Transcript
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Hello, welcome to this week's episode of Uncle Dad Talks. As always,
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I'm Uncle Dad, and with me is the burningest of men, the one and only Mike Hampton. What's up, man?
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I am burning, man.
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Is that a thing you want to say to me? Burning, comma, man. Yeah.
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What's up, man? This is a very special episode, man.
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This is one of our, I would argue, probably one of the episodes that's been
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leading up to happen at some point, right? Right.
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Like it's been talked about so many times and now it's finally happening.
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Not in the sense that it's your first time, but it'll be my first time attending Burning Man.
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And we know that Burning Man has been such a, I think it's like there was like
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five pillars of Uncle Dad Talks.
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That's one of the pillars right next to Bruce Willis, you know.
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And yes, it's about to happen. So I think like I don't really know how to kick
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this off, but I think the best way to do it is you kind of just telling us what is happening very soon.
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Right. Yeah, it is. It's definitely one of the pillars, one of my pillars of our show.
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I find a way to wedge it in wherever I can. That's always fun. Yeah.
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People, you want to know how someone goes to Burning Man? They will tell you
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they go to Burning Man. Just like they'll tell you if they're vegan.
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Just like they'll tell you if they're in the CrossFit. That too, yeah. Yeah.
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So, yeah. So Burning Man, yeah, I've been going on and off since 2009.
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And this year, I finally get to experience it with Uncle Dad,
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with you. And so I'm super stoked about that.
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And we're going to do something I've never done at Burning Man, and that's record.
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Yeah. That is going to be interesting. I was thinking about that, too.
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We had a little pre-meeting here, and something I didn't think about.
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I probably should have something for the mic to not get the sand in the mic or the dust in the mic.
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Yeah. You want to get, you probably want to get a little cover for it. Yeah.
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But for the, for the actual microphone part, but yeah, it'll be fun.
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I think it'll be great to see what your experience feels like in your first 24 hours.
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That's what we should do, right? Like a check-in every 24 hours,
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right? Like, you know how we do those check-ins every 24 hours.
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Are you, are you dead yet, uncle dad?
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Yeah, so I was talking to Callie Dunlap-Art, as you like to say,
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and she'll be there as well, along with my sister, who is also her first burn.
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Wow. So that'll also add another element to everything, and I'm sure we'll have her on the show as well.
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But Callie had this great idea of what if for everyone that you meet that it's
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their first burn, you got them to give a quick...
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Talk of what their first 24 hours felt like and i thought that was a great idea
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and so yeah i know i think we could start with you and then maybe monica my
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sister and then go on down from there that's a great idea wow that'll actually
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add to that yeah that'd be awesome that almost sounds like journalism uh-oh.
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Unauthorized journalism at burning man yeah well But, you know,
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I'm excited about that because, you know, we talked about this on and off the mic for years.
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And while, well, admittedly, I am a little nervous, but, you know,
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I'll get through that. I think I have anxiety. We all know that already,
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but I'll get through it every time.
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But I'm excited to be a part of something that means a lot to you,
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but not just you, like just a lot of people. And I met so many people while
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doing the show with you and that are so involved in this world of Burning Man.
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And so it's so fascinating to finally be a part of that and see that and,
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you know, be part of the bigger picture of things.
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Right. You know, and, you know, you're you're one of the few like obviously
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not like super OG, but pretty OG burners out there, you know,
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and you don't really meet those kind of people anymore. You know,
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at least at least in my experience.
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Yeah, you will when you're out there. It's changed a lot. you know,
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it changed a lot in the early 2000s.
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And then it changed a lot again in the later part of the 2000s.
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And then I think after 2009 or 10 is when it really shifted.
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And that's when, you know, social media became a big part of everyone's life.
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And so that brought in a whole bunch of other people that otherwise never heard
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of it or could actually see it more real as as opposed to just Googling images
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of it. And so, brought a lot of people in.
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A lot of people put it on their bucket list as something they just gotta do, which is fine.
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But, you know, when you're out there, especially in the camp that we are in,
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we're camping with lamplighters who light lamps along some of the main streets out there.
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So you can find your way at night amongst all the LED lights.
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A lot of those guys have been around for many years. And so I think you'll get
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a lot of both worlds, I think.
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You know, I'm excited about that. I'm also excited to see all the art.
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I'm excited to see all the, you know, we did DesignerCon at the end of last year.
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And I wish I could remember their name. and it drives me crazy that I
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can't they gave me a sticker and everything but I lost it they were
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a mobile coffee dj which I've never seen before I
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don't know if you've ever seen that there but it's basically like a giant dj
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setup and they make coffee while djing and they're
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just constantly driving yeah that sounds about
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right yeah there's lots of there's lots of mobile mobile
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services I guess you could say like there's
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a there's a dust city diner and it looks like a 50s style
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diner and it's just driving around and you when
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it stops you can just hop on a seat and it's a flat it looks
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like you're it's flat so you don't really see how it's
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really driving when you're sitting down on there there's lots of
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mobile bars some of them have swings slides whippers
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snappers zippers zappers uppers downers it's
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gonna blow your mind and i really can't wait to see your face when you actually
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see it because and experience it because it's like you see
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things online you see things in pictures you hear about it
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you know the grand canyon's like that right like you go there and it's
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the experience is nothing like what it looks like when you
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see a picture of it and i think burning man especially at night when you look
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around and 360 degrees is just a sea of colorful lights and sounds it just kind
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of you know and you look up and you're in the middle of desert and so it's just
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stars and and it's it's quite it's quite the moment for you yes.
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Man burning man i'm excited
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though i am i think it's i'm also a big fan of uh just experiences
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right experiences are so important to us as humans right so it's gonna be
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just so exciting to be a part of that and you know just again i
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i you know to get a little sentimental here it's exciting
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to do this with you as i've known you
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for so long and you know i've always we've talked about it
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so many times being you're being my mentor and looking up to you and all those
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good things to finally experience this thing that you are so passionate about
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feels like it'll bring a sense of closeness that I haven't had with you in a
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long time and I'm excited about that yeah yeah it is it's you know and I know
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you mentioned you're a little nervous,
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maybe a little scared and that's part of that is probably the unknown and you
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know Burning Man will push you push your limits a bit and it's extreme you're
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in extreme condition which humans.
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Really have no business being out there. There's nothing out there.
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Yeah. So, but that's part of what makes it so great.
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And it helps you learn your limits
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and it's, it'll, it'll kind of show you where you're at in your life.
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And, and also just how to relate to people in a different way outside of,
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you know, society and have a new sense of what community actually can feel like.
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And so I'm stoked that you're going to take a step into that world.
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Maybe, you know, it'll, made them do something
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to you where you want to come back every year so that's what
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it did to me and so i'm happy that you're going to experience this part
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of uh just mike's world i thought
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you were gonna say this part of me i was like oh okay yeah well yeah yeah no
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no but yeah you know it's it's exciting to to also i think i'll be able to make
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the burn of the man right because that's on On Saturday, right?
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That's correct. Yeah. So that's one of the things I really wanted to see because
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one of the things that really captivated me was a few years ago,
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there was a burning man, a burning sculpture, I guess you would call it, right?
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And it was of a couple. It looked like a non-gendered couple.
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It looked like looking up and then looking down.
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And then it was on fire, right? Do you know what I'm talking about?
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I think it was called Embrace. Yes. It was the name of the piece.
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Yeah. That piece blew my fucking mind.
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Yeah. Yeah. Yeah, it was a huge structure made of wood. I don't know how many feet tall, maybe 15.
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I don't know. I'm horrible at estimating how many feet something is.
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Maybe 50 feet? I don't know.
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Huge, yes. A hundred feet.
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Yeah, probably more than that, but okay.
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Yeah, and they burn it. The burning of the man is very special. It's a whole show.
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It's like, I don't know, an hour or something.
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Fireworks, huge explosions. Explosions where you feel the ground quake.
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And you feel the rush of the heat from the explosion. Oh, it's huge.
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It's like a movie explosion. Yeah, it's insane.
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But then there are lots of other pieces of art that are amazing that get burned throughout the week.
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And it's fun to make those too, you know, because then everyone gathers.
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Then there's always a circle of art cars around.
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And, you know, a lot of times you can go hop on an art car that people invite
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you up so you can watch from above.
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Of and yeah and some some
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of these things they burn and then there's like a metal sculpture underneath the
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the pieces of wood that burn off and so it's a whole nother piece of art after
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it burns so yeah there's there's lots of cool stuff to see i'm excited i'm very
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very very excited and yeah we'll be reporting on it quotations and it's gonna
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be a lot of fun but mike i got a little game ready for you. Are you ready for that? Okay.
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Love games being thrown at me. Yeah, we do, don't we? Okay.
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A little trivia here. Can you name the 1973 horror film that has a burning man?
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No. Are you sure? 1973?
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Yeah. It was remade. It was remade, starring Nicolas Cage.
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It has a burning man. Yeah. The Wicker Man. There we go. One point for Mike.
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The Nicolas Cage helps, yeah. Yeah, I figured. I was like, I probably have to
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throw that to get him to know what he's talking about.
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Okay, here's another one for you. Can you name...
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A movie with a burning, if you haven't realized the thing by now,
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a burning center in the middle of Los Angeles.
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What year was it? 1997.
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Oh, was that like earthquake or something?
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Close. You're in the realm of that. Quake? No.
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Know think about structure think about nature disasters
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that shouldn't be happening in la volcano yeah there we go volcano and then
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they made la in volcano like they did something with the letters la in the volcano
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i think yeah oh my god you're right yeah yeah i remember that now,
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okay two for two buddy that was a deep one that was a deep one hold on i got one more for you,
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details real quick alright a burning center sorry a 2003 science fiction film
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with a burning center in the middle of the earth,
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2003 that's the one where they had to drill into the earth or something yep yep,
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journey to the center of the earth no but think about what you said good drilling
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to the to the center of the earth what would you call the center core yeah.
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Poor wow i never thought of vaguely but
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but you knew the premise you were like oh they're drilling
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yeah no i like it's crazy where things go in
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your mind and like what brings out the
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memory like that i hadn't thought of that i didn't
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even think about that i don't think about much i definitely didn't think about
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that i was thinking in my mind i go i'm gonna play a quick game trivia game
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where you're the name of three burning things yeah well i just did a three-point
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play you did and there's one more the burning sensation wouldn't be no don't answer no no,
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nobody wants to hear about that nobody wants to hear about that indeed but yes
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mike we'll be at burning man and when this airs this should air oh sorry deep breath this should air,
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I'd say I'll have it scheduled to be aired before I leave. So let's say the 26th.
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Right. You're going to air this before the 26th. On the 26th.
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Okay. Does that sound good?
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I think so. Because if I do the 26th, right?
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Wait, no, no, no, no. I'm sorry. No, I'm not going to air this 26th because
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we're going to be in Burning Man because that's the whole point of this episode.
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I know. I was a little confused, but I was just trying to go with it because we're recording.
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No, no, you're right. You're right. My bad.
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Usually we do an intro and then that, you know what I mean? That's it.
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But you're right. This is the intro for the work we're going to do.
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Yeah i mean the burning man ends on on september
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2nd i know you already have left so it'll probably air the end of that week
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which would be september 6th yes so when you hear this yeah when you guys hear
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this it should be between september 4th and 6th so uh we're very much looking
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forward to it mike i mean i think that's kind of it do you have anything else you want to add,
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oh i'm sure i do but we'll
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just leave it for the playa we'll leave it for the
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playa we will i will take you to midnight poutine
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we will go for that midnight poutine
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do you know what time we serve it at midnight yeah
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that's correct very good in pure
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burning man fun they list it out and they're posted
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on their midnight poutine instagram here's our
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schedule midnight poutine and then
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they put midnight for each day of the burn and
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it was great yes he's a damn good poutine yeah especially at midnight oh yeah
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yeah i believe that especially especially in the desert at midnight yeah okay
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i'm excited man i'm very excited all right everybody we'll be right back uh
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after this break so get Get ready. This is the first time we're doing this.
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Break, then we'll be on the playa, and then later on a break again, and then we'll be home.
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Just like that. We'll see you on the playa.
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Hey, what's up? This is Suli McCullough. Crazy legs from Don't Be a Menace to
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South Central while drinking your juice in the hood.
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And you're listening to Uncle Dad Talks Podcast. That's right.
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Hey, everybody. That itchiness in my voice can only mean one thing.
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We're here on the flyer. That's right. For this episode, you guys know we've
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been talking about it. We're now officially here at Burning Man.
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I'm not alone, of course. When I say we, I don't mean me. I mean we as in us,
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as us, as I mean Just Mike. Just Mike, how are you?
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Well, here at Burning Man. He probably sounds more tired because this dude has
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been here for how long now? About two weeks. About two weeks and you've got another week to go?
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Yeah. Yeah.
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But Mike, I'm going to hand the mic to you. I'm going to hand yourself to you.
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And you're going to tell me.
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You're going to ask me questions, I hear. You're going to hand the keys over? Yeah.
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Yeah. So welcome, everyone, to our Burning Man exclusive episode.
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And one of the things that we thought would be a great topic was people's first
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24-hour experience at Burning Man.
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Because you come in and depending on what time you come in, it can be quite
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a thing just to arrive to your camp where you're going to be.
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And then once you get there then there's a whole another experience of getting
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settled in then you're going to go out and do Burning Man so,
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what better topic to talk about since it's your first Burning Man than what
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it's like the first 24 hours so Uncle Dad.
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What was your first experience when you got off of the highway and you started
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driving onto what they call the playa out here?
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Okay. So does that count Gate Road or no?
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Absolutely. Okay. The moment I got onto Gate Road, it was cool.
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It was exciting. I was like, oh, this is great. There's nobody here.
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And then I get stopped, which is great because, you know, security is important.
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They have to check everything. thing.
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And I waited in line for two and a half hours. So I'll be honest with you,
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Mike, that wasn't that great.
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But you know, other than that, I get past the gate, I get to the greeter.
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For those who don't know, every time you get through like security check,
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basically, and then you go to what's called a greeter.
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And the greeter will kind of answer your questions where you got to go for your
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camp or wherever you're staying.
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And they asked me, it was my first time. It was my first time.
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And I got out the car and I did a playa angel. Was that right? Yeah.
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And then I did a playa angel. I rang the bell. She gave me a beautiful hug and
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she said something very nice to me. She goes, your personality is amazing.
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I love how extrovert you are, which is kind of funny because I don't think that
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sometimes, but that was nice to hear.
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And go ahead, you got something to say? Well, yeah, I wouldn't say that you're
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an extrovert either, but you do You radiate out a very positive, welcoming energy.
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And so those people meet thousands of people a day or hundreds of people, whatever.
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And so obviously something in you stands out. And yeah, you do.
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You radiate a great, positive energy that I think people feel comfortable around,
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which is part of why I always thought you should come here.
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Yeah. And you know, when I finally got to the camp, it was a little scary because
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you have to drive through.
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How would you describe it? Is it service road, I guess you would call it?
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Well, first you drive through the city.
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So our camp, we're lamplighters, which is one of the community service camps for the organization.
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We light the streets with actual
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kerosene lamps to help navigate at night amongst all the LED lights.
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So we're right on the what they call the esplanade at
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bernie mill which is like the main strip if you will call it that before you
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go out to where all the art is so you have to drive from gate all the way through
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the whole entire city just to get to our camp yes and then you have to find
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the service road which which was kind of hard to find because it was late night
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because i got a gate at what,
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And then I didn't get through gate till about 1030, maybe. No,
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maybe 930. Maybe it was only an hour and a half.
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Definitely seemed like two hours. I didn't think about it. But anyways,
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we're going through and, you know, you get through all that.
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And there's just so many people riding bikes that don't care,
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which is fine because they're doing their thing. And that's great.
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But you have to drive. You seriously drive five miles because if you don't drive
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five miles, you're going to hit somebody for sure.
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But I finally get through there. I get parked. I get to our camp.
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I get to, you're not here though. You're busy doing your thing, which is awesome.
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And I get stationed. I get unpacked, and then I come to what's called the Lamplighter's Lounge.
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Now, the Lamplighter's Lounge was hand-built by Mike and only Mike.
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No, I'm kidding. That's not true. I did it all. That's not true.
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Mike, you're a big part of this build, and it's amazing.
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So the main highlights of that first night, I was just sitting in that corner
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chair you can see in front of us, Mike, just there for about a good two, three hours, right?
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And just sitting there hanging out, and then new people would come in, right? Right.
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And within that batch of, let's say, 12 new people, three or four of them came
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out to me and said, oh, man, I just saw you over here.
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No, I never left. Are you sure?
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So that happened quite a bit. And then that's been happening to me on my journey
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this week so far. But after that, we did connect for a little bit.
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I don't think we didn't do anything that night, though, right? Mike, do you remember?
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What night was that? No, it would have been such no true words.
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Tuesday? No, Wednesday, Wednesday.
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Wednesday night. Because you went out and you did the playa.
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You did the temple. You came back. You saw me. But I think we just went to bed, huh?
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Or you went to bed. I.
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So I. This is your interview. I know. I got to turn that off. I'm sorry.
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And so I went to back to my camp or my car around camping, having a good time, just hanging out.
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They're like, you know what? I'm going to go walk around. And I walked around
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and I got to meet other burners in their camps.
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50-50. Some were very friendly. Some were not. That was okay.
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And when I went to go back to bed, I went to bed, woke up early.
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Then we connected. and so we're saying the first 24 hours right so okay so
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then the next day that would have been thursday yesterday 24 hours
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up to that we went to the the playa itself right that
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was you would you call it that the grand grand playa or whatever the grand
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playa well there's there's the inner playa which is the the playa that is inside
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of the city like city street limits like uh there's shape for those that don't
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know kind of like a u or a c so everything that's parallel to those,
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and then beyond that is the outer playa and
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beyond that is the deep playa yeah so we went to i think the outer playa and
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then the inner playa or the inner playa and that was great i saw some really
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great pieces i think the best thing i saw within that first 24 hours though
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honestly was i don't think he's been on the show but maybe we talked to him
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alvaro right alvaro alvaro's piece that he worked on the Naga,
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the water serpent, was absolutely breathtaking.
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Seriously, my favorite thing I think I've seen so far. And that changed,
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that really to me opened up my mind the most because I just couldn't believe
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how somebody, you know, with such a sound of people can make such amazing art.
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I mean, art here is just so, it's amazing, dude. Like you just don't see it anywhere else.
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I took pictures. I'll probably post them, I think, to show people.
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But at one point, I ended up on an art car with a beer and bar or bar cart,
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I guess. That was so awesome.
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And honestly, man, everybody's been so welcoming, open for the most part, I'd say.
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And it's something I really – it's going to sound weird when I say this.
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I know I'm not going to be here as long as you or have been here as long as
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you. But even the short time that I've been here, it feels so much like a home
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that I don't know how to describe that feeling.
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But it feels very just i love it man i just thank you
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so much for always talking about this experience and allowing me
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to be a part of this finally and experiencing you
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know what the fly can do it does
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have a very uh a welcoming uh feel
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to it once you're here and what and what and as the days go on you become more
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acclimated to not just the the the desert and the climate but also the people
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and the pace of life and not being connected to technology all the time and
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everything that we're used to. But let me ask you this.
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What was the moment when you, in your first 24 hours, where you were like, whoa,
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I've heard about this, I've seen this, Justin Mike has talked about this,
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but now I'm seeing it and experiencing it and this is.
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A lot. It was the moment that I walked into the lounge and I grabbed my first
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drink and I sat down and I was faced the other way, like my back towards the bar.
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And I'm just looking out there, you know, those you guys can't see it,
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of course, but it just looks it looks endless.
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And then it really hit me like, wow, this is the I don't want to say the epicenter
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of arts and culture, but in some respects, I would believe that because it is
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so it's so vast. It's so open.
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It's so overwhelming. overwhelming it's so beautiful it's
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so emotional even and just seeing everything at that
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moment so probably i can't even give you the time i think 11 p.m it
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really hit me like holy fuck i'm here and then the second moment where i'm like
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holy shit i'm here is when i thought because you and i didn't we didn't talk
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really at all and when we finally connected by pure chance really i was like
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wow dude i'm fucking here right yeah yeah it was sweet i uh i had been out doing a memorial thing
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for one of our setup crew guys and we came back to the to the lounge here and
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we're fortunate that our lounge just faces the the playa so you get the front
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row view of the man and a bunch of pieces of art and i came into the the lounge
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here at the bar and turn around and uncle dad's there.
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But yeah you know and it is like i would say it is kind of an epicenter of art
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especially because you have artists from all over the world here putting in
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their art installations it's not just the States, all over the world.
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You have musicians from all over the world playing at camps.
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Obviously, you have DJs. You have such a huge pull from around the globe to
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Burning Man that it is, I think, a global thing.
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Epicenter but also just like a place where all of those things can connect without politics or.
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Borders it's just a it's just which is kind of what it feels like in general
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to be out here so i think that's why the art comes together and the way it does
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yeah well said i do want to bring something up so my first 25 hours would also
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help me really solidify where i was at because mike I know you're aware of this.
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There is a lot of social media influence here, right?
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There's a lot of different vibes here, right?
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And I happen to run across a super famous Instagrammer here,
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and that really blew my mind because I've never seen that before, like a big time one.
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We're talking a 1.5 million follower Instagrammer.
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And I wish I could remember her name, but at the same time, I don't because it's okay.
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Because she raps in her videos, and she talks about taking acid,
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and she's a trust fund baby. So there you go.
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Go ahead. Yeah, well, I mean, I'm sure she's great, whoever that person is.
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But yeah, there's also that line of influences.
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You can see people out here who are obviously taking all their pics for their
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Instagram or for whatever, Graham, looking very pristine and primped and proper.
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So, you know, for some people, that's what they come out here for.
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And I hope that they find whatever it is they're looking for within that.
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So right now, as Mike was talking, this is how wild it was.
