Beautiful Laguna Beach: Photos of Main Beach

Where I live is basically a paradise.  The rents are high, but the lifestyle is laid-back, artsy and eccentric.  The slowly pulsing ocean waves have a calming effect on those who witness it.  

The bird rock.

The iconic lifeguard tower.

Gorgeous Laguna Beach in Black and White: Photos

These were taken on my phone with the usual setting, not limited to black and white.  If there had been any color in there images, I would have captured it, but this is exactly how it looked.

Main Beach, by the bird rock.

Patterns in the sand left by the ocean, footprints left by humans and dogs

Burning Man 2014: Alien Siege Machine

The alien siege machine- really far away, but you can see it's pretty big.

The Alien Siege Machine was out local large sculpture on the open playa.  In other words, it was the closest large-scale art installation to our neck of the woods.

I went out to see it with my two brothers, Dan and Phil, aka Fango, and Nostrildamus.  I regret not having my camera with me at that time, but my phone battery was dead at that time, so I just had to enjoy it in the moment.  And now I have only the description of the experience to share.

It was quite large, some four or five stories tall, and shaped something like a trojan horse, with the head of a Ridley Scott-designed alien from the Aliens movie series.  At the base was a large platform that could be climbed up to from the treaded tank-wheels surrounding it, or a number of other ways.  One could also enter the base through a door or window, and, crouching below the low ceiling, navigate a series of hallways, decorated up with alien imagery.  One ended with a cluster of what looked like alien eggs in goopy ectoplasm, glowing in the black lights.

Moving up the sculpture, there were a series of ladders, stairways, and other ways to climb up, of which I don't recall the exact order, but suffice to say that there were many clever ways to navigate up, down and around the magnificent piece, as though we were hamsters in a habitrail.  The upper deck was a control room of sorts.  What looked like a bomb was suspended in the center, which we learned later was to be part of the big pyrotechnics show to take place later in the week.  There were ornately carved table legs on swiveling mounts to resemble alien ray guns that participants could point at targets on the ground.  One could even climb into the alien head, and peer out the mouth.  I'm sure there were many other interactive features I'm forgetting, but the point is it was a complete piece of work, that combined the work of what must have been hundreds if not thousands of people.

Anyone seeking better pictures, and a more complete description of this piece need only search the web for Alien Siege Machine.

2014 Burning Man Story Menu

Drawing: Laguna Beach in Sharpie on Coffee Cup Lid

Near where I often draw caricatures on the beach is the old curmudgeon, Berto, who runs the chess board built into a cement picnic table. He makes his money that way, by challenging the passersby, and beating them at chess, I assume.  He's Italian with a thick accent and also has considerable artistic skill.  He drew a fairly-good portrait of me without needing to look at me.  He also draws in pen on coffee cup lids which are ubiquitous, even if one doesn't drink coffee, which he does.

Aaaanyway, I took the idea and ran with it.  Here's my sketch and "bas relief" of Laguna Beach's Main Beach, between the volleyball courts and the playground.

Main Beach, in Sharpie on coffee cup lid. Laguna Beach, California 2014

Burning Man Stories: Two Polaroid Photos, 2014, 2013

Some burners walk around with (what used to be called) a Polaroid camera. They take photos of people, and then gift those people with an instant print of the image captured, which slowly develops over a few minutes.

Here are two I was gifted:

free radical with Temple Guardian, the Sharpie Shaman, aka Uncle Buck, at the Temple. Burning Man 2014 

The gentleman I pose with above is a "Temple Guardian," a volunteer whose job is to, basically guard the temple.  At this point, he was on perimeter duty, keeping people from approaching the temple.  It was too late to visit the temple, for it was closed so it could be prepped for immolation that night.  This was the cause of no small amount of grief on the part of the burners, who wanted badly to enter the temple, but the guardians were there, not just to protect the temple, but to empathize and support the community that relies on it.  They set up a small outpost on the perimeter, that was a large wooden box that had been painted colorfully and skillfully, and so was a complete work of art, like the temple, for visitors to commune around, and put their feelings into. They could write or draw on scraps of wood or cards and place them in the box, which would be placed in the temple to burn with the rest.

