Upright & Stowed

To Everything Turn Turn Turn (dateline 10/31/09)

My seasonal preference, in order:  Summer, Fall, Spring Winter. 

My fantasy seasonal recalculation:  Summer (5 months), Fall (3 months), Spring (3 months), Winter (1 month). 

While I wait for global warming to turn my fantasies into reality (or move to South Carolina), I will continue to enjoy living in a place with four fully distinct seasons.  It’s one of the things I missed most during my years in San Francisco.   

I revel in the change of seasons: Different wardrobes … the move from indoors to out and back again … the changing light … the shifting moods.  Nothing captures the exhilaration of seasonal change more than autumn leaves.  This weekend I headed up the Hudson River Valley to Cold Spring, a charming New York town that is a launch point for a breathtaking hike.  I made the trip with my friends Bob, David and Jeff.

 Ahhh, the thrill of fall.   Ooooh, the thrill of it all.

 

 

Burning Man 09: The Recap

I spent the past two weeks preparing for, attending and decompressing from Burning Man.  I've written many times about this epic art/music/nature festival of creativity, innovation, spirituality and community.  If you haven’t spent an hour with me personally hearing me rave, read this article from the Huffington Post for a great description of what Burning Man is and isn’t.

I’ve made the journey to Burning Man five times and never had a better time than this year.  My compatriots in Barbarella Boot Camp were the most fun, hilarious, inquisitive, competent, sexy, open, chill, easy and amazing people you’d ever want to spend a week with.  Especially an intense week of 100 degree heat, dust storms, raging parties and roller coaster emotions.  I consider Barbarella Boot Camp to be my new Burning Man home, and I can’t wait to build it again.

Choosing the best shots from a year at Burning Man is always hard, but here are a few of this year’s great moments, with notes.  As any burner will tell you, the next man burns in 356 days.

Ready to roll!

 This year's theme was "Evolution."  Which couldn't happen without you-know-who.

An amazing sculpture made of nothing but locks and keys.

Killer view from the top of the giant astroturf slide.

Down we go.

Take out art car. If only they delivered.

 

This year's Temple ... the most spiritual spot at Burning Man.

Children will play.

Erika and me at a White Party.  She was my virginal Burning Man date in 2007.  Obviously she's got it down now.

Rubik's Cube on the Playa.   Even more amazing at night when lit.

Just a little head dress.  This is how creative Burning Man is.

Some of my amazing camp mates at Barbarella Boot Camp.  Hookers all.

The one thing Burning Man needs more of: Urban Soul.

Me and my faithful ride.

Let's go fly a kite.  Sunset and sunrise are the most spectacular moments by far.

Jungle Gym David.

Burning Man, Chapter 5

At 5am tomorrow morning, I will climb into my friend Rob's truck here in San Francisco and drive 6 hours to the Black Rock Desert in northwest Nevada to attend my fifth Burning Man.  I feel like a teenager about to return to summer camp.  And I look forward to bringing some of Burning Man back to share with you when I return.  Until then ...  

Photo: The Man, who is both the physical and spiritual center of the event, and who will burn on Saturday night.

Hawaii Five-0

Hawaii Five-0 ran on CBS from 1968 to 1990, one of the longest-running series in broadcast history.  You may not remember a thing about the show itself, but you will undoubtedly remember its theme song ... one of television's all time greats. 

Hawaii is on my mind because 50 years ago today it became the 50th state of US.  Pretty awesome anniversary, if you ask me.  In celebration, I post the above photo which was taken a tad 18 years ago.  I'm sitting on a cliff above Black Sand Beach in Maui shooting a commercial for American Express.  On my left is then-unknown/now-famous author Augusten Burroughs.  He was the copywriter for the commercial which, incidentally had no words. 

Happy Anniversary, Hawaii, and 50 big Alohas.

Getting Off The Grid

In less than two weeks I will take a 5-day journey to the remote desert in far northwest Nevada.  This will be my fifth trip to Burning Man in the Black Rock Desert.

Among the many gi-normous pleasures of Burning Man – art, music, costumes, fire, performance, nature, sex, dancing, diversity, love, hilarity, friends – one of the sweetest pleasures is the complete and total lack of cell phone service.  What a rare and precious experience to be in a place where no one is taken out of their present by a conversation with someone who is not there.  This is not some fantasy return to a simpler time … it’s just an observation of what a different experience we have when we’re truly focused on living in the moment. 

Last week Gail Collins wrote a sweet  and funny column in the Times about her trek to Woodstock 40 years ago.  In it she quoted a relative who had just returned from Lallapalooza and had been overwhelmed by the incessant blabbing away and texting on cell phone throughout the concert.  “I wonder how truly involved you can get with the music,” she asks.

I intend to be 100% involved in the experience of Burning Man.  This is partly because it is hard not to be present when it's 102 degrees, or when there's a total white-out dust storm,  or when a fire-breathing dragon rolls by.  But also because my iPhone will be locked away in my dusty glove compartment, untouched for five days. 