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I just saw somebody dressed up as a Ghostbuster with a Ghostbuster flag driving
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right across from us. You don't see a lot of that out here.
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Well, what's he going to do, bust some ghosts? I don't know.
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Let's go flag him down. Let's go flag him down. Yeah.
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00:27:53,002 --> 00:28:01,082
Well, thanks for sharing your experience. And I'm so happy to hear that it's been positive for you.
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You know, it's not like that for everybody. It's harsh out here.
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Or it's, you know, you may think that you're in a certain place and it's going
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to be a certain way when you come.
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But maybe once you get here, you realize that you're not in that open space.
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And I think Burning Man is always really good at, like, it's just like a,
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To me, I always relate it to like a Ferris wheel, and it's just always spinning.
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And you hop on, and wherever you're at is how you're going to experience it.
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It's not going to make you experience it, if that makes sense.
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And so I'm happy that you're here, and I'm also excited to talk to some other
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folks about their first 24 hours.
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Yeah, and I think it's safe to say we'll be right back after this break.
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What's up everybody this is aj kirsch uh live event host mc presenter announcer,
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i don't know i do a bunch of stuff wedding officiant personal trainer who knows
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ajkirsch.com if you want to learn more about me but you are in for a treat because
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you're listening to uncle dad talks,
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Hey, everybody. Welcome to Uncle Dad's Talk. Uncle Dad's. Uncle Dad Talks.
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You know what? Mike, the playa has got me all messed up. I can't remember what the name of our show is.
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Right. Yeah, it's what they call post-playa brain. It's one of the things that
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they say I'm experiencing as well.
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Don't worry about it. It's okay. Okay. So it's nothing different from normal me, right?
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Completely different. Yes, completely different. Right. Yes,
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so we are doing a check-in with some people that we know who went to the burn for the first time.
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You and I did my little fun little interview during the burn.
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And you and I will do a post thing, too, where we'll talk about my thoughts, post it.
426
00:29:50,825 --> 00:29:54,705
But for now, we are with an Uncle Dad alumni, as I like to say.
427
00:29:55,425 --> 00:30:03,905
He is the incredibly talented, the one and only, the original voice of Boo from Monsters, Inc.
428
00:30:03,905 --> 00:30:12,065
Let's get up for mary gibbs how are you proud goes wild hello hello how's it going,
429
00:30:12,745 --> 00:30:16,365
uh so good to have you mike i'm gonna go ahead and toss this your weight is
430
00:30:16,365 --> 00:30:25,185
kicking off because you're the mr burner and so please yeah mike mr burner that's what they call me.
431
00:30:26,865 --> 00:30:32,485
Yeah mary so first off yes it was your first burn which is exciting because
432
00:30:32,485 --> 00:30:34,265
because when we met you at Stockton Cone.
433
00:30:34,325 --> 00:30:38,905
We kind of talked about it a little bit and lo and behold, it all came together.
434
00:30:38,985 --> 00:30:40,365
It happened really fast. Yeah.
435
00:30:41,245 --> 00:30:47,105
As it does. And yeah, you were out there and I saw you killing it out there.
436
00:30:47,225 --> 00:30:51,385
So what was it like?
437
00:30:51,425 --> 00:30:56,765
So what day did you arrive and explain, kind of break down that first 24 hours
438
00:30:56,765 --> 00:31:02,185
of getting in there and what it was like for you? I arrived the day the main gates opened.
439
00:31:02,405 --> 00:31:07,225
I planned to get there. I got an early access pass to try to come early and kind of help set up,
440
00:31:07,847 --> 00:31:12,587
But the day that I was going was just on Saturday and got a notification that
441
00:31:12,587 --> 00:31:14,247
the main gates were closed because of rain.
442
00:31:14,687 --> 00:31:17,827
So I delayed my trip a day. But, you know, when I showed up,
443
00:31:17,827 --> 00:31:18,867
it was beautiful weather.
444
00:31:19,607 --> 00:31:25,427
Oh, that's my dog. Like you said, it wasn't my first time, but I've joked the
445
00:31:25,427 --> 00:31:29,507
last four years that I'm like Burning Man adjacent because a ton of my friends
446
00:31:29,507 --> 00:31:31,587
are burners, which helped a lot because,
447
00:31:31,647 --> 00:31:35,367
you know, I was able to call them and they were able to prep me and give me
448
00:31:35,367 --> 00:31:37,687
good Amazon lists and everything.
449
00:31:38,407 --> 00:31:41,707
And so first day I'm driving there and I'm going by myself.
450
00:31:41,887 --> 00:31:44,247
Like, of course, I camped with you guys with the lamplighters,
451
00:31:44,267 --> 00:31:47,067
which I'll get into that a little bit, but such a great experience.
452
00:31:47,147 --> 00:31:49,387
But, you know, I was going alone, no partner.
453
00:31:50,087 --> 00:31:53,547
I originally was going to go with my dad, but he passed away in 2020,
454
00:31:53,787 --> 00:31:56,727
which I think is why it took me so long to actually like go alone.
455
00:31:57,467 --> 00:32:00,107
But, you know, I had a friend that prepped me and he was like,
456
00:32:00,267 --> 00:32:02,087
all right, you're going to be driving.
457
00:32:02,487 --> 00:32:05,647
And once you get there, you cross what they call the rainbow bridge.
458
00:32:05,647 --> 00:32:08,667
Passage it's pretty much like from the default world
459
00:32:08,667 --> 00:32:11,387
into burning man world and he was like when
460
00:32:11,387 --> 00:32:14,447
you get there people are gonna have a greeter and they're
461
00:32:14,447 --> 00:32:17,907
gonna like give you a little spiel and like tell you to commune with the desert
462
00:32:17,907 --> 00:32:21,567
maybe like you know pick it pick some up and feel some up like with your hands
463
00:32:21,567 --> 00:32:26,187
and he was like but what the true burners do is take off all their clothes and
464
00:32:26,187 --> 00:32:31,587
roll around in the dust and i'm like you know what i have to just go all in so that was my first
465
00:32:31,687 --> 00:32:34,127
initial experience of Burning Man by myself,
466
00:32:34,427 --> 00:32:38,047
all these strangers, I'm like, you know what, I'm just embracing this experience.
467
00:32:38,867 --> 00:32:41,907
And I was like, these introduction people were like, oh my gosh,
468
00:32:41,907 --> 00:32:43,747
this is your first year, we would have never guessed.
469
00:32:44,007 --> 00:32:49,287
And once I showed up, I knew a couple of familiar faces, but I showed up, I didn't know anyone.
470
00:32:49,427 --> 00:32:53,307
But I felt everyone in Burning Man in general across the board,
471
00:32:53,367 --> 00:32:56,787
but especially with the lamplighters, was just so welcoming.
472
00:32:57,027 --> 00:33:00,947
So when I came, I felt totally comfortable walking up to someone I've never
473
00:33:00,947 --> 00:33:04,427
seen before and just being like, Hey, I'm new here. Where do I go?
474
00:33:04,707 --> 00:33:09,027
Who can you direct me to? Like, you know, the placement team and from the get
475
00:33:09,027 --> 00:33:11,047
go, everyone was just super welcoming.
476
00:33:11,167 --> 00:33:16,047
And I got placed next to, you know, once I got placed and I met my,
477
00:33:16,067 --> 00:33:21,347
my neighbors, I was like, just told everyone, Hey, I'm, I'm here alone. It's my first time.
478
00:33:22,607 --> 00:33:26,267
And the people, especially the people I camped by were just like,
479
00:33:26,267 --> 00:33:28,207
totally took me under their wing. Yeah.
480
00:33:28,787 --> 00:33:31,627
Anytime they went out, they would ask me or be like, hey, we're going to go
481
00:33:31,627 --> 00:33:33,227
do this. Do you want to join us?
482
00:33:33,787 --> 00:33:37,347
And it was really nice to like just feel welcomed instantly.
483
00:33:37,487 --> 00:33:41,307
And even though I was alone, not really feel alone in the experience.
484
00:33:42,187 --> 00:33:45,447
And so, yeah, the first 24 hours, that was a good introduction.
485
00:33:45,567 --> 00:33:50,347
And then a lot of it was just kind of like getting familiar with everything.
486
00:33:51,407 --> 00:33:54,667
You know, I get directionally challenged on a good day.
487
00:33:55,147 --> 00:34:00,487
You know be a burning man trying to figure out the map and kind of take some
488
00:34:00,487 --> 00:34:04,767
adventures by myself just to kind of like get the lay of the land there was
489
00:34:04,767 --> 00:34:06,707
a lot of that the first 24 hours,
490
00:34:07,467 --> 00:34:12,207
and then you know right away you jump into you know being a part of the lamplighters
491
00:34:12,207 --> 00:34:15,647
is a working camp i mean i'm sure you guys talked about it but like you know
492
00:34:15,647 --> 00:34:19,547
you're there to be a part of this and help light the city with these kerosene
493
00:34:19,547 --> 00:34:24,287
lamps and you know just kind of like jumping into that like work mode.
494
00:34:24,467 --> 00:34:29,767
And it was nice just throughout the event, having that schedule of like, all right, I work at 5pm.
495
00:34:30,187 --> 00:34:35,247
I also signed up for the morning shift. So I was like working 8am to 10am every day too.
496
00:34:36,067 --> 00:34:40,147
And just like, you know, establishing this community within the community and
497
00:34:40,147 --> 00:34:43,247
doing things I never would have thought I would do.
498
00:34:43,367 --> 00:34:47,607
And, you know, became like, yeah, I don't know, it was just I'm trying to the
499
00:34:47,607 --> 00:34:48,827
whole week blends together.
500
00:34:48,987 --> 00:34:53,627
So I'm like, trying to pin down the first 24 hours, but I was really just kind
501
00:34:53,627 --> 00:34:57,427
of getting to know my campmates, seeing how, you know, all these people from
502
00:34:57,427 --> 00:34:59,067
all walks of life come together.
503
00:34:59,127 --> 00:35:02,707
And just, if you forget something, everyone's so willing to be like,
504
00:35:02,807 --> 00:35:04,387
oh, like, do you need goggles?
505
00:35:04,847 --> 00:35:08,987
I see you're like, you know, it's about to be a dust storm. Like, do you need this?
506
00:35:09,027 --> 00:35:14,667
I have this. And yeah, it was just like, overall, really, really awesome to
507
00:35:14,667 --> 00:35:17,047
be a part of such like a well-established camp. And.
508
00:35:17,786 --> 00:35:21,306
It's like adult summer camp, you know, I joined a marching band,
509
00:35:21,566 --> 00:35:27,606
became a thumb wrestling champion, all this stuff, all this stuff that you're
510
00:35:27,606 --> 00:35:29,986
just like, you know, wouldn't be able to do.
511
00:35:30,086 --> 00:35:35,686
And you kind of discover things about yourself that in such like a harsh environment,
512
00:35:36,106 --> 00:35:38,866
you realize like one, how to take care of yourself.
513
00:35:38,986 --> 00:35:43,546
Cause if you're not, you feel it, you know, how to balance everything.
514
00:35:43,546 --> 00:35:46,566
Thing it's been like over a week and i'm still feeling
515
00:35:46,566 --> 00:35:50,386
that playa brain but yeah
516
00:35:50,386 --> 00:35:53,326
just you know i feel like right at home with
517
00:35:53,326 --> 00:35:57,466
with everyone there and as a couple of my friends described it they're like
518
00:35:57,466 --> 00:36:02,826
seems like you're what they say becca described it just like felt right at home
519
00:36:02,826 --> 00:36:07,226
you know it was just like blended in great and kind of and felt embraced just
520
00:36:07,226 --> 00:36:11,186
to be fully myself there so yeah i thought you were um i thought you were like
521
00:36:11,186 --> 00:36:12,966
all in every time i saw you i thought that That was great.
522
00:36:13,226 --> 00:36:15,666
You know, the first night I saw you, you were, you were just,
523
00:36:15,726 --> 00:36:17,746
I couldn't tell that was your first time, to be honest.
524
00:36:18,906 --> 00:36:22,946
Yeah. Well, thank you. Luckily, again, like I said, I have good friends that
525
00:36:22,946 --> 00:36:27,246
kind of prepped me and yeah, just felt right at home with, with everyone,
526
00:36:27,406 --> 00:36:28,886
including the lamplighters.
527
00:36:28,906 --> 00:36:31,026
I think I'll definitely be back.
528
00:36:32,658 --> 00:36:36,058
Oh, I guess you're what, you're what they call a veteran virgin.
529
00:36:37,058 --> 00:36:40,118
I feel like I, I won burning man.
530
00:36:41,618 --> 00:36:45,118
Yeah. I just made that up right now, but it's, but it sounds like that should
531
00:36:45,118 --> 00:36:49,978
be a word, you know, like we, we call, we, you know, they call people who are
532
00:36:49,978 --> 00:36:53,918
the first time burners out there, virgins within the, excuse me,
533
00:36:53,938 --> 00:36:55,438
within the lamplighter camp,
534
00:36:55,538 --> 00:36:59,518
you're also a noob or a newbie, but yeah, some people come in and they just
535
00:36:59,518 --> 00:37:04,138
get it, which obviously you seem to get it and you hit the ground rolling and i saw you bartending and.
536
00:37:05,018 --> 00:37:08,118
Dancing around in the bar and just having a having
537
00:37:08,118 --> 00:37:11,278
a hoot yeah take me back so when you
538
00:37:11,278 --> 00:37:14,338
get in past the greeter you know we're way through
539
00:37:14,338 --> 00:37:17,158
the entire city our camp was we were right on what is called
540
00:37:17,158 --> 00:37:20,758
the esplanades which is the the last street that faces the
541
00:37:20,758 --> 00:37:23,618
open playa where all the art is so what's that drive
542
00:37:23,618 --> 00:37:26,458
like for you coming down i guess i would assume you
543
00:37:26,458 --> 00:37:29,838
came down 6 30 which goes right right to our camp you know
544
00:37:29,838 --> 00:37:33,378
was it was that drive through overwhelming was
545
00:37:33,378 --> 00:37:37,058
your jaw just like completely open did you find the camp okay like
546
00:37:37,058 --> 00:37:40,018
what was that part like i mean i know they encouraged not
547
00:37:40,018 --> 00:37:42,978
to use phones but i did have the gps and
548
00:37:42,978 --> 00:37:46,098
it like put me right to the to the you know our campsite
549
00:37:46,098 --> 00:37:48,778
which i didn't have my phone really for the rest of the time but that
550
00:37:48,778 --> 00:37:52,478
gave me a little you know i was able to find it okay driving through
551
00:37:52,478 --> 00:37:55,878
i mean you know down this dirt road and you
552
00:37:55,878 --> 00:37:59,058
see just like the camp still setting up you
553
00:37:59,058 --> 00:38:02,638
know you're you're driving through and you just like see
554
00:38:02,638 --> 00:38:09,298
people in these crazy outfits and you know yeah my jaw was just dropped I mean
555
00:38:09,298 --> 00:38:15,018
I I didn't know what to expect but you know going in with no expectations was
556
00:38:15,018 --> 00:38:19,378
good and I was just taking it all in and like yeah just the drive you just see like.
557
00:38:20,334 --> 00:38:23,554
These crazy art pieces and just
558
00:38:23,554 --> 00:38:27,154
everyone letting their freak flags fly however
559
00:38:27,154 --> 00:38:30,174
that means for them and i just remember
560
00:38:30,174 --> 00:38:34,654
you know pulling up to the lamplighters and like you said it's you know you
561
00:38:34,654 --> 00:38:39,354
have to be going through a lot of the the grounds just to get there and just
562
00:38:39,354 --> 00:38:43,954
feeling nervous you know it was like the first 24 hours you're just like where
563
00:38:43,954 --> 00:38:48,434
am i what did i do like it's hot
564
00:38:48,814 --> 00:38:52,454
um it's it's dusty I can barely breathe but
565
00:38:52,454 --> 00:38:56,174
yeah just kind of seeing everyone especially
566
00:38:56,174 --> 00:38:58,814
in that 24 hour just like really embrace the like
567
00:38:58,814 --> 00:39:02,294
just different parts of themselves and like you
568
00:39:02,294 --> 00:39:05,274
know seeing that and knowing that I could kind of
569
00:39:05,274 --> 00:39:08,554
do the same thing and I'll you know find my people and
570
00:39:08,554 --> 00:39:11,354
yeah I mean you're there and
571
00:39:11,354 --> 00:39:14,054
like you know it's going to be hot you know
572
00:39:14,054 --> 00:39:17,034
it's going to to be a lot of art but you just don't know the
573
00:39:17,034 --> 00:39:19,874
full experience until you're there and like first 24
574
00:39:19,874 --> 00:39:23,054
hours was definitely like definitely overwhelming I
575
00:39:23,054 --> 00:39:25,954
think like especially that first night it's like
576
00:39:25,954 --> 00:39:30,574
it's just easy to get overstimulated you know and especially like that first
577
00:39:30,574 --> 00:39:35,594
night you know it starts to get dark and you're just surrounded by a billion
578
00:39:35,594 --> 00:39:40,814
leds you know you're walking around to all these different camps and everyone's
579
00:39:40,814 --> 00:39:44,574
like luring you in like oh we have this And so we have this like,
580
00:39:44,674 --> 00:39:47,874
you know, and you're like, where do I go? Which direction do I go in?
581
00:39:48,954 --> 00:39:53,134
And I think like kind of going and like making friends with people that have
582
00:39:53,134 --> 00:39:55,754
been there before and kind of had a lay of the land.
583
00:39:55,814 --> 00:39:58,654
It was made it like more comforting to me to be like, all right,
584
00:39:58,714 --> 00:40:04,514
let's like go out and experience this crazy world and had good had a good buddy system going on.
585
00:40:04,634 --> 00:40:07,654
And but yeah, I mean, that initial drive in, you're just like,
586
00:40:07,654 --> 00:40:10,134
you know, I've been wanting to go to Burning Man for years.
587
00:40:10,714 --> 00:40:14,654
And I would hear all my friends' stories and it was just like, wow, I'm here.
588
00:40:15,014 --> 00:40:19,174
You know, like to see the man for the first time and like our camp,
589
00:40:19,294 --> 00:40:23,914
like you said, it was right on the main road and you see the man like right there and...
590
00:40:24,880 --> 00:40:30,320
Yeah, it was really cool being so central to getting the, just kind of be in the middle of it all.
591
00:40:30,440 --> 00:40:35,000
And yeah, I'm really excited just about the location and, you know,
592
00:40:35,000 --> 00:40:38,180
people at that camp have been going to Burning Man for like 30 years,
593
00:40:38,400 --> 00:40:42,740
you know, and so to be with all these like OG people, a little intimidating,
594
00:40:42,820 --> 00:40:46,240
you know, but even though people like to mess with you and like,
595
00:40:46,260 --> 00:40:51,500
it's all out of love and I kind of caught on to the culture, I think. Yeah.
596
00:40:52,780 --> 00:40:57,180
Yeah. You can see the pictures and you hear the stories and you see videos on
597
00:40:57,180 --> 00:41:03,680
social media and all that stuff, but nothing really parallels that first drive
598
00:41:03,680 --> 00:41:06,760
in when you're actually there and you actually feel the dust.
599
00:41:06,880 --> 00:41:10,160
Because it's not just like regular dirt or sand, as people say.
600
00:41:10,260 --> 00:41:14,720
It's a very significant feeling that's specific to that place.
601
00:41:14,720 --> 00:41:19,420
Yeah and then yeah you see everybody riding around in their gear or no gear
602
00:41:19,420 --> 00:41:28,160
or no gear with with deer antlers on and it's all right well i've landed i'm
603
00:41:28,160 --> 00:41:30,780
here yeah yeah like yeah exactly,
604
00:41:31,460 --> 00:41:34,940
yeah and it was cool to tell that you came into a camp like lamplighters it's
605
00:41:34,940 --> 00:41:38,500
so established this part of the organization they're a service camp so we get
606
00:41:38,500 --> 00:41:42,740
you know we kind of get a little extra, extra special treatment with that.
607
00:41:43,140 --> 00:41:46,320
So I think for you being a first time to come into that was great.
608
00:41:46,460 --> 00:41:50,920
And also, you know, it does, it gives you a purpose to kind of,
609
00:41:50,920 --> 00:41:54,240
you know, you have a job, you did two jobs, you did, you did the morning crew
610
00:41:54,240 --> 00:41:58,380
too, which is, you know, which is, I did that my first two years there.
611
00:41:58,480 --> 00:42:02,040
And it's sometimes hard to get up in the morning.
612
00:42:02,680 --> 00:42:07,240
I have to be up at 8am, whether I'm staying up all night or what, I gotta be there.
613
00:42:07,760 --> 00:42:11,380
Yeah, because Hugslut is coming around with that megaphone to wake you up.
614
00:42:12,320 --> 00:42:17,320
You got to get up. Well, that's great. I'm super stoked. You had an awesome
615
00:42:17,320 --> 00:42:20,020
time. You fit right in. I'm glad to hear you'll be back.
616
00:42:20,620 --> 00:42:22,360
You know, you seem to have a smile.
617
00:42:23,080 --> 00:42:24,800
Yeah, people are like, you know, you're going to...
618
00:42:25,475 --> 00:42:29,695
You go through all the emotions there, of course. And like, you know,
619
00:42:29,695 --> 00:42:33,315
there's part I was talking to, I met one of my people that camped next to me.
620
00:42:33,335 --> 00:42:35,375
She was also like a single lady going by herself.
621
00:42:35,535 --> 00:42:39,795
And we were kind of talking how I loved being able to do my own thing,
622
00:42:39,895 --> 00:42:42,935
but sometimes like not having that emotional support or like,
623
00:42:42,955 --> 00:42:47,315
you're going through this big thing and you don't have anyone to kind of process it with,
624
00:42:47,435 --> 00:42:51,015
you know, I'd say out of everything, that was kind of the hardest thing.