The Sharpie Shaman maintains the safety perimeter around the Temple

The man in the orange robe I actually recognized from Burning Man 2011, who was in the exact same spot, at roughly the same time, when I was there on Sunday morning.  He clarified this, saying he was there that year, and remembered me.  He introduced himself as the Sharpie Shaman, aka Uncle Buck.  In 2011, he'd ferried my remembrance into the temple, to find a place for it to burn.  He had a ceremonial way about him, conscious and empathic, so I again bade him find a spot for my placard this year, which I saw him walk away with, at a ritually slow pace.  But before that, he had intimated that they were running low on supplies that burners could use to create their remembrances to be burned.  I have come to expect this from previous burns, and so came prepared with a dozen extra Sharpies and a stack of 5X7" cards, which I was happy to donate, and he was happy to accept.

At the Center Camp with some Russian girls whose names escape me, but who were a hoot.

The picture above was from 2013, from a visit to the Center Camp.  I was just wandering around, taking in the scene, when pretty much out of nowhere, I fell into a "meeting."  Some girls accosted me, and told me we would be having a meeting.  I naturally acceded to this, and followed them till we found a suitable space for our meeting.  I'm not sure how it started out, but this ended up being a mock-business meeting, in which we argued and negotiated over imaginary salaries and titles.  At some point, I was feeling a bit ganged up on, and so had to go looking for an advocate.  Not too far away, a young woman was just wandering around  as I had been, and so I enlisted her as my attorney, or some such title.  She said she had no experience doing that, and I said that was fine, and so she was in.  She took on the spirit of the game with gusto, and argued vehemently on my behalf.  I forget exactly how the meeting ended, but basically, when we all got bored with the game, it was over, and we were back to being people in the cafe together, but this time, we'd been through a little dramatic experience together. Someone had a polaroid-style camera and snapped the above picture.  My attorney is not in the picture.

This was the perfect expression of the spirit of spontaneity at Burning Man: do anything, be anyone, form spontaneous ad hoc relationships with random strangers.  It's a blank slate to create yourself again as anyone you wish to be, any character or persona.  All around you are the exemplars of this spirit, who can show you how to do it, and reveal to you the simple joy of this purely creative act.

Oo-fah!

More 2014 Burning Man Stories

Burning Man 2012: Videos: Lighthouse, El Pulpo Mecanico, Burn Wall Street

I've been clearing out old bulky video files from my phone.  Here are some from Burning Man 2012 that, unedited, still provide a feeling of the playa.

First: When one arrives on the playa, a few days before the official start of the event, the landscape is barren, and serene, a blank slate on which to create.

One of the CORE projects from that year, the lighthouse. The Circle Of Regional Effigies were wooden sculptures created by teams from different regions of the world, to be ritually burned.

Perennial favorite, for the last few years, El Pulpo Mecanico, the mechanical octopus:

And finally, footage of construction of Burn Wall Street, a mockup of the eponymous area of NY.

Video: A hawk preying on a little bird in my parents' front yard.

Video: Full Moon Drum Circle at Aliso Beach, Laguna Beach, California

Video: On the side of a mountain in Kauai, Hawaii.

Burning Man 2014: Videos: Inside the Dave Dome, At the Man & Souk

2014 Burning Man Story Menu

Grinch Palm Frond Mask

I made this little Grinch mask from a smaller palm frond, and it sold soon after it was done.

Grinch- acrylic on palm frond

Burning Man 2014: Spectacular sunset skyscapes up in your face!

The time right around sunset, and immediately following, is referred to as "Golden Hour." The golden-orange light of the sun is striking everything on one side, creating a dramatic lighting scheme.  The photographers love this time of day, and snap away at the landscape, the sky, the art, the burners.

