Saturday December 28, 2024

****Volunteeratoldism™****

On October 1, 2024 the Trademark was issued for Volunteeratoldism from the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office to Scott Platsky. Not only did I CREATE a new WORD I have been awarded the Trademark for that word - WOW!!!

The grand idea of Volunteeratoldism aka moving the major camp duties (Kitchen Management, LNT, Garbage, Ice) from having leads in charge to a distributed model of randomly assigned jobs to all campers worked AMAZING! With our large camp population each camper only needed to be assigned (1) Job during the week. There were (4-5) campers assigned to each job/task/shift.

In my observations; there were no camper complaints or no job/task that were not performed or completed. We did not have a formal check-in for each job/task/shift so I cannot guarantee that all campers assigned to any specific job during the week actually showed up; but all jobs were completed and from my end nothing fell thru the cracks.

The entire idea of Volunteeratoldism was created after BRC 2022 in which all previous PolyParadise Leads had either stepped away from Burning Man and or their role as a lead; the daily tasks/jobs still needed to be done. Instead of recruiting new leads and continuing with the same model, it appeared to me that the best way forward was to move to a distributed model in which each camper would have a vested interest in the success of said community creates pride & satisfaction.

Due to the perceived success of this model of distributed camp duties in which each camper is randomly assigned (1) job/task/shift for the entire week will be the way forward.

In 2024 a 'Wrinkle' was brought to light; not a complete failure but a 'Wrinkle'. If a camper is assigned a job early in the week and has logistical issues in arriving in BRC or does not make BRC at all well that puts a huge hole in the number of assigned campers to any one days job/task. I thank all campers that stepped up to fill gaps/holes in the Volunteeratoldism schedule or whom worked more/harder to make up those scheduling issues. I am not sure there is a fix to this issue as we never know of transportation issues on the way to BRC or life issues that keep any specific campers from arriving or making BRC landfall on time to participate in an early Sunday/Monday Volunteeratoldism shift.

We will also create an additional instructions foam board to make sure that each camper knows that they have an additional Camp Requirement aka their randomly assigned Volunteeratoldism Job/Task.

If you are assigned Kitchen Management this is in addition to your own day to cook for 25 or could even be 'Randomly Assigned' the same day/meal as you have stepped up to cook for.

I am very interested to how you all saw the success or failure of the Volunteeratoldism - how you saw the jobs required - the Instructions provided.

****Kitchen & Stuff****

In 2024 PolyParadise continued with the Community Kitchen related ‘Requirement’ upon registration; to be part of the daily cooking/feeding ritual - make one meal for 25 people and be able to enjoy a smorgasbord of food the rest of the week. The Community Kitchen was an awesome success!

The kitchen & serving areas encompassed a full 60'x40' – the layout was awesome for ingress & egress of the kitchen area. The received 'L' shape of our Placement allowed us to totally rethink how our Kitchen/Community Space/Event Space was oriented. We would align the Grey Water Tanks, Dish Washing & Trash along use the Placement created Service road. This was an awesome new layout & orientation.

We were able to create a larger ingress area into the serving line and a center table with condiments that allowed for a better flow of people and plates in/out of the kitchen area. We had a total of (8) 3-Burner Cast Iron stoves. This new kitchen arrangement worked awesome with the coffee and snack area separated from the shelving with the pots & pans, spices, extra food and other kitchen implements.

The BBQ Grill & Flattop were placed in the middle of the back-end of the kitchen (along the 'E' Frontage) separated away from the garbage area and kitchen sink grey water area that was next to the Trash area. This new layout worked amazing. We still need to come up with a specific egress area out of the back of the kitchen. If there is an emergency within the kitchen area the only way out of the kitchen cannot be 60' feet out the front of the kitchen - we need a Back Door of some type.

We had plenty of snacks for everyone, and all seemed satisfied with the selections available. We did not come back home with very much - the purchase on Burning Man shopping day of types of snacks are at the mercy of what is available on that day @ Costco or what can be found via the amazing Amazon.

Thanks to everyone that took the time & effort to create some awesome meals all week long. There were so many great courses served each day. With so many international campers we are delighted to have such an out of country meal experience; thanks for sharing your unique cuisine with us. Thanks to everyone who assisted with Trash Can Pizza!!! Thanks to all that assisted with Trash Can Turkey and creating a Thanksgiving Diner in BRC!. THANKS to Trevor & Harry (Twisted Swan) for being the CZAR's de CHARCOL.

Special thanks to Zow aka Bob Zawistowski and Harry (Different Harry than above) of the Twisted Swan who created a brick pizza oven on top of the 6' BBQ Grill and made FRESH PIZZA DOUGH and cooked 14 pizzas. What an incredible job - FRESH PIZZA DOUGH!!! The pizza was amazing - Thank YOU!

Dishwashing and keeping the Pots/Pans washed and available for the next person continues to improve year to year as we as a community become better dish/pot washers and more aware that if we want clean pots & pans that the only way that is accomplished is by each of us doing some dishes during the week. If you DIRTY a Pot/Pan it is also YOUR RESPONSIBILITY to CLEAN said Pot/Pan; PLEASE DO NOT LEAVE IT FOR SOMEONE ELSE TO TAKE CARE OF.

The three standup kitchen sinks were raised up from their standard height by being placed on top of milk crates worked well so that no one had to bend over to wash dishes. The new sink gray water containment system with the sump pumps worked well and having sheets of plywood underneath did great to not have any service of said system to have to step in Wet Playa.

We did purchase new sump pumps they worked OK... They had the same 'Float' type mechanism so as the water level rises the float goes up as well and when at a max height the pump would turn on. This pump model float did not trip on as we expected and may need to revert to a new sump pump to better manage the almost full containment vessel to the rented United Site Services tanks. We did add a Grease Trap contraception to collect the Grey Chunks of food stuff from the sinks - this worked well. We do need to look into some type of 'Fresh Smelling' liquid/powder whatever to be occasionally added to our Grey Water Troughs - when servicing and or takedown/emptying as we pack up it gets QUITE RANK!!

