In This Edition of Turtle Head
- 關於原則 ~ Default Principles – Immediacy
- 處女之聲 ~ Virgin Voices – Maggie
- 漫畫 ~ Comic – Ray
- 火人回憶 ~ Veteran Memories – Tanuki
- 主題營 ~ Theme Camps – Liz
- 關於服務 ~ Volunteering – 營地規劃 / Placement
Lockdown Life
Some art made by Turtle Burners during the 2021 level 3 lockdown.
Default Principles
關於原則
Immediacy / 即時性
~Gypsy~
Disclaimer: Written during level 3 soft-lockdown in Taipei.
Immediate experience is, in many ways, the most important touchstone of value in our culture. We seek to overcome barriers that stand between us and a recognition of our inner selves, the reality of those around us, participation in society, and contact with a natural world exceeding human powers. No idea can substitute for this experience. (burningman.org)
The year of our chaos, 2021, has given us a new perspective on what *right now* means and how to navigate immediate shifts in social behaviors. In a time of social distancing and some form of lockdown, immediacy is an interesting principle. Many have a lot of time to do whatever they want without outside constraints. Others are so locked into a schedule that they barely have time to think outside of that schedule. Please be kind to yourself regardless of your situation and do not feel guilty about not being able to express ‘immediacy’ to the extent that you would like to.
At a burn, immediacy implies being present and doing a thing ‘right now’ and not ‘some other time’. However, we can go deeper with that and say that immediacy is to remove ourselves from the possible constraints of Default ‘civilization’ and simply be. For many burners, immediacy is most actively expressed by turning off their phone and leaving it in their tent so as not to be distracted by the Default World while at a Burn.
In the Default World, immediacy is harder due to the nature of personal constraints such as where you work and who you work with. Other constraints could also be a reliance on social media for entertainment and personal gratification. Take time for yourself to be in the *right now* and you might surprise yourself with what *right now* feels like.
免責聲明：寫於台北疫情3 級警戒下
從許多方面來說，「即時體驗」是我們文化價值中最重要的試金石。力求克服由文化背景和社會框架所形塑的「我」和「內在自我認知」之間的差距、覺察周遭人們的實相、進而思考社會參與、最終與勝過人類力量、偉大的自然世界形成連結。沒有任何概念可以取代這種體驗。
混亂的 2021 年讓我們對「此刻、當下」有了新的詮釋、以及摸索出新的社群應對方式。在保持社交距離以及類封鎖時期，即時性顯得很有趣—— 很多人有充足的時間做任何他們想做的事、不受外界限制；有些人則被時間表綁住，以至於幾乎無法思考時間表之外的事。無論你的情況是哪一種，請盡量善待自己，別因為無法表達自己想要的「即時性」而感到內疚。
在一個火人活動中，即時性意味著「當下臨在」而非其他時間才做某件事；更進一步地說，即時性是把我們自己從常態社會「文明」的規範中解放出來，只需要臨在。常見在火人朋友們身上的例子：把手機關掉、留在帳篷中，可以避免在參與火人活動時受常態社會的事情影響而分心。這就是一種積極的表達方式。
由於每個人的自身條件限制，例如在哪裡工作、與誰一起工作，使得我們較難在常態社會中體現出「即時性」；還有其他性質的限制，例如依賴社交媒體來獲得娛樂與滿足感。何不花點時間讓自己處於「當下」，或許你會感到訝異，臨在感能夠帶給你的平靜與喜悅。
Virgin Voices / 處女之聲
~Maggie~
I was invited to the burn by my partner. He shared with me videos, articles, his old photos taken when he was at Black Rock City years ago. To be perfectly honest, my first response after absorbing all the information laid in front of me was: “Sounds like a cult to me.”
“It’s not a cult.” He said, rolling his eyes. This is exactly what people would say when they’re in the cult though.
I participated–in my way. I wasn’t a very group-oriented person to begin with, and I didn’t try to be one at the burn. Most of the time, I stayed in the hammock village, and I walked around and watched and touched all the dogs I could find. It was fascinating how burners arrived and built the burn. The hammock village was literally built in a day.
I slowly started to understand why people told me it wasn’t just a party. Everyone took on responsibility, and the volunteering and gifting culture were pretty amazing to witness. Although I didn’t feel like I participated a lot in workshops and events, I had done translations and behind-the-scenes work at the art auction and before the event. I saw the work coming together right on the spot.
What I enjoyed the most about the experience was that no one forced me into anything. I was able to participate however I wanted and was told to just be myself, which I did. I contributed what I could, and I was a witness to the realization of a communal experience. Despite my innate skepticism and my aversion to the sense of belonging to groups, it was an inspiring chance to reset all the expectations and restrictions in the default world.
I guess I, too, will have to explain how it’s not a cult now?