The 7:30 and A street intersection

Here are my photos of the sunset from our home street, the 7:30 Keyhole.  All photos are unmodified.

French Quarter on the left

Backside of 7 Sirens Pirate Cove

Top of the Dave Dome

Temple of Polegasm, our neighbor

Front of Cartoon Commune

The Alien Siege Machine rises out of the dust

More 2014 Burning Man Stories

Burning Man 2014: Tagging on a skate ramp, Ice cream from the Reverse Cowgirl Creamery

Earlier in the week, I had seen this camp on the Esplanade that had a large skate park, and it was quite the spectacle, seeing guys roll around on skateboards on a fairly extensive skate park in the desert.  

Later on, someone from that camp came to my theme camp, Cartoon Commune.  Seeing as we were a camp with a cartoon theme, he enquired as to who the artists were. When I was identified, he invited me to do a piece of artwork on the surface of the skate park.  I always love to spontaneously contribute my art at burning man.

I eventually got to it, I think on Friday.  I wandered over and made contact with the guy, whose name I don't recall.  He told me to just pick a spot and go for it, and the skaters would just skate around me.

I'd planned to create a major manifesto, wrapping over the top of the ramp and incorporating many different cartoon elements and characters, but logistically, it wasn't meant to be, for it was right around noon and I'd neglected to bring an umbrella or any provision against the burning sun.  So, my piece ended up being smaller than originally planned.  Regardless, I laid it down and had fun doing it.  It was a little manic-looking character I found in my sketchbook and more or less copied onto the ramp.

My piece.

Wider shot.

The playa viewed from the skate park, the Man in distance.

As I worked, the skating continued around me and would occasionally distract me with a particularly clutch rail grind or ollie.

Someone else's tag

Some days, our neighborhood would get a visit from the Reverse Cowgirl Creamery, which hosted something of an ice cream social on the open playa, just off the 7:30 keyhole.  In the late afternoon, from our camp, we'd hear someone on a bullhorn hawking ice cream.

free radical poses with his ice cream bar and phone case.

Drawn to this, we'd join several dozen people on bikes and on foot, converging on the mobile ice cream parlor.  This time, I think it was Friday, I was joined by my brother and campmate, Fango, aka Daniel Ari.  Friendly burners at the counter would serve delicious individually-wrapped frozen confections.  Naturally, the ice cream is given freely; nothing is expected in return from the recipient except their presence.

Happy Times!!!

The art-car also pumped out the typical electronic dance music, which put the crowd in a party mood.  It was a vibrant social scene, and I was compelled to stay and dance for awhile after finishing my ice cream.

Our gracious hosts, the Reverse Cowgirl Creamery

A beautiful and friendly crowd enjoys ice cream in the afternoon on the playa.

But there's more!  Much, much more! ...

Burning Man 2014: Thursday Trek: Center Camp, Man, Temple

And now, more of my BM 2014 experience.

The Man

I was hosting events in my theme camp all week, but I had intentionally left my Thursday free to roam, explore, and generally be open to whatever.

The road to the Man

I had planned to take a trek out to the Man and the Temple, both of which I consider essential to my Burning Man experience.

Temple of Grace

On the way, I'd planned a bit of street theatre, carrying one of my painted palm frond masks in front of my face and playing a little solo on drum and pipe as I walked along.  I had lashed an aluminum oatmeal can to a cloth sash using leather cordage.  Slinging the sash over my shoulder put the can at about waist height so I could beat on it with my length of PVC pipe which someone had turned into a rudimentary flute.  I had acquired this at a Cubensis show, from a man selling homemade instruments like this pipe, which I gave him five bucks for.  Over the years that I'd had it, I'd learned to get some noise out of it, though my skill was adequate only for rhythms, not melodies.  Despite the six finger-holes, I could only get a decent sound if I left them all open, or covered only one.  Otherwise, the restricted air flow made the sound too soft to hear.