625
00:42:51,135 --> 00:42:54,715
And you have all these other couples that you can't just like latch on to all
626
00:42:54,715 --> 00:42:56,475
the time because they're doing their own thing.
627
00:42:56,615 --> 00:43:00,435
But I think banding together with like, you know, finding those other girls
628
00:43:00,435 --> 00:43:04,915
or just people that are there alone and kind of share that experience was, was helpful.
629
00:43:05,055 --> 00:43:07,915
And especially the first 24 hours, just be like, what are we doing?
630
00:43:09,195 --> 00:43:12,695
Yeah. Yeah. It is cool that even if you don't have your partner or yeah,
631
00:43:12,755 --> 00:43:14,795
your friends are partnered up and they're doing their thing,
632
00:43:14,915 --> 00:43:19,315
you could probably find someone that if you really needed to help process what
633
00:43:19,315 --> 00:43:21,715
you're going through, you probably don't have to look too hard,
634
00:43:21,775 --> 00:43:23,395
especially in a, in a camp like ours.
635
00:43:23,395 --> 00:43:28,855
So I'm glad you had a little nice neighborly crew there with you to help you through some stuff.
636
00:43:28,895 --> 00:43:31,435
Exactly. People would see me crying. They'd be like, do you want a hug?
637
00:43:31,575 --> 00:43:35,735
You know, so it was definitely like, yeah, it was, it was felt, felt very welcome.
638
00:43:36,255 --> 00:43:39,475
I have a question. What was the craziest thing you saw?
639
00:43:40,635 --> 00:43:46,795
I mean, one thing that was on my Burning Man list that I, I was just,
640
00:43:46,815 --> 00:43:49,735
I just had to see it was the orgy dome.
641
00:43:51,475 --> 00:43:54,535
So i won't go into too much detail because
642
00:43:54,535 --> 00:43:57,575
i don't know who's listening to this podcast but that was definitely
643
00:43:57,575 --> 00:44:00,675
something to see even my mom
644
00:44:00,675 --> 00:44:03,475
she was like he got at least you know one hand and
645
00:44:03,475 --> 00:44:09,015
one hand out peeking so i mean we just knew that the burning man that you can't
646
00:44:09,015 --> 00:44:12,635
see in the room you know it's just things like that but i was that was definitely
647
00:44:12,635 --> 00:44:21,415
um something to witness oh yes the infamous orgy dome that's where i got my playa named giggles,
648
00:44:22,075 --> 00:44:25,095
because my nervous reaction was just to laugh my
649
00:44:25,095 --> 00:44:28,035
way through i wasn't laughing at anyone i was staring at
650
00:44:28,035 --> 00:44:31,795
the ceiling just uncontrollably giggling so yeah
651
00:44:31,795 --> 00:44:34,455
yeah i mean that's a way that's a way to
652
00:44:34,455 --> 00:44:38,175
handle it i mean you know in all my years of going i've seen it from the outside
653
00:44:38,175 --> 00:44:41,955
i've never seen it from the inside but it is one of those things that you know
654
00:44:41,955 --> 00:44:45,355
one of the first things that comes to people who's never been to their mind
655
00:44:45,355 --> 00:44:50,215
is that and that often gets brought up my mom what does she call it the naked
656
00:44:50,215 --> 00:44:52,035
tent there's a naked tent there,
657
00:44:52,815 --> 00:44:55,835
that's a valid name for it there so,
658
00:44:56,455 --> 00:45:00,335
cool well I'm glad you got to experience that and check it off your list yeah
659
00:45:00,335 --> 00:45:04,015
I did I just did it on a bucket list and I was the one with the bucket list
660
00:45:04,015 --> 00:45:08,375
things hell yeah what was something that you didn't that you wanted to check
661
00:45:08,375 --> 00:45:10,075
out that you didn't get to check out.
662
00:45:11,323 --> 00:45:16,583
Well, I, because there was so much going on, I didn't really look through the book too often.
663
00:45:16,703 --> 00:45:21,163
And like, because one time I was like, vetted out by myself and people were
664
00:45:21,163 --> 00:45:23,003
like, oh, look through the book, find things you want to do.
665
00:45:23,303 --> 00:45:26,763
There was like a sushi making workshop. And I was like, I love sushi.
666
00:45:27,043 --> 00:45:30,343
But I go there, I find the camp and like nothing was happening.
667
00:45:30,783 --> 00:45:34,703
And so it kind of made me like, I was more kind of like, following like,
668
00:45:34,763 --> 00:45:36,163
people were like, oh, we're going to this.
669
00:45:36,363 --> 00:45:39,463
And I just kind of tagged along. But I think like, maybe just
670
00:45:39,463 --> 00:45:43,263
one thing that I I would do for next time is kind of not that I want to plan
671
00:45:43,263 --> 00:45:46,663
out my experience because I think it's in a moment was a great way to go about
672
00:45:46,663 --> 00:45:50,083
it but maybe kind of look through it and be like all right what are some workshops
673
00:45:50,083 --> 00:45:54,483
that like seem really fun that I could like you know and maybe take some more
674
00:45:54,483 --> 00:45:57,963
trips alone and kind of trust that I'd be able to make it back to camp and,
675
00:45:58,483 --> 00:46:02,963
yeah so I think looking back there wasn't you know I did a lot I did things
676
00:46:02,963 --> 00:46:08,683
that I you know I I think having that spontaneity is kind of what Burning Man is about in a lot of ways.
677
00:46:09,583 --> 00:46:12,823
But, you know, having like, just kind of looking through it,
678
00:46:12,843 --> 00:46:16,083
because there were so many things that people have been telling me that they went to go do.
679
00:46:16,263 --> 00:46:20,423
But I just had no idea what's happening just because I was just like, you know, so.
680
00:46:21,163 --> 00:46:24,003
Yeah, I think just kind of looking through the book a little bit more and being
681
00:46:24,003 --> 00:46:26,303
like, all right, let's go to some cool workshops or whatever.
682
00:46:26,403 --> 00:46:29,663
Maybe, you know, go take a yoga class, something like that.
683
00:46:29,823 --> 00:46:33,723
But overall, I feel very fulfilled in the experience. That's amazing.
684
00:46:34,023 --> 00:46:38,743
I love that now when you say book do you mean this book i mean that book yeah
685
00:46:38,743 --> 00:46:43,283
do you know who designed this book i think i got mine right here no who did
686
00:46:43,283 --> 00:46:45,343
uh go ahead and tell him mike,
687
00:46:45,883 --> 00:46:48,723
oh god yeah i did the artwork for
688
00:46:48,723 --> 00:46:51,503
it yeah he's showing to the listener he's showing
689
00:46:51,503 --> 00:46:54,763
the what where when book that yes i i did
690
00:46:54,763 --> 00:46:58,723
the artwork for it this year oh my gosh which was which was
691
00:46:58,723 --> 00:47:01,443
an owner yeah what a great room
692
00:47:01,443 --> 00:47:04,303
i mean everyone gets this in their hands you
693
00:47:04,303 --> 00:47:07,283
know to be a part of it not everyone goes through
694
00:47:07,283 --> 00:47:12,923
it oh mike hampton there you are well i mean i kind of flipped through it but
695
00:47:12,923 --> 00:47:17,963
i was just like there's so many things to do what do i do you know what though
696
00:47:17,963 --> 00:47:23,803
like sometimes i mean i hardly really look at that book but you know that's
697
00:47:23,803 --> 00:47:26,243
one way to do Burning Man is maybe a day.
698
00:47:26,303 --> 00:47:29,163
Let's pick some stuff in the book and go find these things that are going on.
699
00:47:29,263 --> 00:47:31,623
Yeah, sometimes you get to the camp and they don't have their shit together
700
00:47:31,623 --> 00:47:34,983
because they're doing Burning Man and that's just what happens.
701
00:47:35,303 --> 00:47:38,243
Yeah, just kind of go with the flow with it and be like, alright, whatever.
702
00:47:38,863 --> 00:47:42,903
But I mean, I went into a sauna in the middle of the desert.
703
00:47:43,183 --> 00:47:46,923
I watched Thunderdome. You know, all these things where I'm just like,
704
00:47:47,043 --> 00:47:50,583
yeah, it was nice to just have an open book a little bit. That's a regret I have.
705
00:47:50,983 --> 00:47:53,043
Mike, I do wish we would have went to Thunderdome.
706
00:47:53,878 --> 00:47:59,018
Well, how I got the thumb wrestling was they have Thunderdome with that big dome where they joust.
707
00:47:59,378 --> 00:48:03,618
And as a joke, a camp made a Thunderdome, which is a little dome.
708
00:48:04,018 --> 00:48:07,438
And that's where I'm an undefeated champion there. So I just had to say that
709
00:48:07,438 --> 00:48:08,638
again and rub it in a little bit.
710
00:48:09,338 --> 00:48:13,738
Yeah, rub it in. Rub it in right hand. I mean, I use it professionally.
711
00:48:14,758 --> 00:48:18,658
This is your platform to rub it in. I found that dome one sunrise.
712
00:48:19,278 --> 00:48:22,758
Yeah, and it looks like a dome. And then underneath the dome is the smaller
713
00:48:22,758 --> 00:48:25,978
Thunderdome. And you just stick your head in there and thumb wrestle.
714
00:48:26,198 --> 00:48:29,118
They used to have all sorts of creativity. You know, it's great. It was great.
715
00:48:29,678 --> 00:48:34,758
So fun. Well, Mary, wow. Glad you had such a great time. And you found your,
716
00:48:34,758 --> 00:48:36,598
it sounds like you found your home.
717
00:48:37,178 --> 00:48:40,098
I did. I love it. Another home. I can't wait for next year. I'm ready.
718
00:48:40,178 --> 00:48:41,658
I'm exhausted, but I'm ready already.
719
00:48:43,218 --> 00:48:46,678
Love it. Love it. Well, you have to go to decompression. Decompression is in
720
00:48:46,678 --> 00:48:51,318
October, I think 13th in San Francisco. go so you can get another taste of it.
721
00:48:51,378 --> 00:48:52,438
Keep me in the loop with that.
722
00:48:52,538 --> 00:48:55,378
Okay, I'll write it down. Will do. Cool.
723
00:48:56,978 --> 00:49:04,238
I think that's it, Mike. I think we've got it. I think we've got another first-timer. 24.
724
00:49:06,258 --> 00:49:09,358
24 on the fire. Thank you so much, Mary.
725
00:49:09,578 --> 00:49:12,378
Mary, if you would like to, would you like to tell our audience where they can
726
00:49:12,378 --> 00:49:14,338
connect with you and learn more about you and all your projects?
727
00:49:15,258 --> 00:49:19,518
Yeah, Instagram is visualboo. boo. That's kind of, you know,
728
00:49:19,558 --> 00:49:23,038
I do comic cons where I'll kind of travel around being so and everything.
729
00:49:23,138 --> 00:49:26,998
So that's kind of where I'll post where you guys could find me if you want to meet me in person.
730
00:49:27,318 --> 00:49:31,098
Yeah, that's the biggest thing. I'm YouTube is boo grown up,
731
00:49:31,118 --> 00:49:32,898
but I haven't posted a vlog there in a while.
732
00:49:32,958 --> 00:49:36,478
But if you want to see some old videos of me rambling on about my life some
733
00:49:36,478 --> 00:49:39,798
more, that's a good, good way to do it. So yeah, fun.
734
00:49:40,578 --> 00:49:45,298
All right. Visual boo. Visual boo. A.K.A. Giggles.
735
00:49:50,558 --> 00:49:55,398
Yeah you too mary thank you and we'll be right back after this.
736
00:49:57,360 --> 00:50:03,920
Music.
737
00:50:03,762 --> 00:50:06,862
Love Uncle Dallas, there's burners and everything in between.
738
00:50:06,962 --> 00:50:10,442
We are back with a special guest. Mike, how are you?
739
00:50:10,862 --> 00:50:16,202
Well, I'm elated and I'm stoked to hear another story here. So I'm going to get right to it.
740
00:50:18,042 --> 00:50:25,102
So yeah, so we have another lamplighter here and who's also their first burn.
741
00:50:25,442 --> 00:50:31,462
And we have a playa name, which is Piney, which Piney, hello,
742
00:50:31,582 --> 00:50:34,742
say hello to all of of our listeners here how's it
743
00:50:34,742 --> 00:50:38,462
going everyone so i'm interested
744
00:50:38,462 --> 00:50:41,122
how did you uh see not everyone gets a
745
00:50:41,122 --> 00:50:44,462
ply name their first year so how did
746
00:50:44,462 --> 00:50:50,222
you get the name piney and what yeah please tell us that story piney is actually
747
00:50:50,222 --> 00:50:54,122
a rainbow name from rainbow gatherings because i've been going to rainbow gatherings
748
00:50:54,122 --> 00:51:00,562
for over a decade now and everyone knows me as my name piney so including including
749
00:51:00,562 --> 00:51:02,182
the person who brought me Finch.
750
00:51:02,202 --> 00:51:05,402
So I just went by Piney at Burning Man.
751
00:51:06,422 --> 00:51:10,402
Is there a story behind Piney? How do you get that name?
752
00:51:11,082 --> 00:51:14,682
Yeah, the story isn't very exciting. It's because I'm from New Jersey,
753
00:51:15,322 --> 00:51:17,202
and there's Pine Barrens in New Jersey.
754
00:51:17,522 --> 00:51:24,502
So a long time ago, my friend Ewok was like, oh, so your name is Piney,
755
00:51:24,502 --> 00:51:28,842
and I said, okay, and there that was. That was that.
756
00:51:29,442 --> 00:51:32,242
Case closed. All right. Dig it. Not that exciting. Yeah.
757
00:51:33,803 --> 00:51:39,103
Well, you know, to each origin story, judgment their own.
758
00:51:39,543 --> 00:51:43,243
So, okay, so you've been to Rainbow, which, you know, I've heard,
759
00:51:43,283 --> 00:51:46,183
you know, you mentioned Finch, who also camps with us, and he's been camping
760
00:51:46,183 --> 00:51:47,863
with Lamplighters for a few years.
761
00:51:48,083 --> 00:51:50,883
He's awesome. He helps with setup and teardown.
762
00:51:51,223 --> 00:51:54,683
And I know he's been doing Rainbow gatherings for some time.
763
00:51:55,043 --> 00:51:59,263
So something like this probably isn't completely new to you.
764
00:51:59,323 --> 00:52:03,103
But what was it like, you know, your first 24 hours?
765
00:52:03,103 --> 00:52:05,943
How did you get to the playa and then once you
766
00:52:05,943 --> 00:52:10,583
get like your your experience to the gate and then finding the camp like please
767
00:52:10,583 --> 00:52:15,923
just walk us through that that that time for you okay well i was coming from
768
00:52:15,923 --> 00:52:21,323
santa rosa so it's a far drive it's not too far but far and i carpooled with
769
00:52:21,323 --> 00:52:25,743
two friends and we drove all the way to south lake tahoe to drop off my dog with a friend,
770
00:52:26,483 --> 00:52:29,383
and then drove throughout the night all the way to
771
00:52:29,383 --> 00:52:31,983
birding man we didn't wait too long on the
772
00:52:31,983 --> 00:52:35,163
road food or at the gate but we did
773
00:52:35,163 --> 00:52:38,363
wait some time but it was actually very quick for
774
00:52:38,363 --> 00:52:41,943
me even though my gate was out my ticket was at will call because my
775
00:52:41,943 --> 00:52:46,783
friend couldn't make it so she sold me her ticket and she said it was at will
776
00:52:46,783 --> 00:52:51,003
call so i went there thinking it's going to be an issue my name wasn't even
777
00:52:51,003 --> 00:52:55,263
in the their system at will call but i had the email for my ticket that it was
778
00:52:55,263 --> 00:52:59,223
in my name So I just was like, here's my email.
779
00:52:59,963 --> 00:53:05,763
I should have a ticket. And they looked up my friend's name who sold me the
780
00:53:05,763 --> 00:53:07,703
ticket and saw their name and just gave me the ticket.
781
00:53:08,203 --> 00:53:11,623
It's quite simple, really. really so then
782
00:53:11,623 --> 00:53:14,983
there we are we get through we come through and we didn't
783
00:53:14,983 --> 00:53:18,223
even i i heard that when it's for
784
00:53:18,223 --> 00:53:21,223
someone's first time at burning lady people do
785
00:53:21,223 --> 00:53:24,483
things at the gate or something say things to you give you things we only got
786
00:53:24,483 --> 00:53:27,843
a book i didn't there was no like nothing exciting i had been at the front of
787
00:53:27,843 --> 00:53:32,403
burning man for us for some reason which is fine went all the way to lamplighters
788
00:53:32,403 --> 00:53:37,443
it's four o'clock in the morning went to go find where my friend finch and our
789
00:53:37,443 --> 00:53:38,683
other groups of campers,
790
00:53:38,723 --> 00:53:44,583
lamplighters, which is pretty easy right behind the port-a-potty right there. Very convenient also.
791
00:53:46,143 --> 00:53:50,923
And we woke them up and there we were. It went straight to bed because we were
792
00:53:50,923 --> 00:53:52,823
tired. Yeah, very tired.
793
00:53:53,869 --> 00:54:00,589
So when you went to the greeters, you know, and they check your car or whatever,
794
00:54:00,769 --> 00:54:05,829
and I guess that's where they give you the book, you didn't get out and ring
795
00:54:05,829 --> 00:54:07,209
the bell and roll in the playa?
796
00:54:07,209 --> 00:54:10,089
They didn't push you through any of that or guide you through any of that? No.
797
00:54:10,669 --> 00:54:15,309
No. I heard I was supposed to go through all that, but no, that didn't happen to any of us.
798
00:54:15,349 --> 00:54:19,609
And also the other two girls in the car, that was their first time too,
799
00:54:19,649 --> 00:54:21,469
and that never happened to us.
800
00:54:22,529 --> 00:54:27,829
Bummer. I was like that was so fun when I got to do that I mean yeah whatever,
801
00:54:28,349 --> 00:54:32,749
next time I could be my first next time next time there you go right well yeah
802
00:54:32,749 --> 00:54:36,209
or you could just say hey I came from my first burn last year and that creator
803
00:54:36,209 --> 00:54:40,529
just kind of pushed me through it didn't I wouldn't ring the damn bell.
804
00:54:41,629 --> 00:54:46,389
Yeah it was Uncle Dad's first first burn this year and we talk about we talked
805
00:54:46,389 --> 00:54:49,029
about that while we were on the playa on a mic and,
806
00:54:49,829 --> 00:54:54,289
yeah I remember my first time coming you know it's it's doesn't have to be the
807
00:54:54,289 --> 00:54:59,089
biggest thing but it's really it like really puts you in the space i think a
808
00:54:59,089 --> 00:55:06,769
bit so welcoming yeah yeah so so so how would you not to compare like,
809
00:55:07,329 --> 00:55:11,209
burning man is this and rainbow is that and this is better because of that but like,
810
00:55:11,849 --> 00:55:16,049
like how would you come like how would you compare the two like are they comparable
811
00:55:16,049 --> 00:55:21,409
are they completely different do you did you enjoy do you enjoy one more than
812
00:55:21,409 --> 00:55:24,529
the other like what What is that, those two worlds like for you?
813
00:55:25,889 --> 00:55:29,549
Well, I'd never, I've been, my friends have been telling me to come to Burning
814
00:55:29,549 --> 00:55:32,229
Man for years, like Finch, like I said.
815
00:55:32,809 --> 00:55:37,349
And I never came for a few reasons. I didn't have the money, I didn't have the time.
816
00:55:37,529 --> 00:55:40,529
I just didn't, it wasn't easy for me. So I was just like, oh,
817
00:55:40,569 --> 00:55:41,649
well, I'm not going to go. It's not easy.
818
00:55:42,049 --> 00:55:44,809
But this year, everything was easy for me. Got a ticket really quickly,
819
00:55:44,909 --> 00:55:47,869
got everything. So it was simple. So I went.
820
00:55:48,869 --> 00:55:50,389
And to compare it to Rainbow is like,
821
00:55:51,682 --> 00:55:54,622
it's they're comparable in a lot of ways i
822
00:55:54,622 --> 00:55:57,462
would like some people so associate rainbow gatherings as
823
00:55:57,462 --> 00:56:00,682
festivals and some people would also associate birdie man
824
00:56:00,682 --> 00:56:05,082
as festivals but to me they're different than festival and they're on the same
825
00:56:05,082 --> 00:56:09,302
spectrum i feel like rainbow gatherings and birdie man just like the opposite
826
00:56:09,302 --> 00:56:13,202
sides of the spectrum of something similar there's a lot more community i felt
827
00:56:13,202 --> 00:56:19,402
like they had a lot more uh people having fun together not focused around money it's not
828
00:56:19,422 --> 00:56:22,302
focused around like trying to compete with each other is
829
00:56:22,302 --> 00:56:25,662
more like people being together and expressing
830
00:56:25,662 --> 00:56:29,182
a sort of kind of love you know and everyone's
831
00:56:29,182 --> 00:56:31,922
sharing a community we go to festivals and it's not so much like
832
00:56:31,922 --> 00:56:35,822
that it's more just about music trying to make money trying to come up on each
833
00:56:35,822 --> 00:56:41,222
other trying to like sell pins sell hats or whatever just trying to and burning
834
00:56:41,222 --> 00:56:44,062
man and rainbow are not like that everything is very you know everyone's trying
835
00:56:44,062 --> 00:56:47,542
to like help each other they're out seems like even though you should be radically
836
00:56:47,542 --> 00:56:50,702
self-reliant and burning man as they say.