I realize that using the paper plates and plastic silverware creates additional trash, using personal tableware for camps mush smaller than ours is possible. For a 300+ person Village I am convinced that using disposable tableware is a better option; having to clean all that silverware for each meal. The cycle of continual washing your own dishes and silverware for each meal requires water – then disposal of additional waste water. We will continue to use paper plates and plastic silverware in 2025.

Having the Menu, Volunteer List & instructions for each of the Volunteeratoldism jobs responsibilities printed on a large poster size board displayed in the Kitchen was awesome, letting everyone know what was going to be cooked at each meal and who volunteered for what events.

Thanks so much to all those that were assigned to Garbage Detail within the Volunteeratoldism model for effectively managing the Trash area and to everyone that assisted in bagging, tagging & tapping up trash. More importantly, thanks to all of you for taking some trash home. We generate this trash as a camp; we need to deal with its removal from the Playa as a Community. Because of your efforts and commitment and Love of Community Trash.

We have on avg transported ~10 bags of trash off the Playa in past years; this year we had 12 bags to transport off-playa, we also had 10 buckets of general slop, generator oil, left over food stuff slop, the remnants of many a thing on the Playa.

Special thanks to our 2024 benefactor for donated funds that allowed us to purchase (4) new hand washing stations. These free standing hand washing stations worked incredible. We did miscalculate how much foam soap/hand towels we would need. In the future we will have way more of these two critical items.

****Food/Health Permit****

In 2024 we were required to apply for and adhere to the standards of a Nevada State Health Department Food Permit. This was the 9th year of this mandate for camps with a population over 125 serving community meals. The cost of the Food Permit was $50.

With our Official Food Permit prominently displayed within the kitchen; we were VERY SUPRISED that during the week we DID NOT RECEIVE A VISIT FROM THE NEVADA STATE HEALTH DEPARTMENT. Per issues we had in 2023 we made sure that for Sunday Lunch (The first Community meal) that we were complying with the stated rules, which included: Food Handler Gloves, Hand Washing Station (Hand Soap, Towels, Continual Flow Water) Bleach cleaning supplies, clearly visible menu, separate food preparation/serving areas, food thermometers, and clearly marked Community/Personal Coolers.

We always need to strive to have those preparing meals to wear the Food Handler Gloves: Food needs to be served to guests as opposed to guests severing themselves. We had great compliance with everyone using said gloves; but we did not have enough for the entire week. Thanks to those campers that brought some additional gloves form their own stash. In the future we will make sure that we have enough gloves for everyone to use for every meal.

Going forward the Kitchen will be fully functional by Sunday Noon before a meal will be served; with the Hand Washing Stations and sink as well as bleach spray bottles are ready.

Our callout about Personal Coolers and the NEED to come to the Playa with ICE was met with great success - Thanks to you all for heeding that call out.

Here is the text from the Survival Guide 2024:

When you pack for your trip to BRC - your cooler should be ICED – When you are at the last stop on Rt. 80 (From the West (Sparks) – From the East (Fernley) before making the turn on HYW 447 heading towards Gerlach – YOUR COOLER SHOULD BE ICED!! When you arrive @ Burning Man your cooler should have ICE maybe somewhat melted but it should HAVE ICE!!

WE HIGHLY ENCOURAGE – NO WE REQUIRE that you ICE DOWN YOUR COOLERS as you start your trip to the Playa and KEEP ICE LEVEL IN COOLERS AS REQUIRED during your trip.

This will ensure that when you cook your meal that NO ONE EATING YOUR FOOD WILL GET SICK! We will also be more proactive and do an ICE RUN on Sunday (Day 1) that any camper can use to make sure that when you arrive On-Playa that your cooler can be RE-ICED and your food can be kept to temperature and KEPT SAFE FOR EATING!!

ULTIMATELY KEEPING YOUR COOLER ICED – YOUR FOOD SAFE ON THE WAY TO BRC IS YOUR RESPONSIBILITY.

For those that choose to be Nude (Male & Female) - Your Bottom MUST BE COVERED while cooking or when in the food serving line.

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****Community Meals****

In 2024 PolyParadise had a Community related ‘Requirement’ upon registration, cooking & sharing a meal for 25. The meals and the variety of all things cooked were amazing!!!!

Thanks to everyone that took the time & effort to create some awesome meals all week long. There were so many great courses served each day. With so many international campers we are delighted to have such an out of country meal experience; thanks for sharing your unique cuisine with us. Thanks to everyone who assisted with Trash Can Pizza!!! Thanks to all that assisted with Trash Can Turkey and creating a Thanksgiving Diner in BRC!. Special callout to Trevor & Harry (Twisted Swan) for being the CZAR's de CHARCOL.

Thank you so much to everyone who contributed to the planning, cooking, serving & cleanup of each and every meal. For when we share a meal and break bread together we grow from just being friends to being FAMILY!

Over the years campers have mentioned to me that they arrived for a meal and there was not enough food for them or that they saw some campers going back for seconds and when they had not gotten any food. I understand your complaints - meal times are set at two hour intervals 8:00a-10:00a 12:00p-2:00p 6:00p-8:00p - Policing who gets in line and how many times is not where we are headed.

Instead of raising the minimum amount that each person(S) cooks from 25 to 35 portions; which could potentially create waste and leftovers that we cannot store, and would put an additional financial burden on all campers as the meals are in addition to the camp fees.

The implemented solution for 2024 was to make sure that all campers knew that there was plenty of additional food within the kitchen pantry (Tuna - Pasta/Sauce - Beans - Macaroni & Cheese) of course that would need to be prepared in order to feed those that are still in line. I hope that that this in-part assisted with the issue on any one particular day/meal that the total amount of food created may be less than the total # of campers attempting to fill a plate.

