BM2K7 Playa ROM Playa Prologue First Day A Busy Day The Man Burns Early Rebuilding the Man A Very Full Night and Day Kidsville Happenings The Man Burns The Temple of Forgivenesss Burns Return to the Default World Decompression
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Burning Man 2007: Return to the Default World
3 September 2007
My last shift ends at 06:00. At Ranger HQ I return the radio, sign out, and step away from the window, feeling a sort of deafness after a week of being plugged into the heartbeat of Black Rock City. It's a bit disorienting.
I broke camp last afternoon, and it's all packed away, save what's needed over the night. I pack that in a very few moments, wake everyone up, drive over to Ranger Lefty, and as he takes the wheel I climb up into the sleeping part of the RV with my camera. I'm usually asleep instantly, but I'm feeling a slow tearing away from "home," so I'm still taking pictures and enjoying the heat and dust.
We join the Exodus line.
My playa-buffed fingernails are as shiny as can be, a fun side-effect of the event. Within minutes of starting to assemble the shade structure the playa dust polishes and shines. Playa manicure. The green wristband is the Kidsville membership, an easy way to see which children and adults are "ours." We try.
Another kid bicycle rides off the playa.
Someone with a few more bicycles; wow!
I fell asleep (thanks, Lefty) but wake two hours later as we reach the playa's edge.
A gatekeeper is regulating the traffic flow onto the highway. This is looking back. Our turn to hit the highway!
A quick view from the upper window, enjoying the panorama of ancient Lake Lahontan.
After passing the first town, Gerlach, we hit the railroad tracks. We're looking towards Trego Trench and Frog Pond, hot springs we frequent during the Playa ROM.
While Lila and Isaac have many memories of the many Burning Mans they've done, this may be the strongest memory: putting their feet into the water fountain near the Wigwam Restaurant in Fernley, NV.
Inside the Wigwam, luxuriating in cool air conditioning and warm running water! Oh, the little joys! Here's Lila and Lefty awaiting the food.
Home again, home again. The kids had been begging me to sleep one more night in the RV, and I'd been saying no, but we got home later than expected and everyone was asleep, and the parking spot was perfect (right around the corner from our house).
I snuck into a hot shower while the laptop pulled down thousands of emails, snuck back, and fell asleep in a dusty RV in the cool foggy air of San Francisco. Another Burning Man is over.
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