around noon or so.  We do ask that you help serve wine should you be so inclined.  We also will need to supply the wine.  If we can come up with about four cases of wine (no fewer than two of them being white wine or white zinfandel, yuk) that is what it will take.  We are required to supply the wine and we really don’t want to feed them “the good stuff”.  You would have to be a weapons-grade moron to do that.  So if anyone, or any camps, can see their way clear to pop for a case or two of Two Buck Chuck, that would be appreciated.

We are still planning on having our December 30 Birthday Party on Monday, August 30.  If there are any of you born on that great day (currently me, Felony Arson, and Stacie are in) please let me know.  Since we get screwed every year by Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, or what have you, now it’s time for us to get ours.  And those gifts had better be expensive, damn it.

We do not need any more My Size Barbies!  The Boston Burners have supplied two and our troop from Denver sent me one this week.  They will all be used to help decorate the art truck.  Thank you for your contributions.

We have requested 87 early arrival passes from the BMOrg.  Assuming we get them, we should have enough for everyone who wants one.  Please let me know if you need one.  Do not assume!!! So far we have 48 of the 87 already taken.  I have not gotten the numbers from Preserved In Time, Boosh, or The Alaskans.  Please let me know by the middle of July how many you think you will need.  And please, only request one if you are available to help set up not only your camp, but the Village as well or can be counted on to help decorate or fix the mutant vehicles.  If you are just going to sit around on your lazy arse and drink beer, then come in on Monday.  We will have pizza for the workers who help set up the camp on Sunday evening.

We would like to welcome a new camp into our Village.  Taking the place of Burner International, Camp Wet Dreams makes it’s debut on the playa.  My friend Tom and his lady from Brooklyn, New York will be the go-to people.  Tom is also known by the handle of Whaleboy.  I guess you should watch out for his harpoon and keep away from his blow hole.  There will be 20+ people in his camp, many from New York as well as San Francisco and Los Angeles.  Tom can be reached at campwetdreams@gmail.com.

Speaking of welcoming new campmates, we have another five to welcome into our Village.  Hottie has a friend from Florida, Doug M.  He has no email address but any friend of Hottie’s is a friend of ours.  Also welcome Clarity from Vallejo.  We are finally represented by the great state of Texas.  Please welcome newbie Joe from Austin.  Another New York newbie is Stephanie F.  And finally another couple from Carmichael, Alice and Eric.

As the summer progresses we will be asking for your help, if you’re comparatively local, with working on the art truck and helping with other logistics.  CJ is hard at work with the decorations but needs manpower.  Beginning the weekend of July 17-18, all work will be done at Ericka’s in Orangevale.  Mechanical work, cleaning the trailer, painting the shower, and Barbie repair will be done throughout the summer and I will be there on this Saturday to help out in any way I can.  That generally means schlepping the beer or something.  But please volunteer if you can.

Have a wonderful Fourth of July everybody and remember our mantra (which that clown who is The Most Interesting Man In The World stole):  Safety Third.

The Man burns in 65 days.

Doc Pyro, MOBDV

Welcome to June everybody!  For those of us here in Northern California it felt like we just exited February.  This will be a rather lengthy and informative newsletter, so grab a cup of coffee, kick back, and enjoy.

As I always try to do, I want to start off with something Barbie related.  One of our new campmates, Summer, sent me this and I think you will agree it certainly captures the proper spirit.

http://www.adventures2006.blogspot.com/

We have another design for the camp t-shirt.  Barb made the design and frankly I for one like it.  If you are still working on a shirt design feel free to submit it.  Frank, CJ, Felony Arson and I will make the final decision in July.  But for now check out Barb’s design:

I had  mentioned that the camp was in need of a large coffee maker.  I am happy to report that problem has been solved.  Lee has one of those large 20 pot machines which should do the trick to keep the Village properly caffeinated.  Thank you Lee for your contribution.

A group of us met a few weeks back and cleaned out the trailer, hauled the old God-awful sofas to the dump, and began the arduous task of getting the shower fixed and rugs cleaned so you people can have fun in the desert.  We also discussed the design for this year’s art truck, which is an expansion of last year’s Barbie Mobile Wh0reh0use.  CJ has come up with a most ingenious, and dare I say uber-sexy design, for the vehicle.  Everything is off to the BMOrg DMV and we are confident we will get approval for our mutant vehicle.  We are going to have the roof on the truck again, which will have a removable canopy with cotter pins which will be inserted into holes drilled through the PVC pipe.  Tracy is heading up the architectural design for that.

