8-02-13 INFORMATION UPDATE
GENERAL THOUGHTS
KK Campers! Thank you all for coming out to the wonderful camp meeting last night! The energy and excitement is building, and its just wonderful to see a community of people coming together to accomplish great things. And a special shout-out to the people who were unable to make the meeting because they were hard at work on KK camp projects (Im looking at you Boris, Dudeks, etc).
Friends, look to your left, look to your right. This is your family out on playa. The final camper list is SET! We are the KKBM13 band of crazies. In case you were wondering, this means DO NOT EVEN THINK OF ASKING ME TO ADD SOMEONE TO THE CAMP. The time for that has long gone.
Things are looking good. Everyone has a Pod. Almost all dues have been paid. Many of our vendors have been paid. Shopping lists have been made, and all of the various crews have been hard at work on the final logistics of putting this crazy thing together. There is still a lot to be done, so please read through this email so that you know what is happening and what is to be expected of you. If you are new to BM or to KK camp, I suggest that you take Squire's advice at the meeting last night - find a veteran and chat with them. There are SO many little hints, tips, tricks and other insights that can make the planning a lot easier and your experience more fun. Trust me, you will forget things. Trust me, you will still have an awesome time. But Radical Self Reliance means finding out in advance what to expect and how to plan for it! Lets all kick ass together this year!
LINKS FOR YOU
There are a number of things that you need to be aware of right now for the camp
- Jungle posted information about what you need to know and do for the NYC Container: http://wiki.kostumekult.com/index.php/NYC_CONTAINER_INFORMATION
- Medical Information Form to fill out, if you have not yet: EMERGENCY INFO FORM (PLEASE FILL OUT)
- Pendants are for sale, and they will look awesome when finished: http://kostumekult.com/bm2013/schwag/
- T-shirts are for sale, and some sizes are going quick so get them while you can: http://kostumekult.com/bm2013/tshirts/
- Our camp layout is looking amazing: http://wiki.kostumekult.com/index.php/KKamp_Layout_2013
- Our DJ Schedule has been posted, and its going to be pretty fucking rocking: http://wiki.kostumekult.com/index.php/DJ_Schedule_2013
- If you are doing Early Arrival and breakdown, please check the link here and confirm that you are listed in the right slot: http://wiki.kostumekult.com/index.php/Early_Arrival_and_Breakdown_2013
- Facebook event for our Kostume Transformational Experience on Playa (please invite all your friends and lovers): https://www.facebook.com/events/206925609431338/
- Facebook event for the musical lineup at KK on Playa (please invite all your friends and lovers): https://www.facebook.com/events/228474430633991/
SHIFTS
The shift signup is over, and I hope to have the final shift schedule set up by the end of this weekend. You will be notified where to find your shifts. Please go and check them and make sure that you are aware of when they are. On playa, there will be a shift schedule set up in Lilly Pod, the Kitchen, Common shade, and possibly more places if I feel like it. You are responsible for your shifts. Be there and be awesome.
SAFETY AND SECURITY
Burning Man is lots of fun. We let our guard down, and we push our boundaries. We experience lots of people, things, moments, etc.
It is always important to remember that Burning Man is also dangerous. As a theme camp, the safety and security of all of us is dependent on the judgement and maturity of each person in the camp.
Burning Man takes place in the USA. In the state of Nevada. Things illegal in the USA and the state of NV are illegal at Burning Man. And, there are police. More of them each and every year. It is important to remember the following things:
- Burners do not ask for any substances. If someone asks for something, the answer is WE DO NOT HAVE IT. NO ONE IN THE CAMP HAS IT. NO ONE THAT YOU KNOW HAS IT. Every single year, someone gets arrested solely because a campmate/friend/whatever leads undercover police right to their tent saying "oh, my friend has a ton of great [WHATEVER]". Dont be that dumbass. You will ruin the burn for yourself. You will ruin the burn for everyone around you. You will suck as a person. Really.
- Discretion is key. Remember, your tent/RV/pod is private, and the police CANNOT search it without a warrant unless there is criminal activity in plain sight. This means, smells, someone talking loudly about things, or just them peeking in and seeing it. So be careful. Dont get arrested.
- Without a warrant, authorities cannot enter your tent/RV/pod or other private spaces (unless they can see/smell/hear a crime or they are there for another unrelated crime). Be polite, but firm. Dont consent to a search. Dont let them in. But dont be an ass about it, because that will inspire them to suddenly smell drugs from your tent or something creative like that.