我是在被男友邀請之後，才認識火人祭這個活動。行前他跟我分享了很多影片、文章和他多年前在黑石城參加火人祭時拍攝的照片。老實說，我看完的第一個反應是：「感覺有點像邪教。」
「這不是邪教啦。」他立刻大翻白眼，但就是參與邪教的人才會說自己不是邪教的一份子啊。
我不是個熱愛參加團體活動的人，但我還是跟著參加了，用我自己的方式默默加入。在龜焱過程中，我沒有試著假裝自己是外向活潑的人，大部分的時候我都待在Hammack Village裡面，或是到處走來走去，跟別人的狗玩，觀察其他人在做什麼，看著參與者慢慢來到現場，把活動從無到有建立起來的過程非常有趣，Hammock Village也真的在一天內誕生了。
慢慢的，我開始明白為什麼那麼多人跟我說，參加火人祭不只是參加一場派對。每個參與的人都盡著自己的責任，志願服務和贈與的文化，對什麼都不懂的我來說真的很有趣。雖然我沒有參與什麼工作坊或其他活動，在事前我負責了一些翻譯，也在幕後幫忙藝術拍賣的活動，在龜焱當天，我終於見證這些準備完整成形。
我的體驗中，我最喜歡的部分是真的沒有人逼我參與任何我不想做的事。我可以用自己選擇的方式加入，只需要做我自己，而我覺得我也真的做到了。我提供了自己擅長的技能，見證了志願社群體驗的實現。雖然我天生就是個懷疑論者，說到團體歸屬就覺得不太舒服，能擺脫常態世界的期待和規範是很具有啟發性的經驗。
所以我想現在可能要換我開始跟別人說這不是邪教了吧。
By Ray Hecht
Veteran Memories
~Tanuki~
Motherfucking Mac ‘n Cheese…
My first (and only) time on the playa was relatively short. For some reason, I was still brainwashed by capitalism into thinking that I should have some loyalty to my ‘job’, so I was at work for the first 3 days I should have been spending at home. My arrival at 2 am on a Wednesday night was met with a worn-out cheer from my friends and a camp of over 150 people who only wanted to meet me because “those other people looked so excited to see you.” 72 hours of party will definitely put a damper on any energy that starts the week off.
So, on Wednesday at dusk, when an old friend [Niko] just appears with a quick hello and demands what alterations I wanted, I was ready and willing. A few minor changes to reality, and he immediately asks me, “Now, if you could do anything, what would you do? If you could see anything, what would you see?” I’m like, uhhhhhhh. Again he asks, “Are you hungry? If you could eat anything right now, what would you eat?” “Ohhhh!” I answer, instantly, “Mac n Cheese!” He gives me a blank stare, then looks into the distance and asks himself, “It’s what…Wednesday? Yea…right, okay. Let’s go.” Seriously? And he takes off walking. I rush to catch up with him, I’m prepared for an adventure, where are we going? Are we actually getting mac n cheese? How far is it? Shouldn’t I grab my water? What the hell? Why are we only walking?! He only grunts vague answers, “soon, it’s not far, don’t worry, you’ll see.”
When we get there, there is a Recycling Camp at 6 o’clock and Center. And he just walks into the back. A few people seem apprehensive to let us pass. Most camps at the center have a space for everyone. Recycling is only for dropping your trash and then GTFO. People can’t just wander where they’re not supposed to be in a place like this. Niko just strolls in like he’s supposed to be there. We walk into a huge space surrounded by shipping containers, the ground is completely covered by rugs. A full roof and netting, it felt ‘inside’. In the very center of the room there is a tall guy serving people from 3 massive pots….full….of Mac n Cheese. I didn’t feel shock, more confusion. Like, how? We get in line and Niko starts explaining, “…this one is non-dairy, this one is gluten free, and this one is just basic, here, you want this one…” and he takes my cup and gives it to the guy, who give me a healthy scoop but starts eyeing us suspiciously. We stand there, eating silently, and this guy starts asking Niko who we are, and where we’re from, and do we know…Niko starts rambling off names, whosit and this lady’s friend Jennifer knows Steve….it has to be a lie, or something. My mind is still trying to catch up. “How the fuck did he know this was here? Oh shit, this guy is going to kick us out. Damn this is really good!!”
Suddenly Niko loudly exclaims, “OMG you know what’d go great with this?!” And he walks over to one of the 6 full sized fridges that are scattered around the room. And he comes back with 3 ginormous glass jars full to the brim with Sauerkraut. Now the server guy is obviously bothered, he’s not ready to let Niko just take shit that isn’t his. Until we all realize, it actually IS his. Niko is an experienced chef and he usually brings a ton of food to the burn. So, this year his friends, that, no shit?, run Recycling Camp, let him use some of their fridge space. Dude isn’t convinced yet and starts telling Niko to put it back, although you can see his wheels turning, “How did he even know it was there?” Niko ignores him, unscrewing lid after lid telling us all about the different flavors he made this year and what spices went into which as he throws a bunch into my cup. He turns to the dude with a huge smile and asks if he wants some. And the tension is finally broken and we all stand around groaning about how well the kraut and the mac n cheese go together. I ate like 3 cups full. Just staring at Niko with a thousand questions and he smiles wryly and asks me, “It’s good? Just what you wanted?”
