The Essentials
At home, the essentials pat-down before one goes out typically sounds like this:
Phone. Check.
Wallet. Check.
Keys. Check.
But on the playa, the list is completely different. In the day, it’s:
Sunscreen. Check.
Water. Check.
Sand goggles. Check.
And at night, it’s:
Cup. Check.
Glow sticks. Check.
Flashlight. Check.
I thought I had wasted my money on sand goggles up through Tuesday. I was prepared for 100 degree days and 40 degree nights where I’d be blinded by dust and I would have confectioner’s sand sifting into my tent. I had packed down jackets, plastic ponchos, thermal underwear, skiing socks, hats, gloves and an extra wool blanket. And I had purchased three, yes three, tents in an attempt to find the perfect size that was cheap enough but who’s box copy guaranteed heavy wind and rain protection…because that is what the First Timers to Burning Man Survival Guide said to have. And when a counter-culture, anti-commercial event professionally designs a multi-page .pdf with tips and hints, you follow them. But on Monday and Tuesday, when the weather was more than pleasant, my voracious tent buying, multiple visits to Joe’s and REI and my first visit to the army/navy surplus store just seemed superfluous. Sure the days were hot but they were tolerable with the roaming water truck, the plethora of gifting mist sprayers, lemonade stops and so much to see. And the evenings had been fabulous; warm enough to still be in shorts and a t-shirt until 10pm and both times of day were calm and clear. If the week stayed like this, I could be a happy girl.
I was feeling pretty adjusted and then I met a gentleman named Will. Will’s been a Burner for 8 or 9 years and a San Francisco resident for 10. While I shouldn’t have been, I’ll admit I was surprised to hear Will was married with a child the age of 4 back home as he stood before me with lids beautified with eyeliner and a simple fabric cradling his manliness. As many introductory chit chats go, our conversation turned to the weather. I shared with him my thoughts and Will said that every year brings it’s share of varied weather – rain that turns the playa into such a goopy mess that inches of it sticks to your bike tires and forces you to leave your bike wherever you are until it dries out…five hour dust storms that minimize visibility to only 5 inches in front of you. It had been so pleasant, it didn’t seem like the weather could change but then again it was quite early in the week and I was not privy to any Doppler radar. How little I knew at that moment how prophetic Will was.