The Softer Side of Texas

I own a T-shirt with the words “Imagine a World Without Texas” printed above a U.S. map with a gaping hole … you know where.   I wear it selectively.

This past weekend – as reported earlier – I went to Marfa, a teeny town of 2,121 people in far west Texas.   A stone’s throw from the southern border and 4,000+ feet above sea level, Marfa is the Big Texas of movies like Giant and No Country For Old Men, both of which were filmed in this region.  With its big sky terrain, heavy Mexican influence, and "Howdy Ya’ll” friendliness, Marfa is Texas of the finest sort.  

The look of Marfa is not much different than it was in its 1930s hey day.  But the spirit of modern Marfa began taking shape in the 1970s when Donald Judd moved here to create and display his art and those of other conceptual artists.  What evolved is an unusual little town that marries sophisticated art, culinary and architectural ambitions with the breathtaking beauty and historic sweep of a remote Mexican border town.  It’s a marvel, and if you’re at all intrigued, go.  Some pictures to inspire are below.

Needless to say, I will be retiring my “Imagine a World Without Texas” t-shirt.

  Sunrise at the Thunderbird Hotel, the place to stay in town.  Lunch at the Food Shark truck.  Best Banh Mi sandwich in Texas, for sure.

Reflection of moi in a Donald Judd piece at the breathtaking Chinati Foundation, the artistic soul of Marfa.

Sunrise on the main road cutting through town.

Swimming at Balmorhea Springs, a WPA-built watering hole north of Marfa. Dusk arrives at the Chinati, where we were celebrating my friend Robert's 40th birthday.  Me, Robert, Michael, Michael and Robert.  How's that for inventive first naming?

The Power of More Than One

"Try to remember that you are part of a huge community that produces its most creative and important works through collaboration.  You don't have to do it alone ... and will achieve more by letting others in, listening, giving, staying open."

I wrote these word to myself in 2005 from the Black Rock Desert at the end of Burning Man.  A friend passed out postcards to everyone, had us write messages to ourselves, collected them, and mailed them to our homes about 6 months later.  The idea was to reconnect us to whatever we were feeling at the end of this amazing event.  The picture above is a Burning Man art installation called "Crude Awakening," featuring a set of huge metal sculptures (one praying figure for each continent) in thrall of the mother lode of oil.  The derrick was blown up and set afire on the last night.  See the mind-blowing video here.

The creative collaboration that made this artwork possible is the same idea that Netflix is tapping into in its much praised @4 million contest to improve movie satisfaction predictability by 10%.  Here's a great article on the power teamwork, inspired by the Netflix project.

This week I made my official decision to return to Burning Man at the end of August.  I am beyond excited.  What I most look forward to is – once again – being inspired by the awesome creative power of man, especially when we come together to create as a team.

Culture Calls

I live in NYC because of its diverse culture.  Truth is, you can find fascinating culture wherever you travel.  Even when traveling for work.  All you’ve got to do is look.  I’ve been in Southern California since last Tuesday on a work project with my friend Steve.  We’ve been in back-to-back meetings, but that hasn’t stopped me.  Here are some cultural highlights of my visit so far.

• A stroll through Downtown LA’s colorful Santee Alley (first image, featuring me and a sporty pair of shorts), surrounded by an “It’s a Small World” mosaic of regional neighborhoods
• A concert by Mark O’Connor, a crazy-talented fiddler and composer who blurs the lines between Bluegrass and Classical
• A stirring exhibit of Zimbabwean Shona sculpture in San Diego’s glorious Balboa Par
• Dim Sum in Kearny Mesa, the epicenter of San Diego’s Asian community (second image, featuring me and my sporty step-mother, Doris!)
• California organic cooking at its best at Akasha, in LA’s neighborhood-of-the-moment, Culver City

Frankly, I’m exhausting thinking about all this cultural consumption.  Get me back to work.

Shake It Up

I try to be where people and things are shaking and moving.  Alas, I landed in LA late last night, about 12 hours after the shaking stopped. 

This was not the case in June of 1992.  Back then, I flew to LA to launch my new business venture, Out & About.  Somehow I convinced my father, my dear friend Viv and my then-boyfriend Marcello to work the route of the LA Gay Pride Parade and pass out hundreds of fliers announcing our little newsletter. 

When I arrived in LA for that trip I never could have imagined the amazing 10-year journey that would follow.  Nor could Marcello and I have imagined being jolted out of our hotel bed, throwing open the curtains, and watching a bunch of Santa Monica office buildings sway back and forth.  The Landers Earthquake measured a 7.3 on the Richter scale, but its epicenter was 100+ miles east, so there was minimal human toll, considering its strength.   It was crazy, but also kind of fun.

In the next week, I hope to shake things up a bit with my friend and colleague Steve, as we introduce FilmAid to members of the fabulous Hollywood community.    Photo credit

Dock vs iDock

This weekend, a gaggle of gay guys went to Maine ... to visit the breathtakingly beautiful Sebago Lake.  Below I submit evidence that this trip took place.  Which picture do you think provides better proof that the boys were indeed gay?

Cameraderie on the Dock?

 

Or conspicuous consumption in the iDock?