Since June is here it is now time to begin ordering shirts and hats.  Our shirt colors will remain burgundy and gray and the hats will be burgundy and tan.  The pricing for this year’s hats is a remarkably low $15 and the shirts are a virtual give-away for $20.  Any “modest profit” derived from the sale of the shirts and hats goes to defray the cost of the wine, so quit your complaining.  Shirts can be S, M, L, XL to XXXL and come in either regular T or tank top.  And free of charge (because we seem always to just give away the store) you can have your playa name/nick name/own name on the front of the shirt.  Or not, it’s your choice.  This is a purely voluntary and if you don’t want either a shirt or a hat, that is fine too.  Of course you might have to put up with the wrath of Frank (which is why I order three or four) if you don’t.  Just let me know what size and type of shirt and whether or not you want a hat, and we will collect come August.

We have requested for our Village 87 early arrival passes.  We are hoping that the BMOrg gives us what we have asked for.  I am now beginning to allocate said EA passes.  I know some of you have already requested some, but if you could be so kind as to do it again because my list vanished somehow.  There is a pecking order on who gets the passes, and it goes like this:  1)  Those who haul the trailers, art vehicles, and material to set up the Village beginning Thursday; 2) Seniority; 3) Distance traveled (by car):  The further you drive to get to Black Rock City the greater your probability of receiving a pass; 4) Whether or not I like you; and finally 5)  Lottery for everyone else.  We do not think we will need all 87 passes, but there is a chance.  Last year we had 65 requests for our 60 passes.  You must also (unless you are traveling internationally) have paid your camp dues (where applicable).

Which segues  nicely to camp dues.  This is directed to those of you in Barbie Death Camp & Wine Bistro, Eden, Clan O’Crash, and Black Rock City Body & Paint.  Until the end of this month they remain at $50 per person.  On July 1st they increase to $75 and, unless you are coming from overseas, raise to $100 if paid on the playa.  We do not want to collect any money on the playa if possible. Personal checks are fine.  And hay, remember, just because you might not be going to TTITD this year or perhaps are staying in a different camp, you can still pay your dues.  You think supporting our absinthe habit is cheap?   I am happy to report we have collected from 41 of you so far.  In case you are wondering what your dues have gone towards, we are allocating $600 to the decoration of the art truck, have purchased 300 glowstix for everyone’s use, and I went out and had a beer.

We still have some things on our Wish List.  We are still in need of two or three My Size Barbies (the 3′ tall kind) because as reported in March, some yahoo decapitated our Barbies and they need to be replaced.  New on the list from Frank the Vintner:  some black lights and plastic grapes.  He is making an art vehicle capable of carrying six to eight passengers and it will be a mobile Italian wine bistro.  Because the BMOrg won’t allow real grapes (MOOP is their gripe) a vintner has to make do with ersatz grapes.  So if you happen to have either of those items, Frank would be pleased if you could help him out.

We are beginning to plan the annual Wednesday morning All Village Pancake Porkout.  We probably will have enough pancake mix, but we will need:  syrup, paper plates along with forks and knives, butter, Bloody Mary fixins (both vodka and mix), and mimosa fixins (champagne and OJ).  What we really need are gas griddles to cook the pancakes and bacon.  We have electricity, but last year the strain on the generators was so great that they tripped off several times, rendering our electric griddles pretty much useless.  And when you are cooking for well over 100 people, you can see where problems can arise.  If you are not helping with donations or cooking, we do respectfully request you set aside half an hour afterwards to help clean up.  Remember, right after the Porkout we will be visited by the Annual Black Rock City Naked Bike Ride and Pub Crawl.  And we certainly don’t want over 200 naked and drunk cyclists seeing a messy camp, right?

Still on our calendar for this year is our birthday party for December 30 babies.  We have three of us (me, Felony Arson, and Stacie). The party will be held Monday evening, August 30.  So if any of the rest of you share the same birthday as the three of us we want to know about it.  We’re not getting older, we’re getting better.

