What Worked 2009 - PolyParadise Burning Man

Thursday December 1, 2009

As each Playa year passes I use this space to reflect on our collective experience as a Theme Camp, as Benevolent Dictator what I see we did right and what we did wrong, where we can improve for the following year. With each passing year PolyParadise gets better & better, attracts more people as a camp and to its events.

You all should be very proud of the Community you created & nurtured all week long. I thank you all for being part of the 11th Anniversary of PolyParadise. Anything said here is not meant ill will towards anyone or any situation. It is 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....

PolyParadise's population increased by 32 campers in 2009, to an On-Playa total of 140. Within our borders there was an additional 35 people who did not use the camp infrastructure, who wanted to be part of us but separate, I know they all enjoyed their Playa Address.

We had 62 veteran campers return and 78 new campers and of that number 35 VIRGINS I thank all of the returning campers for making PolyParadise your Playa home, I so depend on each & everyone of you in making our camp an amazing loving space. I hope that all of our Virgin campers have seen what Community really means, and I hope that you will all camp with us again.

One of the greatest compliments for me as Camp Daddy is praise that comes from former PolyParadise campers that have camped elsewhere and will be returning because they see what I see, they see and feel Community!

I hope that everyone had an amazing time as a PolyParadise Resident.

PolyParadise continues to be a 'Camp Drama Free Zone', I mean everyone seems to get along, no assaults, no fisticuffs between campers. But we did have a situation with Medical Services visiting our Playa location twice in one day for two of our campers. As I was out of camp for the day, I very much appreciate the efforts and response of those that there present to assist in the aid of our campers in need. Thanks to Stagger for being my Stand-In on Thursday. A special callout to Dr. J (Jeff Patterson) who showed an exemplary heart in his concern for his campmates, you are a gift to this Community and I thank you very much!!!

Post Playa Dr. J & I had a conversation about the medical incidents on the Playa. I share excerpts of it here with you.

On-Playa you asked me about Medical information gathered about our campers, I mentioned to you that is not something I have done in the past and did not think that other camps collected such information. I do not know that for sure, but your original statement has had me thinking.

I guess I am caught between a rock & a hard place in that I really want & need the Playa & PP experience to have some part in Radical Self-Reliance and that is all about taking care of yourself and your own Medical Conditions. It was great to have you as a Dr. in camp and very much appreciated that experience & caring as our camp needed it on Thursday afternoon. But as I continue to think about it people need to be responsible for their own stuff and their own self. If I do require this information of our campers, what do I do with that information, whom would I trust with that information other than myself. If I do require this information do I or the camp become responsible because we knew about it but did nothing to assist or stop someone from doing something adverse to that known condition -

Again, I appreciate everyone who was involved in assisting our fellow campers, but as a camp PolyParadise will not collect, require or inquire or be responsible for any campers medical issues or resulting injuries. People need to be responsible for their own stuff and their own self.

If you take medication make sure you have enough for the time on the Playa and make sure to take it - Be aware of what you are ingesting and make sure to DRINK ENOUGH WATER!! Radical Self-Reliance!!

A special Callout to all Rangers & Medical Staff that cared for campers of PolyParadise and all Playa Citizens. Your dedication and sharing of your heart and skills is a real gift to our Community and I thank you so much.

Our Theme Camp Registration did not specify a Playa location preference as much as size allocation. I was very pleased with our Playa Footprint & location. It was great to be on the other side of 6:00 and see that side of the city. Being between two Porto Potty Banks and being between C & D between 4:30 & 5:00 was very nice. We had great neighbors whom we shared with all week - This was an awesome Playa Address!!! It was unfortunate that our location that was part of the Playa Map but was listed with an incorrect address. We had great foot traffic in our Community Space and awesome attendance at all of our camp events. I would certainly be in favor of requesting the same Playa Location & Dimensions for 2010.

What were your impressions of 4:40 & Chaos between DNA -

For 2009 PolyParadise had a Community related 'Requirement' that was to be part of the daily cleanup or cooking & sharing a meal. The Community Kitchen was an awesome success! Thanks so much to Uncle Bob and to everyone else who helped setup and maintain the kitchen all week long.

The kitchen setup allowed for a clear definition between serving & cooking areas. Though we could have used additional Prep Space. The new 3-Burner Cast Iron stoves worked awesome and their placement in the center of the space allowed access from either side. These stoves worked so well, the existing Coleman Camp Stoves will be replaced for 2010.

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. Thanks to everyone who assisted with Trash Can Pizza & Trash Can Turkey!!! Thanks to everyone who cleaned up, picked up, MOOPED up.