837
00:56:51,982 --> 00:56:57,122
But yeah so they're comparable because the community and the people are there
838
00:56:57,122 --> 00:57:01,222
just to have fun and express that fun with each other and not try to be,
839
00:57:01,842 --> 00:57:07,042
go there for being angry or trying to come up on each other we'll just try to enjoy our times,
840
00:57:08,201 --> 00:57:12,441
Yeah, that's very well said. I mean, you know, a lot of people who haven't been
841
00:57:12,441 --> 00:57:15,101
to either Rainbow or Burning Man, you mention it and they go,
842
00:57:15,201 --> 00:57:17,381
oh, you know, I've been to festivals,
843
00:57:17,501 --> 00:57:24,041
I've been to festivals and it's like, yeah, well, festivals are usually arranged around paid acts,
844
00:57:24,261 --> 00:57:29,761
DJs, music, you know, and going from one stage to the next stage at this time.
845
00:57:29,781 --> 00:57:32,821
Then you watch the show and then you go to wait for the next show at this stage.
846
00:57:32,901 --> 00:57:36,081
And in between those stages are the merch booths and the food vendors and,
847
00:57:36,101 --> 00:57:39,801
you know, And those things have their place, sure.
848
00:57:40,361 --> 00:57:47,521
I've been to music festivals. But yeah, Burning Man is not a festival and is not a music festival.
849
00:57:47,581 --> 00:57:53,461
There's music there, but it's an art. It's a community that is built, right?
850
00:57:54,321 --> 00:57:58,801
Around art, yeah. Around art, yeah. The art was the most beautiful thing about
851
00:57:58,801 --> 00:58:01,001
Burning Man. All of the amazing art everywhere.
852
00:58:01,541 --> 00:58:04,561
It's mind-blowing. It's like the biggest art venue I've ever been to.
853
00:58:05,341 --> 00:58:06,801
Some of the most beautiful pieces.
854
00:58:08,081 --> 00:58:10,761
Yeah did you have a specific piece that stood out to
855
00:58:10,761 --> 00:58:14,661
you the most i really like the the butterfly swing
856
00:58:14,661 --> 00:58:19,121
they sit on and flap its wings i had the classical music playing that was really
857
00:58:19,121 --> 00:58:25,701
awesome i like that one a lot and the the tunnel that you bike through oh yeah
858
00:58:25,701 --> 00:58:31,101
in like deep playa i like that a lot sonic run yeah sonic run that's i think
859
00:58:31,101 --> 00:58:33,121
that's the third time they brought that out every Every year,
860
00:58:33,161 --> 00:58:36,341
it's a few years removed from the last time it was there.
861
00:58:36,421 --> 00:58:40,021
And every year it comes out, it gets better and better.
862
00:58:40,181 --> 00:58:44,481
And yeah, it's so fun because there'll be an art car that'll park next to it.
863
00:58:44,781 --> 00:58:48,701
And the lights that are going through the tunnel sync up to the music.
864
00:58:49,301 --> 00:58:54,941
And so you really can feel like you're going down a magic tunnel out there.
865
00:58:55,161 --> 00:58:57,161
Yeah, really cool. Good choice. Good choice.
866
00:58:57,761 --> 00:59:00,801
It was funky music, too. It was like funk when we went through it.
867
00:59:00,821 --> 00:59:02,961
So I like the funk. It was good. Thank you.
868
00:59:03,655 --> 00:59:08,575
Yeah, right on. So what was like a big challenge for you out there?
869
00:59:08,895 --> 00:59:11,615
Was there something that you didn't expect? I mean, I know you had friends that
870
00:59:11,615 --> 00:59:17,315
have been going and so you probably got, you know, a lot of tips and help along the way.
871
00:59:17,335 --> 00:59:20,155
But was there a really big challenge for you that you ran into out there?
872
00:59:21,015 --> 00:59:24,155
Trying to see everything I wanted to see I feel
873
00:59:24,155 --> 00:59:27,095
like the first two days I spent too long trying to
874
00:59:27,095 --> 00:59:32,235
like plot a course and I realized I should just aim in a direction and just
875
00:59:32,235 --> 00:59:35,735
see everything that looks awesome in that direction instead of trying to hit
876
00:59:35,735 --> 00:59:41,615
everything out all at once you can't so just letting letting it flow the way
877
00:59:41,615 --> 00:59:44,595
it should flow instead of forcing it was like what I realized.
878
00:59:45,535 --> 00:59:49,855
Yeah even if you try yeah oh yeah,
879
00:59:50,415 --> 00:59:53,935
that that's one of the things I think is, is a good teacher that you can bring
880
00:59:53,935 --> 00:59:58,795
out into the, into the default regular world is just sometimes just allowing
881
00:59:58,795 --> 01:00:00,755
for things to just be as they are.
882
01:00:01,035 --> 01:00:05,395
Cause you're never see it all. Like I see pictures of stuff on Instagram or
883
01:00:05,395 --> 01:00:08,495
whatever this year's burn. And I had no idea that was out there.
884
01:00:08,895 --> 01:00:12,755
And that used to bum me out that I didn't see that. I didn't see that or all,
885
01:00:12,835 --> 01:00:14,815
but like, but I did see what I did see.
886
01:00:14,915 --> 01:00:18,655
And there's no way you will see it all there's just there's just not enough
887
01:00:18,655 --> 01:00:28,055
of you to go around if only uh mike before we wrap up here do you have any last questions for him,
888
01:00:28,535 --> 01:00:32,035
yeah just so and and you were you were camping with lamplighters so what what
889
01:00:32,035 --> 01:00:36,635
are your thoughts on uh so lamplighters is an org camp as they say like an organizational
890
01:00:36,635 --> 01:00:41,175
camp where community service camp we provide service to the community so you're
891
01:00:41,175 --> 01:00:42,975
working a lot at this camp it's not just
892
01:00:43,055 --> 01:00:46,595
to come hang out, party, lay around all day.
893
01:00:46,995 --> 01:00:49,795
You got to do some work at this one. What was your thoughts,
894
01:00:49,815 --> 01:00:51,715
experience on being with a camp like that?
895
01:00:52,681 --> 01:00:58,041
Well, I enjoy going to places and helping to plug in. When I go to rainbow gatherings, I plug in a lot.
896
01:00:58,141 --> 01:01:01,101
I feel like helping out is a benefit for everything.
897
01:01:01,301 --> 01:01:06,301
I like to do what I can. So doing the couple hours at lamplighters a day was really awesome.
898
01:01:06,401 --> 01:01:09,661
It was fun to walk all the routes and light the lamps.
899
01:01:09,981 --> 01:01:14,961
I met some really awesome people doing that, such as Glitterpuss, my favorite lumineer.
900
01:01:15,741 --> 01:01:21,121
She's great. And then I took my friend Roach's or not Roach's shift at the evening
901
01:01:21,121 --> 01:01:24,241
time for at Lamplighters cleaning up the kitchen.
902
01:01:24,501 --> 01:01:27,961
And that was a lot of fun for me because I work in the kitchen a lot.
903
01:01:28,361 --> 01:01:34,101
So I want to, I'm going to come back next year and plug into Lamplighters again
904
01:01:34,101 --> 01:01:36,761
because it was a lot of fun. A lot of good people. Awesome.
905
01:01:38,901 --> 01:01:43,181
Well, Piney, dude, thanks so much for coming on and sharing your story with us.
906
01:01:43,221 --> 01:01:46,021
And I was going to ask, are you coming back next year?
907
01:01:46,021 --> 01:01:49,081
And it sounds like you are so stoked about that
908
01:01:49,081 --> 01:01:52,501
and i guess we'll see you see you next year if not you
909
01:01:52,501 --> 01:01:56,101
do know about decompression right yeah san
910
01:01:56,101 --> 01:02:00,561
francisco october 13th we've been we've been talking about it especially you're
911
01:02:00,561 --> 01:02:04,961
in the bay so maybe we'll see you there listen thank you for having me all right
912
01:02:04,961 --> 01:02:10,361
thank you so much we'll be right back after this break hello and welcome back
913
01:02:10,361 --> 01:02:13,941
everybody that's right uncle dad here hanging out with the man the myth legend legend,
914
01:02:14,061 --> 01:02:16,901
Mike Hampton. Mike, what's up? Hey, I'm just Mike.
915
01:02:17,281 --> 01:02:19,941
You're just Mike and you're just chilling and we are just chilling with somebody
916
01:02:19,941 --> 01:02:22,181
right now. Can you go to introduce this lovely human?
917
01:02:22,681 --> 01:02:28,621
Yeah. So we, you know, we've been interviewing several people who this was their
918
01:02:28,621 --> 01:02:32,661
first burn and we want to know about their first 24 hours and that's been really fun.
919
01:02:32,781 --> 01:02:35,741
But I thought it would be a really fun thing to
920
01:02:35,741 --> 01:02:38,621
end the episode with someone who's been burning
921
01:02:38,621 --> 01:02:42,101
for a long long time and has done many first
922
01:02:42,101 --> 01:02:45,901
24 hours at a burn and this
923
01:02:45,901 --> 01:02:49,361
person will go by the name of josh on the episode and
924
01:02:49,361 --> 01:02:52,121
from what i understand josh this was
925
01:02:52,121 --> 01:02:54,801
your this was your 15th burn is that
926
01:02:54,801 --> 01:02:57,601
correct that's right this was uh it was my quinceanera it
927
01:02:57,601 --> 01:03:01,521
was a big party yeah yeah so there
928
01:03:01,521 --> 01:03:06,321
you went to a party there you found the party no no no just uh i mean the entire
929
01:03:06,321 --> 01:03:10,401
thing because it was my quinceañera nobody i didn't announce it i was trying
930
01:03:10,401 --> 01:03:14,201
to get in the book but there was too many quinceañeras already yeah yeah that
931
01:03:14,201 --> 01:03:19,121
happened okay so quinceañera uh 15th burn.
932
01:03:20,081 --> 01:03:24,441
Let's rewind time a little bit and take us back when was your first burn what
933
01:03:24,441 --> 01:03:27,201
year was that all right so 2000 it
934
01:03:27,201 --> 01:03:31,461
was 2009 evolution i think it was yeah evolution was the theme that year,
935
01:03:31,961 --> 01:03:34,881
that's right that was my first burn that's right that was your first burn too
936
01:03:34,881 --> 01:03:37,281
nice yes it was yes it was a great year.
937
01:03:38,872 --> 01:03:42,172
Yeah, the year of the wedge, if you remember that.
938
01:03:42,632 --> 01:03:46,192
The wedge, that was that thing that everybody broke their arms and legs sliding
939
01:03:46,192 --> 01:03:47,852
down? Yes. Yeah, yeah, yeah, absolutely.
940
01:03:48,912 --> 01:03:53,792
There's typically one just about every year. That was the first one for me, too.
941
01:03:54,212 --> 01:03:59,192
All right. They had potato sacks and skis and snowboards and just all sorts
942
01:03:59,192 --> 01:04:00,692
of bullshit, bikes, whatever.
943
01:04:00,912 --> 01:04:05,412
They could just ride down this 100-foot-tall slide made of AstroTurf,
944
01:04:05,572 --> 01:04:06,832
if I recall, something like that.
945
01:04:06,852 --> 01:04:11,292
Yes, yes, yeah. Yeah, and they had couch cushions and pillows at the bottom.
946
01:04:11,732 --> 01:04:17,292
But I wrote a potato sack down because I did not want to snap a bone.
947
01:04:17,412 --> 01:04:21,552
I saw a guy doing, I don't know, flips, turns on a snowboard,
948
01:04:21,592 --> 01:04:27,292
and he went to fall and put his arms out to brace the fall, and his hand broke
949
01:04:27,292 --> 01:04:30,432
the fall, and I saw his bone come ripping out of his skin.
950
01:04:30,432 --> 01:04:32,812
Oh, my Lord. Into the open air.
951
01:04:33,632 --> 01:04:37,332
That's what we go for, right? That's where we go.
952
01:04:37,452 --> 01:04:43,572
So nevermind. So your first burn 2009, walk us through your first 24 hours.
953
01:04:43,652 --> 01:04:47,312
Like how you got to, how you got to the, the, how do you get to Burning Man?
954
01:04:47,472 --> 01:04:50,572
You went through gate, like you found your camp. Did you have a camp?
955
01:04:50,632 --> 01:04:52,932
Just give us a quick walk through what that was like for you.
956
01:04:53,372 --> 01:04:57,972
Yeah. So, so, so my first burn, I, I, I didn't really plan on going to the burn.
957
01:04:58,092 --> 01:05:02,512
I had, I had moved the area the year before and it was,
958
01:05:02,512 --> 01:05:05,192
it was just like a couple of weeks after the burn had ended
959
01:05:05,192 --> 01:05:08,152
in 2008 and so you know
960
01:05:08,152 --> 01:05:10,892
a year passed by i was i was working i'd come there i was working on
961
01:05:10,892 --> 01:05:13,572
a drilling rig actually and we're drilling for
962
01:05:13,572 --> 01:05:16,612
geothermal resources which is like good stuff i
963
01:05:16,612 --> 01:05:19,452
thought still think and then just
964
01:05:19,452 --> 01:05:22,372
kind of got abandoned there by my job ended up working for the power plant
965
01:05:22,372 --> 01:05:26,292
that we had been drilling to make more you know resource for and
966
01:05:26,292 --> 01:05:29,212
along comes the burning man and i had heard
967
01:05:29,212 --> 01:05:31,892
of this thing before but i was i was a little busy it was doing other their
968
01:05:31,892 --> 01:05:34,992
shit and it was you know far away or whatever and
969
01:05:34,992 --> 01:05:37,832
so at this point they were like hey here's free tickets you
970
01:05:37,832 --> 01:05:41,232
should really check this out and i was like all right seems like seems worthwhile
971
01:05:41,232 --> 01:05:43,912
i mean here's tickets anyway and i'd been
972
01:05:43,912 --> 01:05:46,572
exploring the desert for a while like a full year at
973
01:05:46,572 --> 01:05:49,452
this point and and there is a ton that that desert has
974
01:05:49,452 --> 01:05:54,852
to offer you know whether it is abandoned mining camps there's there are all
975
01:05:54,852 --> 01:05:59,592
sorts of opals and minerals out there there's an old naval bombing field there
976
01:05:59,592 --> 01:06:03,412
lots of hot springs because the the crust is really thin there that's why we're
977
01:06:03,412 --> 01:06:08,072
drilling actually for geothermal resources and so anyway i was like yeah why not.
978
01:06:08,976 --> 01:06:13,836
I don't have to work all the time. And so took the tickets and went out there, checked it out.
979
01:06:13,876 --> 01:06:18,276
I had gone out beforehand and set up my trailer because a buddy of mine who
980
01:06:18,276 --> 01:06:20,976
lived in town and girl, like he was like, you know, you don't want to wait until
981
01:06:20,976 --> 01:06:23,696
the gate and the fence and everything goes up. So just drop your shit early.
982
01:06:24,336 --> 01:06:26,976
So I went out there and I didn't have a trailer or anything.
983
01:06:27,036 --> 01:06:29,176
I didn't want to invest a ton of money because I don't know what this thing's about.
984
01:06:29,396 --> 01:06:32,536
So I was like, yeah, there's this trailer over in the dump over there.
985
01:06:32,716 --> 01:06:34,916
Pretty sure we've used it for like a shooting range.
986
01:06:35,276 --> 01:06:37,996
There might be some animals in it. Who knows? So I cleaned all the rat shit
987
01:06:37,996 --> 01:06:40,376
out of it and, you know, taped up the bullet holes and whatnot,
988
01:06:40,576 --> 01:06:45,556
and then drug that sucker out there to 230 and G, which was not a camp per se.
989
01:06:45,616 --> 01:06:48,476
It was just where a couple of my buddies were camping. They both live in town.
990
01:06:48,596 --> 01:06:51,216
And they said that was the best spot because there was no dust.
991
01:06:51,676 --> 01:06:54,316
I was like, oh, okay. Sounds great.
992
01:06:55,036 --> 01:07:00,656
That's the spot. Okay. Right. It is kind of on the far side of town from Gate
993
01:07:00,656 --> 01:07:04,356
Road, which does actually, you know, keep you away from some of the dust.
994
01:07:04,516 --> 01:07:08,916
Oh, I see. Yeah, he actually knew what he was up to. He used to paint the entrance
995
01:07:08,916 --> 01:07:11,716
sign for years, he did. Oh, wow, that guy, cool.
996
01:07:12,096 --> 01:07:15,336
They were hanging up in the Black Rock Saloon. Anyway, so I drove over there,
997
01:07:15,516 --> 01:07:19,576
and on my way, I just remember kind of being dumbfounded because there were
998
01:07:19,576 --> 01:07:23,276
so fucking many people, and I was not used to that, right?
999
01:07:23,356 --> 01:07:27,196
The desert was a place of refuge for recluses, if anything.
1000
01:07:27,676 --> 01:07:30,036
You could go out there, you could see every star in the sky.
1001
01:07:30,196 --> 01:07:33,496
I know people talk about Utah, remote regions and whatnot, but it's a Black Rock Desert.
1002
01:07:33,496 --> 01:07:36,596
That there's not many places with less light than that less artificial
1003
01:07:36,596 --> 01:07:40,296
light that is and i don't know it was kind
1004
01:07:40,296 --> 01:07:46,156
of spectacularly imaginary it seemed like almost just a ton of people out here
1005
01:07:46,156 --> 01:07:51,296
and and you know what exactly are they doing out here so i don't made it over
1006
01:07:51,296 --> 01:07:55,996
to to my spot and just started talking to people found out you know there was
1007
01:07:55,996 --> 01:07:57,936
folks from all over the place and that That was pretty neat.
1008
01:07:59,196 --> 01:08:05,916
Okay, so you were able to put in your stuff before they put the fence up.
1009
01:08:06,176 --> 01:08:10,336
Is that because you're a resident of the town nearby? No, no,
1010
01:08:10,336 --> 01:08:12,056
no. It's just because I'm a scofflaw, really.
1011
01:08:12,156 --> 01:08:15,876
I mean, they don't want people doing that even if you're a resident.
1012
01:08:16,216 --> 01:08:19,396
But it was a little bit more of the Wild West then.
1013
01:08:19,456 --> 01:08:22,536
It still is. Early on, pre-event, things are a little different.
1014
01:08:22,536 --> 01:08:25,536
You know 50 80 000 people change a
1015
01:08:25,536 --> 01:08:30,456
community of you know a thousand for sure so yeah no i i just gone out there
1016
01:08:30,456 --> 01:08:33,876
and dumped it off i'm sure whoever might have happened to drive by just thought
1017
01:08:33,876 --> 01:08:37,756
it was you know somebody else who was out there working but no i was back in
1018
01:08:37,756 --> 01:08:41,196
time working and just came out there stuff was already set up it's kind of nice
1019
01:08:41,196 --> 01:08:43,956
all right that's fucking great.
1020
01:08:46,896 --> 01:08:48,756
So i get to the camp i'm talking to people,
1021
01:08:49,973 --> 01:08:53,053
I do like, you know, just interacting with folks and, you know,
1022
01:08:53,053 --> 01:08:56,313
checking out anything that's kind of novel. And so I just kind of went wandering off.
1023
01:08:57,073 --> 01:09:00,073
One thing I do remember really clearly was after dancing a bunch,
1024
01:09:00,253 --> 01:09:02,933
just being amazed that there was so much fire, fire dancers,
1025
01:09:03,073 --> 01:09:05,833
which you don't, you don't just encounter in everyday life all the time.
1026
01:09:05,973 --> 01:09:07,313
And there was a ton of them out there.
1027
01:09:08,233 --> 01:09:11,733
Danced a bunch and was dragging myself home in the morning, right?
1028
01:09:11,793 --> 01:09:14,253
I lost probably nearly everything I owned.
1029
01:09:15,113 --> 01:09:18,153
Most importantly, my sunglasses. I've got really sensitive eyes,
1030
01:09:18,333 --> 01:09:21,533
right? If I go outside in the daytime and I don't have sunglasses,
1031
01:09:21,633 --> 01:09:23,253
I'm just kind of squinting and crying a lot.
1032
01:09:23,833 --> 01:09:29,093
You'll know when you see it. And I'm on my way back to, I think, where my camp is at.
1033
01:09:29,273 --> 01:09:33,893
And this kind of large, weird-looking car thing pulls up in front of me, a ways in front of me.
1034
01:09:34,533 --> 01:09:38,533
And I'm just feeling awful. I'm blind. I'm not sure exactly where I'm going.
1035
01:09:38,673 --> 01:09:43,113
And then in the distance, I see them pull out these tables and they set up these
1036
01:09:43,113 --> 01:09:48,453
racks. and then somebody grabs a megaphone and and they're like free sunglasses.
1037
01:09:50,653 --> 01:09:53,973
Their name was shady sunrise and i don't think they've been out there for a
1038
01:09:53,973 --> 01:09:56,913
while but that was what they would do is every day at sunrise they would show
1039
01:09:56,913 --> 01:10:00,273
up and they would just set out a table and they had the racks like the spinning
1040
01:10:00,273 --> 01:10:02,173
racks you know from like the gas stations and stuff,
1041
01:10:02,833 --> 01:10:05,553
they're just full of shades you know these were not
1042
01:10:05,553 --> 01:10:08,853
designer shades or anything but they were all you fucking needed at that moment and
1043
01:10:08,853 --> 01:10:11,553
thinking like wow like who are these people that would
1044
01:10:11,553 --> 01:10:14,393
would just show up and and just take care of me
1045
01:10:14,393 --> 01:10:17,813
for whatever reason like means
1046
01:10:17,813 --> 01:10:20,453
anything to them like like at that point i just kind of
1047
01:10:20,453 --> 01:10:23,333
like i've been out i've seen a like a bunch of wild stuff lots of
1048
01:10:23,333 --> 01:10:26,733
people partying there's some cool art and stuff and and
1049
01:10:26,733 --> 01:10:29,653
suddenly it struck me you know like that what's behind all
1050
01:10:29,653 --> 01:10:32,633
of this is the people right and these people like
1051
01:10:32,633 --> 01:10:36,273
i don't know i came up i started talking to them and yeah had
1052
01:10:36,273 --> 01:10:39,333
a great conversation got some sunglasses finally made my way back home i
1053
01:10:39,333 --> 01:10:42,253
think it was my home i mean you
1054
01:10:42,253 --> 01:10:45,093
know that that story is great because it's like
1055
01:10:45,093 --> 01:10:47,893
that's that moment right yeah sure you saw the party so the
1056
01:10:47,893 --> 01:10:51,253
art you saw everybody being crazy and wild i'm like you needed
1057
01:10:51,253 --> 01:10:55,213
something and you know i know there's that cliche saying the playa provides
1058
01:10:55,213 --> 01:10:59,113
right but like you needed sunglasses and then here are these people that just
1059
01:10:59,113 --> 01:11:02,213
that's their purpose is to go out and bring sunglasses for people that need
1060
01:11:02,213 --> 01:11:06,093
them in the morning who just like you may have lost them in the night or didn't
1061
01:11:06,093 --> 01:11:10,413
pack them before they went out at night and And I bet if you could,
1062
01:11:10,493 --> 01:11:15,473
and it sounds like maybe you did, you just bottled that experience and the way
1063
01:11:15,473 --> 01:11:16,713
you felt in that moment up.
