I went to Burning Man for the first time this year, bleached my hair white, painted my face day-glo, and disappeared into the Nevada desert for a week.
That was a mere four days after coming back from the Olympics in Beijing.
In Beijing, I found myself thinking, “right now, this is the center of the world.” All eyes were on China, its debutante party with jaw-dropping opening ceremony, the world records and personal stories of athletic accomplishment, the fantastic stadiums and light shows. As a New Yorker, I often feel like I live in the World’s capitol, so admitting that Beijing may have momentarily stolen the show was worth noting.
And that’s how I’d still be feeling were it not for Burning Man.
Burning Man could only happen in the United States. The freedom, the fun, the “pointlessness” of it. Only it could equal the Olympics.
I’d read up on what to expect: dust storms, 100F during the day, 40F at night, dehydration, 50 MPH winds, no showers, no garbage cans, dust everywhere on everything, nothing to buy, no phone or internet. What I was not expecting was the overwhelming scale of the ad-hoc city, the creative ambition displayed by thousands of theme camps, the playfulness of the costumes, the generosity and empathy. It was like a magic spell maintained by 50,000+ “burners”.
The experience was so otherworldly that I decided to take no photographs. You’re actually not supposed to (as per the rules) but people do, and I have no problem with that. My memories may disappear completely – the specifics, not the impact of the experience – and I’ll be happy with that. Remembering it now, it feels like a week-long lucid dream.
And to describe what I saw and what I experienced here would take more words than I’m willing to use.
I’ll just say that Beijing-Olympics-to-Burning-Man had an almost complete symmetry to it; like two giant circles drawn at opposite of the globe, each attracting people from many countries, each representing a celebration of our life. Each was done for no money – the Olympics are amateur. One had all the world’s television cameras pointed at it; the other had practically none.
And back in the real world now, what do I take forward?
- Several new directions to take my business efforts
- A commitment to start tinkering with bicycles again (I haven’t since I was 9 or 10)
- A commitment to learn how to weld
- A commitment to finish building out my kitchen
- Bleached hair
- Projects to build for next year: an evaporation pool and a day-glo badminton court
- A sense for what is possible when you don’t worry about making money, do what you want, and give it to others