We are still needing someone to hopefully tow the art truck to the playa in August.  Anyone who can do this not only gets an early arrival pass for themselves and their passengers, but we will pay your gas expense to and from the playa.  But if you say you are going to do this we will hold you to it.  And towing a truck is not as easy as towing a trailer, unless you have a flatbed trailer, so let that be a word of caution.

Now to the welcoming of new campmates.  This is going to be a lengthy list and I hope I don’t forget anyone, though I am sure I will.  Goddess Rebecca has joined BDV and is bringing along her friend Luciano.  They are from the L.A. area.  Drew and Mindy are bringing a newbie with them from New England.  Please welcome Steve.  We have some international newbies (at least to BDC&WB), beginning with MisaBlue from the Czech Republic.  And from Germany welcome veteran burner Ansgar. His friend from Oregon Eric will be there as well.  Closer to home please welcome Summer.  We have  foursome from Colorado, please welcome Nick, his girlfriend Smashy, Panda and Julie.  Finally Hottie has two newbs as well, Heather and Tommy. Please make everyone feel welcome to our little slice of paradise on the playa.

As the summer progresses be prepared to receive more newsletters.  If you want off of this mailing list (yeah, good luck with that) let me know so I can ignore your request.  The Man burns in 95 days.

Doc Pyro, MOBDV

Welcome to May everybody!  They say April showers bring May flowers.  Well then, what do May flowers bring?  Pilgrims.  Bada bing, I’m here all week.  Tip your waitresses. But I digress.

Now a few things to get us started.  We are mentioned in this little item:

http://everywheremag.com/photos/7235

And how many theme camps can claim they had a song written about them from people they’ve never heard of?  Click on the Barbie Death Camp Song.  It isn’t very good, but what the heck, right?

http://www.paperchampion.net/music/

As we head into the final three months leading up to August when we all will find our way out to the playa, it is time to really start getting ready for TTITD.  Everyone has plans, from building their art cars, making costumes, working on their tan, whatever.  We at Barbie Death Village have our plans as well.  The first major project begins this Saturday, May 8th.  It is time to start working on the art truck, Barbie’s Mobile Wh0reh0use.  CJ is in charge of the final design and we have (assuming we collect the dues and so far, so good) allotted $600 to the decoration of the truck.  We will need bodies to help out though our first meeting will be to plan the design and to begin clearing out the utility trailer.  We have two sofas that need to be hauled away and we are replacing them with two new ones.  We will be meeting at Ericka’s house beginning at noon.  If you can make it, that would be wonderful.  Please let me know ASAP.  Also that evening Ericka will be hosting a birthday party for herself and several others.  If you are friends with Ericka and can drop by, great!

On the subject of the art truck, we need three more My Size Barbies (you know, the 3-foot tall ones).  It seems that someone trashed our Barbies (actually decapitated them) last year, so they need to be replaced.  Who would do such a mean thing to Barbie?  Please let me know if you can help.

Something else on our current Wish List is Grawg needs a 55 gallon drum for gasoline to power the art truck once it’s on the playa.  If anyone has a safe drum for gasoline, that would be wonderful.  And in a related request, Grawg needs a pump to pump the gasoline out of the container to fill the truck.  So in a nutshell, Grawg will supply the gasoline if someone has a drum and pump.  Any takers?

We have had some progress on this year’s Barbie Death Camp t-shirt.  First Barb stepped up and said she would try and design something, then Crash did come through with a, uh, somewhat unique design.

<CENSORED>

If anybody has a comment on this, let us know.   It is a work in progress, but at least now we have something to work with.  Thank Crash!

One of our tertiary members Ygmir has become an ordained pagan minister and can actually perform weddings.  If you are stupid enough to actually want to get married on the playa, Reverend Ygmir is the man-of-the-cloth for you.  He will also give his blessings to living in sin, brief and meaningless affairs, and of course showering with friends.  “Thank you Father for I have sinned…or at least am planning on it.”

Now that we are beginning to work on the art truck, we need someone to hopefully tow it to the playa.  It is not as simple as merely towing a trailer.  Last year we thought we had this all worked out, and many of you know how well that ended up.  It is drivable to the playa, but we hope to avoid that potential disaster.  If anyone can tow a truck—and if you agree to do this we will hold you to it, but will also pay for your gas to and from the playa—please let me know ASAP.

