Report From the Field
From Thumper
Biloxi, Mississippi
Monday, January 18th, Year of the Rooster

Year of the Rooster, Year of the Dog: Tet and transition, 2006

It's not the end, or the beginning of the end, but, perhaps, the end of the beginning. Winston Churchill said something like that, and it feels apt when talking about the Burning Man Katrina Relief efforts in Biloxi, MS.

On September 10th, when the first volunteers showed up from the playa, there were nine cars and a house in the parking lot here. The Buddhist temple, dedicated just a few weeks before, was devastated. Here is a Washington Post story published the day before we arrived: http://tinyurl.com/cg8nr

Now, four plus months later, the temple looks better than it ever has. With the Vietnamese New Year, or Tet, coming up on the 29th, we're wrapping up here and getting ready to move on to other, more needy areas. The year of the rooster is ending, the year of the dog about to begin.

It's quite a whirlwind of activity, like getting ready for a Broadway plan opening, and as usual the volunteers here have shown remarkable creativity in finding ways to get 'er done:

Matt Maynard at his homemade forge, making bannister railings--damn, them Kentucky boys are resourceful.

Lucky Leipzig touches up the donation boxes he made from scratch--stunning work.

Big Styk, Big Matt roofing the temple

It's nice, after living amidst so much ugliness and destruction for so long, to see something beautiful emerge in our midst.

The general quality of life in our camp has improved around here in recent weeks, in large part due to the exceptional chef-ing efforts of DPW's Spoon. Before you can wake up, he's got the coffee on, prelude to a massive breakfast. All day, there's heaping bowls of snacks at the ready. And come nightfall, swoon---last night's bacon and spinach salad, with roasted chicken, pasta salad and pie was just one typical effort. This man has a gift for cooking.

Every day, the tenor of Biloxi changes just a bit. Yesterday a house that's been our back door for four months dissapeared over morning coffee, as a huge excavator ripped it apart and crushed up the pieces, like a long-necked metal bird creating a nest for itself. It's surreal going for bike rides at night and pulling up to a casino, with cars parked in all directions amidst the surrounding debris. I had no idea people loved gambling that much. Meanwhile, a local entreprenuer has taken to offering disaster scenery tours in a limo--just $20 per hour.

Oh, many have been asking about photos from our Christmas party--here they are, enjoy: http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/katrinarescue/my_photos

As we put the final coats of paint on the temple, and rake up the last of the debris, we're also setting up shop in a new location, about an hour west of here. Pearlington is a small, unicorporated area that was home to about 2,000 people before the storm. Now about 600 remain--without a city hall to advocate for them to get federal relief money, they're months behind everyone else. They really need our help, and so we just signed a 120 day lease on the site of a formal post office ( it's now hanging from the pines out back ) for $1. We'll only be about 30 miles from New Orleans, just across the bayou--almost close enough to commute for beignets and coffee.

It's going to be a lot more like the playa down there--no running water, no electricity, no plumbing. Which means it'll be all that more fun to build from scratch, and there will be a lot of families deeply grateful to see us rumble into their community with our heavy machinery, and start pulling boats out of trees and oaks off of living rooms.

We have an ongoing need for volunteers--please, if you've been considering it, get in touch about coming down--we'll provide housing and food, and plenty of good hard work you can feel proud of.

We also have some other random needs ( ask and who knows, you might get it, right?). In no particular order:

• hiqh quality chainsaws
• 300 gallon water tank, on a trailer
• a motor for a small Kubota tractor
• Ratchet straps
• A Kyocera wireless broadband card
• Fuel cards for BP, Chevron, or Texaco
• an industrial grade woodchipper

Paying for all the food and fuel we're burning through remains a challenge, but there's an easy way you can help: we have some incredible t-shirts, hoodies, and panties ( $25, $35, and $15 each, respectively ) thanks to the very generous support of Playa Pete of APLE shirts ( thank you!! ). Photos to follow in another message, this one's getting too big already. Paypal to price_tom@hotmail.com.

The great thing about being here is meeting so many amazing people. The sad part: when they eventually have to leave. It's like Monday on the playa all week here sometimes. People leaving this week we're really going to miss: Cabiria, Cathy, Segue, Karin and Matt. Travel well, friends, ya'll c'mon back soon, ya hear?