OK so we provide extra food stuff (Tuna - Pasta/Sauce - Beans - Macaroni & Cheese) obviously that food stuff is in boxes/CANS/containers and needs to BE COOKED. I get that you arrive for some food and there is nothing left; please do not just complain or be mad - take 10 minutes - take something off the shelf and create some food for you and if you make enough I am sure there will be additional campers to consume such food.

Another issue aka a Clarification - For groups of one/two/three campers we require a meal to be cooked for 25 people. To be fair and to make sure that all meals are covered and have an adequate number of meals being cooked; If you are a group of three or more I will require at least two meals for 25. What I do not really want is for your group to all cook the same meal for 50 or 75; yes the food will be eaten but the real issue is making sure that each meal is covered and that all meals have an adequate amount of food available.

****Camp Ice Runs****

HUGE Thanks & KUDOS to all that were part of the Volunteeratoldism Ice Runs each day. We also THANK AND ARE INCREDIBLY APPREHIATIVE of Bolt Cutter aka Kristin for lending her vehicle for an Ice Run or two as we look to purchase & transport 40-50 Bags of ice aka ~400-500lbs each day.

This is the 2nd year of our Ice experiment in how purchased Ice is paid for & distributed to camp members. The first day of ice purchase the Camp fronted (Camp Fees) the total amount of purchased Ice + TIP; when the ice was dropped off within camp; it was placed in waiting Coolers. Campers needing Ice would take said ice from coolers and put the $$ for said ice into a slotted top bucket. This way each subsequent day we would have the same amount of $$ for the next day ice purchase.

This worked great and I appreciate the honesty of all campers that took Ice to pay for said Ice within the bucket. What I of course did not take into account was the daily tip we gave as that obviously was not in the bucket for the next day. I do think that Tipping is important to show the respect for all that work @ Artica and of course those donations go to Charity as do all the proceeds of all BRC Ice sales. That daily tip is ~$40-$50/day; in the future will need to make sure that there are specific camps funds available in CASH On-Playa to continue this donation to charity from PolyParadise to those in need (Gerlach/Nixon/Wadsworth Schools).

We created (2) new Ice Transport 'Vehicles' using (2) heavy duty wagons to a plywood base with the ability to ratchet strap to secure the ice load to the plywood base. These worked OK but did have some issues with the bumpy playa surface - On (1) of them both of the yoke/wheels came loose/off. We will need to add Lock Washers to the (4) wheel sets.

We also had MAJOR Failure to the other wagons we use - all of the tires not just failed but shredded and all will need to be replaced.

****Camp WiFi****

Thanks to Guami & The Twisted Swan for again providing a Camp WiFi that was password secured and available to all campers.

****Playa Events****

This was an amazing year for PolyParadise Playa Events. We had lots of amazing events that drew large crowds each day.

Our Playa Events - Poly High Tea - Human Carcass Wash, 3D UV-Light Experience, Intro to Shabari, Liquid Love, Intro to Fun with your Bum, Conscious Connected Breathe Work, Best Sex - living with STD's, "UN" Birthday Party and of course EVERY DAY & The Temple of Bacchus & EVERY NIGHT @ THE TWISTED SWAN!!!

Major Kudos to the organizers of all of our Playa Events. You all are aces in my book!!! Thanks to everyone who assisted in each and every event. The events are as much for us as a camp as well as sharing with the Playa Citizenry.

The Human Carcass Wash encompassed a full 60’x40’ structure. Long gone are the days from circa 2001 when the HCW was a 5'x7' piece of Astroturf. We also have a more defined area available for bikes to get them off the road - With this additional space the HCW now serves well over 300 participants daily!!! Freakin INCREDIBLE!!!

Speaking of the Human Carcass Wash - We have never made participation or being part of the daily crew that runs the event as a requirement of being a PolyParadise camper; that is because well the event and all that it entails is not everyone's bag/gig. With that said in the registration process there is an 'Option' to sign up for assisting doing such. We also have the large poster board of names where any camper can add their name to any day to assist.

This year we did not have enough volunteers to run the Human Carcass Wash on Sunday - VERY SAD FACE! I do not want to have participation in the event be required as that would have more folks that are really needed on a per day basis; so I ask our campers to STEP UP and make sure that we have at least 10 campers/day to make sure that the event can be run each day (Monday - Sunday).

As a Village we submitted 20 events to be included in the printed WWWW. I did not check to see how many of these events made it into the printed WWWW.

****Leave No Trace****

PolyParadise has always prided itself on its Cleanup & Recycle efforts. Placement/Resto has contacted us on 2024 MOOP. It looks like we MISSED A BURIED CANVAS TARP. As of this writing the 2024 MOOP Map has not been released for all of BRC. The hope would have been that we would have been ALL Green!! for our 400'x150' (3.53 acre) allocated space.

Monday (Teardown Day) started off great with lots of assistance from our campers to dismantle the camp. We started just after sunrise and then were thwarted ~10:00a by WIND & DUST that continued for 9 Hours - because of that we were unable to take down the shade structures safely. On Tuesday when we started to teardown there was several inches of loose playa covering all of the canvas tarps. Not sure if this tarp is one we missed as it appears to be buried or was the one we had underneath the Grey Water Tanks. It is impossible to move the tanks as they are full as we depart the Playa and weigh ~2,000lbs. We would of course be remise if we did not put down a tarp underneath the Grey Water Tanks and had a spill of waste water/chunks. It is of course not the responsibility of United Site Services to remove anything underneath the tanks once they drain them and then take them away. This is a conundrum - not sure what are options are to not leave any trace aka the tarp underneath the Grey Water Tanks.

Thanks to all that were part of the Volunteeratoldism job of LNT & to all that MOOPED all week and to anyone and everyone that stayed on into Tuesday afternoon and being the last off the Playa and for making sure that our LNT efforts would in fact be as GREEN as possible!!

