Blurb of Bob Vol. 1 No. 8 – 2017

Volume 1, Number 8
November 16, 2017

Hey, Guys!
Show of hands: Who besides me was Radically Restored by this AfterBurn? Wasn’t all my super-excitement justified? It was fabulous, fantastic, and amazing! thank you, Thank You, THANK YOU!

The folks with the vision who made AfterBurn happen are the Event Coordination team, led by Comrade Heathen and Robl, and the Directors of Burnt Oranges: Ben, Jennifer, Sara, and Morgan. AfterBurn: Restoration is their gift to the community. They each spent hundreds of volunteer hours behind the scenes, creating a place for us to gather and play and learn and be transformed.

They were assisted by the team leads (more hundreds of behind-the-scenes hours!), and everyone who volunteered before, during, and after the event. But it doesn’t stop there. You brought your art, set up theme camps full of interactivity, played music, and shared your gifts and hugs. AfterBurn: Restoration has restored this vibrant, caring community, and the future is bright, thanks to YOU.

Now, it’s your turn. I want to share YOUR photos, stories, and blogs about AfterBurn: Restoration! To keep this flame burning, please email your submissions to bob@burntoranges.org, and I’ll share them in the Blurb of Bob.

How ’bout that?
Bob


Stuck truck
Oops!

In this issue

  • Event Feedback form published
  • Lost & Found report
  • The AfterBurn Moop Map
  • Volunteer patches
  • Shipwreck update

Event Feedback form published

The Event Coordination team really, really wants your feedback. Do you have a thank you, an idea, or a suggestion to make AfterBurn better? Please use the Event Feedback form to tell us what you think. If you submit the form with your name, you’ll receive a thoughtful response, or you can submit your feedback anonymously.


Lost & Found report

Items turned into the Lost & Found range from hats, cups, and children’s clothing to an entire cooler with a half bottle of Jägermeister. All of the items have been packed up and taken to Tampa, and you have a week to reclaim your lost item from Fluffernutter. If you lost something at AfterBurn, please send an email to sara@burntoranges.org with a description of it by November 24. After that, items from Lost & Found will be donated to a thrift store, with one exception, the Jägermeister.

Please email your suggestions for the Jägermeister to bob@burntoranges.org. So far, participants have proposed a toxic waste dump and a pest control company.


The AfterBurn Moop Map

On Monday, a small but dedicated Restoration crew tackled the property at AfterBurn: Restoration. We did a series of line sweeps to pick up Matter Out of Place, known as Moop. Read on for a great discussion of Moop from Comrade Heathen Stumble Biscuits, who supervised our LNT and restoration efforts:

Believe it our not, not all moop is obvious.  Sometimes well-meaning burners just don’t KNOW that something is moop.  If it wasn’t there when you got there, it goes back home with you. The Burning Man website has a great write-up on MOOP, and following is a list of MOOP issues that our AfterBurn 2017 LNT and Restoration volunteers were forced to deal with.

Map of moop found during resto
The AfterBurn2017 Moop Map

Things that are actually moop (yes, even at AfterBurn):