1064
01:11:17,826 --> 01:11:21,906
In a sense, like, I don't know, not bottled in the sense that it wasn't releasable,
1065
01:11:22,026 --> 01:11:26,686
like more so just kind of like captured it and like really appreciated it for
1066
01:11:26,686 --> 01:11:28,286
what it was and for what they were.
1067
01:11:28,806 --> 01:11:31,406
You know, yeah, the saying abounds, right? The playa provides.
1068
01:11:31,806 --> 01:11:36,066
And I feel like I have a better way of saying it.
1069
01:11:36,106 --> 01:11:41,166
I almost have beef with the saying because having spent a lot of time on the playa, right?
1070
01:11:41,226 --> 01:11:45,686
Like the playa doesn't really provide anything but an opportunity for death, maybe.
1071
01:11:45,686 --> 01:11:48,306
Be a whole lot of bright sunshine it's a
1072
01:11:48,306 --> 01:11:51,366
fucking fish poop that is like dissolved into like tiny
1073
01:11:51,366 --> 01:11:56,026
clay particles that just kind of get into everything right it's not the plies
1074
01:11:56,026 --> 01:12:01,586
much at all like 51 weeks out of the year like 50 you know 11 months or whatever
1075
01:12:01,586 --> 01:12:06,646
the plies not providing much of anything other than an empty palette right but
1076
01:12:06,646 --> 01:12:08,746
the people go out there and and they provide,
1077
01:12:09,226 --> 01:12:13,786
to each other right and and that is i don't know like it that is the thing i
1078
01:12:13,786 --> 01:12:16,966
think that is a really spectacular to, to kind of, I don't know,
1079
01:12:17,006 --> 01:12:20,346
stumble upon is, is not the,
1080
01:12:20,466 --> 01:12:23,186
it's not the parties, it's not the art, but it's the people,
1081
01:12:23,286 --> 01:12:27,066
you know, and, and, and I firmly believe that this, this, this event kind of
1082
01:12:27,066 --> 01:12:30,226
attracts some of the finest people on the planet. Right.
1083
01:12:30,806 --> 01:12:34,286
And, you know, I still believe that today kind of, you know,
1084
01:12:34,286 --> 01:12:37,326
surely the city has grown a lot and everything,
1085
01:12:37,486 --> 01:12:41,886
but still at the same time, it's, you know, folks might come,
1086
01:12:41,946 --> 01:12:44,606
but they're probably not going to come back unless they really believe in and
1087
01:12:44,606 --> 01:12:47,446
want to invest in what it has to offer and what it means,
1088
01:12:47,606 --> 01:12:51,366
which, you know, I've been to a bunch of festivals or whatever you want to call
1089
01:12:51,366 --> 01:12:53,826
like big gatherings, folks with music and art and whatever.
1090
01:12:54,799 --> 01:13:00,679
But very few like demand that people, you know, sustain themselves and not just themselves.
1091
01:13:00,779 --> 01:13:03,719
But like, you know, it's not an expectation, but people take care of each other
1092
01:13:03,719 --> 01:13:05,639
because they care. Right.
1093
01:13:06,039 --> 01:13:10,279
And all of us have been without something at some point, you know,
1094
01:13:10,279 --> 01:13:12,339
forgotten something, run out, whatever it is.
1095
01:13:12,399 --> 01:13:15,519
And so when we have like a little extra, you know, I think most people would
1096
01:13:15,519 --> 01:13:16,739
want to like give that to somebody else.
1097
01:13:17,059 --> 01:13:21,919
And I think that you just find that in abundance out there. And that's what
1098
01:13:21,919 --> 01:13:23,859
makes me want to keep coming back year after year.
1099
01:13:24,379 --> 01:13:27,139
Yeah yeah no well said man it's the people
1100
01:13:27,139 --> 01:13:30,099
provides that's the new that's the new slogan that's
1101
01:13:30,099 --> 01:13:33,719
the new sticker for next year i think no well
1102
01:13:33,719 --> 01:13:37,939
yeah people i think the new sticker so i think it's so here's what i'm gonna
1103
01:13:37,939 --> 01:13:41,539
do so you know that you are beautiful right everybody's got those yeah silver
1104
01:13:41,539 --> 01:13:45,459
i'm gonna do that one but it's gonna say you are fucked up i'm just gonna hand
1105
01:13:45,459 --> 01:13:51,779
those out i love it man you better write that down don't forget that one that's
1106
01:13:51,779 --> 01:13:52,919
a good that's It's a golden one.
1107
01:13:53,499 --> 01:13:58,319
All right. So, man, that's an awesome, you know, first encounter.
1108
01:13:58,659 --> 01:14:02,679
So, you know, so you camp where we camp, you know, you're a lamplighter.
1109
01:14:02,739 --> 01:14:07,379
And how did you find the lamplighters or did the lamplighters find you?
1110
01:14:07,479 --> 01:14:11,499
How did you make your way into the camp that was a community service camp?
1111
01:14:12,099 --> 01:14:16,919
So it was not too awfully terribly long before I bumped into some lamplighters
1112
01:14:16,919 --> 01:14:17,819
because they're abundant.
1113
01:14:17,939 --> 01:14:21,839
They're all over the place. They're very active folks and pretty gregarious in general.
1114
01:14:22,399 --> 01:14:25,699
Loving bunch of people so 2010 i was
1115
01:14:25,699 --> 01:14:28,539
out there for for the japlaya because you know it's my backyard
1116
01:14:28,539 --> 01:14:31,239
and there's a big bunch of shit
1117
01:14:31,239 --> 01:14:33,919
going on out there and i like to light off fireworks and it's better out there than in
1118
01:14:33,919 --> 01:14:37,679
town ostensibly anyway and so
1119
01:14:37,679 --> 01:14:40,479
cruising around i i'm on my dirt bike like literally
1120
01:14:40,479 --> 01:14:43,259
at this point like i can just ride my dirt bike off my back porch like onto
1121
01:14:43,259 --> 01:14:47,279
the playa which is great and headed over the frog pond because you know hot
1122
01:14:47,279 --> 01:14:52,059
dusty whatever and i bumped into a couple of gals there that they were kind
1123
01:14:52,059 --> 01:14:54,999
of like in the middle of the frog pond and there was there was some folks i
1124
01:14:54,999 --> 01:14:57,319
don't know some guys kind of like circling them almost like like it was like
1125
01:14:57,319 --> 01:15:00,799
like sharks and minnows or something vibe just seemed a little off so
1126
01:15:01,119 --> 01:15:04,039
i grabbed this giant bottle of vodka and kind of cannonballed into
1127
01:15:04,039 --> 01:15:07,639
the middle of it and she's like hey you
1128
01:15:07,639 --> 01:15:10,639
guys want some vodka to the gals
1129
01:15:10,639 --> 01:15:14,119
and they were like yeah and they were a couple of lamplighters turned
1130
01:15:14,119 --> 01:15:17,319
out growing out that day and a
1131
01:15:17,319 --> 01:15:20,459
little beyond and then and then for a few
1132
01:15:20,459 --> 01:15:23,899
years i don't know i made a bunch of friends there right but i just kind of
1133
01:15:23,899 --> 01:15:28,899
like circled around the lamplighters it was hard you know i don't like committing
1134
01:15:28,899 --> 01:15:32,819
to things too much maybe or whatever but but one thing that the lamplighters
1135
01:15:32,819 --> 01:15:36,039
always offered was in the middle of the night nobody was tending bar it seemed
1136
01:15:36,039 --> 01:15:38,859
like and i could just show up and fuck off and do whatever i wanted.
1137
01:15:39,594 --> 01:15:45,214
And, you know, bartenders seem like a great job. So I would do that and occasionally
1138
01:15:45,214 --> 01:15:46,854
sneak into like the group photo.
1139
01:15:48,754 --> 01:15:51,814
There was just a bunch of caring people there who actually seemed like,
1140
01:15:51,834 --> 01:15:57,674
you know, we're really invested, not just in the event or anything, but in each other.
1141
01:15:58,994 --> 01:16:01,834
And that was something that kind of spoke to me.
1142
01:16:01,994 --> 01:16:05,014
I'd been traveling my whole life. My first three cars were all vans.
1143
01:16:05,014 --> 01:16:09,374
I lived in all of them and traveled and never really had a whole lot of like
1144
01:16:09,374 --> 01:16:13,114
a place that was like a place I belong to or whatever.
1145
01:16:13,434 --> 01:16:18,554
And, and folks that I felt like, you know, I wanted to belong to or really like
1146
01:16:18,554 --> 01:16:19,414
get, you know, close with.
1147
01:16:20,154 --> 01:16:25,034
And, and here were a bunch of, you know, like crazy fucks who also gave a lot
1148
01:16:25,034 --> 01:16:28,394
of shits about the shit that was important, right about each other.
1149
01:16:29,174 --> 01:16:33,674
And so they slowly drew me in, you know, like circling the toilet bowl.
1150
01:16:34,214 --> 01:16:36,854
Finally got sucked in and it started camping with the
1151
01:16:36,854 --> 01:16:39,894
lamplighters and you know just getting more and more involved i
1152
01:16:39,894 --> 01:16:42,914
also like that they had something you know that that extended
1153
01:16:42,914 --> 01:16:46,074
back a while right like things change every year every
1154
01:16:46,074 --> 01:16:49,074
year right every every few minutes right your
1155
01:16:49,074 --> 01:16:51,794
part your bike's parked next to something you're like this is an art
1156
01:16:51,794 --> 01:16:54,734
project i'm sure and then 15 minutes later you come back and
1157
01:16:54,734 --> 01:16:57,754
it's gone you can't find your bike because of the car right right
1158
01:16:57,754 --> 01:17:00,494
oh yeah which is beautiful and wonderful and i
1159
01:17:00,494 --> 01:17:03,394
love it but but but these guys i don't know they had some some
1160
01:17:03,394 --> 01:17:06,014
sort of continuity about them in a way that
1161
01:17:06,014 --> 01:17:09,754
was not like i don't know stochastic like i don't
1162
01:17:09,754 --> 01:17:13,554
know it was it was it was a free-flowing continuity and yeah
1163
01:17:13,554 --> 01:17:16,354
just started hanging out with them more and more then also i
1164
01:17:16,354 --> 01:17:19,714
think a big thing was they didn't give a shit who i was or what i did or what
1165
01:17:19,714 --> 01:17:23,334
i was up to right people who just accepted you completely for who you were you
1166
01:17:23,334 --> 01:17:27,634
know this is the burn at large and lamplighters in general i think and and and
1167
01:17:27,634 --> 01:17:32,094
that was easy for me to you finally comes to terms with because I don't know,
1168
01:17:32,114 --> 01:17:34,154
maybe I've got some partages or whatever. And.
1169
01:17:35,646 --> 01:17:39,526
Don't always can like to conform with shit. Right. But these people don't know.
1170
01:17:40,246 --> 01:17:44,166
Well, and I think that's how those hard edges get softened is when you learn
1171
01:17:44,166 --> 01:17:46,266
that you can just be who you are and be accepted for that.
1172
01:17:46,386 --> 01:17:50,546
And, you know, almost be embraced for doing so, you know, as long as you're
1173
01:17:50,546 --> 01:17:53,086
not, you know, ruining someone's life,
1174
01:17:53,206 --> 01:17:56,766
but, uh, you know, I think that's how those edges get softened and,
1175
01:17:56,806 --> 01:18:02,326
you know, and obviously you, you keep coming back and, and, and I love having you there.
1176
01:18:02,666 --> 01:18:07,586
You're one of my favorite people in camp. So I'm super happy to hear that.
1177
01:18:08,026 --> 01:18:11,466
That was just an awesome way of explaining how you find such a camp.
1178
01:18:11,586 --> 01:18:15,946
So taking all that we just talked about, your first burn, how you got in,
1179
01:18:16,046 --> 01:18:18,366
your experience, you with lamplighters.
1180
01:18:18,886 --> 01:18:25,106
What was this? What was your experience? I know you were out in play for a long
1181
01:18:25,106 --> 01:18:26,126
time, not just the event.
1182
01:18:26,126 --> 01:18:30,146
So I don't know if I should say your first 24 hours this year,
1183
01:18:30,266 --> 01:18:34,446
but... 24 hours was, yeah, it was a lot of blank and a lot of dust.
1184
01:18:34,606 --> 01:18:37,546
It was windy early on, which was still great.
1185
01:18:37,706 --> 01:18:40,826
I love that. It's always a reminder of what actually is going on out there.
1186
01:18:42,286 --> 01:18:47,586
But yeah, this year, like relative to every other year and relative to my experiences
1187
01:18:47,586 --> 01:18:51,086
in general, I guess, you know, for one, this year was very emotional,
1188
01:18:51,246 --> 01:18:53,026
which I really appreciate.
1189
01:18:53,546 --> 01:18:58,026
You know, I grew up with very, very religious folks. I didn't really see eye
1190
01:18:58,026 --> 01:18:59,846
to eye with any of that at all.
1191
01:19:00,346 --> 01:19:03,766
And then I found this place and like after a bunch of, you know,
1192
01:19:03,786 --> 01:19:06,326
looking at stuff, dancing, talking to people and everything,
1193
01:19:06,386 --> 01:19:07,886
I found my way into the temple at one point.
1194
01:19:08,186 --> 01:19:10,266
And that was a very, like...
1195
01:19:11,912 --> 01:19:13,512
Like, you know, you could feel the energy in there and everything.
1196
01:19:13,692 --> 01:19:17,552
And I think it's an important yang to the yin that is the man, right?
1197
01:19:17,652 --> 01:19:22,152
And like I found a spirituality that I had not found in any other place than
1198
01:19:22,152 --> 01:19:23,072
just like nature and whatnot.
1199
01:19:24,332 --> 01:19:27,552
And that place continues to hold a lot of importance for me.
1200
01:19:27,592 --> 01:19:28,552
And it did this year as well.
1201
01:19:29,072 --> 01:19:32,032
I think it's great to be able to go out there and have a release,
1202
01:19:32,172 --> 01:19:34,632
you know, in a way that you cannot in a lot of places.
1203
01:19:35,552 --> 01:19:41,412
Aside from that in general, the other thing that this year actually made me
1204
01:19:41,412 --> 01:19:45,312
want really bad was kind of to go back to my roots, honestly,
1205
01:19:45,432 --> 01:19:49,832
and to kind of disappear into the nether regions and go burn like,
1206
01:19:49,832 --> 01:19:51,972
you know, open playa or something, honestly.
1207
01:19:52,912 --> 01:19:56,872
This year, we were downtown, downtown, right on a split line and everything.
1208
01:19:57,332 --> 01:20:01,812
Mm-hmm. A lot of intensity with that. that and i don't know for one like you
1209
01:20:01,812 --> 01:20:05,672
know and like one of the things i came out here for was new experiences right
1210
01:20:05,672 --> 01:20:07,972
like like it was like what is this i don't know i'm coming here,
1211
01:20:08,532 --> 01:20:11,772
and continued coming back because of all the originality
1212
01:20:11,772 --> 01:20:15,072
that that people bring which creates like
1213
01:20:15,072 --> 01:20:18,292
experiences that are unique because we
1214
01:20:18,292 --> 01:20:21,012
have this giant open ballot and so this year being
1215
01:20:21,012 --> 01:20:23,792
so close so downtown like it was like you know a lot of the camps
1216
01:20:23,792 --> 01:20:26,632
around like i have a ton of friends and everything and i love
1217
01:20:26,632 --> 01:20:29,452
that and it's great and it's wonderful seeing all these people again in at the same time
1218
01:20:29,452 --> 01:20:32,312
it's like holy shit a lot of this has been
1219
01:20:32,312 --> 01:20:36,012
like that i was here doing this before and i kind of wanted to it
1220
01:20:36,012 --> 01:20:39,312
made me want to go and and go back into nothing change my
1221
01:20:39,312 --> 01:20:46,272
name right and disappear a little bit i like that yeah yeah i mean it's if if
1222
01:20:46,272 --> 01:20:50,432
you find that it's it's you're maybe not getting the the things that you were
1223
01:20:50,432 --> 01:20:54,012
getting you know maybe for a while you did enjoy that it was kind of the same
1224
01:20:54,012 --> 01:20:56,192
thing and you see the same people and you're like oh this is This is,
1225
01:20:56,192 --> 01:20:58,692
you know, lamplighters like to say, this is my family.
1226
01:20:58,692 --> 01:21:03,272
And this feels like a family that I get to see once a year on holiday.
1227
01:21:03,892 --> 01:21:08,192
Yeah, maybe now it's time to shake it up and find a new experience. I totally get that.
1228
01:21:09,104 --> 01:21:12,024
Well, and I can still come back for the lamplighters any time,
1229
01:21:12,224 --> 01:21:14,704
any moment of day or night, right?
1230
01:21:14,784 --> 01:21:18,624
I could fall asleep behind the bar again, I'm sure, and very few people,
1231
01:21:18,724 --> 01:21:20,344
maybe a few, would step on me.
1232
01:21:20,764 --> 01:21:26,224
Yeah, and you can also sneak into the group picture again. It sounds like that's easy for you to do.
1233
01:21:26,624 --> 01:21:29,944
Well, and that's what family is, is somebody that you could disappear for a
1234
01:21:29,944 --> 01:21:32,084
little bit, and you can come back to, and you're going to pick up right where
1235
01:21:32,084 --> 01:21:34,864
you left off, right? And that is what I feel like with the community there.
1236
01:21:35,464 --> 01:21:40,564
Right on. Oh, man, that's beautiful. Well, Josh, thank you so much for sharing
1237
01:21:40,564 --> 01:21:45,604
all those stories with us and walking us through, you know, your history there. It's really sweet.
1238
01:21:46,084 --> 01:21:51,984
And yeah, you know, I will say that a lot of times it does feel like a family.
1239
01:21:52,084 --> 01:21:56,764
And some of the relationships I have with people that are out there feel more
1240
01:21:56,764 --> 01:22:01,484
deep than relationships I have with people that I see almost every day or every
1241
01:22:01,484 --> 01:22:03,924
week out here in the default world.
1242
01:22:03,924 --> 01:22:09,244
And it's just something that you only feel when you when you when you go through it so anyways,
1243
01:22:09,984 --> 01:22:14,504
yo thank you so much for coming on i'm sorry to interrupt i do love that like and that is like
1244
01:22:14,804 --> 01:22:19,644
i feel like you know like so much of a way that what i yeah you just lift off
1245
01:22:19,644 --> 01:22:22,804
that that is real family those are those are true friends those are people who
1246
01:22:22,804 --> 01:22:26,584
you know you're going to be able to bump into or talk to anytime for any reason
1247
01:22:26,584 --> 01:22:30,444
and it doesn't matter if you're gone for a few moments or a few days or whatever,
1248
01:22:30,584 --> 01:22:32,804
right? Yeah, well said.
1249
01:22:33,884 --> 01:22:38,244
All right, Josh, Uncle Dad, that is it for this piece.
1250
01:22:38,444 --> 01:22:43,384
And man, I'm going to go look to my Burning Man swag and I still haven't done
1251
01:22:43,384 --> 01:22:47,624
that and probably maybe shed a tear or two because it's always emotional, decompressing.
1252
01:22:49,284 --> 01:22:53,864
So we will be right back after this. Cheers, guys.
1253
01:22:54,160 --> 01:23:03,440
Music.
1254
01:23:03,289 --> 01:23:08,849
We're hanging out with somebody very cool, but I'll let you introduce her.
1255
01:23:09,029 --> 01:23:14,189
This is probably the crown jewel of all the interviews. What do you think?
1256
01:23:15,069 --> 01:23:19,149
Yeah, this was the toughest one to get. We had to really work hard to land this
1257
01:23:19,149 --> 01:23:23,829
one, so I finally got this one. I can't believe it.
1258
01:23:24,789 --> 01:23:27,989
Without further ado, Mike, go ahead and introduce who we're talking to.
1259
01:23:28,629 --> 01:23:32,009
Yeah, so this is one of our past guests.
1260
01:23:32,009 --> 01:23:35,469
Guests uncle dad what do you like to call them oh part
1261
01:23:35,469 --> 01:23:38,409
of the uncle dad alumni that's right yes
1262
01:23:38,409 --> 01:23:41,929
the uncle dad alumni you know folks
1263
01:23:41,929 --> 01:23:45,469
that have been on this show that have returned and here we have another one
1264
01:23:45,469 --> 01:23:52,369
this is one of my favorite guests from the past my sister monica hampton who's
1265
01:23:52,369 --> 01:23:58,849
joining us who was also experienced her first burning man this year let's give
1266
01:23:58,849 --> 01:24:01,909
it up for monica everybody Everybody loves Monica.
1267
01:24:04,609 --> 01:24:05,169
Hi.
