PolyParadise '03 - What Worked - What Did Not

Sat Sep 13, 2003  9:36 am

Hello PolyCampers,

I so enjoyed coming into Camp and saying 'Hello PolyCampers' and for any and all of you that were in the Community Area to return that greeting. I also enjoyed referring to Steve as Buffalo Bob during the week, though I digress...

Thought it would be good to have a discussion or at least for me to say what I thought went Right & what Did Not this year in PolyParadise and start to think about what we gained or even learned about being part of a Village and if that is something we want to do or be part of in '04.

Anything said here is NOT meant to accuse or berate anyone, it is just an open dialogue, an airing of issues so that we may move forward.

I offer my own observations and as always welcome Comments, Praises, Bitches & Roses....

Back in March we made the decision to be part of the then forming Shangri-La Village. What lessons have we learned after being part of a Village and SLV in particular.

Side Bar...Let me say this now so there is NO MISTAKE...I wish NOT to be a Village Mayor and have NO desire to serve in that capacity now or in the future. I shall remain your Camp Daddy so long as you will have me. My other BM endeavors are in my On & Off Playa Volunteer efforts with Greeters & the Extranet...

No back to our regular scheduled discussion...

****To Village or Not to Village...Change Village...Return to whence we came****

Being part of SLV in my opinion did allow us to share our Water Ecology. .A La...Steve 'Water Log' Iddings...and the Water Reclamation area. Though with all of that came the necessity to deal with Village Gray Water Issues, things that were not within the borders of PP. I had volunteered to be LNT Czar of the Village, even without that role, I know I would have felt compelled to deal with a sewage leaking RV and the Evap ponds from the 3 shower areas. Since it is not enough to do Gray Water Reclamation in one camp within the Village and have Playa stains in other areas of the Village. That is part of our responsibility as PP to the Playa and to those that have recognized our efforts the past 2 years, the Earth Guardians. I spent a total of about 10 hours dealing with Village LNT issues. I did that out of the Love of my heart for what is right and what should be done right, but would have rather spent that time doing other Playa related endeavors.

PP did not have that much interaction with SLV as a whole. Most of the SLV Campers stayed in their various camps staying within their own groups. Of course most if not all of the SLV campers are from a very tight group out of San Diego and stayed kinda that way on the Playa. Maybe part of the problem was that we did NOT have any real cross events planned between camps or maybe it was the layout of the Village, I am not sure but I certainly felt a distance from the rest of the SLV camps. I would have as well liked the Village Party on Thursday to have been more than just a drinking endeavor...a shared meal leads to shared thoughts and we Poly's know where shared thoughts & processing leads...More Processing...always a good thing...LOL

By being part of SLV we were able to secure a location VERY close to the Esplanade. I found the location to be most awesome and even though our PP sign was made into Road Trash in the Trailer mishap, people seemed to have NO problems finding us for any and all of our events. In '01 we had a space at ~7:30 and the first road (Where ElfenLand was), I believe we could secure a spot like that again, all we would need to do is ask.

Did the noise or traffic of being on the first ring road bother anyone? I found it amazing at the difference a few streets made when venturing towards Vision. It was so quiet and so sterile in many ways, did not feel like the same event. I vote to again venture to be that close to the Esplanade.

Marc 'The Viagra' Bruce, the Mayor of SLV paid a heavy price physically, emotionally and with his family in taking on the responsibilities of Mayor. At this point Marc has made it VERY clear that he will NOT be taking that position again. The future of SLV in its present form or under some other guise is in doubt. There are others within that group that are vying for that leadership position, but nothing definitive as yet.

I spent quite a bit of time with Marc and in our discussions we spoke of a continued affiliation of his camp and Art - Tribal Penis Gourds next to PP.

In the end did we gain the support for events like HCW to justify continued involvement in what is and will be SLV in '04?

There has been also talk of joining one of the other Poly Villages. I visited Infinite Oasis but did not see any of the TOL folks I knew from previous years when I was there. What was other people's reaction to IO and the way they had their Village set up in a Circle.

Or are we better off returning as our own selves next year?

****Being on the other side of BRC****

I very much enjoyed being @ 4:30. Though I would NOT want to be any farther out on the circle.
 
What were your impressions on being on the other side. Do we stay to the right or return to ~7-7:30?

****Kitchen & Stuff****

As in the past the Kitchen was a massive success. We had some awesome Community Meals and always had enough to feed us as well as some recruited Playa brethren. Keeping the Pots/Pans/Dishes washed as necessary is always an issue. We most certainly could use additional 'Drying' space.

****HCW****

As this event continues to get bigger & bigger each year we have the need to be thinking about having this event under some kind of shade structure. We are getting 150 people all naked 'BAKING' in the sun. We need to be aware of this and should provide some shade for them as the participate in the event. As well our own folks who run the event are out there in the sun...

Kathe and I saw a very awesome open & airy structure at Burning Sky (The Skydivers from Eloy,AZ). I have the contact info for the person in charge of that and will get the plans and see how feasible it is. We could always get another 20'x20' which would run ~$250 with straps and anchors.

This event requires a HUGE commitment from those that camp within PP. During the week I did NOT see much help or man/women hours being given to this event and its coordinators. I think we need to make it mandatory for all PP campers to have some part in this event, to help spread the jobs around. There are plenty of jobs, from setup, working the event as well as cleanup...These jobs are required EVERY day.

We did VERY well on water this year...We left the Playa with 15 5-Gallon containers of water that we dropped off with DPW on the way out from HCW donations and camp leftovers. The three of us came to Playa with 140 Gallons and left with ~25 gallons.

****PHT****

I was only able to attend one PHT and even at that one I was called away with Camp duties. I did notice that we had awesome crowds each day and continue to attract many people who are Poly curious. Any and all people involved with this event should be very proud. It was awesome to see some new people taking the lead facilitator role.

Of course one of the issues we dealt with as a by-product of our location near the esplanade is trying to have PHT over the noise of a very loud sound system or a traveling band show on an art car.

Is there anything that needs to be changed or revamped about this event?

****Oral Sex Talk****

I was unable to attend this event...So would you believe I have nothing to say...

Anybody fill me in on how this went and if Mim where to join us again what would we need to do better to make it more successful?

I hope through the next few months this this group will ride the wave of energy that has been given unto us from the Playa and be a bit more vocal and keep more in touch throughout the coming year...

I will always be updating and enhancing the web site so return often, Ya never know what you may find...

Look forward to hearing from you...

FILL MY INBOX!!!...PLEASE...

Only 351 days left till Burning Man! - August 30 - September 6, 2004

Scotto
Camp Daddy