Now of course we're not working all the time. The other day we had an idea to build a boat. One thing led to another, and pretty soon the BRS Tomfoolery set sail from the boat launch near the ruined Beau Rivage casino and, paddling with oars made from crutches, plastic, and duct tape, landed on a barrier island covered with debris. We staked our flag on it, and claimed it for the MILF ( Mississippi Island Liberation Front).

Here she is returning to port at sunset.
Carmen, Segue, Lisa and Cathy return from plundering Deer island
Arrrg, a fine ship is she...

And with that, we'll wrap up. Thanks to everyone for your interest and support. If you're interested in finding out more about what we're doing here, please call Tom Price at 801-712-5371 or Richard Scott at 530-401-4007.

Be well, happy Tet.
-Tom

Report From the Field
From Michelle
Biloxi, Mississippi
Monday, December 26, 2005

T’was the week before Christmas and all ‘cross the lot
We built a red wonderland with trimmings we’d got
From debris piles ‘round Biloxi…and we built it with care
Knowing the children soon would be there.

Matt and Philip built a tree special to burn
Whilst the frontloader from Daewoo did make a few turns
‘Round the other tree with Tom hoisted high as its load…
So he could hang the ornaments, the lights and the bows.

500 some presents with a donation we bought
To give to the children who otherwise’d have not
We wrapped and we wrapped and we wrapped and we wrapped
Amazed I was that no elves had snapped

Austin made us all stockings, a mantle and fireplace
Then away back to Mammoth, barely out of her ankle brace
Michael from Kentucky our Santa would be
By virtue of his good nature (and white beard, to a degree)

Spoon arrived just in time…in his cooking we did revel
(I have it on good authority he traded his soul to the devil)
Doughnuts in the morning and turkey at night
To eat so well in a disaster area just doesn’t seem right

At 5pm sharp on the day prearranged
The children were greeted by elves (only slightly deranged)
And whisked up to Santa’s lap where they sat
Even the monk couldn’t help but pop in for a chat!

The toys flowed through the evening to the children with cheer
Their giggles and laughter so wonderful to hear…
…When what to our wondering eyes did appear
But the last of the children and the first of the beer!

Along came others to enjoy our tree burn*
Mostly other volunteers who for home may have yearned
We burned and we laughed,and we drummed and we danced
And by the joy of the evening were thoroughly entranced

( sharp observers will notice that behind the paper mache star, Matt Deluge had build a wooden man atop the tree--you can just make it out in this photo)

Cross coals to the music, on bare little feet,
Marched Chaos Matt and Eli, right to the beat.
And though they got scorched a wee little bit
Their pyro performance was the evening's big hit!

From us in Biloxi a wish for happiness this season
And if you get the itch to do a little MOOPing (for some reason)
We'll always welcome some good volunteers
If you hurry you can make it by New Years!

--Happy Holidays
Michelle

Report From the Field
from Thumper
Biloxi, Mississippi
Monday, December 11, 2005

Hey there, time for an update from the Katrina zone:

First, about the headline. After looking around for months at all the other volunteer groups wearing snazzy matching t-shirts, we decided we should probably get some of our own. You know, that whole esprit de corps and souvenir thing. Now, thanks to some rock star volunteer graphic design work by Jon Lowe, we've got some--and a name for our little project:

Burners Without Borders.

(modeled here by Mishka--you can see what she calls our "Tonka Trucks" in the background. See a bunch more photos on her flickr site: http://flickr.com/photos/the_real_mishka/sets/1568632/ if you've been here and volunteered, please write and we'll send you one )

The BWB name kind of perfectly sums up what we feel like we're about, namely taking the ten principles of Burning Man (your refresher course; they are: Radical Inclusion - Decommodification - Gifting - Radical Self Reliance - Radical Self Expression - Communal Effort - Civic Responsibility - Leaving No Trace - Participation - Immediacy ) off the playa and into the real world. Black Rock, Biloxi--where we are, it turns out, doesn't matter nearly as much to what we have in common as does the way we do our collective thing.

In practice this past week, that's taken on a few parallel tracks. Lucky answered a call to DPW for a finish carpenter ( time from message posting to first reply: 13 minutes ) and came over from Texas, to help Matt, Cab, Teresa and Michael, among others, do some finish work in the Buddhist temple. It's going to be _so_ much better than before when they're done. Meanwhile, Monte's and Eli have been running supplies around in his truck, bought to be turned into an art car but now doing duty as a supply hauler. Her name is Katrina, and she ain't for hire:

The rest of us keep busy removing debris. Consider: 40% or so of the houses in east Biloxi ( and the whole gulf coast, for that matter ) are destroyed, or need to be. All that rubble has to be broken up, and pushed to the curb to be hauled away. Some of it's by machines, a lot of it by hand-not too bad, unless you rip into something that splatters "I can't believe it's not dead body" juice all over you--we go through a lot of hand sanitizer.