The layout of the kitchen would be better suited in the future by adding an additional 20 - x20, increasing space and thruways during meal preparation.

We had plenty of snacks for everyone, and all seemed satisfied with the selections available. We do need to purchase a few more Metal Racks & Tables to better organize all the Kitchen materials and Dish Drying.

Dishwashing and keeping the Pots/Pans washed and available for the next person was much better this year as some campers this option as their contribution to the camp.

No matter how many times you look over your packing list & recheck the bins and crates, invariably you will forget something...In 2009 it was Dishwashing Liquid. Thank you to our neighbors @ 4:30 & D for gifting some suds our way to make it thru the week.

With regards to Syrup - We had many campers volunteer to make pancakes/waffles or things that needed syrup. The food items were delicious & tasty but each person brought their own supply of syrup, which means we have lots & lots of syrup. We now have enough syrup for pancakes/waffles to feed several armies. So if you plan to cook Pancakes/Waffles for 2010 WE HAVE SYRUP, no need to bring anymore.

Having the Menu & Volunteer list printed poster size and displayed in the Community Space was awesome, it let everyone know what was going to be cooked at each meal and who volunteered for what events. For 2010, we will endeavor to have the Font Size a bit bigger to make it easier to read from a distance.

Thanks again go to Twist for the Dishwashing Station. A marvelous portable double sink with drain

The addition of the Hand Sanitizing Dispenser was awesome, great suggestion post Playa '08!!!

In 2009 PolyParadise had a Community related 'Requirement' that was to be part of the daily cleanup or cooking & sharing a meal. The meals and the variety of all things cooked was amazing!!!! There was never a want for food, there was always choices.

Special callout to everyone that assisted in the creation of Trash Can Pizza on Tuesday, Of course to UncleBob for coming up with this crazy idea...Thanks to Dawn for the Checkered Table Cloth, Thanks to Joshua for being Jonny on the Spot with a watch to track optimum Pizza cooling times. Thanks to for everyone that assisted with Trash Can Turkey and a HUGE Thanks to David for jumping right in and carving up all 4 turkeys while an anxious crowd awaited food - Amazing!!!

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

It was awesome to see the 2009 MOOP MAP and know that our efforts have us now in the GREEN!!!! YEAH!!!! Freakin AWESOME!!! Thank you to everybody that helped all week long and to those that stayed for teardown and beyond...You guys ROCK for making those last sweeps through our space.

We are looking into ways of modifying our Trash Cans so that we do not have to dig in the Playa for the Pizza Racks (Trash Can Pizza) as that may have been the dark spots listed on the 2009 MOOP MAP.

Thanks so much to Stagger for heading up the Trash area and to everyone that assisted in bagging & tapping up trash. More importantly, thanks to all of you for taking some trash home. We generate this trash 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 transported ZERO bags of trash off the Playa in the truck. We did have 5 buckets of general slop, generator oil, left over food stuff slop, the remnants of many a thing on the Playa.

Our Gray Water disposal was again assisted by Twist with the drain system for the sink and the shower that emptied into the holding tank provided by Sani-Hut. As noted we do need to better secure the hoses to the top of the tank so that we do not get backflow. But that part aside, this system provides us as a camp a no-worry way to deal with the Gray Water issue.

During breakdown of camp on Monday, the generator will be turned off as all electrical cables are being pulled. On breakdown day all remaining waste water will be poured directly into the top of the Holding Tank.

The Tank delivery, service and pickup were without incident and thanks have been given to Sani-Hut. Over the course of the week we generated just over 850 Gallons of Gray Water. There is no doubt that we will again use the services of Sani-Hut in 2010 for our Gray Water collection & disposal, it is well worth the cost.

General LNT efforts for PolyParadise were awesome. The 2009 MOOP MAP shows our efforts have us now in the GREEN!!!! YEAH!!!! Freakin AWESOME!!! Thank you to everybody that helped all week long and to those that stayed for teardown and beyond...You guys ROCK for making those last sweeps through our space. We are looking into ways of modifying our Trash Cans so that we do not have to dig in the Playa for the Pizza Racks (Trash Can Pizza) as that may have been the dark spots listed on the 2009 MOOP MAP. These dark areas may well have been the wet Playa that happened from the backflow of the Gray Water system.

Thanks to Shadow & Knotch for having the extra room and willingness to take a few items left over (Bikes, Ice Cart) that would not fit into the truck.

PolyParadise - 2009 - What Worked