*NOT* Usefull, A Question for Sophomore Burners

1/2 the food I brought!
1/2 the water I brought! (though would rather have too much than too little)

I brought too much food too. From what I hear, everyone does this their first burn. I actually did drink all my water, but I was paranoid about dehydration.

rental tent from sports chalet. We were missing a pole and didn't even get to use the stupid thing.

daytime clothes that were not cotton or other breathable fabrics! Sure that slip dress/fishnets/tall boots outfit was cute...but damn i was sticky hot. Bringing out my hemp/cotton hippie clothes for daytime this year!!

Same here, food. We took so much damn food. The camp potluck on the last day was fun though...

Every year I fine tune the list. The big key is planning and prepping well in advance.

The biggest thing not to bring: unfinished projects!!!! Do not waste precious playa time on a half-finished costume or techno gizmo. If it's not done before you leave your house, it wasn't meant to happen. It is 10 times harder to do anything on-playa, you will be missing something, and you will make a mess. Actually it should be done a week ahead so you can test it thoroughly. Take stock 2 weeks before d-day and make the decision about what you will finish and what gets left behind.

Leave behind anything that will become a mess. My 2nd year I brought ivy to weave into a sculpture, what a disaster! Do not bring plant materials unless you thoroughly prep them before departure so they will make NO MOOP! Do not bring wood, plastic pipe etc that you will have to cut or drill on site. All construction should be done and tested pre-playa!

Ditch 1-use glowsticks and cheap plastic lights & novelty crap. LEDs are so cheap now, you can get a single 4-AA battery pack and light yourself for a few dollars. EL wire is still cool.

Each year I bring less food and still always have some left. You must bring enough food, but you will not want to cook, you will not eat as much as you do at home, you will likely get food from others, and you will be content with simpler stuff than usual. Plan several meals and have snack stuff for quick snaps. I bake a big batch of granola bars each year.

Plan your costumes well, realizing that you will wear the same thing several times. Have one or 2 day outfits and one, maybe 2 night outfits. Make/ amass accessories for these basic looks so you can mix it up. Plan with layers for varying temperatures.

Bring less 'normal' clothes, but do bring a change of tough work clothes with boots and gloves and a spare set for after you exit the playa. I wear the same sarong and cape most days.

Do not skimp on:
socks
water
first aid
foot/skin care products
good goggles and quality dust masks
shelter
tent stakes

Valuable luxuries:
solar shower
small folding chair
extra tent for storage
Small rug or mat

The only thing I brought too much of was, believe it or not, water, food and booze! I gave it too the clean up crew. I gave them a GALLON of Bacardi! I think it's because I ended up not drinking as much as I thought (except water). I got the name Playa Mama though because my friends that had been for 10 years prior said I was more prepared than veteran burners. When we were out on the deep playa at night on the art car, I was the one everyone came to because I had extra water, booze, snacks, tissues, cigarettes, etc. One of my best friends said "You're the best playa mama there is!" and that's where it came from.

wayy too much of:

sunblock
things to drink other than water - aka drink mixes (chai, gatorade etc) and alcohol
clothes for the day ( I froze my ASS off at night most of the time)
food (I didn't want to eat anything I brought, but those 60 cliff bars were much appreciated by camp members and strangers..)
makeup/hair/body products.. my skin was so dusty half the time it felt too gross to put on..

Wish I brought more :
comfy shoes
warm things
gifts
lighting

I brought too much of everything. Everything.

I read this list and all the newbie lists and listened to so many stories of "and then this one time I was really glad I had...."

eff... it was riddiculous

Need creates community. Part of the beauty of BM is you can walk around with your jar of peanut butter and find someone with some jelly. And a bike pump. And I think they're lover's best friend's new welding instructor over on Chance has some extra hair elastics.

I'm not dissing self-reliance, and not suggesting you be a burden, just pointing out that need brings adventure.

Just like everyone, I brought so much *food* I gave almost all of it at the end to the DWP crew and even had enough for a week in SF. I brought *no lights* though so had to put a light sabre on my bike after a nasty crash into a random guy in the dark. Next year, I'm bringing lot more lights and far far less food. Plus a dome and a generator and so.

I’m an odd case, since I planned for 40 people, and brought exactly what we needed. We also brought some extra heavy tools (picks, and crowbars to loan out to people pulling or putting in stakes).

But looking around at others, most people do bring too much water, or said differently, they don’t use that water for showers apparently. They also bring the wrong types of foods, not just too much. This is an important concept. We had a lot of vegetarians in our camp, and two full time cooks, so our needs were somewhat special. Most people should just count up the calories they need, make sure they have enough for that, and leave it there. You can live on powerbars for a week (not that I suggest that). It has a lot more to do with “what will you want” and what do you plan to share.

The first item on your list tough should be a few rolls of duct tape…

We always bring too much food, but I'm OK with this to the degree that I find it hard to eat enough out there and having lots of choices makes it more likely I will get something in my mouth.

I brought too many clothes, but that's fine too (see above!)

The thing we've lugged out there and back both years that have never even been looked at.......board games and books. We played two rounds of Uno last year and that was it. I'm not bringing any of that next time.

Add my name to the too much food list. I brought 2/3 of it back with me.

I also packed up a stove that never saw the light of day there. You can usually get away with letting the sun warm things up for you or in my case, one of my neighbors let me use his.

I took too much food also, but it was all stable stuff and the water I left the playa with was all drank by time I made the drive back to Macon, GA. The extra food, I gave to a friend in Kentucky who had an empty cupboard and was able to use all of it over the next several weeks.

It is possible I could have eaten all of the food, but neighbors were cooking too much, It was their first burn and they came with RVs. I think I spent so much time just wandering about that it was about the wee hours 2 or three days later before I realized I had not eaten.

Next time I'll bring a bigger shade structure. I brought a lot of art supply, Roll Canvas and paint, etc... - I got so caught up working with so many other peoples art projects that I didn't have a chance to use the stuff I brought. Any art supplies I bring next time will be part of a project that will already be planned ahead.