Dancing with my latest shaman mask at a full moon drum circle in Laguna Beach

So I geared up, donning a pair of over-the-shoulder satchels to carry my drinking water and essential items like goggles and dust mask.  A wet cloth draped my shoulders to cool me off and a wet bandana or two under my straw hat kept my head cool and shaded.  A pair of sunglasses over my prescription glasses, and then my strap-on drum, and pipe in one hand, and my shaman mask in the  other, since it has no strap to keep it on my head.  And I was ready to go.

Gorgeous sunset sky over the Souk shade structures

Incidentally, I had eaten a single psilocybe cubensis mushroom to tinge my day's experience with a hint of the otherworldly.  It was not enough to really send me on a trip, but just kind of shifted the whole experience a bit towards the strange.

A smattering of people checking out the Souk

So I began my performance, beating out creative rhythms as I walked, and holding my mask in front of me as my "persona" (the latin word for mask, meaning "for sound," referring to the mouth hole which was originally designed as a cone to amplify the sound of the actor's voice). As I got tired of drumming, I would play a rhythm on the pipe, with my two notes.  My mask is mostly there for show, I don't use it to hide my face, per se.  Mostly people seeing me do this as I walk along take it in stride; this is Burning Man, and it takes a lot more than that to catch most burners' attention.  What attention I might have drawn came mostly from what looked like new burners, in touristy-looking cargo pants and large unwieldly cameras. As I passed camps and artcars that were booming their own music, I would match their rhythms and try to contribute to the overall noise.

That sky...!  Just awesome!

My first stop was the Center Camp.  I wanted some coffee, and even though it was easy to obtain at various points around the city without standing in line or paying a fee, there is something I like about the ritual of standing in line for coffee at the Center Camp.  There is a veritable horde of people buying coffee and other drinks during most of the day, and they express a wide variety of styles.  It is fun just watching people and taking in the spectacle, the pageantry.  In the center, acrobats and dancers stretch, practice and perform.  At certain times, there are aerial performances.  Around the circle, people practice a myriad of healing arts, such as tea ceremonies, sharing herbs, massage, reiki, etc.



I was pleased to see that the coffee line had been streamlined, so that there was one fast-moving line for people who only wanted quickly-dispensed drinks such as drip coffee, lemonade, iced tea, etc.  The other lines were for the more time-consuming drinks with fancy names in Italian.  So the people who wanted quick drinks could get through quick, and those who were willing to wait longer for theirs would wait longer.



As I walked out of Center Camp, and around Rod's Road, the circular road that surrounds Center Camp with highly-interactive theme camps, I heard and saw the Burning Band approaching.  This is a perennial favorite act on the playa and at decoms.  A functional and quite professional marching band, playing standards.  About 25 people marching with their drums, horns, flutes, and whatnot.  Of course, I immediately matched their rhythm and fell into step with them as they passed me.  They were all, every last man and woman of them, wearing little black dresses or some variation thereof.  This was, I'd heard an annual tradition for the Burning Band on Thursday at Burning Man.  I was in my shaman robe, or repurposed dress-thing, with ornate black trim.  So, though it didn't quite mesh with the day's uniform, it was still like a dress and had some black on it.  I marched with them for a good ways, and had a blast, loudly singing the standards which they always play: Anchors Aweigh, Happy Days Are Here Again, and Yes We Have No Bananas, are the ones I remember.

The Man, Souk entrance archway

After awhile, I saw it was getting late in the afternoon, and I still had several places I wanted to visit out on the playa.  While I was happy enough to simply roll with whatever the experience brought to me, I did have the goal in mind, of seeing those important sights.  So I began the walk out to the Man.

Simply... huge.