We WILL to strive for ALL GREEN in 2025!!!

We can ALWAYS be more MOOP vigilant; not just in our own camp space but Playa-Wide. Remember it is MOOP if it is not Playa. That is the definition of Leave No Trace. Overall we did an amazing job - thanks to all that assisted in Never Letting It Hit the Ground!!! Thank you to everybody that stayed for teardown and beyond...You guys ROCK for making those last sweeps through our space and making sure we would be MOOP FREE!

GLASS - Can't be avoided all together though we can try our best to limit the amount of glass we each bring to BRC and of course we can do better in attempting to coral that glass menace. Will be looking into other options as a container for all the glass in the garbage area to limit this issue as a MOOP issue going forward.

In 2023 we had several visits from the Earth Guardians & BLM concerning Fuel containment and the overall # of gallons of fuel within camp. In 2022 we purchased (4) 30G fuel containment containers. These worked great in dispensing fuel; but also made transport to BRC a much easier. Dispensing fuel to 5G containers as needed worked great. The 30G fuel containment units were placed inside large kiddy pools as well as fenced in with plastic orange fencing.

With the shared rental of the 26' container we used the container as the back plate of a trapezoid shaped orange fenced area for Fuel containment. The edge of the fuel containment area bounded the service road. This would take care of the 2023 issue brought up by Earth Guardians/BLM concerning the total # of Gallons of fuel for the entire camp. There is a 'Rule' that the total # of Gallons of fuel cannot exceed 110G. The fuel brought to power the camp was just about 110G - what I did not know until they continued to harp on it is that 110G INCLUDES ALL FUEL; that includes the fuel brought for personal generators and or RV's. They also stated that fuel must be stored at least 10' away from any living space. The camps fuel depot was enclosed and separated from any tent or RV to comply with that 10' standard. Since we had 37 RV's with most of them bringing fuel; adhering to this 110G limit for a Village that is 350'x440' (3.53 acres) is just not possible. It is also not possible to have individual RV/generator fuel stored 10' away from said RV/camp space to comply with the BML/Earth Guardian standard.

Going forward; if you bring 5G gas containers for your RV or personal generator; these gas containers will need to be Labeled with YOUR NAME & STORED within these two fuel containment areas. If you need to FILL your RV or personal generator you will need to go to the fuel containment area - transport that gas can to your RV/Generator & fill said engine and then RETURN the gas can back to the fuel containment area; even EMPTY gas cans must be returned to the fuel containment area. If a gas can is found left next to or near your RV or living space aka NOT RETURNED to the fuel containment area it will be confiscated and be used as camp gas for the camps generator consumption. I am DONE being hassled by Earth Guardians/BLM on their visits about random gas containers not being 10' away from an RV or living space; aka moving those containers away from said RV/Living spaces when they visit - having those campers move them back to where they were being housed and then having another visit from Earth Guardians/BLM and being re-hassled for the same issue.

This new rule was added to our Survival Guide; messaged to all those specifically bringing RV's

For 2024 a new rule was implemented that Fire Blankets were required for fuel containment - we purchased them and had them hanging on the orange fencing. With all the changes we implemented per 2023 Earth Guardians & BLM visits - we DID NOT receive a visit in 2024 for them to see that we were being as compliant we could be within many constraints living in Black Rock City.

MAJOR KUDOS to Trevor & a special callout to Monica for creating an awesome work space between the two rental trucks as a work area and and organized space that housed the generators and community tool area.

****Water - Water - Water****

In the desert water is a commodity – as a camp; it is used to fill our water cooler | cook | clean posts/pans & dishes | coffee | starter water for the Human Carcass Wash. As a camp we require each vehicle in camp to donate 5 gallons of water to assist with our water supply as a camp. We obviously use a lot of water to do these tasks; even if we had 75 vehicles all bringing 5 Gallons of water that is only 375 gallons to add to the (4) 55G barrels of hose water we transport from Phx.

In 2024 we brought a total of 200G of water to be used exclusively for dishwashing and filling the (4) new Hand Washing Stations that are 10G each. The donated water requirement /vehicle was used for drinking water filling the large water container | Coffee & Cooking. The amount of total gray water generated as a camp was approx the same as 2023 ~1,500G.

We did purchase a new battery powered pump mechanism to get the water out of the barrel in its new vessel. Again we were a bit taken aback that the hose segment we purchased was not rigid enough for the power of the pump; obviously a new hose segment is needed.

Some campers have suggested that we get potable water delivered so that the amount of water is not an issue and do away with the requirement of the water donation and eliminate a lot of plastic waste. My opinion is that we need to remember that Burning Man is a desert camping trip and part of its ethos is we bring what we need to consume and take away what we use. Each camper manages their own water and as a Theme Camp we need to do the same.

I really do not want to have a water delivery and take us away from knowing we need to be self-sufficient - In that vein I highly encourage - if you have the means & space to bring additional water for camp use it would be appreciated.

****Gray Water Reclamation****

Our Gray Water disposal for the sink and the shower were provided by United Site Services. This system provides us as a camp a no-worry way to deal with the Gray Water issue.

We rented (4) 250G tanks (The largest USS rents) - three were for PolyParadise & one was for the Twisted Swan. So that is a 750G capacity to PolyParadise until our first contracted servicing of the tanks Wednesday-Friday-Sunday. Over course of the week I estimate we generated just about 1,500 Gallons of Gray Water; that is approx the same amount of water from 2023.

When USS comes to service the tanks (whatever time that day they get there - cause it's Playa Time) - They will not empty the tank if we do not have the pre-paid vouchers available. We are of course at the mercy of United Site Services actually making a visit on the days we have purchased service for.

As part of our contract with USS we pre-pay for (30) RV Service Slots - These are pre-paid via RV campers for either Wednesday - Thursday - Friday. We distribute a placard per RV Service Day & the USS Voucher. Being Radically Self-Reliant as a RV Camper you will need to ensure that the Placard is visible and that the voucher is available when USS arrives (whatever time that day they get there - cause it's Playa Time). Let's take that a step further - If the Placard is visible and the Voucher is available - if you happen to not be there - ANY LOCKING MECHANISM to the Black Water tank must be UNLOCKED.