- In the state of Nevada (one of the WORST states in terms of drug laws), all drug paraphernalia is a crime. So dont have it sitting around on your pod table. Really. Because police who peek in and see that can then come in, and search you, and basically use that as a hook to search everything around that.
- If you are doing ANYTHING wrong (peeing on playa, speeding in your car, etc) at Burning Man, the police can usually use that to search your person and possibly your tent if you are in it or near it.
- If something is illegal, it is really foolish to refer to it or talk about it in text messages, gchat, facebook message, whatever. Even if you think you are being smart and using code words. You arent that smart. Everyone knows about your friend Molly. You are endangering yourself AND the person that you are texting.
- Police can look like wild burners. They can have art cars. They can be in costume. If you dont know someone, watch what you say.
On a related note:
- We have purple wristbands for everyone in the camp. We do this so that kitchen crew knows who to feed at night. We also do this because we are a large camp, from all over the USA. Campers may not be aware of who everyone in the camp is. This helps you identify who is part of KK so that you can snuggle them.
- If you see people in the camp, and they are not someone that you recognize, SPEAK UP! Approach them, and ask them if you can help them. Are they a friend of someone? Are they looking for someone? If they dont have something real to say, or are acting suspicious, they should be asked to leave the private camp area. Our pods and personal space IS NOT FOR PUBLIC ACCESS. Our kitchen and common shade etc is JUST FOR KK CAMPERS (and our personally invited guests).
- Be aware of your belongings. Dont leave things laying around if you will miss them when they disappear. Keep valuables in a car locked up as much as possible. Please. Really. Its a wonderful place but things get stolen every single year. Especially at times like man and temple burn when bad people know that camps will be empty.
- If you see any people in our camp that look suspicious or just seem like they dont belong (authorities, bad people, etc) PLEASE MAKE NOISE, CALL OUT TO PEOPLE, MAKE EVERYONE AWARE SO THAT PEOPLE CAN COME AND HELP
- Don't put things in your mouth if they are handed out by strangers and are not clearly safe. Unless you want some unexpected experience.
- KK has a zero tolerance policy for even the slightest unwanted sexual contact, touch, whatever. Avoid doing something that is unwanted. If there is any question of capacity, etc, just dont do it. Respect, consent, clear communication - all very sexy.
- If someone makes you feel unsafe, SPEAK UP. If it is in the camp, find someone in authority and let them know. If you are out and about - make noise, speak up, say no, shout, find friends, whatever. You should never feel pressured to do anything.
- Remember, the common sense behavior that you exercise in clubs/bars/NYC nightlife in order to stay safe will serve you well on playa
- Speeding tickets are RUTHLESS in every town around BRC. Speed traps exist everywhere that the speed limit drops. If you are even 1 or 2 miles over, THEY WILL TICKET YOU. They count on tickets during BM for revenue. they can also possibly then search your car. Make sure that you drive slowly. Do not pass on the two lane road, its super dangerous. do not pull over, the shoulder is soft. Be safe. Be sober. Have a valid license
- You need to keep a copy of your ID with you at all times, and especially for bar camps. Don’t carry your real ID around because it can get lost and then you have troubles (enjoy the airport!)
- Underage drinking is illegal. Dont give booze to people who may be underage. Police do sting operations to catch people doing this.
WATER, POWER, GARBAGE, ETC
The last update email had lots of important information on all these topics. I even updated it a drop with some things that I forgot when i first sent that out.
Please check it out if you have not seen it yet: http://wiki.kostumekult.com/index.php/7-14-13_INFORMATION_UPDATE
UPCOMING EVENTS
August 15
Red carpet Premiere for Opening Weekend of Sparks: A Burning Man story, the documentary film being released in theaters. 8PM Red Carpet 9PM screening Wear your playa fabulous attire, first 100 people in worthy costumes get free admission to the film.
On Playa
First Crack
Monday night, after dinner, we have a full Camp Meeting and then all KK members are invited to raid the Kostume Stock to take the best stuff for ourselves. It a fun free-for all. Don’t miss it.
Zhenya Memorial
Wednesay at 6PM Zhenya Memorial on Esplanade Write Messages on the balloon chain, which will be marched to the Temple at Sunrise Thursday for a memorial
NYC Art Celebration party
Thursday night
NYC Art Celebration party Hosted by the Flaming Pachinko Machine
Time & Place TBA