1268
01:24:08,609 --> 01:24:13,449
What an introduction. I'm not worthy.
1269
01:24:15,589 --> 01:24:20,449
Well, don't ever say that about yourself ever. So, yeah, it was exciting to
1270
01:24:20,449 --> 01:24:22,249
have both of you guys here.
1271
01:24:23,661 --> 01:24:27,101
Burning Man this year, at the same time, it was like a double.
1272
01:24:28,281 --> 01:24:32,281
And yeah, Monica, so what was, you know, I've been trying to get you to come
1273
01:24:32,281 --> 01:24:34,721
to Burning Man since I went first in 2009.
1274
01:24:34,941 --> 01:24:37,901
And we finally got you in. You finally did the thing.
1275
01:24:38,901 --> 01:24:42,201
So please walk us through like how you got there.
1276
01:24:42,581 --> 01:24:45,881
What was your experience getting to the playa, getting on the playa,
1277
01:24:45,881 --> 01:24:50,761
feeling the playa for the first time, realizing that it's not dirt or sand,
1278
01:24:50,941 --> 01:24:54,461
that it's actually dust? Just walk us through all that.
1279
01:24:55,041 --> 01:25:00,041
Oh, wow. All right. I'll start with how it came to be that I was going to go.
1280
01:25:00,281 --> 01:25:05,261
Yeah. Well, so you, my brother, you were visiting out where I live in Asheville.
1281
01:25:05,401 --> 01:25:08,721
And it was pretty spontaneous.
1282
01:25:09,621 --> 01:25:12,781
As you said, you've been trying to get me to go for a long time.
1283
01:25:13,021 --> 01:25:17,301
And we were sitting down, enjoying some music at a bar.
1284
01:25:17,401 --> 01:25:20,421
And I said, all right, bro, next year is going to be the year.
1285
01:25:20,421 --> 01:25:23,261
And you looked at me and you're like, well, actually, it's going to be this
1286
01:25:23,261 --> 01:25:26,401
year because I'm going to get you in there.
1287
01:25:26,721 --> 01:25:31,921
So and we'll set you up. You just need to get out there. And so that was three
1288
01:25:31,921 --> 01:25:37,981
weeks, I think, before before Burning Man week and two weeks or whatever before
1289
01:25:37,981 --> 01:25:39,601
you were going to go out there for Build Week.
1290
01:25:40,321 --> 01:25:44,381
So that that was all pretty quick, which I actually found to be a common theme
1291
01:25:44,381 --> 01:25:48,621
this year with people that were going was very last minute decision makers.
1292
01:25:48,621 --> 01:25:51,741
So I felt like one of those one of
1293
01:25:51,741 --> 01:25:55,641
those folks I guess but I I flew
1294
01:25:55,641 --> 01:26:02,341
flew out to Reno got on a burner express bus with a bunch of other burners I
1295
01:26:02,341 --> 01:26:08,701
sat next to this really amazing woman from Australia who had been there nine
1296
01:26:08,701 --> 01:26:15,101
times as well just like you and she gave me some tips and lotion for my hens and,
1297
01:26:16,141 --> 01:26:20,081
which came in handy and I got out there and,
1298
01:26:21,600 --> 01:26:28,120
I mean, the bus ride was nice. Everybody was super, super excited. Clean, very clean.
1299
01:26:31,340 --> 01:26:36,820
Yeah. You've got to love a clean bus, am I right? Well, I'll tell you that the
1300
01:26:36,820 --> 01:26:39,640
bus ride back to Reno was not so clean.
1301
01:26:43,200 --> 01:26:46,520
Everybody was wiping themselves down with wet wipes.
1302
01:26:48,320 --> 01:26:51,500
Oh yeah the old wet wipe a
1303
01:26:51,500 --> 01:26:55,120
wash down that's a that's a quick shower yeah yeah
1304
01:26:55,120 --> 01:26:58,380
but yeah i made it out to the playa and
1305
01:26:58,380 --> 01:27:02,040
there's a tradition when you are a virgin out
1306
01:27:02,040 --> 01:27:04,980
there that you ring a bell and you do a
1307
01:27:04,980 --> 01:27:08,040
uh what is it a dust bunny so uh
1308
01:27:08,040 --> 01:27:11,400
a dressed angel thank you and so
1309
01:27:11,400 --> 01:27:14,120
i rang the bell well that's the
1310
01:27:14,120 --> 01:27:17,020
corner of the corner of the room i'm sitting in
1311
01:27:17,020 --> 01:27:24,660
right now but close very close sorry go ahead yeah pretty sure i have dust bunnies
1312
01:27:24,660 --> 01:27:33,780
now from my luggage but yeah so i rang the bell did a dust angel and you and
1313
01:27:33,780 --> 01:27:36,800
my and callie came to pick me up from the bus depot,
1314
01:27:37,980 --> 01:27:44,560
and took me on over to your camp to lamplighter camp and by callie she means
1315
01:27:44,560 --> 01:27:49,200
callie dunlap art oh yeah that's right we must specify it's callie dunlap art.
1316
01:27:51,240 --> 01:27:54,140
So okay right so you had a great sounds
1317
01:27:54,140 --> 01:27:58,240
like getting you know you made some friends already on the bus so when
1318
01:27:58,240 --> 01:28:01,180
you get you know you did the dust angel which we
1319
01:28:01,180 --> 01:28:03,900
talked to someone else on in this episode that uh they did
1320
01:28:03,900 --> 01:28:06,700
not they did not get that they must have had
1321
01:28:06,700 --> 01:28:10,340
a grumpy greeter because they didn't get anything they didn't get a book they
1322
01:28:10,340 --> 01:28:13,340
didn't get to ring the bell they didn't do a dust angel
1323
01:28:13,340 --> 01:28:16,560
they just got pushed through and and
1324
01:28:16,560 --> 01:28:20,180
they said they didn't even have to wait so i'm not sure what what that was all
1325
01:28:20,180 --> 01:28:26,440
about maybe this greeter was having a bad bad time but wow who knows so so when
1326
01:28:26,440 --> 01:28:31,120
you actually when you actually start riding down the road you're We picked you
1327
01:28:31,120 --> 01:28:33,920
up in a pickup truck. We're driving.
1328
01:28:34,320 --> 01:28:38,260
You have to drive five miles per hour on the roads there when you drive.
1329
01:28:39,200 --> 01:28:43,960
And everybody else is on bikes or walking unless it's like a working vehicle,
1330
01:28:44,160 --> 01:28:46,580
which is what mine was, or an art car.
1331
01:28:47,220 --> 01:28:50,220
So what's it like when you're – you've seen the pictures, right?
1332
01:28:50,300 --> 01:28:53,560
Now you're riding down the road and you're seeing all of this stuff.
1333
01:28:53,720 --> 01:28:58,840
What does it feel like to you when you're seeing all this for the first time
1334
01:28:58,840 --> 01:29:05,380
in person? Yeah, it felt like I was driving through an established city that
1335
01:29:05,380 --> 01:29:08,620
was there all the time. It seemed like...
1336
01:29:10,934 --> 01:29:16,254
Yeah, it's, it just, it felt like it was a place that exists year round.
1337
01:29:17,694 --> 01:29:25,334
Yeah. That was my first, that was, yeah. Like a municipal place. Sure. Yes, exactly.
1338
01:29:27,434 --> 01:29:31,534
Right. Yeah. Yeah. Cause yeah, I mean, uh, so, so, okay.
1339
01:29:31,594 --> 01:29:35,754
So then you get to camp and, you know, you got it pretty hooked.
1340
01:29:35,754 --> 01:29:37,074
You got hooked up pretty nice.
1341
01:29:37,114 --> 01:29:40,134
Cause we, we have set up everything for you so that you could land
1342
01:29:40,134 --> 01:29:43,094
easy and just and then just slide
1343
01:29:43,094 --> 01:29:47,454
right in and then so uh what was one of the first things we did after we got
1344
01:29:47,454 --> 01:29:52,394
to camp i probably introduced you to 100 people and it was probably a whirlwind
1345
01:29:52,394 --> 01:29:59,474
yeah i i met 100 people and had to learn 200 names because everyone has their
1346
01:29:59,474 --> 01:30:02,134
default or their their name and then they have
1347
01:30:02,174 --> 01:30:05,054
their playa name so I was doing
1348
01:30:05,054 --> 01:30:08,394
my best to to catch those and capture
1349
01:30:08,394 --> 01:30:11,154
those and then we pretty much
1350
01:30:11,154 --> 01:30:14,534
just hightailed it right out to the man to
1351
01:30:14,534 --> 01:30:17,414
to walk about the man and and
1352
01:30:17,414 --> 01:30:20,554
just you gave me some you know some info on
1353
01:30:20,554 --> 01:30:24,514
the basics of getting around kind
1354
01:30:24,514 --> 01:30:31,334
of orienting me to the directions and and everything so that was my that's pretty
1355
01:30:31,334 --> 01:30:36,414
much what we did in the first 30 minutes of me being being on the playa yeah
1356
01:30:36,414 --> 01:30:40,554
yeah for some it's a it's a it's a tradition i think a lot of people.
1357
01:30:41,534 --> 01:30:44,674
That i know you know the first thing you do when you get out there and you get
1358
01:30:44,674 --> 01:30:49,194
you know you throw your stuff down is you ride out to the man and yeah it was
1359
01:30:49,194 --> 01:30:54,434
a cool man this year had a nice you know, all these little in coves at the base of the man.
1360
01:30:54,534 --> 01:31:00,094
And, you know, it was again, and it was a beautiful weather, excuse me.
1361
01:31:00,134 --> 01:31:05,134
And so, so, okay. So we're there, you know, you're finally seeing it in person.
1362
01:31:05,174 --> 01:31:09,674
And when does it really sit in or is there a moment that it really sits in that
1363
01:31:09,674 --> 01:31:14,454
like, Holy crap, I'm actually, I'm really here. Or is it just like surreal?
1364
01:31:15,134 --> 01:31:18,294
Like, you know, you realize, man, and I'm here for another, what,
1365
01:31:18,334 --> 01:31:21,174
five days, six days, or however many days you were there.
1366
01:31:21,574 --> 01:31:25,134
Like where was that? What was it? Was there a moment where that really hit you?
1367
01:31:26,669 --> 01:31:32,209
I feel like I worked really hard to let it sink in that I was going to be at
1368
01:31:32,209 --> 01:31:36,349
Burning Man before I even left North Carolina.
1369
01:31:37,669 --> 01:31:43,549
Typically, I put these expectations on myself as to what an experience is going to be like,
1370
01:31:43,629 --> 01:31:49,689
already try to fill in blanks and know what's going to happen ahead of time
1371
01:31:49,689 --> 01:31:54,169
and anticipate things so I don't get anxiety or this and that.
1372
01:31:54,169 --> 01:32:01,569
But I really worked hard to just be present as much as I could with one foot
1373
01:32:01,569 --> 01:32:05,089
in front of the other or one pedal in front of the other. I don't know.
1374
01:32:06,589 --> 01:32:11,309
I think that works. That works. So it's still sinking in.
1375
01:32:11,609 --> 01:32:17,569
I'm still trying to catch up to the experience, I guess you could say.
1376
01:32:18,509 --> 01:32:22,309
But I just remember feeling really comfortable.
1377
01:32:22,309 --> 01:32:26,089
And I remember feeling like this
1378
01:32:26,089 --> 01:32:29,629
was just something I needed to do this was a place I needed to be and
1379
01:32:29,629 --> 01:32:32,909
I just felt very I mean
1380
01:32:32,909 --> 01:32:36,689
it's just great to be there with my family of course you know and have that
1381
01:32:36,689 --> 01:32:43,429
warm welcome and introduction but the man itself was I mean that was incredible
1382
01:32:43,429 --> 01:32:49,969
to see that to see that what someone's vision come to life like that and all
1383
01:32:50,069 --> 01:32:55,109
the different art pieces that are out there on playa and, you know, the deep playa.
1384
01:32:55,449 --> 01:33:00,809
And I just, I mean, it's, it's incredible. It's an incredible place that you
1385
01:33:00,809 --> 01:33:06,229
really, it's, it's like you're trying to ask me to, you're asking me to explain it and it's hard to.
1386
01:33:08,429 --> 01:33:11,469
You know, I want to say something real fast. So with, you know,
1387
01:33:11,469 --> 01:33:14,769
kind of combining my, my first 24 hours and seeing you,
1388
01:33:14,889 --> 01:33:18,029
we, within our first 24 hours,
1389
01:33:18,089 --> 01:33:21,309
we got to write to the man, all of us together and one
1390
01:33:21,309 --> 01:33:23,949
of my favorite moments is hanging out with
1391
01:33:23,949 --> 01:33:27,489
you and monica and we were just walking around checking out
1392
01:33:27,489 --> 01:33:30,509
the art pieces inside of the uh inside of
1393
01:33:30,509 --> 01:33:33,389
the man i really cherish that because i loved seeing how
1394
01:33:33,389 --> 01:33:35,989
excited you were explaining it to me and you gave me a
1395
01:33:35,989 --> 01:33:39,269
little bit of history here and there you were like oh look i found this history and
1396
01:33:39,269 --> 01:33:42,289
that's one of my things that i love about you so you're always so like you express
1397
01:33:42,289 --> 01:33:45,649
those things and and i remember telling you i was so infatuated with
1398
01:33:45,649 --> 01:33:49,109
spotting a an influencer sir like yeah
1399
01:33:49,109 --> 01:33:51,889
but i really just really appreciate that moment
1400
01:33:51,889 --> 01:33:54,749
because that was just you and i hanging out and uh you know we don't get to do that that often
1401
01:33:54,749 --> 01:33:58,049
so just thank you for that too i feel
1402
01:33:58,049 --> 01:34:02,369
like that's part of the the magic out there is that like i was given that by
1403
01:34:02,369 --> 01:34:08,489
others and so then you just do it for others then it just continues and then
1404
01:34:08,489 --> 01:34:12,669
i from what i'm gathering you know that's That's sort of the idea of Burning
1405
01:34:12,669 --> 01:34:16,249
Man really is to take this with you and to continue on,
1406
01:34:16,909 --> 01:34:19,949
with that in your Gili life, you know, in your community.
1407
01:34:21,277 --> 01:34:24,217
Yeah, totally. That's, that's, uh, I think something else that we,
1408
01:34:24,257 --> 01:34:29,477
you know, we discussed on this episode too, is that, yeah, it's almost like
1409
01:34:29,477 --> 01:34:31,777
any kind of thing you go to experience.
1410
01:34:32,977 --> 01:34:37,157
Where you're doing some kind of, some kind of self work or, you know,
1411
01:34:37,157 --> 01:34:41,377
bettering yourself or going to a place where, where things are,
1412
01:34:41,417 --> 01:34:45,677
are a certain type of way is how, how you integrate that back into the regular
1413
01:34:45,677 --> 01:34:47,037
world once you go out there.
1414
01:34:47,037 --> 01:34:50,397
Because it's great when it's contained in that space but part
1415
01:34:50,397 --> 01:34:53,557
of the part of the magic of burning man and what makes it a global community is
1416
01:34:53,557 --> 01:34:59,697
that you bring what you learn out there into the world and then that reverberates
1417
01:34:59,697 --> 01:35:05,697
from from the people that you give that to you know you hope and i'm so glad
1418
01:35:05,697 --> 01:35:11,317
that you picked up on that and that's kind of your experience and and yeah you know like,
1419
01:35:11,897 --> 01:35:16,317
you get to have these experiences with people that you may, you know,
1420
01:35:16,357 --> 01:35:19,437
you might not otherwise ever, ever, I've ever talked to, you know?
1421
01:35:19,437 --> 01:35:24,477
And so it allows for, it allows for lots of open space within that.
1422
01:35:24,577 --> 01:35:29,637
And, and so then, so you, you know, you really enjoyed seeing the man when we
1423
01:35:29,637 --> 01:35:31,517
got there, you experienced it with uncle dad here.
1424
01:35:32,557 --> 01:35:36,417
One of my favorite moments of the burn is watching you, Monica,
1425
01:35:36,477 --> 01:35:42,617
when the man burned on, on Saturday night, you know, So all the art cars are circling around.
1426
01:35:42,897 --> 01:35:48,077
Everybody's there. You know, it's like this 30-minute long firework show.
1427
01:35:48,217 --> 01:35:50,357
And then there's this huge mushroom cloud explosion.
1428
01:35:51,297 --> 01:35:55,677
And just watching your face and your excitement while all that was happening
1429
01:35:55,677 --> 01:36:00,437
was, it was, it was like, I don't know, it was very sweet.
1430
01:36:00,537 --> 01:36:04,297
Because I've experienced it so many times. And to see you experience that for
1431
01:36:04,297 --> 01:36:07,437
the first time was one of the highlights of my burn.
1432
01:36:07,537 --> 01:36:10,937
So what was that night like for you? Oh, that's sweet.
1433
01:36:13,288 --> 01:36:16,248
Well so we're calling her
1434
01:36:16,248 --> 01:36:20,868
callie dunlap art yeah also known
1435
01:36:20,868 --> 01:36:24,668
as my sister brother so callie
1436
01:36:24,668 --> 01:36:27,588
was a carrier of the
1437
01:36:27,588 --> 01:36:30,968
flame to light the man is that
1438
01:36:30,968 --> 01:36:34,388
how you would describe that yeah yeah the lamp lighters
1439
01:36:34,388 --> 01:36:37,328
push a cart that carries the flame that
1440
01:36:37,328 --> 01:36:40,188
is ignited by crimson rose at the beginning of
1441
01:36:40,188 --> 01:36:42,988
the burn week it stays lit the entire week in
1442
01:36:42,988 --> 01:36:46,488
a cauldron called el diablo and then is pushed by lamplighters
1443
01:36:46,488 --> 01:36:49,108
five lamplighters down to the
1444
01:36:49,108 --> 01:36:52,248
man where she takes the flame and then ignites
1445
01:36:52,248 --> 01:36:55,028
the man to burn and that that card is called the lumina
1446
01:36:55,028 --> 01:36:58,308
ferris and yeah callie dunlap art was one
1447
01:36:58,308 --> 01:37:02,468
of those uh pushers to the man so that was
1448
01:37:02,468 --> 01:37:05,248
our it already felt very special to me
1449
01:37:05,248 --> 01:37:08,028
i mean the whole experience is special and we're walking around
1450
01:37:08,028 --> 01:37:11,868
with you know you're one of your closest friends from camp
1451
01:37:11,868 --> 01:37:14,948
who i found to be a very
1452
01:37:14,948 --> 01:37:18,128
lovely human as well and i'm talking
1453
01:37:18,128 --> 01:37:25,308
about oh gosh now i'm forgetting all the names josh from australia and this
1454
01:37:25,308 --> 01:37:31,888
lovely lady and anyway we're walking around with them seeing all the art cars
1455
01:37:31,888 --> 01:37:36,308
and you know everyone parked all around the man in a circle and we we we did.
1456
01:37:36,368 --> 01:37:42,148
An entire loop around the man before we parked our butts somewhere to watch
1457
01:37:42,148 --> 01:37:43,788
the fireworks and the burn.
1458
01:37:44,148 --> 01:37:50,148
But the whole time I, I know that Callie is out there in the inner circle,
1459
01:37:50,228 --> 01:37:52,848
part of that ceremony. And, um.
1460
01:37:54,099 --> 01:37:58,879
I felt more connected to it, I think, because of, because of that,
1461
01:37:58,899 --> 01:38:04,159
because some, I know how she was feeling, and how serious she was taking it leading up to that,
1462
01:38:04,279 --> 01:38:09,279
and it was just nice to, to be a supporter for her from afar,
1463
01:38:09,479 --> 01:38:12,959
so there's that piece,
1464
01:38:13,119 --> 01:38:18,879
and then being with you, bro, was, you know, that's a one-of-a-kind experience,
1465
01:38:18,979 --> 01:38:24,359
that's something I'll treasure forever, ever to be able to have the joy and
1466
01:38:24,359 --> 01:38:29,399
excitement but also just this uh collection of people all around,
1467
01:38:30,179 --> 01:38:34,239
experiencing the same thing together being in that moment together with all
1468
01:38:34,239 --> 01:38:37,479
of those people that you don't know but some you're still connected to because
1469
01:38:37,479 --> 01:38:42,959
you just lived this experience together yeah and that's probably the best way
1470
01:38:42,959 --> 01:38:44,299
i could describe it i don't really.
1471
01:38:44,379 --> 01:38:47,079
Remember the fireworks so much as I just
1472
01:38:47,079 --> 01:38:49,879
remember how I was feeling like you know I really
1473
01:38:49,879 --> 01:38:52,779
can't remember all the visuals but I
1474
01:38:52,779 --> 01:38:56,719
can remember feeling just this pure excitement yeah
1475
01:38:56,719 --> 01:38:59,679
that's a great way to put it it's like I mean it's it's all
1476
01:38:59,679 --> 01:39:03,299
of the energy built up all all week or
1477
01:39:03,299 --> 01:39:06,599
all year from the last time this all happened so
1478
01:39:06,599 --> 01:39:09,519
it's it's you know it you know anytime
1479
01:39:09,519 --> 01:39:12,399
you know it's even the same thing when you get a bunch of people in a in an arena
1480
01:39:12,399 --> 01:39:15,159
for a game a sports sports game and you can
1481
01:39:15,159 --> 01:39:18,899
feel the energy in that building and that's a real thing like when a bunch of
1482
01:39:18,899 --> 01:39:22,639
people get together and they're all focused on one thing like all the people
1483
01:39:22,639 --> 01:39:27,099
are focused on the game all these people are focused on the man all this energy
1484
01:39:27,099 --> 01:39:31,599
is going to it it's electric you can feel it there's no doubt about it you know
1485
01:39:31,599 --> 01:39:35,079
when you ask me why do they burn the man and i and i kind
1486
01:39:35,159 --> 01:39:37,959
of gave you some some answer but i thought about
1487
01:39:37,959 --> 01:39:41,359
the best way to describe why they burn the man is so
1488
01:39:41,359 --> 01:39:47,039
they can build them again next year and burn them again you know and yeah that's
1489
01:39:47,039 --> 01:39:52,859
a great answer and that's why we do all of it out there is so that we can build
1490
01:39:52,859 --> 01:39:57,699
it again the next year and in and enjoy building and working with our friends
1491
01:39:57,699 --> 01:40:00,639
and celebrating life at night you know
1492
01:40:00,679 --> 01:40:04,779
that's kind of like a good way to think about it so yeah so what was a what
1493
01:40:04,779 --> 01:40:08,159
was a big challenge for you what was your biggest challenge out there do you
1494
01:40:08,159 --> 01:40:10,079
think being your first time i.