Here's Richard "Big Styk" Scott talking shop with Chaos, before peeling a house like a banana.

Sharp readers will note that yes, all our vehicles say "Black Rock City Department of Public Works" on them. There is something very right about that, considering the amount of MOOP we're moving on a daily basis. People are often curious about our group, asking where we're all from, and how we know each other, to which we sometimes say "well, we get together once a year to build Nevada's 5th largest city. In a weekend. Then we live in in for a week, and take it all down. So we're kinda into cleaning up big messes." They nod and say "oh, right..." and then don't really know where to go from there:)

A quick aside about Richard: he's been here without a break, without a day off, for MONTHS. Always level headed, always safety conscious, he's been the anchor for this whole operation, and can run an excavator like it's a part of his arm. And that's AFTER going non-stop on the playa running his name sake cranes. He deserves mad props--feel free to deliver yours here: rdscott@inreach.net

There was a recent article in the New York Times that featured our neighbors across the street. The sign showed in the story is one Chaos and Mishka made. Today Reba, Austin, Michelle and I spent five hours clearing junk out of her yard, which we're turning into a massive neighborhood holiday display ( more on that later ).

Here's a tiny panoramic of our camp--dome, bus, tents etc all ours:

At night it gets dark early, and there's not a lot to do. So, we invent games ( last night's: Fenga. Like Jenga, only you add wood. And it's on fire.)

Or hang out in our gorgeous, bright white, how-can-we-ever-thank-Asha-from-Pacific-domes-enough dome

We're getting in the Christmas spirit--Austin ground scored a box of black socks, and with some glitter pens has made us all stockings, to hang from a fireplace she's building around our burn barrel.

Across the street, there's an abandoned lot, a sort of muddy bog. With the owners permission, we're going to transform it into a sort of Christmas/Holiday theme park. The idea: give families something to come see and do together, and brighten an otherwise blighted neighborhood. We'll be setting up all kinds of lights and decorations ( using a lot of what we've found in wrecked/ruined houses ), and if we can get a projector will have free outdoor screenings of holiday movies, on hay bale benches. Of course we'll have a bonfire--there's no end of fuel, and ever since the very beginning the police have allowed us to have what is, as best we can tell, the only open fire in Biloxi. There are plans for hay rides on a trailer towed behind our tractor, hot chocolate and candy for the kids, and santas. Lots and lots of Santas. Like, each kid gets there own. Santa may then go to Wal-Mart to engage shoppers in a Socratic dialogue about consumerism--we'll see.

The weather has been mixed--shirt sleeves today, pissing down freezing rain a few days back. In the days ahead, a remote team will be setting up a semi-permanent shelter and distribution center in Plaquemines Parish, south of New Orleans, where we can give out much needed tents, blankets, food and cleaning tools. Yes, people really do still need that stuff--just not everyone, which is why we're now going to them instead of the other way around. Those cajuns down there are tough--some are driving 5 hours a day just to fish for a few hours, then head back home. They don't want a hand out, just a hand up, so we're going to do what we can.

All of these volunteers are amazing--giving so much of their time ( several have quit jobs and pulled up stakes to be here full time ) and energy--it's very affirming, very heartwarming, to know there are so many great people willing to just step up and say "what needs doing?"

A lot of people have been writing and calling, asking how long we'll be staying, and how they can help. Although most other groups are pulling out by late January at the outside, we're planning on staying until March, or until we're not needed ( which I can assure you won't be before March ).

So, how can you help?

Option one: C'mon down and volunteer. Come for a day, come for the winter, we've got room, you'll get a lot out of it, a great workout, and a chance to gorge on some of the best vietnamese food you'll ever eat ( the ladies at the temple here really hook us up ). You can also call: 801-712-5371 Tom or 530-401-4007 Richard.