The best option is for you as an RV Camper to be in camp the day your RV is to be serviced or until USS arrives so that there are no issues. The camp is not responsible if your RV misses servicing because you were not there - the voucher is not available or your RV Black Water Tank cover is locked.

For 2025 we will implement a better way to distribute the placards on Day 1 and not have RV campers being frenzied that they do not have their placard as their service day arrives. We will also then on-playa generate a list of RV's that have placards up/down the service roads to better make sure that all RV's get serviced for that specific day.

For those RV Campers that do not have a pre-paid servicing slot - you can always flag down USS for RV-Servicing. It is my understanding that the Service Trucks that come for the Pre-Paid may not be available for those that do not have an already pre-paid RV Servicing Voucher. I believe these trucks are on specific routes for a specific number of pump outs.

For 2025 we will again pre-purchase (30) RV Pump out vouchers. In previous years we purchased (10) on each of Wednesday-Thursday-Friday - Thinking about doing just Thursday/Friday (15 on each day) - not sure yet. Either way they will be made available on a First-Come First-Serve basis as campers register with RV's - cost will be $100 paid Pre-Playa. If you Pay for an RV Servicing and for whatever reason do not make it to BRC the Servicing Voucher will be used by another RV camper; no refund will be returned to the original purchaser.

In the end there is NO GUARENTEE that the Pump Out Truck will make it to us on the specific day your Voucher is for. Since there is NO WAY to know what time they might arrive we may need to wait until the following day to take the very long walk to the USS Headquarters @ 6:30 and oblivion to inquire as to why we did not receive service; and even with that there is NO GUARENTEE that they will service the RV's within PolyParadise regardless of any pre-paid voucher. If USS does not provide service on any specific day and there are unused vouchers we will see if there are any options for partial refunds; there are NO GUARENTEES.

****Garbage, Garbage, Garbage****

Many Many thanks to all of the Volunteeratoldism campers for managing all things Garbage responsibilities. We all very much appreciate your dedication to the ART OF GARBAGE and as well taking care of the distribution of Community Garbage to all camper vehicles for transport off-playa.

Since the Trash is generated by the community - our camp requirement is for each vehicle to take two bags of Trash Off-Playa. Major kudos to anyone and everyone that transported more than two bags, the hope is of course that you are all depositing this garbage in the proper receptacles off-playa.

Each year more and more campers are using the Burner Express Bus to enter Black Rock City. Express Bus participants are given a Clear Plastic MOOP BAG that you can bring back on your way out of BRC via said Burner Express Bus. We highly encourage all campers that use the Burner Express Bus Service to bring their MOOP BAG to the Garbage Czar so they can properly fill them for you to transport off-playa.

****2022 Art Project - Anniversary Year #24****

The Event space which is 40'x40' is bustling with activity from 11:00a-6:00p Monday-Saturday with our Playa-Events. The vision was to transform space into a place to be and hang-out in at night awashed in UV-Light. All of the poles and structure joints were wrapped with UV-Gaffers tape and protected with a shrink wrap sleeve and In conjunction with UV-reactive tapestries - the effect was INCREDIBLE!! Adding 3D-stereoscopic glasses - the visual effect was mind-blowing.

In 2024 we purchased additional 10' UV-Tapestries that made the space even more captivating.

****2023 Art Project - Anniversary Year #25 -****

The Art Project for our 25th Anniversary within BRC was AWESOME! A 4'x8' sheet of plywood with Large Numbers/Letters spelling out 25 Years 1999-2023 adorned with UV-paint. The effect was incredible on our walkway into the Community Space. This Art Piece can be reworked with a (6) replacing the (5) in 25 and a (4) replacing the (3) in 2023.

****2024 Art Project - Anniversary Year #26 -****

The Art Project from 2023 - The Large Numbers/Letters spelling out 26 Years 1999-2024 adorned with UV-paint is amazing especially @ night aka UV-Light lit on the entry way towards the Community Space. This Art Piece will be reworked with a (7) replacing the (6) in 26 and a (5) replacing the (4) in 2024.

****2025 Art Project - Anniversary Year #27 -****

Are there any ideas for a 2025 Art Project to celebrate our 27th Anniversary - I do not have any immediate inspirations; but am open to ideas.

Not necessarily a 'Camp Art Project' but we will have an additional SIGN out front of camp. I am sure you all have seen, walked passed, read the 'SHIAT Scotto Says' that has adorned the front of the Event Space for years. I LOVE this sign - each morning I spend time sitting Beside Myself - LOVE IT!

For 2025 we will be premiering a 'SHIAT Trevor Says' Sign with his BEST LINES: Oh Geez - Oh Really - Do Better - All the things - Get sorted - Your not wrong - O'Hi There...

****Early Arrival & Exodus****

Early Arrival - Many, Many thanks to all of our Early Arrival crew. Kudos go out to all of you for your tireless efforts to get the camp erected and all system connected. You guys ROCK!!!

The crew was awesome!!! We rocked the house and had the entire infrastructure up & functional by Sunday morning. I thank you all so much for doing what needed to be done, being out in the Sun & Dust; making PolyParadise happen On-Playa!!!

We set the camp up over several days, but we take it down in just a few hours, it is a massive undertaking that requires lots & lots of hands. You cannot be 'Required' to stay and assist with breakdown, but know that each and every one of you that did help is so very much appreciated. This year’s crew was incredible. Thank you all so much for doing the dirty work and being there to pack away our community for another year.