The Man was huge this year, some 150 feet tall.  Usually, it is about a third that tall, and stands on a base structure which can be as tall or taller as the Man itself.  This time there was no base, with the Man's legs rising up right from the ground. It was truly impressive.  They had to create a whole new configuration for the structure based on the larger size.  The limbs had to be much thicker, and they made what looked like a habitable structure in the chest.  The Man structure was not climbable this year, as it is some years.

Side View

This year, the base of the man was surrounded by the "Souk", which was supposed to emulate a mediterranean bazaar of antiquity.  It was a noble effort, but fell a bit short logistically, in my humble opinion.  I confess that I myself made little to no contribution to the Souk experience, despite my earlier enthusiasm and offers to draw caricatures there, as well as offer healing, counseling, listening, hugs, and laughter yoga. The idea for the Souk was that the Regional Networks, groups of burners from around the world who organize events and community around the Burning Man brand, would each host a small part of the large shade structures provided by the Burning Man organization around the man.  They would provide a "taste" of all the regions who sponsored a Souk space.

Souk

What I saw when I got there was more like bits of several theme camps, all thrown together, and a lot of it deserted.  Some had interesting art to look at or interactive features, and there were some exchanges happening in some of the booths, but this hardly compared to the original vision, of sort of a crowded bazaar with barkers touting all the best goods and services.

Art at the Souk

Library at the Souk

Lib'ary

I had also expected the central public areas of each Souk shade structure to be a bit more comfortably appointed.  There were basically tarps for floors, and I wasn't seeing the luxury or comfort of, say, carpeting, couches, pillows, hammocks, or any seating of bedding at all.  This was supposed to be a refuge for the weary desert traveller, but it provided little refuge beyond shade.  I thought they would have emulated some of the more comfort-intensive theme camps like Pink Heart or Ashram Galactica.  Rugs and pillows on the floor, hammocks, mattresses, (clean) dog beds, etc.  The BMorg well knows these time-tested methods of providing comfort on the playa.  As it is, the Center Camp Cafe is still the hub of cultural exchange, and desert refuge on the playa.

A self-portrait with a couple of random friends I encountered at the Man base.

At the Orange County regional booth at the Souk, I had a brief interaction with some of my fellow OC'ers.  They had, among other things, a mechanism for dispensing playa names.  Many new burners crave a good playa name, but the best arise organically from spontaneous and unforgettable group experiences. Anyhoo, their playa-name picker consisted of two spinning wheels, which would spin, and then the attendant would randomly stop the wheels, with pointers pointing to one of twenty or so words written on each wheel.  So your random playa name would be like "Scarlet Monkey", or "Angel Spirit", or some other two-word, fairly forgettable name (unless the random phrase just happened to fit for some reason). They had taught me how to work the name wheel, and as someone walked up, I thought better of it and figured I'd just give her the first name that popped into my head, which happened to be "Bubbly Betty."  The name wheel gave her like "Mystic Magenta" or some such.  So she had a choice of two names, equally random and perhaps uninspired.

At the feet of the Man

The best time I had at the Souk came at one of the other shelters, where a small four-person drum circle was hopping along.  Being one for spontaneous group performance, I gravitated towards it, and was dancing to the beats with my mask, as well as drumming and piping in rhythm.  One of the guys jumped up, and asked me if I was from orange County.  When I confirmed, he said he recognized me, and my mask, from the Laguna Beach full moon drum circle, which I always attend, and dance with my masks.

One of the chill spaces at the Souk, a small drum jam.

More photos of the Souk and the sky at the end of the post.  Now on to the Temple.  

The road to the Temple

Just about a half-mile from the Man is the Temple, a more sober spot on the playa, a place for reflection, communion, and all kinds of mourning and celebration.  A few art pieces caught my eye along the way.

Sculpture near the Temple, Embrace in background.

Archways

Spire

Center, in the distance, a wave of wood rising out of the playa to form a perfect curl, with surfboard for photo op.

Another library. This one had hundreds of hand-made books with blank pages for burners to write and draw in.

Someone's alternative Man, out on the deep playa, school of fish in foreground.