And of course, dues are due.  We have had pretty good success at collecting dues so far as 27 have paid.  That covers our initial expenses, but not what lies ahead.  For those of you in Barbie Death Camp & Wine Bistro, Eden, Clan O’Crash, and Black Rock City Body & Paint, they are $50 until July 1st then go up to $75 per person.  Personal checks are fine.  Please send them to me.

And finally, time to welcome new and prospective campmates.  Before I go into this, I did put on the Barbie Death Village thread on the ePlaya that we are accepting no new members.   This is not entirely accurate.  First off, if you are receiving this email and have not yet decided where you are camping (assuming that you are even going to attend TTITD) you are welcome to stay in BDV.  Also if you have any friends and/or newbies they are welcome as well.  If you haven’t let me know yet what your plans are, and if you happen to know what you’re going to be doing, please let me know so we can plan accordingly.  Now, on to the Welcome Wagon (and there are a bunch of you):  Kat, Usman and I met with Kmama in Boston and she passed our rigid screening process with flying colors.  She hopes to have three newbies with her: Carlos, AKA LewdSilver; Jaclyn, AKA Juicy; and Alex.  Welcome!  CJ has a few more friends for Eden: Kara and Steve.  From New York City, someone who was going to join us last year but had to bail, Sisterzero, has two newbs as well:  Stacey; Ryan, AKA The Conductor; and Robert, AKA Mojo Jojo.  And lastly Traumadude is bringing his mother out from Illinois, so please welcome Nancy.  We also have a prospective member, Goddess Rebecca.  She has gone for the last three years and is well-versed in the culture of TTITD.  She is bringing a newbie with her and their plans on where they will be camping have not been cemented yet.  But welcome Rebecca and everyone to our little slice of paradise on the playa.

As May gives way to June and June to summer, these newsletters will come more often than once a month.  If you have anything to add, feel free to email me, Felony Arson or CJ so they can be added to the next newsletter.  And for those of you fortunate enough to still have your moms with us, may I wish all of you and those moms out there in our Village a very Happy Mother’s Day.

Doc Pyro, MOBDV

Hello All,

An interesting opportunity has arisen. We have 1st crack at an art car base that will fill the void between the truck and smaller individual vehicles with 1-2 carrying capacity. See a picture of this model here. The one for sale is in San Jose area.

1. It is bigger. Seating for 6-8 people.
2. It is gas powered. 14HP.
3. It is designed as a industrial people carrier. Load capacity of 1,200 lbs.

In order to get it licensed at TTID it will have to become an art car. So, this is a call out to artists, craftsmen, mechanics, and anyone else that wants to contribute their efforts.

If there are 12 people who would contribute $100 we can buy it. If we get more donations we could do a knock out job of “arting” it out.

Any takers?
Frank the Vintner

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

Welcome to March everybody.  In like a lion and all of that.  At the first of every month I will try and keep everybody informed as to what is happening with the best Village and group of theme camps at TTITD.  Also every month I will try and throw in a link that may or may not be necessarily germane to the subject at hand.  I want to find links about BDC&WB, but that’s not always possible.  Below is a little song that someone wrote about Burning Man.

WARNING: It uses very bad language so if you play this at work, keep the volume down low.  And I think it is supposed to be tongue-in-cheek.

http://ia311534.us.archive.org/1/items/mark.silverman.burning.man.2006/01burningmansucksdontgo.mp3

First off, we have submitted our applications for several of the theme camps within our Village:  Eden, BDC&WB, and Black Rock City Body & Paint.  We have yet to hear back from Playa International.  Janice and Tracy will do Preserved In Time and Levy will do Boosh: The Canadian Splinter Squad.  The Alaskans will be placed within our Village but likely not be registered with the BMOrg, which is fine.  We also are adding another theme camp: Clan O’Crash which will also be placed on the Village map but not listed, unless Crash chooses to do that himself.  We will be submitting the Village application later this month and will be asking for more than 100,000 square feet of space and requesting 87 early entry passes.  That should be enough for everybody who needs one.

We have a few things on our Wish List that we hope to have for this year’s event.  The first thing we would like is a burn barrel.  If anyone has metal-working expertise and would like to design one (there are pictures of some if you Google it) for the Village, that would be nice.  Should we get a burn barrel then we will cross the bridge of firewood.  The reason we, as a Village, could use a burn barrel is that we generate so much paper trash that if we could somehow incinerate it ahead of time, that would ease some logistical problems.  On the negative side of the ledger (there always seems to be one) is that the ashes and the barrel itself will need to be brought back to wherever it came from.  We do have room in the storage shed for it for the duration of the year.