We were well on our way Monday to Teardown and pack up - Then the Wind & Dust came; that lasted 9 hours. We were able to get a lot done but battling the fierce constant dust was difficult. Many of the decisions I make concerning camp is always SAFETY FIRST; NOT Safety THIRD! Yes we could have attempted to take down the (12) 20'x40' structures; but attempting to get the shade structures down on the ground then deal with the tarps and getting them folded in very windy conditions could be dangerous and to me it is just not worth a single camper getting hurt; you made it all the way thru a BRC adventure no reason to have one or multiple campers get hurt on the last day just to get the shade structures down. Then it was Tuesday and of course there were only a few campers left to pack up.

Many Many Many thanks to Trevor, Skippy, Kickstand, Kim, Shamus, Cactusman, Stefan, Wyoming, Alex, Virgine, Monica, Loophole, Seven, Snow, Randy, David for staying thru Tuesday evening to get it all done. After the final MOOP Sweeps we left the Playa on Wednesday @ 10a. Thanks to Trevor, Skippy & Cactusman for doing the driving to & from BRC back to Phoenix.

Thank you to all the AZBurners that came by to assist with Truck Unpacking; quite a lighter load back into the garage as 95% of all the EMT Conduit, shade structure parts (Connectors, Tarps, Canvas Tarps, Cammo, Chairs, Metal Racks) were loaded into the shared 26' container On-Playa that we rented/partnered with The Twisted Swan.

****Those Amazing AZBurners****

BIG BIG Kudos - To our fellow AZBurners who are always available to assist during the year; for Truck Loading & Unpacking; carrying, cleaning, sorting and building PolyParadise year-round here in Phoenix. Special Thanks to ((Armella, Corvus, Sandman, Cactus Man, Neefer, JimyMac, Goddess Ivy, Zeus, Bob, Kim, Dr. Dirt, Daniel, Canyon, Starfish, Dave, Dance Boy, Laura, Ken, Becky, Luna Tickles, Missy, Sam, Scott, Charles, Randy, TC, Caerrean, Loophole, Sprinkman, Bill, Brandon). Back in the day circa 2006 it was only WildChild & I that represented Arizona in PolyParadise. It is amazing to have had 28 AZBurners in our camp this year. Thank you all so very much!!!

****Annual Work-Party****

Another Playa year is upon us; The Village of PolyParadise will be celebrating 27 years within the gates of Black Rock City in 2025.

Running a large Theme Camp is a year-round process and requires participation by many people, especially at our annual Spring Work-Party. This is where we take the contents of our garage, all the PolyParadise Playa Gear, and clean, sort and other wise inventory what we have and what we need...making an assessment of what we have, what broke & what needs replacing.

PolyParadise will be having its annual Work Party (Clean Scotto & WildChild's Garage & thus the PolyParadise Playa Gear).

SAVE THE DATE...THE 2025 POLYPARADISE WORK-PARTY IS SCHEDULED FOR:WEDNESDAY 4/9- Tuesday 4/15@ Casa De Scotto/WildChild in Phx. AZThe Actual Work-Party part will be Saturday APRIL 12(Garage Door Goes UP @ 10:00a)

You are welcome to come for the day or the weekend...We have enough room to accommodate a few overnighters and can set up tents in the backyard.

Once we have cleaned the PolyParadise Playa Gear and are sufficiently covered in Playa Dust, if it is warm enough, or anybody is adventurous enough, we now have a pool; we can PARTY!!!

We promise to take lots of pics to post to our FaceBook Group as we sort & clean the Playa Gear and get our garage in some semblance of Playa order.

****Generator Power****

When it comes to the camp’s Generation and use of highly charged electrons - Special THANKS!!! MASTER TWIST!!! The 2500W Battery Backup system continues to provide us a way to keep those electrons flowing now matter the status of the generator.

We rented (2) Honda EU 7000W generator used in conjunction with our 2500W Battery Backup system. This in conjunction with (2) Yellow Distribution box/cords/cables we were able to provide a way for us to have continual power to the Shower & Sink pumps and critical lights within the Kitchen & Community space when the Generator was off or had run out of gas.

With having (1) generator running 24/7 providing power to the camp and shared electrons to The Twisted Swan; and (1) generator running Dusk to Dawn to power all night lights worked great. Though we did have an issue with one of the generators as it's GFI continued to trip; the fix was to run the single generator 24/7 to carry the load.

Thanks so much to Trevor for taking on the electrical grid - You are a credit to your skills and am always in awe of your making sense of the spaghetti of cords.

One of the areas we have struggled with is providing a 'Charging Station' for fellow campers. Over the years many more campers come to BRC with E-Bikes and of course these E-Bikes have batteries and of course these E-Bike batteries need re-charging. The avg. E-Bike battery requires ~500Watts of draw power to charge; couple that with all the Phone/Camera batteries that are being charged we get close or even over wattage and have electrical issues at the charging station as well as the rest of the electrical grid.

With an increased number or E-Bikes; not sure what solutions might be available; We are investigating what alternatives or tweaks can solve/mitigate this issue.

Considering for 2025 to purchase (2) New Honda EU 7000W generators as our own instead of renting and potential issues on playa and time in Phx. it takes to rent. Cost would be ~$8,000 out of camp fees.

****Poly Shower****

Special thanks to our 2024 benefactor for donated funds that allowed us to purchase a NEW Shower Structure. To make all things in transport/setup/maintenance of the shower we decided the best option was to purchase a 'Porto' type structure that is not a Porto but a Shower.

Even with this new shower structure; campers still need to provide their own water in order to use said shower. The unit was raised to a two-step height & placed on a cinderblock base. Simple instructions were provided via placards - Pour your water here - Proceed into shower - close shower curtain, turn on water - have shower.

There are a few tweaks still needed - The required (2) female ended hose that we purchased did in-fact have (2) female ends but did not have enough of a rigid structure to effectively pump the water into the shower - this hose portion is connected to the propane unit to make Hot Water and only turns on when there is water flow. With low water flow due to the non-rigid hose portion the propane did not turn on and was not available when using the shower. This portion of hose will need to be replaced with a more rigid section having (2) female ends.

