Burning Man 4

I rolled over as a strong breeze shook the outside of my tent fabric.Sleep that night felt a bit rough.I had some very intense dreams that night, which left me exhausted in the morning.

It was Monday, and Burning Man had finally begun.The city was completely packed now.The traffic on Chaos Street was the heaviest I had seen yet.

I figured I would unlock my car and grab my guitar. I had a song idea in my head that I wanted to get down.You have to act fast or these ideas get lost forever sometimes.I patted my jean pockets for my car keys and small clouds of dust billowed.They weren't there.I put my finger in my shirt pocket and still nothing.A mild panic set it.I lifted up my sleeping bag clouding up my tent with another cloud of dust and saw only an empty granola bar package and dirty sox.I scratched my head and really began to worry.I began ripping apart my tent and still nothing.Some scenarios played through my head of the worst possible outcomes.After careful thought I determined, if I loose my keys out here, I was basically f***ed.No phone, no AAA, no slim jims, no auto mechanics, no tow trucks, and definitely no Chevy dealers nearby to cut another key.

I stepped outside and began looking around my tent.I said a prayer of sorts, if you want to call it that to help me."Please." I said quietly. (Not sure who that was directed at really, seeing as I am agnostic) That was the extent of it.It sounds stupid now that I am writing it, but it just felt like a good idea at the time.Maybe the spiritual essence of this temporary city would help.Oddly enough, just as finished the last syllable, I saw the rusty bottle opener attached to my key chain half covered in sand next to my tent.I must have dropped it on the way in last night I thought.A huge feeling of relief came over me.Then I wondered for a split second if asking for help aided me?Maybe I had been drinking too much beer and not enough water…

After all that, I was no longer in the mood to play guitar.The song escaped for the time being.I instead, sat in my camp chair and perused the Burning Man event guidebook I had received at the gate.Opened to Monday and tried to find some fun stuff to do before my evening shift at the Fishbug. (And Fishbug's debut at Burning Man!!!)

The events were labeled with certain symbols to identify the type of activity.There were symbols for food, services, kid friendly events, drinking, courses, games, spiritual events, lessons, rituals, community, and adult.I may be forgetting one or two but I think that was most of them.You could find almost anything you wanted (or didn't even know that you wanted) to do in that book.That morning though, the sounds coming from my stomach determined I was scanning for food.

Pancake Playhouse at 9:00 and A.Doors open at 9am.The thought of warm syrupy pancakes sounded delicious.I was not certain of the time, but decided to make my way there anyway.

The esplanade traffic was thick as I rode as light gusts of sand blew in from off the playa.Bikes weaved around each other at a steady pace.People also walked either completely nude or dressed ornately. (I think I even saw a shirt cocker… that is about the only thing I can think of right now that is not embraced at Burning Man) Everyone smiled as they walked past each other, saying hi for the sake of saying hi.Visually speaking, it was like walking back in time to an Arabian bazaar, which was somehow dropped into a magical future world of sorts (if that makes any sense). There was a beautiful symmetry in the chaos of it all though.I couldn't stop smiling at the sheer ridiculousness of what I was seeing.

I ended up on 8:00 and B Street on the way and saw a camp that was giving away fresh coffee with shots of Bailey's Irish Cream.The aroma lured me in.Behind the counter, a topless brunette woman served us all with a smile.We smiled back.

I sat down for a second in the couch they set out sipping the warm liquid from my plastic mug.I had a moment of total relaxation, till the sound of pulsing music from some unknown location began rattling in my brain.I looked around at first to see where it was coming from.It got louder and louder, until a gigantic art car filled to the gills with costumed people drove up next to us.They were all grooving to pulsing techno rhythms with their hands in the air like they were at Spring Break or something.The driver spotted the sign for coffee and pulled over.I became glad I got my coffee moments earlier as a crowd of people got in line with the music still blaring.The woman just continued to pour at her own pace though and was not intimidated by the numbers.

When they all had their fill, they jumped back on the car and started bumping off to another part of the city.They forgot one guy in the confusion though, which ended up forcing him to run a half block or so (with hot coffee) to catch up.He handed a passenger with a gorilla suit his cup and leaped onto the slow moving vehicle. Then they were off into to wake up others with their canned beats.

When I finished my coffee with two shots of Baileys, I said thank you to our barista and left.I made my way down the 9:00 to find the Pancake Playhouse at the circle plaza.Grabbed a seat in front of the door waiting for them to open.A few other people were there patiently waiting for pancakes as well.

There was one couple from Canada who had driven in the night before.A girl in a straw hat sat down as well.She had come from London to be here. We introduced ourselves as we hungrily waited.I learned they were all volunteers at the festival.The girl from London was actually a greeter at the main gate.

A bell rang and a shade pulled up above a counter, exposing the kitchen.People were in busy stacking leaning mountains of pancakes at about eye level. My stomach roared as I looked in."Do you have a plate?" The woman asked me.Damn I thought, no plate."Ok then, hold out your hand." she demanded.I held out my hand and she flipped a steaming pancake into it with a plastic spatula."Next!" she yelled."Ouch" I said aloud as I walked away.It was still burning hot off the griddle.I tossed it back and forth from hand to hand till it cooled.I went to the syrup counter and poured it on thick, accidentally getting my sleeve sticky too.

I took a seat next to the girl from London, along the outside of the shade structure facing the plaza."What are you doing all the way out here?" I asked as I munched down the now bearable temperatured pancake."Are you just here for Burning Man?" I asked."No, I am on an around the world trip." She answered.My focus sharpened as I listened."I am just trying to figure out my life. I was a nanny in London but really just want to play music" "Wow, that's awesome." I said with enthusiasm. "I can relate.""Where is the next stop for you?"I asked."Well, LA, New Zealand, and then the rest of the South Pacific.""Why did you leave? You could probably just get gigs in London, no?" I asked."I wanted to see the world.You, know, to get some inspiration.I have planned to go away for about a year.I am undecided though.I miss my boyfriend so much. It's so sad to leave people you love." She said."Yea that's tough." I responded, trying to hide being kind of bummed she had a boyfriend. "Leaving home can be really hard, being out of your comfort zone." I said."You certainly grow a lot though, when you put yourself out there."

We continued out conversation and she became more and more nostalgic of back home.The crackly radio fuzzed in the corner as we spoke.Then a bright sound of an acoustic guitar strummed over the speaker.The smooth voice of John Denver projected into the room."My bags are packed I'm ready to go."That is so funny she said to me."I hate to wake you up to say goodbye." "That's perfect timing." she said smiling.A guy by the radio turned up the volume as we listened.Jenna began singing along to the recording.Others joined in with her.Soon every syrupy-handed person at the Pancake Playhouse started singing (some with their mouths full and only half actually singing the right words)."Leaving on a jet plane.Don't know I'll be back again. Oh, babe I hate to go."I got goose bumps up my back as the chorus rang out. I looked over and saw Jenna crying as she sang.

When the song was over, she said that she could play that one on guitar."Do you want to pick a few tunes right now?" I asked."I didn't know you played too.Yea, lets go.I have my guitar really close by." she said.Soon after, we made our way to camp a block away for a jam session.She picked up a guitar resting against her pink inflatable shade structure and handed it to me.Then she offered me some freshly cut pears.This led to us trading songs back and forth for hours.She this really sweet soprano voice that just made me want to sit back and listen to her all day.I guess I did for the most part.