The next thing on our Wish List is for someone to design an evaporation process that actually works.  Our shower gets a lot of use and is really one of the best ones I have ever seen at a theme camp at TTITD, since it runs electrically so you can actually get clean.  The problem is that the water we use overwhelms the evap pond and flooding always occurs.  Personally I can chalk some of that up to “dust abatement” but even by my slovenly standards it is getting out of hand.  If any of you know how to make a workable evaporation process that would be an excellent contribution to our Village.

The last item on the current Wish List, and this comes up every year, is the design for the 2010 BDV t-shirt.  Sunset did it two years ago and last year the design was done for us by an artist with some dubious talents at caricatures while on the playa in 2008.  So now we need to come up with a new design for this year.  You can submit your ideas on an 8 1/2″ X 11″ piece of white paper so the printers can easily transfer the design onto the shirt.  (Shirts will remain gray with burgundy lettering.)  We will need the finished product in by July.  As shown in the past, no idea is too stupid to be considered.

I would like to introduce a few new members of our Village.  We are taking on an increasingly international flavor.  We have two ladies joining us from France, Laura and Shirley.  They are newbies and have made the brilliant decision that BDV is the place to be.  Laura can be reached at: bottin.laura@gmail.com .   We also would like to welcome another newbie, a friend of Tracy’s from England, Roamer U.  And finally we are welcoming back into our fold Marcus from Switzerland.  You might recall he came up with me and Blowfish and on Sunday vanished into the dust with some cute burner gal he met out at the Opulent Temple or some such place.  Well he’s in Guatemala right now and will be heading back for the festivities and this year even promises to bring something to eat.  Probably a good idea.

For any of you Barbiebarians in the New England area come the middle of April, some of us are gathering at Kat’s in Cambridge on April 17-19.  I will be running the Boston Marathon on April 19th (more on that in April’s newsletter) and we will be getting together to “rehydrate” and “liquid carbo-load” before and after the race.  We would love to see any of you again if you’re in the area.

And to end on a positive note, kudos go out to Harmony who is going to be featured on a TV show that will air later this year on the DIY Network: Turf Wars.  She and her team battled for more than 36 hours straight another team to see who could put together the finest looking yard for two competing families.  I am not going to give away which team won, but Harmony’s team worked like a well-oiled machine and turned what was a desert post-apocalyptic landscape into a virtual paradise complete with a new fountain and running stream that harkened back to the Hanging Gardens of Babylon.  Good work Harmony; you and Ericka, Skirblah, Trevor, and the rest should all be very proud.

I will keep you posted as other things develop.

Doc Pyro, MOBDV

Hey, better late than never.  We posted our 2009 photos online.  You can also check out all 10 years on the photos page.

Be sure to tag all photos YOU upload with “barbiedeathcamp“.

There have been some developments, all positive, for our little slice of paradise on the playa!  First off, I want to let everyone know that we have new mayors for both BDC&WB and Eden.  Felony Arson will be the mayor of BDC&WB and CJ is mayor of Eden.  I will remain mayor of BDV.  They will be coordinating with Tracy on the Village map on who is to be placed where.  Thank you ladies for your help.  While we are at it, you know that Felony Arson is the Dues Nazi, but CJ has taken the reins and will be heading up the design for the art truck.  Keeping the same motif as in 2009 (Barbie’s Mobile Wh0rehouse) she will be decorating the front as only she can.  Decorum won’t let me go into details here, but suffice it to say the truck might need a bra when it’s all said and done.  This is one “endowment” that should get people’s attention.  Or is that two “endowments”?

Our Village has been approached by a group who will be doing an offshoot of “American Idol” called “Blackrockcity Idol” or something along those lines.  Kevin is the gentleman’s name who is heading it up.  On Monday night (August 31) our Village will be hosting this competition should everything go as planned.  They will have a portable stage and lighting system, and our fellow burners will be performing.  Each night a different camp or village will be the host, with the final competition to be held on Friday night.  No site has been selected yet for the finals.  But this is a great honor to be invited to host this event, which just shows how popular our Village has become over the past decade.