Additional work on the shower structure is needed as during transport back to Phx. the underneath drain PVC Tube was damaged and will need to be replaced.

With a few adjustments this shower structure should last well into the future. Thank you again to our 2024 Benefactor - your generosity is so appreciated!

****Poly Wally - Village of PolyParadise Art Car****

****2024 Update****

Over the past year there have been several local Phx Poly campers that have come by Casa De Scotto/WildChild that have stated they would or they know a guy that would or a guy that has this skill or that skill and together we would resurrect Poly Wally and do the things necessary to make it DMV license worthy. So far that has all been cheap talk and as we head towards another new year there has been zero progress on anything.

The annual DMV registration for 2025 will be ~March-April; so at this point with no progress, no start to looking to transform the current vehicle to a thing, no commitment by any of the Phx-based campers to commit to the several months worth of work that would be necessary to revamp the base vehicle into a mutant vehicle that would be approved by DMV - we are now looking to 2026 for any possible BRC landfall of the vehicle.

If there are no polycampers or friends of such with these skills/tools and time within the Phoenix area or such willing to come to Phoenix for extended periods of time to make these modifications to the vehicle during 2025 - we will be looking to dispense with the vehicle; do not know where or to whom cause I do not know that as I stated before maybe donating the vehicle to our local AZBurner community that they would actually want it.

BOTTOM LINE - If in the year of our Burner World 2025 we make no progress on the transformation of the current vehicle it will be GONE, DONE AND NO LONGER IN MY BACKYARD!

If there is any polycamper out there that wants to transport the vehicle to their yard and take this all on - please contact me and let's have a chat as it might be easier to make it into something where all your tools are and not here @ Casa De Scotto/WildChild.

****2023****

I am sure by now you know that in 2022 our Art Car Poly Wally was DENIED a DMV license to enter BRC - The stated reason was that the vehicle looked to much like its original vehicle and was not mutated enough to be granted entry into BRC.

Whatever the vehicle might be able to be transformed into will require engineering assistance in Phoenix. The ability to know what kind of 'Cage' needs to be built; how that would attach to specific areas of the vehicles' limited metal undercarriage is beyond my fabrication abilities. Once the 'Cage' is constructed we would then make decisions as to what the 'Cover' would be to transform what looks like a worthy Mutated Vehicle for the purpose of receiving a DMV License.

If there are no polycampers or friends of such with these skills/tools and time within the Phoenix area or such willing to come to Phoenix for extended periods of time to make these modifications to the vehicle - we will be looking to dispense with the vehicle; maybe donating it to our local AZBurner Community to be housed and used for our Regional Event Saguaro Man.

****Burning Man Tickets 2025****

The distribution of tickets for Burning Man 2025 has yet to be announced: http://tickets.burningman.org/ for details.

Registration for tickets will be thru your Burner Profile:

As a Theme Camp we do get to participate in the Stewards Group Sale - The available slots in this sale are reserved for our key crew as well as new additions each year within the total we are allotted. The Placement timeline is that we will not know how many slots we will be allocated until Mid-February with the Stewards Sale ~First week of March. With the changes from Placement to the HUBS (Humans Uniting for Better Sustainability) the Twisted Swan will be receiving its own ticket allotment - PolyParadise will be awarded separately. I have no knowledge if we will receive the same # of tickets for PolyParadise. In the post-playa assessment that we submitted to Placement as part of their requirements of Theme Camps I requested that we receive at least 50 slots aka 100 Tickets/50 vehicle passes. I do not know the exact number of Stewards Sale tickets we will be allotted.

I will start the process of making contact with campers that were on the 2024 Stewards sale and inquiring about their interest in 2025. I have no idea how many tickets slots we will receive as we are at the mercy of the allocation from Placement to a fixed number of tickets in the Stewards Sale tickets to an ever increasing number of Theme Camps requesting tickets and all of the Theme Camps that did not make BRC 2024 and put their ticket allocation on hold forward to 2025.

****Camping Fee - 2025****

Our only source of income to cover the costs of bringing PolyParadise to Black Rock City each year is thru the Camp Fee. In 2024 we established a camping fee of $325/person. This increased camp fee of $75/camper brought in ~$15,000 that covered all of those costs of the infrastructure items that need to be replaced due to the Rain/Mud of BRC 2023.

We did end 2024 with a positive balance of $750.

With all of the infrastructure items that we purchased in 2024 and very few major items that need to be replaced for 2025 - The camp fee for PolyParadise 2025 will be $275/Camper. That is down $50/camper from 2024.

THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR BELIEVING IN THE POLYPARADISE COMMUNITY!!!

Registration for PolyParadise will OPEN on March 1, 2025.

Because of the income reporting issues concerning PayPal I am no longer be able to accept payment for camp fees via said PayPal. Camp Fees in 2025 must be paid via check or money order. Bottom line if your check BOUNCES please plan on camping elsewhere.

Attention International Campers - I know how difficult it can be to get a US Check - Upon registration I will let you know of an alternative option for camp fee payment.

****PLEASE BE AWARE - Camp Fees are NON-REFUNDABLE****

Know it is not that I am non-compassionate to the reason you are requesting a refund; I am making it clear Camp Fees are Non-Refundable. Once I receive your Camp Fee I am spending it; thus it is not available to return to you. What I also do not allow is a transfer of a Paid Camp Fee by one person to another - what this means if you pay your camp fee and find another person to take your slot that new camper will also need to pay a camp fee to the camp - You cannot benefit from the camp's No Refund Policy and every camper must pay a camp fee to the camp and not transferred between campers.

****Placement Changes Coming in 2025****

****2024 Update****

As indicated in 2023 post-assessment there are a few things that will be different with the move from 'Villages' to HUBS (Humans Uniting for Better Sustainability).