1495
01:40:10,659 --> 01:40:18,759
Think you know not probably not sleeping enough honestly was the i mean there's
1496
01:40:18,759 --> 01:40:23,139
there's some emotional challenges i do think some of them came from not getting
1497
01:40:23,139 --> 01:40:25,939
enough sleep probably and just Just, you know, hey,
1498
01:40:26,079 --> 01:40:28,679
you're hot. It's freaking hot out there.
1499
01:40:29,119 --> 01:40:34,739
And there's the elements. Just, you know, being in the elements out there makes you vulnerable.
1500
01:40:35,919 --> 01:40:38,919
It definitely makes you vulnerable. And...
1501
01:40:40,569 --> 01:40:45,829
Feeling like I needed to protect myself from, or others from my vulnerability.
1502
01:40:46,089 --> 01:40:50,469
So there's a, there's a moment there. I remember where I, I let it out.
1503
01:40:50,529 --> 01:40:54,809
I mean, I was waterworks for a little bit and feeling like I,
1504
01:40:54,889 --> 01:41:00,269
you know, didn't belong or there's not a place for me there and this and that.
1505
01:41:00,409 --> 01:41:03,989
So, uh, which is a thing I have regard, you know, no matter where I am.
1506
01:41:04,029 --> 01:41:11,209
So it was, that, but it was received with, with love from, you know, again, my community.
1507
01:41:11,449 --> 01:41:17,629
So just allow myself to be open and honest and push, push the envelope a little bit.
1508
01:41:18,049 --> 01:41:23,429
I love that. I think also too, you saying that Monica, just know no matter where
1509
01:41:23,429 --> 01:41:26,649
you go, you always belong and the right people will always accept you for who
1510
01:41:26,649 --> 01:41:28,749
you are. Well, thank you.
1511
01:41:30,689 --> 01:41:35,749
Yeah. Before we kind of close this up here, two things.
1512
01:41:36,489 --> 01:41:41,129
What was your favorite art piece out there? Did you have one that was a favorite of yours?
1513
01:41:42,869 --> 01:41:48,969
There's two. I'm going to tell you both. One was actually the three of us wrote
1514
01:41:48,969 --> 01:41:51,869
out to it together. There was the kaleidoscope.
1515
01:41:52,209 --> 01:41:56,229
I forget the name of the piece, but it was from a group from New Orleans, I believe.
1516
01:41:56,749 --> 01:42:00,489
Lots of steel, tall. it was a
1517
01:42:00,489 --> 01:42:03,149
man looking through a kaleidoscope do you know what it was uncle i
1518
01:42:03,149 --> 01:42:06,189
don't remember what it was called but i do remember what you're talking about and
1519
01:42:06,189 --> 01:42:09,309
like a little kaleidoscope the screen underneath it right yeah
1520
01:42:09,309 --> 01:42:12,469
yeah and you can look in there and yeah yeah
1521
01:42:12,469 --> 01:42:15,269
it was it was a very it was it was an incredible piece
1522
01:42:15,269 --> 01:42:18,369
it it i mean the the majesty of
1523
01:42:18,369 --> 01:42:21,929
it against the mountain backdrop the plied
1524
01:42:21,929 --> 01:42:24,809
ground just just sitting there
1525
01:42:24,809 --> 01:42:28,149
just this beautiful art piece just just sitting there i mean it
1526
01:42:28,149 --> 01:42:31,209
was surreal so that was that was
1527
01:42:31,209 --> 01:42:38,529
incredible that piece was named zozobot and the curious clown droid just just
1528
01:42:38,529 --> 01:42:44,109
to clarify but yeah a really cool piece from a from from a new orleans group
1529
01:42:44,109 --> 01:42:50,949
yeah and then then there was the serpent and the naga what is it,
1530
01:42:51,749 --> 01:42:56,049
it was Naga the sea serpent and something.
1531
01:42:57,689 --> 01:43:02,409
Naga and the Captainess is the name of the piece that whole scene out there
1532
01:43:02,409 --> 01:43:08,629
with the shipwreck and the serpent who you know one of your really good close
1533
01:43:08,629 --> 01:43:11,309
friends who were helped build,
1534
01:43:12,009 --> 01:43:19,049
Mike and I loved how they used the playa to make it seem as though it was you
1535
01:43:19,049 --> 01:43:22,129
know coming weaving in and out of the, you know, the playa.
1536
01:43:23,240 --> 01:43:27,180
Just use it utilizing what was there. I love that part.
1537
01:43:27,540 --> 01:43:30,540
Then there's one little more thing I'll mention. It was a funny one.
1538
01:43:30,600 --> 01:43:35,620
We were out in deep playa by the trash fence one night, which we walked.
1539
01:43:35,620 --> 01:43:38,840
We walked about 20 miles within 10 hours, I think it was.
1540
01:43:40,460 --> 01:43:44,200
And there was a tanning bed out there.
1541
01:43:45,400 --> 01:43:52,920
That's right. I just thought the irony of a tanning bed out there was hilarious.
1542
01:43:53,400 --> 01:43:57,500
And I love that about Burning Man is the playfulness of it.
1543
01:43:57,660 --> 01:44:02,960
Just remind you just to have fun and play and, you know, you could get in. So you did, Mike.
1544
01:44:03,100 --> 01:44:07,040
You got into the tanning bed and I interviewed you while you were in there.
1545
01:44:07,220 --> 01:44:13,840
And it was just a good laugh. And I mean, I loved how interactive a lot of the pieces were.
1546
01:44:14,440 --> 01:44:18,860
Yeah. It really does allow for a lot of playfulness, interactiveness,
1547
01:44:18,960 --> 01:44:21,940
and to just see things without,
1548
01:44:23,042 --> 01:44:25,962
without any kind of construct around them. You're just there.
1549
01:44:26,042 --> 01:44:29,502
It's there. And you can just be with it however you be.
1550
01:44:29,682 --> 01:44:33,542
And, you know, I think some people, it takes a couple of days to really get
1551
01:44:33,542 --> 01:44:34,742
that and understand that.
1552
01:44:34,842 --> 01:44:39,562
So I'm glad you found it. And so, correct me if I'm wrong, but it sounds like
1553
01:44:39,562 --> 01:44:43,422
you had a good time and you may be coming back.
1554
01:44:43,702 --> 01:44:45,902
Does that be correct?
1555
01:44:46,342 --> 01:44:49,422
Did you even go to Burning Man if you don't go more than once?
1556
01:44:50,542 --> 01:44:55,022
Oh, look at me. Ooh, that's a good poll question. Can you call yourself a burner
1557
01:44:55,022 --> 01:44:58,502
if you don't go twice? We're going to have to put this as a poll.
1558
01:44:58,922 --> 01:45:04,542
According to Dragnet, who we met one night out somewhere.
1559
01:45:06,322 --> 01:45:12,362
Dragnet. I remember that name, yeah. He was one of the artists.
1560
01:45:12,422 --> 01:45:16,222
He made something, the furthest art piece by the Trash Fence.
1561
01:45:16,442 --> 01:45:20,962
And he's been going like 30 years to Burning Man. and he just was walking around
1562
01:45:20,962 --> 01:45:25,802
like a curious man one night by an art piece we were at and we just got to talking
1563
01:45:25,802 --> 01:45:29,322
to him for a while. What was my point to bringing him up?
1564
01:45:30,942 --> 01:45:35,782
I don't remember. There's nothing along the lines of if you've gone to Burning
1565
01:45:35,782 --> 01:45:37,542
Man, only once will you go to Burning Man.
1566
01:45:38,582 --> 01:45:44,542
That was him. He said, you've got to go twice. Yeah. Twice or more and you're a burner.
1567
01:45:46,442 --> 01:45:49,602
I like that. Yeah, I agree. You know, your first time you kind of soak it in.
1568
01:45:49,662 --> 01:45:54,622
The second time, I think you kind of find your own self in it a little more,
1569
01:45:54,762 --> 01:45:56,402
you know, because you already know what to expect.
1570
01:45:57,202 --> 01:46:03,342
And so now you're just kind of, you're ready to have your own experience a little more, I think.
1571
01:46:03,442 --> 01:46:07,802
And so I guess we'll see you next year then. Oh. Yeah.
1572
01:46:08,082 --> 01:46:10,982
We'll see you then. Keep the momentum going, right?
1573
01:46:12,182 --> 01:46:15,382
Love it. I love it. I love it. That was absolutely amazing. Amazing.
1574
01:46:15,382 --> 01:46:17,962
Thank you so much, Monica, for sharing your story, your tale.
1575
01:46:18,222 --> 01:46:22,422
I think logical will resonate with that. So thank you so much for that.
1576
01:46:22,722 --> 01:46:25,782
And Mike, we'll be right back after this lovely break.
1577
01:46:27,480 --> 01:46:32,100
Hey, this is Dan Brereton, creator of The Nocturnals, the spookiest comic this
1578
01:46:32,100 --> 01:46:34,140
side of the Cemetery Hill.
1579
01:46:34,560 --> 01:46:39,000
And you're listening to The Uncle Dad Talks Show.
1580
01:46:40,360 --> 01:46:46,180
Wow, wow, wow. What a episode, Mike, full of so many wonderful,
1581
01:46:46,280 --> 01:46:49,980
incredible stories, personal stories from all walks of life,
1582
01:46:50,080 --> 01:46:53,160
including family, close friends, bio friends.
1583
01:46:53,480 --> 01:46:56,180
Absolutely amazing. Mike. Yeah.
1584
01:46:57,240 --> 01:46:59,120
I mean, it's like being a Burning Man.
1585
01:47:00,620 --> 01:47:05,240
It's like you were really there listening and talking to people and you know,
1586
01:47:05,260 --> 01:47:10,620
it's everybody experiences the same exact thing, but in a very different way.
1587
01:47:11,020 --> 01:47:14,520
Everybody's going to the same place. People that we talked to are at the same
1588
01:47:14,520 --> 01:47:20,240
camp and everybody got there in their own way and experienced Burning Man in their own way.
1589
01:47:21,120 --> 01:47:23,920
Yeah that's the that's the you know i was talking about it was
1590
01:47:23,920 --> 01:47:26,680
you know who really helped me out a lot with the burn was uh
1591
01:47:26,680 --> 01:47:30,820
callie done that part and and right
1592
01:47:30,820 --> 01:47:33,580
and uh you know she said something great to
1593
01:47:33,580 --> 01:47:37,680
me that really kind of eased my nerves she goes it doesn't matter how
1594
01:47:37,680 --> 01:47:40,780
you want to do your burn it doesn't as long
1595
01:47:40,780 --> 01:47:43,640
as you just do your burn like you want to spend it alone spend it alone you
1596
01:47:43,640 --> 01:47:46,420
want to whatever it doesn't matter and i really kind of and
1597
01:47:46,420 --> 01:47:49,760
i really saw that she goes just you be you and that's okay
1598
01:47:49,760 --> 01:47:52,580
yeah that's a great great word of
1599
01:47:52,580 --> 01:47:55,660
advice you know it's like you know also and within
1600
01:47:55,660 --> 01:47:59,720
that like don't don't try to control someone else's burn too because they're
1601
01:47:59,720 --> 01:48:02,920
having their own thing i mean that's i think that's a lot of where the expression
1602
01:48:02,920 --> 01:48:08,020
fuck your burn comes from it's just like hey man fuck your burn i've got my
1603
01:48:08,020 --> 01:48:13,040
burn you do yours and i think that's one of the great things that that that
1604
01:48:13,040 --> 01:48:15,500
teaches it teaches you and one of the
1605
01:48:15,520 --> 01:48:19,920
principles of Burning Man is radical self-reliance and just relying on yourself
1606
01:48:19,920 --> 01:48:22,980
and doing yourself. And then from there and you'll find yourself.
1607
01:48:23,420 --> 01:48:26,540
Right. Yeah. And I think that's pretty well said. And I think,
1608
01:48:26,540 --> 01:48:27,620
you know, you do find yourself.
1609
01:48:27,680 --> 01:48:31,760
I definitely found myself, you know, I was, I was definitely leaving earlier
1610
01:48:31,760 --> 01:48:33,800
than you guys were, but I was just totally okay with that.
1611
01:48:33,840 --> 01:48:38,600
I'm glad I did because it really helped me kind of pace myself to getting myself
1612
01:48:38,600 --> 01:48:41,000
into everything, you know? And I think if I would have went hard,
1613
01:48:41,040 --> 01:48:44,180
like in any way, like just staying up late all night or, you know,
1614
01:48:44,180 --> 01:48:46,120
whatever, I think it would have been a little too much for me.
1615
01:48:46,140 --> 01:48:49,220
And I'm really thankful that I was able to have that, you know,
1616
01:48:49,220 --> 01:48:51,580
I didn't feel pressured like, oh, I got to be out. I got to be out.
1617
01:48:51,640 --> 01:48:52,080
You know what I'm saying?
1618
01:48:52,260 --> 01:48:54,160
Because I know some people feel that pressure and it's like,
1619
01:48:54,180 --> 01:48:55,180
you shouldn't have to feel that, right?
1620
01:48:55,955 --> 01:48:58,895
Yeah. I mean, to each their own, you know, some people go and they're like,
1621
01:48:58,895 --> 01:49:02,275
you know, maybe they've paid a ton of dough to be there.
1622
01:49:02,435 --> 01:49:05,815
And so that's the one thing that they get to do all year.
1623
01:49:06,075 --> 01:49:11,435
You know, it's their big vacation or it's their one time they're going to market off their bucket list.
1624
01:49:11,715 --> 01:49:15,755
You know, so people have different reasons for wanting to push and go hard and see everything. thing.
1625
01:49:15,895 --> 01:49:20,295
And you know, maybe if you, if you get gifted a ticket or you go there to work
1626
01:49:20,295 --> 01:49:26,095
or you do fun things that are not burning, man, but you travel and do fun things all the time.
1627
01:49:26,155 --> 01:49:31,395
Maybe it's not that you don't feel the same urgency to like go all and do all and see all.
1628
01:49:31,615 --> 01:49:35,475
So again, you have your burn, right? Yeah.
1629
01:49:35,915 --> 01:49:39,515
I love that, man. I had a story I wanted to share with you post burn that I
1630
01:49:39,515 --> 01:49:41,115
haven't shared with you yet. I don't think I have at least.
1631
01:49:41,355 --> 01:49:45,135
Did I tell you the story that I drove somebody to
1632
01:49:45,135 --> 01:49:48,995
the bus station there no yes so
1633
01:49:48,995 --> 01:49:51,775
you know i i'm a pretty open dude i would say and
1634
01:49:51,775 --> 01:49:55,195
i'm usually pretty like oh yeah whatever but i've never really taken somebody
1635
01:49:55,195 --> 01:49:59,635
a stranger in my car and taken them somewhere never done that before in the
1636
01:49:59,635 --> 01:50:04,755
camp next to me that was where my car was parked right there i've i wish i could
1637
01:50:04,755 --> 01:50:08,055
remember his name entirely but all i remember is that it started with Tug,
1638
01:50:08,135 --> 01:50:10,175
if that means anything to you. No.
1639
01:50:10,935 --> 01:50:14,515
Okay. His name was Tug. He was from San Francisco. And if you're listening,
1640
01:50:14,615 --> 01:50:20,375
Tug, I really enjoyed the conversation with you, but he was a 40 something year old white male.
1641
01:50:20,815 --> 01:50:24,875
Okay. You know, he, he saw me packing up and as I turned the car on and he goes,
1642
01:50:24,995 --> 01:50:29,455
Hey, wait, where, where are you going right now? And I was like, I'm leaving.
1643
01:50:29,675 --> 01:50:34,995
And he goes, if you don't mind, can you wait like 15 minutes and I will go with
1644
01:50:34,995 --> 01:50:37,175
you so So you can drop me off at the bus station, please.
1645
01:50:37,475 --> 01:50:40,555
Because I really don't want Snoddo to take me later, you know,
1646
01:50:40,595 --> 01:50:42,955
like I guess like at one o'clock and he wanted to be there before that.
1647
01:50:43,838 --> 01:50:47,918
And he goes, and I also don't want to burden Sonata with that too. And I was like, yeah.
1648
01:50:47,978 --> 01:50:51,538
And for a second there, I felt like I was going to say no because I just didn't
1649
01:50:51,538 --> 01:50:52,738
know the guy. But I was like, you know what?
1650
01:50:53,158 --> 01:50:55,838
Fuck that. I need to kind of let that barrier down.
1651
01:50:56,398 --> 01:50:59,378
And I said, yeah, let's do it. Hell yeah. You can come with me.
1652
01:51:00,538 --> 01:51:02,278
And I'm so glad that I did. He
1653
01:51:02,278 --> 01:51:05,618
was incredibly nice. He filled up his two buckets and he put it in my car.
1654
01:51:05,758 --> 01:51:09,498
And I drove into the bus station. We had a beautiful chat. He was telling me his life story.
1655
01:51:09,658 --> 01:51:13,038
I don't want to say that on air, but just telling me a lot of crazy things about
1656
01:51:13,038 --> 01:51:15,818
his life. And this man lived such a wild life.
1657
01:51:16,018 --> 01:51:20,018
And then he left and he gave me the most beautiful hug I've ever gotten in a long time.
1658
01:51:21,098 --> 01:51:24,818
And I was thinking about that almost the entire ride home because I was like,
1659
01:51:24,858 --> 01:51:28,138
that was something so out of my comfort zone.
1660
01:51:28,558 --> 01:51:31,758
You know me pretty well. I think that definitely was something I wouldn't normally do.
1661
01:51:32,378 --> 01:51:36,738
And I'm so glad I did it because it really opened my mind that it doesn't matter
1662
01:51:36,738 --> 01:51:37,678
who you are. We're just people.
1663
01:51:38,018 --> 01:51:43,258
And I don't know if that makes any sense. I hope that story made sense. Yeah, sure.
1664
01:51:43,438 --> 01:51:47,718
I mean, it sounds like, you know, it sounds like you got out of your comfort
1665
01:51:47,718 --> 01:51:52,518
zone a little bit, opened up to someone else who was also out there experiencing
1666
01:51:52,518 --> 01:51:54,178
what you were experiencing, Burning Man.
1667
01:51:55,398 --> 01:52:01,638
And without any kind of looking for a reward, you just help someone who asked for help.
1668
01:52:02,038 --> 01:52:08,238
Yeah and within that you had a great conversation and allowed yourself to kind of.
1669
01:52:09,318 --> 01:52:12,558
Maybe feel a little more comfortable in in a space like
1670
01:52:12,558 --> 01:52:16,538
that with someone that you don't know which you in more ways beautiful yeah
1671
01:52:16,538 --> 01:52:19,738
in more ways you realize because i've seen that affect me here now because i
1672
01:52:19,738 --> 01:52:21,878
was like dude i just let a stranger in my car whenever i could talk to anybody
1673
01:52:21,878 --> 01:52:26,498
yeah yeah i mean that's the thing about burning man is it's like it's not that
1674
01:52:26,498 --> 01:52:29,438
you just go there you do it you come home and you jump right back to work i
1675
01:52:29,438 --> 01:52:31,038
mean maybe for some people Yes,
1676
01:52:31,198 --> 01:52:37,338
but I think that you take the things that you learn out there and the experiences
1677
01:52:37,338 --> 01:52:41,658
that you have out there or how the 10 principles relate to you and you...
1678
01:52:42,317 --> 01:52:46,297
Bring those out into the world. And I think that's what starts there.
1679
01:52:46,317 --> 01:52:49,417
That's what keeps the, the Burning Man global community going,
1680
01:52:49,537 --> 01:52:54,277
you know, cause it's, it's not just being out there for those,
1681
01:52:54,297 --> 01:52:56,757
those days that Burning Man event is happening.
1682
01:52:56,937 --> 01:53:01,197
It's, it's something that you can do year round. It's how you can choose to
1683
01:53:01,197 --> 01:53:03,077
live your life in a more intentional way.
1684
01:53:03,697 --> 01:53:07,257
And, you know, I think people, when they're around that,
1685
01:53:07,277 --> 01:53:12,217
they feel it and they're probably gravitated towards words it and and i think
1686
01:53:12,217 --> 01:53:17,637
you're doing a service to to humanity and and community as a whole in the world
1687
01:53:17,637 --> 01:53:22,337
so i'm glad that you uh had that on your way out so serendipitous you got this one,
1688
01:53:22,977 --> 01:53:27,857
last little thing on right as you were getting out the door you got a chance
1689
01:53:27,857 --> 01:53:31,597
to to dive into that that's really cool yeah i was so i was so grateful that
1690
01:53:31,597 --> 01:53:34,757
i said yes because it really did i mean i'm telling you man it really affected
1691
01:53:34,757 --> 01:53:38,417
me in a way that i didn't expect because i was like Like, yeah, this is fucking dope.
1692
01:53:38,497 --> 01:53:40,537
Like these people, and this kind of goes back to the show almost.
1693
01:53:40,617 --> 01:53:43,997
It's like, it's what we do, right? We tell stories from all walks of life.
1694
01:53:44,097 --> 01:53:47,097
And that was like my own personal version of that, you know? Excuse me. Yeah.