In a related note, we will again be a stop for Wednesday’s Annual Naked Bike Ride and Pub Crawl.  For those of you who haven’t experienced this, if you think Barbie Death Camp is pink now, wait until you see it that afternoon.  And on Thursday we will once again be the host camp for the Eighth Annual ePlaya/3playa Meet & Greet.  So our schedules are filling up with activities throughout the week.  As we progress into spring and summer, everything will be posted on our website.

I would like to welcome a number of new people and prospective campmates to this forum.  We are always on the lookout for new people who will add a positive vibe to BDV.  I hope I don’t forget anybody, and I apologize in advance if I do.  Welcome from Nebraska Josh Ladd, who has communicated with several of you already.  He is a newbie this year, so be gentle.  Also from Citrus Heights please welcome Marci and Kevin.  They were newbies last year and are now taking the plunge into our little watering hole at TTITD.  Marci, whose playa name is Moonchild and Patrick.  Another newbie joining us, a friend of Usman’s, is Andy Doro.  He is a born and raised New Yorker and will be traveling out to the desert from the East Coast.  Another new member of our camp is Michael Mahl, whose playa name is Wunderpants.  He has been to TTITD before, but took last year off.  He lives in Oakland and was born to pound nails and eat herring.  From Florida, Hottie has new newbs, Amanda and Nick. And to end in a flourish, please welcome Stacie.  She will be with five or six others.  Last year she was part of Kidsville but looks like she and her group have grown up.  (And they want to be part of us?)  This is their third year so they clearly know the ropes.  She and her group are from Sacramento as well. Please make everyone feel welcome!

We have already had some success at collecting dues.  In fact, we have enough in already to cover art truck DMV registration.  (Thank You!!!)  But expenses are beginning to mount.  For those of you in BDC&WB, Eden, and Black Rock City Body & Paint,  dues are $50 until July 1st, when they go up to $75.  They can be remitted to:  Jim Jacoby, 8577 Balmoral Drive, Newcastle CA  95658.  We are also trying to reach the people at Burner International (International Burner Hostel) to see if they will be joining us this year.  And I have heard from Boosh:  The Canadian Splinter Squad and they will again be back in our modest Village.

And on a final note, purely self-centered and shameless juvenile gloating on my part, my youngest daughter Joelle is in the final mix to be selected for the part of Mattie Ross in the Coen Brother’s remake of the movie True Grit, which will be released on Christmas Day, 2010.  Out of 1500 kids on the West Coast, she is the only one who got called back.  They filmed her yesterday in San Francisco going over actual lines from the movie.  It was then sent to the Coens who will be reviewing it today.  There are only six kids who made the final cut.  Should she get selected, she will be in the starring role alongside of Matt Damon, Josh Brolin, and Jeff Bridges.  Of course if she makes the cut and is in the role, that could certainly affect my plans for TTITD, a sacrifice I am willing to make.  I can think of about two million reasons why I would make that sacrifice!  But I ask you, my friends, to keep your collective fingers crossed.

Have a wonderful Groundhog Day everybody!  I know mine is so far turning out pretty good.

Doc Pyro, MOBDV

We are implementing a two-tiered dues paying system this year.  Camp dues are $50 up until July 1.  After that they rise to $75.  Anyone who is paying dues but not making it to the playa are $50.  All dues must be in no later than August 15 and no early-arrival passes will be distributed to anyone delinquent on his or her dues.

For all of you NorCal Barbiebarians and wannabees, there will be a preliminary planning party at Ericka’s house on Saturday, January 9 beginning at 12:30. Her address is 9036 Elm Avenue in Orangevale.

We will be one of three or four camps there and will be discussing the early stages of what we want our art truck to be for this year, camp dues structure, and what infrastructure changes we may wish to make. We are on double-secret probation with the BMOrg DMV still and they are requiring us to completely decorate the front of the truck so it doesn’t look like a truck.

We would still like to use the Barbie Mobile Whorehouse motif, so bring your suggestions, ideas, and plans. Oh, and don’t forget the beer. Please let Doc Pyro know if you are able to attend.

Update (1/7/10): Sorry to inform you that BDC&WB will not be able to attend the event at Ericka’s house.  Other camps will be present so please bring food, fun, and good vibes.  We will wait until late April to begin construction on the art truck.  We are looking for some new members as several of our key people are taking sabbaticals for at least one year.