It was really good Mac n Cheese, and I love sauerkraut.
他媽的起司通心麵⋯⋯
我第一次（也是唯一一次）在沙漠營地的經驗其實很短暫。我當時還沒擺脫資本主義的洗腦，覺得自己應該對工作負責，所以火人祭開始的前三天，我應該要在營區的時間，我竟然在上班。星期三凌晨兩點我終於抵達現場時，迎接我的是朋友疲憊的招呼，和營區150個出來湊熱鬧、根本不認識我的人。只能說72小時不間斷的派對真的會讓人覺得很累。
星期三到了黃昏的時候，一個舊識Niko突然出現跟我打招呼，而且很堅持想要知道我需要什麼「體驗」，我當然是恭敬不如從命。終於稍微從現實世界解放之後，他立刻問我：「如果你現在可以做任何想做的事情，你會想要做什麼？如果可以看見任何想看的，你會想看到什麼？」我：「呃⋯⋯」於是他立刻追問：「你肚子餓嗎？如果你現在可以吃任何你想吃的東西，你會想吃什麼？」「喔喔，」我立刻想到，「起司通心麵！」他盯著我看了一下，然後望向遠方，開始自言自語：「今天是⋯⋯星期三嗎？對⋯⋯好，okay，走吧。」沒開玩笑，他立刻站起來走掉，我只能趕快追上他。我知道我要跟著開始冒險了，我們要去哪裡呢？真的有起司通心麵可以吃嗎？是要走多遠？我是不是應該把水帶著？現在到底是怎樣？為什麼我們要用走的？面對我的問題他只是模稜兩可的說：「快到了，沒有很遠，不要擔心，你等等就知道了。」
等我們到了現場，我發現我站在回收中心的正中央，我朋友則直接走了進去，有些人看到我們，好像知道我們要幹嘛，只是對我們點點頭。大部分的營區中間都有交誼區，但回收中心主要只是讓大家丟垃圾就離開，沒有人會在這裡到處閒晃，但Niko悠閒地走進去，好像這裡是他家一樣。我們走進一個寬敞的空間，裡面有很多貨櫃，地板則被地毯覆蓋，這裡感覺簡直就是室內。在房間的正中間，有個很高的男人正在三個大鍋子前面分食物，裡面裝滿⋯⋯起司通心麵。我沒有很驚訝，比較多的情緒是困惑。哪來的起司通心麵？我們開始排隊，Niko跟我解釋：「這桶沒有加奶製品、這桶是無麩質，啊這桶就是普通的，你裝這個好了⋯⋯」他接過我的杯子，遞給那個男人然後直接給了我一大匙，不過對方開始用質疑的眼神看我們。我們就站在現場，安靜的吃著通心麵，那個男人則開始問我們是誰、從哪裡來、我們認識誰⋯⋯Niko列了一堆名字，什麼Jennifer是他朋友啊她認識Steve，聽起來就是謊話連篇。我在旁邊，大腦還在慢慢運轉，忽然聽到他說：「所以他到底是認識這裡的誰？」噢糟糕，這傢伙要把我們趕出去了，但起司通心麵好好吃喔。
突然之間，Niko大叫一聲：「OMG我突然想到應該要加這個！」他跑去找了分佈在營區個角落的六個冰箱的其中一個，帶著三罐裝滿的酸白菜回來。這下那個工作人員真的開始緊張了，他不打算就這樣讓我們把別人的東西偷走。一瞬間，大家都開始驚覺，這幾罐真的是他的。 Niko是個經驗老道的廚師，常常帶食物到火人祭，而今年他的朋友剛好（就是這麼巧）是回收中心的負責人，就讓他使用營區的冰箱空間。那個工作人員一開始還不相信，一直叫Niko把東西放回去，不過他的態度也慢慢的軟化：「你到底是從哪個冰箱找到酸白菜？」Niko直接忽略他，轉開每個瓶蓋，邊跟我們介紹他今年做了哪些不同口味、用了哪些香料，邊挖了一堆丟進我杯子裡。他轉頭過去面對那個工作人員，微笑著問他要不要也來一些，這下緊繃的情緒才終於消失了，我們三個站在一起邊吃起司通心麵，邊讚嘆酸白菜加在一起有多好吃。我吃了大概三杯吧，邊疑惑的盯著Niko思考要先從哪裡開始問起，他一陣竊笑，繼續問我：「好吃嗎？跟你想像中的一樣吧？」
起司通心麵超好吃的，而且我最喜歡酸白菜了。
主題營 / Theme Camps
~Liz~
Want to make your own theme camp? No problem! Let’s start with some FAQ.