  • Firewood left at your camp: (it must be taken to DPW Dog Pound, or it is moop).  If left next to your camp site our hard working LNT crew has to haul it up the hill to DPW so it doesn’t interfere with mowing of the filed later.  High grass grows fast, and things left in the field can cause damage to people, the landscape, and equipment.  Please drop it off at the appropriate location!
  • Food Waste: Chicken bones, orange peels, watermelon rinds, lime wedges, cupcake wrappers, anything.  Take it all with you when you leave.  Do not leave food waste on the ground.  It draws pesky critters in addition to being moop.  Throw it in your trash bag, not on the ground!
  • Rocks, pebbles: Please, PLEASE do not leave small rocks, crystals, or marbles in your camp.  We have to dig them out and through them away.  If you packed it in, you have to pack it out.  Yes, rocks too!
  • Glitter:  This is the single worst thing you can leave behind.  It is an LNT nightmare.  Don’t bring it.  Just don’t.  It can take HOURS of time for multiple volunteers to clean up your mess.  If you have any questions about WHY glitter is terrible, there are many articles out there.  At the end of the day, it’s a trace.  And it’s leave NO trace, not leave glitter trace.  Don’t be THAT shiny jerk!  Glitter bombs will result in your theme camp placement privileges being revoked.  This is a zero tolerance offence.
  • Zip Ties/ Micro Plastic: Be extra-vigilant about tear down.  Zip ties are the single biggest offender, with water bottle tops and glow stick connectors coming in a close second.  Tiny tarp shreds, and Styrofoam micro pieces from coolers or other things are also culprits.
  • Trash in burn barrels: Unless you’re going to stand there and watch it burn ALL THE WAY TO ASH, this is mooping.  Paper almost NEVER burns all the way down, and plastic doesn’t burn, it melts.  Cigarette butts don’t burn either.  All of these things create a gross mess for our LNT/ Resto crew to have to scrape out of the bottom of a barrel before they can be stored.  It’s gross.  Don’t do it.  The best bet is to take it with you back to your camp, and throw it in your contractor bag.  PS: Baby wipes and Clorox wipes don’t burn either!  So knock it off!
  • Plywood/ wood: This must be cleared IN ADVANCE by an event coordinator.  We have to let the fire cool down before it can be cleaned out.  If water is poured on a hot fire, it leaves a significant burn scar (that’s leaving a trace).  When you place something on the fire after effigy burn, it creates a leave no trace issue for our effigy restoration crew.  Instead of being able to clean up a cooled area, we now have garbage, large wooden pieces, and HOT COALS, rebar, nails, etc on Monday.  You’ve essentially created a really un-cool issue for volunteers.  DO NOT ADD ANYTHING TO THE EFFIGY FIRES WITHOUT PRIOR APPROVAL FROM AN EVENT COORDINATOR.  This WILL effect your future theme camp placement.  Continued issues with this will result in NO ART GRANTS OR PLACEMENT.
  • Damage to the land: Ruts, divots, burn scars.  Open ground fires are not permitted.  Fires in burn barrels or raised fire pits only.  NO FIRES IN WALK-IN CAMPING. Please try to leave the area you camped in as good as condition as you found it or better.
  • Cigarette Butts: Shouldn’t even have to be said, but ALL butts go with you.  Always.  No exception.  Have a plan.
  • Art: You need to have a LNT plan for your art.  Leaving it on site is not acceptable unless prior approval has been granted from an Event Coordinator.  No exceptions.
  • Trash: Anything left behind is moop.  Even if you think it’s moop, it still requires resources for out LNT and Restoration crews to deal with it appropriately.  EVERYTHING you leave behind creates an issue for someone else to attend to, even if you don’t think it’s a problem.  Hint: it actually is.

Volunteer patches

From Bob:

I goofed!  I was supposed to give the volunteer patches to the volunteer leads, but I was so super-excited, taking pictures and hugging people, they never made it out of my tent!  Whoops!

If you volunteered at AfterBurn with an infrastructure group (see below), you probably qualify for a patch. Please send the following information to ecteam@burntoranges.org:

  • Legal Name
  • Burner Name
  • Shift/s Worked
  • Mailing Address

Here’s the list of infrastructure groups:

  • Cats
  • DPW/ Dogs
  • Earth Guardians
  • Effigy Crew
  • Gate/ Greeter
  • Gloo
  • Indaba
  • Info Booth
  • LNT/ Resto
  • Media Crew
  • Medic
  • Placement
  • Ranger
  • Sign Crew
  • Temple Crew
  • Webteam
  • Woodchuck Work Weekenders

Shelter from the Tempest at AfterBurn2017
Shelter from the Tempest

Shipwreck Update

From Comrade Heathen Stumble Biscuits:

Many questions were asked about Shelter from the Tempest (also affectionately deemed the shipwreck, or the pirate ship) on Sunday.  We were unable to burn the structure safely due to weather and a lack of suitable support staff.  Many of you wrote message of all kinds in our temple, and left lots of heart. Do not despair!

The Event Coordinators, Board of Directors, and Temple Crew met with the landowner to determine some options for this beautiful art piece.  It was decided that we shall leave it as a semi-permanent interactive art piece until the next AfterBurn. At which time, we will schedule a memorial burn for the burn that should have been!  In the mean time, enjoy Shelter from the Tempest!


Thanks again for your awesome participation at AfterBurn: Restoration. Stay tuned for the next edition of the Blurb of Bob, with stories from the Burn and ways to stay in touch in the coming months. If you are active on Facebook, be sure to follow the Florida AfterBurn News & Updates page for information about future events — that’s the most reliable source of AfterBurn news on Facebook.

How ’bout that?

Bob