The Temple is different every year, but this year it was designed by my personal favorite, David Best.  His temples are always delicate wooden lace-work forming a sacred shrine-like structure.  The citizens of Black Rock crowd inside, and leave countless inscriptions on the walls.  People leave placards, little shrines, or other remembrances to loved ones past, other issues in their lives.

The central structure of the Temple, looked a bit like a helmet.

Many years I have had deep intense connection with the Temple, and been able to purge a lot of negative emotions.  More recently, I don't seem to need it as badly, and make only a surface connection with the Temple.  It is all too easy to get lost in the intense wave of emotions that flood and surround that place.  Just walking in, and looking around, I seem to take on the burden and weight of all that grief and sorrow.  It is normal for me to break down and cry there.  

the free radical at the Temple of Grace 

Needless to say, the Temple was gorgeous.  I have heard the designer say that it has to be a complete work of art, in order to keep people there, having to look at it, for long enough for them to get what they need, the release, catharsis, healing, or whatever it is.

The Temple complex, a fence with archway entrances, several shrines, benches, focal points, and then the main Temple structure with its central stupa, or altar.

The ornate, softly-lit fence surrounding the Temple

Temple and fence

Inside the Temple

Ornate central lamp 

Ceiling

Airy, open architecture, gives a feeling of being indoors, but still connected to outside

This time I was there more or less to see the Temple, but hadn't planned for sufficient time to have an extended sit there, to find my spot and meditate, check in, and leave a remembrance.  I made a token effort in this vein, but was anxious to see the Embrace before it was closed off to the public.

The Temple has a different feel at night.  Very mellow, and meditative, with a smaller, quieter crowd.

But what was this? I noticed some people, a large group actually, engaged in some kind of performance or ritual.  They were arranged in single-file lines with their hands on the shoulders in front of them, all wearing blind folds of black cloth.  The lines of people were being led around by some organizers without blindfolds.  I was curious as to what was happening here, and hung around long enough to find out.  Near the Temple was the start of this ritual, where people were being blindfolded and lining up.  One man was holding up a flag which seemed to draw people into the ritual.  Coming around him, I saw it was the flag of Palestine and a slogan on it read "Peace for Palestine." This was right around the time of a major offensive by the Israeli military in the West Bank.  Seeing this, I started sobbing openly.  I am also outraged by the treatment of the Palestinians, and feel continual sorrow over their seemingly hopeless plight.  I saw someone else walk up and hug the man holding the flag, and I felt I could use a hug as well.  The man was agreeable, and we hugged it out, both crying.  I declined to participate in the ritual, thinking to move on to my other stops, but it had done its job, in drawing my awareness to the untold suffering of the Palestinians.

The vigil for peace for Palestine

As the darkness closed, I gathered my gear and headed over to the nearby Embrace sculpture.  This was the much-talked-about highlight of this year's large-scale art.  It had been recommended to me that I get to it, to see the inside, before it closed.  But sadly, by the time I arrived, the flagged rope perimeter told me I would not be allowed inside.  A friendly attendant at the rope fence told me that they had been closed for several hours already and were trying to clear everyone out of the inside so they could begin prepping it to burn.  They were going to burn it in the morning, at sunrise.  I was disappointed, and perhaps a but angry.  Burn it in the morning?  What was the point? Didn't they know people like to sleep in the morning?  And isn't the blazing light of a bonfire kind of ideal for the darkness of night?  Ah, but what do I know?  I'da done it at night, and left it open long enough so that I could get inside.  As it was, I slept in the following morning and missed the spectacle that was said by all to be awesome.  Resigned to having missed the interior, I just stood and admired the piece from outside the perimeter.  It was still pretty cool.  Look to others' photo albums to see more in depth shots of this amazing piece.

Embrace

There was more to my night ahead, but that's all that I took photos of.  More to come.

Next installment.

Stock photos:

Next installment.

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