Can I make a theme camp with just myself? Of course you can! You can make a theme camp with any number of people.
What kind of theme should I do? ANYTHING your heart desires. It can be something concrete like food, games, booze, coffee, ect. It can also be something a little more abstract such as storytelling, spirituality, or self care. You are only limited by your imagination.
What do I need to be aware of before starting? You need to know your limits. Make sure you have an idea on how you want your camp to look (decorations), function (schedule of activities), and how to organize your fellow campers if there is more than one of you. (transportation, food, camp equipment). And of course your budget. To ensure a fun and successful theme camp you need to plan ahead and don’t leave much up to chance.
It sounds like a lot of work but it is extremely rewarding to see people come to participate and enjoy the atmosphere, activities, and gifts that you helped to create. My favorite part about burning man is being able to change my environment whenever I feel like it.
If I want to relax, I will go to Sex Swing Apocalypse Retirement Community (hammock themed camp). If I want to get my drink on and socialize, I will head on over to the Tavern (bar themed camp). If I want to get spiritual or have a tarot reading, I will head over to Oracle (pagan themed camp).
Theme camps are a very important part of burning man and they create a variety of ideas, art, community, and experiences you will never forget.
想要做你自己的主題營？ 沒問題！讓我們從一些常見問題開始。
我可以自己一個人做一個主題營嗎？ 當然可以！也可以與任意數量的人一起構思和創作。
我該做什麼樣的主題？答案是「任何你內心渴望的東西」。可以是具體的物品，如食物、遊戲、酒、咖啡等；也可以是更抽象的領域，例如講故事、靈性或自我照顧。別讓想像力限制了你的創意！
在開始之前我需要注意什麼？ 你需要知道你的極限。確保你有對於營地外觀（裝飾）的想像、運作（活動時間表）的掌握、以及如何在多位營地成員的情況下順利組織與分工 （交通、食物、營地設備）。當然還有你的預算。為了確保這個主題營是有趣且成功的，務必要提前展開規劃，不要到時再說。
聽起來工作量不少，但是當看到人們來參與主題營並享受在你們共同創造出的氛圍、活動和禮物，這是非常有成就感的。 我最喜歡火人活動的部分，是能夠隨著心情來走訪各種主題營。
如果我想放鬆，我會去Sex Swing Apocalypse Retirement Community（吊床主題營）。 如果我想小酌和社交，我會到Tavern（酒吧主題營）。 如果我想探索靈性方面或請人為我解讀塔羅牌，我會前往甲骨文（異教主題營）。
主題營是火人活動中非常重要的一部分；體現了各種令人永生難忘的想法、藝術型態、社群互動和親身體驗。
關於服務 ~ Volunteering
營地規劃
Placement
~Gypsy~
Placement of the Camp
Organizing 150 people, art, public spaces, theme camps, dogs, two toddlers, and a cat is not something everyone wants to do. Sometimes the heroes wear capes, and sometimes the heroes wear an impressive D&D-style amount of gear.
Organizing the map is an ordeal that no one single person should be responsible for – not everyone is going to be happy with where they end up on the map. This year’s map was easy to put together until there were last minute add-ons that no one really accounted for until we all got onto the mountain. Communication of needs and acknowledging that the volunteer trying to help you with placement was also trying to keep EVERYONE happy was really appreciated. The job was not easy. However, we made it all work out and as stressful as placement can be for a single person, having a team to back up the single person helps so much.
Lessons learned: We burn together safely or we can’t burn at all. If you don’t like your placement – get involved with the placement team!
營地規劃
安排 150 人的紮營區域、整合藝術作品、公共空間、主題營區、狗、兩個蹣跚學步的孩子和一隻貓── 這不是每個人都想做的事情。有時英雄們披著斗篷，有時英雄們穿著「龍與地下城」風格、令人印象深刻的裝備。
設計地圖是一項考驗，並非每個人都能對自己最終在地圖上的位置感到滿意，而這結果不應由一個人單獨承擔。今年的地圖原本統整地很順利，直到籌備團隊抵達山中的營地，不得已採取了臨時的調整以因應現場狀況。
就各自的需求積極溝通，以及能認知到志工們在安排地圖位置時其實也是為了大家的開心做最大的努力—— 以上的態度能讓人感激。這份工作並不容易，所幸最後一切都找到了合適的解決方式—— 一個人面對營地規劃會很有壓力，但有團隊作為後盾，就是很大的幫助。
這次經驗教會了我們：在安全的情況下一同歡慶火人活動，或者完全取消活動。如果對你的紮營環境不甚滿意 ──歡迎加入營地規劃團隊。
