Assumptions and judgments can keep you from things you love – that you didn’t even know you loved!
For years I was told about this elusive Burning Man and for years I avoided it due to the rumors that it was a bunch of naked hippies having sex with each other in tents. No thanks, I lived through my childhood already. But then my BFFD (best friend forever, duh) and I were invited to go and I figured I was safe with her – she’s a tough one. We joined a camp, bought bins, bikes and lights. I had no idea what to expect, I just knew that I wasn’t having sex with anyone and I didn’t want anyone touching me.
All I can say about Burning Man is that the true you is revealed. You enter into the gates of Black Rock City and you step onto another planet. You don’t even use your real name, you are given a name or you acquire one somehow. I was called Queen since I didn’t allow anyone to touch me without my full permission and then maybe they could hug me. Maybe.
Nothing from the “real world” is allowed. No logos, no ads, not selling anything and no money. They only money exchange is at center camp for the espresso machine.
There are even mutant vehicles. No car that has any recognizable features as a car is allowed. It is a world of bicycles (heaven!). You either ride your bike along the web of streets or catch a ride on a mutant vehicle.
It is an artist’s paradise. It is an adventure. And most every art piece is climbable! I spent most of the time by myself, riding my bike for twenty-five miles a day and climbing art. You never know what will happen on any given day on the planet of the man – the playa. There may suddenly be a trampoline in front of you, a band of clowns or zombies might be headed your way or a ship may pass by calling you to board it. Literally. I was nervous about all the crazy sex and drugs I’d heard about that were there, but the entire experience is a like a drug trip with no drugs necessary! Like life, you can find whatever you seek. You can be and do whatever you want, within limits. There is a police department, a medical station and a mutant vehicles DMV. People dress up and take on new names. There are dance parties every moment of every day. It is as hot as the devil in the day and freezing at night. You must survive, there’s even a survival guide. Most people look like they are straight out of Mad Max. It is the ultimate dress up playtime.
Then there are the dust storms. They come out of nowhere across the playa and cover everything with the thin playa dust that will forever be in your clothes, boots and fingernails. You can barely see your hand in front of you. You should have your gas mask, goggles and water with you at all times, and hopefully your bike. You never know when a storm is going to hit.
Some people are afraid of the dust storms and hide in their RVs. I’m much more of an adventurist; the storms were my favorite part. I was lucky to be in five of them! My favorite moment, if picking one moment at Burning Man is even possible, was the first massive dust storm that rolled in. You could see it coming and had about two minutes to prepare. While people around me zipped up tents, ran to RVs or tightened their goggles, I got on my bike and rode directly into the cloud. A few others had the same idea and we saw each other and nodded in pockets of clearness, like being in a cloud on another planet. That’s exactly where we were.
Me and my BFFD had tents right next to each other and we had a notebook that we left in front of our tent to let the other one know what adventures we were on or had just been through. Best friends are those you can be alone with, literally. There was no babysitting. Burning Man is not the place to keep time or appointments. There is no cell service.
You can be whatever you want and whoever you are is revealed. I was a loner cyclist adventure climber called Queen. I took on the storms, I climbed, I danced and I rejoiced in the beauty of humanity and art in Black Rock City and nobody touched me inappropriately. 
Oh how I love the man! I’d go this year but I’m speaking at TEDx in Asheville.
Sign up and I will email you my blog posts. I don't automate my blog updates, I send them out by hand so I can add extra private messages.
Thanks for reading! Please comment on my blog and let me know how I can help you, inspire you or just make you laugh. I'm listening. Feel free to email me at angela@angelashelton.com and let me know what you like (or don't like). To keep in touch, connect with me @ Facebook | Twitter