Going forward as HUBS we continue to need to justify why our two camps need to be placed next to each other; that we share Infrastructure, Power, Grey Water, transportation of infrastructure. Stewards Sale and Early Entry Passes will be directed to each camp instead of the current model in which I as Village lead received all Stewards Sale Slots and Early Entry Passes and allocated out of that lot to PolyParadise & Twisted Swan/Temple of Bacchus. At this time I have no definitive answer as to how many Steward Sale slots will be awarded to each camp; per Placement Timeline I expect that we will know mid-February with the sale being approx first week of March.

****2023****

We have been informed by Placement that in 2025 there will no longer be a designation as a Village but will be moving to the HUBS (Humans Uniting for Better Sustainability) HUBS is built to co-locate camps who have partnered to efficiently share resources such as water, power, tools, and transportation.

Back in the day....The designation of Village was a population issue; if your camp was over 150 campers you could be designated as a Village. Then the designation morphed to be camps that shared resources or events. In the Village model the allocation of Stewards Sale tickets goes thru the Village leader to the respective camps. In this new HUBS model the allocation of Stewards sale ticket will be directly to individual camp leaders and not thru the Village management; giving Placement a more on-on-one connection with each camp lead and to how many of the fixed number of tickets in the entire Stewards sale go to each camp. In this model there m ay be some camps that receive more ticket slots and I presume there will be some camps that might receive less ticket slots.

How does this HUBS model effect PolyParadise, The Twisted Swan & Temple of Bacchus - Our three camps share Power (flowing electrons), Gray Water and most importantly a Kitchen; so we are what is considered a HUBS. The main difference is that Guami (Lead of Twisted Swan & Temple of Bacchus) will be getting his allocated ticket slots for the Stewards Sale directly from Placement and not me as the Village lead. The HUBS designation will replace the Village designation on the Placement Registration and of course we will request in 2025 to be a HUBS and have the same layout; but showing the sharing of Power, Gray Water & Kitchen.

****Scotto Speak****

2024 was my 25th Burn and my 24th serving as Camp Daddy, Benevolent Dictator of PolyParadise. We gather together from all corners of the globe to share, learn & grow - a passion & commitment to Community and lifelong friendships created on the hallowed grounds of BRC and within the borders of PolyParadise. I cannot imagine my life without Burning Man or PolyParadise. I thank you all for being part of it all with me.

The Burning Man/PolyParadise experience is different for each person. It is my hope that each of you felt you had a home & a family within the borders of PolyParadise and that each one of you had the MOST AWESOME TIME EVER!!! I hope that if you return to Burning Man again, you will camp with us and again help create the Community we love, PolyParadise in BRC!

My overall assessment of our camp is that after 26yrs we have this Playa thing down pretty good. Rinse - Repeat - Revise. We provide a great home within the Gates of BRC, a drama free space with an amazing Community Space/Kitchen, Events area, The HUMAN CARCASS WASH, Shower and of course the power of family & friends.

Thanks so much to Trevor for 29 days of time together. You and I have been doing this thing side-by-side for several years. I very much enjoy our Bromance; we just work well together; you know what needs to be done and you are never afraid to get your hands dirty. I look forward to doing this all again in 2025.

There is an extra special Callout; reserved to my Life Partner, Wife, Friend & companion, WildChild. You teach me each day the value of a Big Heart and are constantly there all year long with a smile, encouragement and new ideas to make the Burning Man/PolyParadise experience better & better each year. You are there to meet each challenge, you are there for our campers and most importantly you are there for me, I am forever yours.

Again, it has been my pleasure and honor serve as your Camp Daddy (Benevolent Dictator). Each year brings a different set of challenges, a different set of lessons to be had & learned or stumbled upon; you just never know what the Playa will bring....

One last item to talk about...In 2024 I personally was able to enter retirement aka not working full-time. I have been doing consulting with the firm as an Independent Contractor at least thru 3/25. Over the past few months we have also become clients of the firm; working with legal counsel to have our Estate Planning Documents created. What an interesting project; thinking about our own personal legacy and mortality as well as the legacy of the camp.

Whom would be the best stewards of PolyParadise; how can I make sure that all of the infrastructure of the camp is protected & transferred; What do I do with the newly issued Volunteeratoldism Trademark - What about the 42 Domain Names I own that are all Burning Man related -

You may have guessed that the person(s) we feel are best suited to take on that role would be Trevor aka Bad Daddy and Monica. In order to make all of this legal we have created PolyParadise Productions LLC; on this entity is listed Scott Platsky, Virginia Platsky, Trevor McGinn, Monica Davis.

The infrastructure of the camp; The Volunteeratoldism Trademark; The 42 Domain Names listed on GoDaddy have all been assigned to PolyParadise Productions LLC. At such a time that both Virginia & I both pass; Trevor & Monica will take control of the assets of PolyParadise Productions LLC. Since Trevor & Monica are Canadian Citizens they will work in conjunction with Jennifer 'Neefer' Oxford to coordinate all things in the transfer of these assets as well as the continuation of the dream of PolyParadise in Black Rock City.

At the time of this writing I am still unsure if we will use the PolyParadise Productions LLC to intake camp fees (The ability to take Credit Cards for Camp Fees) and pay out invoices. I still need to get a Bank Account setup and due diligence on all implications in doing so (Corporate Filings / Taxes / Liability to any such taxes to Trevor, Monica, and Ginny & myself).

It feels good for WildChild & I to have all of this in place and many many thanks to Trevor, Monica & Jennifer for being willing to take on this role. We are just being prepared cause if anything has been learned over the past few years - better to have things in place cause all things are about THE NOW and prepared for the future which is unknown.

We will learn from our mistakes, we will again come alive with The Village of PolyParadise, Version 27, it will be better than ever!!!

August 24 - September 1 - 2025 - 238 Days left till Burning Man!

Scotto
- Camp Daddy
- Benevolent Dictator Village of PolyParadise
- Burning Man Lifer/Geek/Zealot