1695
01:53:48,837 --> 01:53:51,917
So didn't mean to go on that tangent, but I wanted to share that story with you on mic.
1696
01:53:52,497 --> 01:53:54,837
Oh, that's great. I'm glad you did. And I'm glad you did that.
1697
01:53:55,177 --> 01:53:58,337
Good for you. I'm going to make a tune about that. You're going to be evolving.
1698
01:53:59,177 --> 01:54:01,577
You're a real person. I know.
1699
01:54:02,557 --> 01:54:06,297
But I wouldn't be that person without you, bud. So thank you. you
1700
01:54:06,297 --> 01:54:08,997
yeah man i mean you know i we had to help each
1701
01:54:08,997 --> 01:54:11,837
other out and that's and now you're helping someone else out
1702
01:54:11,837 --> 01:54:14,917
and it just continues you know yeah so
1703
01:54:14,917 --> 01:54:19,317
mike you know as we wrap up this episode what was your you know because for
1704
01:54:19,317 --> 01:54:23,277
the first time ever you know you had your sister there and you had your bro
1705
01:54:23,277 --> 01:54:29,897
there me saying that what was that like for you finally post-sporting ben you
1706
01:54:29,897 --> 01:54:32,157
know No, it was, I loved it.
1707
01:54:32,197 --> 01:54:38,057
I loved having, it was almost surreal, you know, and I was really excited to
1708
01:54:38,057 --> 01:54:46,937
show, show you guys things and, you know, let you experience your own burn, you know, and,
1709
01:54:47,617 --> 01:54:51,517
you know, I guess, I think there were times where I felt like I was kind of
1710
01:54:51,517 --> 01:54:56,237
had to take care a little more than I wanted to, you know, more of my sister,
1711
01:54:56,297 --> 01:54:58,957
not so much you, which, you know, I understand.
1712
01:54:59,037 --> 01:55:00,977
She's my little sister. Sure.
1713
01:55:01,137 --> 01:55:09,537
But I think as you go into Burning Man, especially if it's already way outside your comfort zone.
1714
01:55:10,897 --> 01:55:19,377
It might take you a bit to open up more to that world without feeling like you needed someone there.
1715
01:55:20,737 --> 01:55:25,597
But overall, I loved it. I loved watching your guys' faces, see things,
1716
01:55:25,597 --> 01:55:28,077
to hear you constantly be like, this is so unreal,
1717
01:55:28,377 --> 01:55:33,077
and to see my sister just be like, I cannot believe this, especially on burn
1718
01:55:33,077 --> 01:55:35,777
night when we're, you know, this is right after you left, or right before,
1719
01:55:35,857 --> 01:55:39,117
yeah, you know, walking around and just, like, looking at,
1720
01:55:39,788 --> 01:55:43,728
All of the, all of the art cars and everybody congregated around the man and
1721
01:55:43,728 --> 01:55:47,008
this huge fireworks show and mushroom cloud explosion.
1722
01:55:47,088 --> 01:55:51,508
Like, like I just, and then finally seeing her like kind of find her,
1723
01:55:51,548 --> 01:55:55,848
her own way, you know, you were able to go walk around and do your thing and
1724
01:55:55,848 --> 01:55:58,268
talk to people. I think she's a little more challenged in that way.
1725
01:55:58,568 --> 01:56:02,728
Yeah. Finally saw her doing that more on her own. So I was like, ah, there you go.
1726
01:56:02,848 --> 01:56:08,608
And so just seeing the magic of what Burning Man is like work for you guys too,
1727
01:56:08,668 --> 01:56:09,588
I think was really special.
1728
01:56:10,148 --> 01:56:13,208
For sure and you know what i'm glad you said that because i definitely saw
1729
01:56:13,208 --> 01:56:16,168
that too and i'm so happy that she got she got out there man i think
1730
01:56:16,168 --> 01:56:19,148
you know it wasn't it's nerve-wracking i'll definitely agree with that it's
1731
01:56:19,148 --> 01:56:21,868
definitely a lot like your first when you first arrive and i said that earlier
1732
01:56:21,868 --> 01:56:25,728
like it's definitely overwhelming it's overstimulating it's a lot it's a lot
1733
01:56:25,728 --> 01:56:29,228
a lot a lot especially if you're not used to that kind of setting in the harsh
1734
01:56:29,228 --> 01:56:32,748
environment you know and but to be honest with you i was really i know that
1735
01:56:32,748 --> 01:56:36,068
i missed what was it called sunday white Whiteout, they called it, right?
1736
01:56:36,808 --> 01:56:42,748
Yeah. Yeah. The dust, the whiteout storm for the temple Sunday night was really intense. Yeah.
1737
01:56:43,048 --> 01:56:46,608
Yeah. I didn't get to see that. But, you know, overall, when I was there,
1738
01:56:46,768 --> 01:56:51,148
I would say the weather was almost pretty perfect. I mean, you know what I mean? It wasn't overly hot.
1739
01:56:51,628 --> 01:56:54,568
This was one of the most perfect weather Burning Mans have ever experienced.
1740
01:56:54,868 --> 01:56:59,308
Yeah. It got hot in the day, but like it gets hot where we live, you know? Yeah.
1741
01:56:59,788 --> 01:57:03,328
That's not, it wasn't extreme hot. It wasn't triple digits hot.
1742
01:57:03,688 --> 01:57:07,528
Yeah. We hardly had any dust storms during the event. You did have some during
1743
01:57:07,528 --> 01:57:09,568
setup. We had a day of rain during setup.
1744
01:57:10,288 --> 01:57:16,408
But during the event, main week, perfect, almost perfect weather.
1745
01:57:16,628 --> 01:57:18,008
Yeah, we lucked out with that.
1746
01:57:18,328 --> 01:57:21,488
Yeah, that was amazing. Because I remember being so worried about that because
1747
01:57:21,488 --> 01:57:24,708
you had told me in the past, like, be mindful of this and that.
1748
01:57:24,828 --> 01:57:26,668
And then when I got there, I was like, dude, this week is great.
1749
01:57:26,888 --> 01:57:30,808
I mean, yeah, it was, like you said, hot and I got a little sunburned. But, you know.
1750
01:57:31,523 --> 01:57:36,723
Dude, it was pretty perfect. I really advise anybody, if you can take the opportunity
1751
01:57:36,723 --> 01:57:42,123
to go, go and experience it in a way that works for you.
1752
01:57:42,543 --> 01:57:46,963
And just be open-minded to everything. And don't be afraid to say yes.
1753
01:57:47,703 --> 01:57:53,103
Wow. I notice a difference in you right now. I can't tell if that's joking, but yeah.
1754
01:57:53,303 --> 01:57:56,023
I'm serious. I sense a difference.
1755
01:57:56,283 --> 01:58:00,543
There's a sense of, there's more confidence in you, I feel like, saying that.
1756
01:58:00,543 --> 01:58:03,663
And i feel like you really mean it and i feel
1757
01:58:03,663 --> 01:58:06,383
a strength in you in your voice when you say that
1758
01:58:06,383 --> 01:58:09,203
i'm serious oh thank you brother i appreciate that
1759
01:58:09,203 --> 01:58:12,003
i mean honestly my biggest regret i was talking about my
1760
01:58:12,003 --> 01:58:14,743
sister and she even said to me she goes you should have stayed for one more
1761
01:58:14,743 --> 01:58:17,623
day and i go yeah i should have i should have fucking found
1762
01:58:17,623 --> 01:58:20,443
a way to make that work and i didn't but and that's one regret i
1763
01:58:20,443 --> 01:58:23,263
have but you know what next year i want to be fully immersed and
1764
01:58:23,263 --> 01:58:26,103
really do it big because uh i
1765
01:58:26,103 --> 01:58:29,443
can't stop thinking about like i'm not just saying that because you're here like i can't
1766
01:58:29,443 --> 01:58:32,663
i talk about it with our friend uh puffin i cannot stop
1767
01:58:32,663 --> 01:58:35,463
thinking about that event like it keeps running
1768
01:58:35,463 --> 01:58:38,163
through my mind oh man i well i'm
1769
01:58:38,163 --> 01:58:45,023
glad and i i ever since uh we've been back callie denlap art and myself both
1770
01:58:45,023 --> 01:58:50,803
every every morning we wake up we're like well i dreamed about burning man it's
1771
01:58:50,803 --> 01:58:55,263
like some weird form of burning man or like you know we do the teardown so it's
1772
01:58:55,263 --> 01:58:57,923
It's like some form of breaking things down or setting things up.
1773
01:58:58,043 --> 01:59:03,263
It's some weird dream-like version of Burning Man every night since we've been back.
1774
01:59:03,323 --> 01:59:07,363
And it's been a week since we've been back. And it'll do that to you.
1775
01:59:07,403 --> 01:59:08,903
Well, hey, decompression.
1776
01:59:09,043 --> 01:59:13,823
It's one more day of Burning Man in San Francisco on October 13th. You should go.
1777
01:59:14,143 --> 01:59:17,803
I'm going to be there. You should be there. I will be there.
1778
01:59:18,243 --> 01:59:22,023
Listeners, that means you too. Ha, ha, ha.
1779
01:59:22,900 --> 01:59:27,220
But before we wrap up entirely, I wanted to quickly play a game with you, sir.
1780
01:59:27,860 --> 01:59:32,960
Okay, let's do it. This game will win a audience member a special prize.
1781
01:59:33,380 --> 01:59:35,820
Do you know what prize that is? Hopefully that's okay. And Mike,
1782
01:59:35,940 --> 01:59:37,320
I can edit this out when you say that.
1783
01:59:38,060 --> 01:59:43,500
I want to gift them a signed copy of this. Oh, you're holding up the Where I
1784
01:59:43,500 --> 01:59:46,460
Win Black Rock City book that I did the artwork for.
1785
01:59:46,740 --> 01:59:51,780
Yes. We can. I will sign it. Okay. Okay, so I'm going to pick a random listener,
1786
01:59:51,880 --> 01:59:55,280
but you got to win, though. If you don't win, they don't win. No.
1787
01:59:56,220 --> 01:59:58,660
All right, and I'll pick that listener post. I'll add that later.
1788
01:59:59,340 --> 02:00:02,000
All right, we're going to play one true three.
1789
02:00:02,340 --> 02:00:07,640
I have three stories here. Two are fake. One is real. They all happened in Burning Man.
1790
02:00:07,880 --> 02:00:11,280
So you have to figure out which one is the true story and which one are the two fakes.
1791
02:00:11,820 --> 02:00:16,060
After I tell each story, you have three questions for each story, okay?
1792
02:00:16,500 --> 02:00:22,360
Oh, this is like what we did on BMIR radio on the radio station at Burning Man. Exactly.
1793
02:00:23,140 --> 02:00:28,160
Yeah, listeners, we did do that. We don't have it recorded to play for you,
1794
02:00:28,220 --> 02:00:31,480
but we did get on the radio and play this game out there. So, yeah, let's go.
1795
02:00:31,760 --> 02:00:34,920
But this is going to be the real version. So this is how it should have went
1796
02:00:34,920 --> 02:00:36,480
down. Yeah. All right. Here we go.
1797
02:00:36,820 --> 02:00:39,960
All these stories happened on Burning Man. okay uh day one
1798
02:00:39,960 --> 02:00:43,320
i was asked to take a shot of of
1799
02:00:43,320 --> 02:00:46,240
i guess you call it cream creamy like
1800
02:00:46,240 --> 02:00:49,560
mashed potatoes in between some of these boobies and
1801
02:00:49,560 --> 02:00:52,660
i said no okay that's story
1802
02:00:52,660 --> 02:00:55,580
one so i asked three questions i asked three
1803
02:00:55,580 --> 02:00:58,540
questions yes and i find
1804
02:00:58,540 --> 02:01:01,240
out if this was real or not you will find out at the end
1805
02:01:01,240 --> 02:01:05,780
so you're breaking everything down in your head okay was this
1806
02:01:05,780 --> 02:01:08,660
at our camp it was near near the camp it
1807
02:01:08,660 --> 02:01:12,400
was at seven o'clock so i guess not really near this was
1808
02:01:12,400 --> 02:01:15,580
on your way in this was my first night oh your
1809
02:01:15,580 --> 02:01:19,900
first night did you say no because you
1810
02:01:19,900 --> 02:01:22,680
were nervous i said no because she
1811
02:01:22,680 --> 02:01:29,380
wasn't attractive oh damn all right here we go story number two now remember
1812
02:01:29,380 --> 02:01:35,640
that's the that's the mashed potato story story number two i was cooking on
1813
02:01:35,640 --> 02:01:40,840
the on my second or third day i I was cooking beans and as I was cooking beans
1814
02:01:40,840 --> 02:01:41,760
in my little hot pot thing,
1815
02:01:41,860 --> 02:01:45,520
I had somebody came by and they go, dude, those smell hella good. Can I have some?
1816
02:01:45,940 --> 02:01:49,800
And so I gave him some, but he took all my beans because he loved it so much.
1817
02:01:53,144 --> 02:01:57,884
Oh, God. Assuming this is someone at our camp, did you have any interaction
1818
02:01:57,884 --> 02:01:59,824
with this person before the beans incident?
1819
02:02:01,764 --> 02:02:05,284
I saw him pantsless. Oh.
1820
02:02:07,684 --> 02:02:11,624
So you didn't get any of your beans? I didn't get none of them. That's question two.
1821
02:02:12,104 --> 02:02:16,464
Okay. Question three. You got one more. Yeah. That's it?
1822
02:02:19,804 --> 02:02:23,884
I don't did he have his own cup or did he eat him out of your body or and he
1823
02:02:23,884 --> 02:02:32,704
took my cup and he took your cup all right okay last story when we had went
1824
02:02:32,704 --> 02:02:34,844
out without you me puffin and your sister,
1825
02:02:35,484 --> 02:02:38,624
i saw puffin in just a total of three
1826
02:02:38,624 --> 02:02:41,684
mushroom caps that i
1827
02:02:41,684 --> 02:02:44,404
believe leave well yeah i don't know
1828
02:02:44,404 --> 02:02:48,164
you might be wrong yeah did he
1829
02:02:48,164 --> 02:02:53,124
ingest them with anything else besides the caps an entire thing of presidential
1830
02:02:53,124 --> 02:03:00,444
juice it was called were you with him throughout his journey of those caps no
1831
02:03:00,444 --> 02:03:08,144
because we love to go have dinner oh okay um what color was the sky.
1832
02:03:09,924 --> 02:03:13,684
Blue all right which ones
1833
02:03:13,684 --> 02:03:16,364
which two are fake which one's real i don't know i say
1834
02:03:16,364 --> 02:03:19,344
the beans is fake okay that's right that's one
1835
02:03:19,344 --> 02:03:25,724
right okay now what's the other thing oh the two are fake ones the first one's
1836
02:03:25,724 --> 02:03:30,844
fake and why do you think that because of how you answered you didn't do the
1837
02:03:30,844 --> 02:03:37,684
the shot because she was unattractive oh do you think i have standards i i don't know i mean Yeah,
1838
02:03:37,804 --> 02:03:41,804
but that doesn't mean you can't take a shot out of that. Of mashed potatoes?
1839
02:03:43,024 --> 02:03:46,824
Yeah. Yeah. The answer is...
1840
02:03:48,024 --> 02:03:51,744
So wait, which one do you think is real then? The last one. The mushroom one.
1841
02:03:52,424 --> 02:03:55,864
The answer is the last one. You are correct. Oh, wow.
1842
02:03:58,124 --> 02:04:02,304
I got it. But the first story technically isn't a lie entirely.
1843
02:04:02,624 --> 02:04:06,084
It wasn't mashed potatoes. It was just a regular shot. And I didn't do it because
1844
02:04:06,084 --> 02:04:07,064
I was nervous at that time.
1845
02:04:08,104 --> 02:04:12,704
I figured he was nervous. Yeah. I figured that. Well, very good.
1846
02:04:13,944 --> 02:04:18,904
We did a great job. Thank you. Whoever wins that book, enjoy.
1847
02:04:19,344 --> 02:04:21,424
I'm going to DM them, and then I'll get their shipping address,
1848
02:04:21,504 --> 02:04:23,724
and I'll send that to you. Sound good? Sounds great.
1849
02:04:24,224 --> 02:04:27,884
All right. Mike, what a great show. We will come back next week,
1850
02:04:27,944 --> 02:04:29,844
kind of coming back to our regular style.
1851
02:04:30,444 --> 02:04:33,524
We've got some great things coming up. Mike, we don't have to say the guest
1852
02:04:33,524 --> 02:04:36,944
at all, but at some point, we have a pretty big guest coming up. Am I right?
1853
02:04:37,745 --> 02:04:42,385
We do. We do. It's, you know, it's like catching a mosquito in a net.
1854
02:04:42,445 --> 02:04:45,905
It's hard to get this guy, but there's a hint. It's a guy.
1855
02:04:46,285 --> 02:04:50,645
What do you know? I think the term goat gets used a lot, but I would argue that
1856
02:04:50,645 --> 02:04:52,185
this is a big, this is a real deal one.
1857
02:04:52,705 --> 02:04:55,845
This is a goat. This is a goat. Yes, yes it is.
1858
02:04:56,605 --> 02:05:00,005
So at some point you guys will get to see that very, very soon.
1859
02:05:00,125 --> 02:05:04,425
Without further ado, of course, be sure to follow us on Instagram at UncleDadTalks
1860
02:05:04,425 --> 02:05:07,605
and at Mike at Hentum Art. Art, Mike, any last words?
1861
02:05:08,045 --> 02:05:12,105
Well, I will just say this one more time for all the listeners who enjoyed this
1862
02:05:12,105 --> 02:05:19,185
episode and are interested in Burning Man or want to go to a Burning Man event, please remember,
1863
02:05:19,345 --> 02:05:24,305
as we've plugged a couple of times in this show, Burning Man San Francisco 2024
1864
02:05:24,305 --> 02:05:27,905
Decompression, which is called Blacktop City,
1865
02:05:28,125 --> 02:05:33,005
is October the 13th from noon to midnight.
1866
02:05:33,005 --> 02:05:37,805
Night and then activities go on inside the great Northern until three in the morning.
1867
02:05:37,865 --> 02:05:42,525
So just go to burningman.com slash events for more information.
1868
02:05:43,325 --> 02:05:46,585
And tell him, please, if you see us, please come say hi. We would love to meet
1869
02:05:46,585 --> 02:05:48,785
more people in the audience. Yeah. Come say hello.
1870
02:05:49,385 --> 02:05:53,105
Hello. All right, everybody take care. We'll see you all next week.
1871
02:05:53,725 --> 02:05:58,005
All right, Mike. So now is the moment, the moment of truth where we get to pick a winner.
1872
02:05:58,485 --> 02:06:02,745
Cause you remember you played a great game called one, two, three, and you, you won.
1873
02:06:03,005 --> 02:06:07,065
You won for our audience, and we're going to do a quick little spin the wheel,
1874
02:06:07,185 --> 02:06:10,125
and we're going to select the winner. Are you ready, Mike?
1875
02:06:10,645 --> 02:06:15,005
I love spinning wheels. Yes. Here we go. One, two, three.
1876
02:06:16,125 --> 02:06:23,445
The winner. The winner is Catwoman748. It says her name is Selena. Selena.
1877
02:06:24,593 --> 02:06:27,693
You are the winner. I'm going to reach out to you via DM.
1878
02:06:28,193 --> 02:06:30,913
We're going to get this all shipped to you. You get yourself.
1879
02:06:30,973 --> 02:06:34,333
Mike, can you just tell them one more time in the audience what our audience member won?
1880
02:06:35,113 --> 02:06:41,033
Oh, sure. Yes. Selena, aka Catwoman. Wow. I never. That's very interesting.
1881
02:06:41,533 --> 02:06:47,793
Yeah. So I was asked to do the artwork for the What, Where, When book,
1882
02:06:48,013 --> 02:06:52,693
which is what every person should get when they come into the gates of Burning Man.
1883
02:06:52,693 --> 02:06:58,893
And I did the cover art in about 12 pages of artwork inside and in and around
1884
02:06:58,893 --> 02:07:01,733
the book, which was an honor for me to do.
1885
02:07:01,893 --> 02:07:09,353
So congratulations, Selena, a.k.a. Catwoman Numbers. I forget the numbers. 748.
1886
02:07:10,533 --> 02:07:15,653
748, yeah. Now, Mike, also, you can only get this if you attend Burning Man.
1887
02:07:15,733 --> 02:07:17,573
There's no other way to get it? There's no other way.
1888
02:07:18,193 --> 02:07:24,353
Wow. What an honor. What a pleasure to share your amazing artwork and your amazing love.
1889
02:07:24,733 --> 02:07:28,473
It's like you're – you remember a kiss they did? They did a comic book where
1890
02:07:28,473 --> 02:07:29,493
they put their blood in the ink?
1891
02:07:29,793 --> 02:07:33,033
You should have did that with this. Yeah, I should have. Yeah.
1892
02:07:33,633 --> 02:07:36,973
How do you know I didn't bleed when I was drawing it on paper?
1893
02:07:37,373 --> 02:07:40,233
Maybe that's where the blood is. Yeah, there you go. That's a good point.
1894
02:07:40,273 --> 02:07:43,133
That's where the blood and tears are. Yes, yes, yes, yes.
1895
02:07:43,833 --> 02:07:49,373
That's funny. But, yes, Selena, a.k.a. Catwoman748, look out for his DM.
1896
02:07:49,693 --> 02:07:50,973
And we will get that shipped to you.
1897
02:07:51,493 --> 02:07:55,053
We will do whatever you want to do to it and send it to you right away.
1898
02:07:55,673 --> 02:07:59,313
And after that, that's it. And you know what? When you listen to our show,
1899
02:07:59,393 --> 02:08:03,333
you never know where you can win, so make sure you follow us at UncleDadTalks.