Option two: paypal us $25 and get one of our snappy tshirts sent to you. Yea, we know we know, it's comodification, but proceeds ( about $17 from each shirt ) will be used to keep us fed, watered. and our vehicles filled. Plus they're wicked cool. Paypal to price_tom@hotmail.com, or snail it to Burning Man crew, Buddhist Temple, 179 Oak Street, Biloxi, MS 39532. You should also feel free to mail surprises--Santa loves surprises.

It's 12:30, about 25 degrees, and so humid that freezing air is dropping off the inside of the dome, and typing in my glves is getting a little old. So that's it for tonight, thanks for reading, and thanks for all your support and encouragement.

Happy holidays,
-The Temple to Temple crew

Report From the Field
from Boy Scout
Biloxi, Mississippi
Monday, November 28, 2005

Project Update

For the past week, the Temple Crew has been clearing out lots full of debris and cranking really hard to get the temple walls done.

We've finally got some professionals to mud and tape the walls so that they are smooth. A few volunteers put a lot of hours into mudding the walls but it really takes a pro to make the holes and seams disappear. When the mud finally dried, the Temple Crew lucked out when a volunteer professional painter, John, showed up with all the right equipment. He ran his sprayer day and night until it finally quit working. The rest of us were charged with taping down everything and rolling a final coat to get the coverage perfect. We also put more insulation up into the attic and we got the final materials list together: doors, trim, and bathroom appliances.

In addition to the work in the temple, we've been clearing out lot after lot of debris. Water Street is a big project with four lots piled 4-5 feet high. The excavator makes quick work of crunching homes into toothpicks, and filling up the bucket of the loader. The loader has been a giant wheel barrow, forming load after load into long giant mounds along the street so that the contractors can take it out to who knows where. I've had lots of time driving the loader. It's gotten to the point that it's now a bit boring driving up and down the driveways.

Thanksgiving

Last Thursday was the strangest Thanksgiving Day I've ever experienced. Salvation Army and many church groups competed to feed many thousands of meals to the public here. On Wednesday evening a Ryder truck full of turkeys and chickens pulled into the camp. We loaded up our pickup trucks, and drove into the surrounding community. Folks came out of their tents and trailers when they heard us shouting. Several hundred turkeys and chickens were distributed very quickly to eager families in the neighborhood.

On Thursday we had four cooks, Cowboy, Michelle, Eli, and Angelina, make us the most splendid of meals. When we had all stuffed ourselves silly with turkey and were eyeing the pies, another truck surprised us by pulling into the temple with hundreds of meals and pies they needed to give away. They brought a couple of vanloads of kids and adults to convince passersby to take the meals. So we set up tables on the street, and stopped traffic for four hours until everything but a case of apple pies was gone. Luckily, the Vietnamese Catholic church next door had services right after they arrived, so we had more than the usual amount of cars passing by. Michelle had received a bag of 30 donated kazoos to bring down here, and the kids had fun making lots of noise with them.

I've been updating a photo blog with photos taken of the town and temple crew.

Temple Crew Mission Update

Volunteers are still needed. Over the past couple of weeks we've had a high turnover in volunteers helping with the Temple Crew's mission. Some only stay for a couple of days, or up to a week or two. Many of the long term folks who have been here for 8-10 weeks are burning out. The environmental conditions are not extreme, but the physical and mental conditions demand much beyond what any of us do in 'real life'. Just as getting used the playa takes a few days, coming into this devastated community puts most people into shock.

PLEASE VOLUNTEER to help with this monumental task of helping this community cope with the loss of everything they left behind when they evacuated. We've got the space for many more folks and you don't have to worry about HOT food, a warm shower, or even a ride from the Gulfport airport. The weather is coastal with warm days in the low 70s and cool nights that may go down into the mid 30s. If you want to volunteer, please call Richard at 530-401-4007.

Some of the crew have been seeking out folks who are even more needy than this community. They found Plaquemines Parish, LA (google maps) which is estimated at 7 to 8 weeks behind even Biloxi. Folks are returning to find no power, no lights, no water, and no phone, no nothing left. We want to get them food, water, tents, blankets, and other necessities.

Report From the Field
from Boy Scout
Biloxi, Mississippi
Monday, November 21, 2005

Today the crew started to clear a set of four lots between Kuhn St and Sophia St near Howard Ave. The gulf is a clear shot from these lots and they got the full force of the waves that hit the shore. Every building within the path were pushed in several blocks and then washed out to the sea leaving 3 to 10 inches of white sand with beautiful full shells buried within. These houses are what is called 'gone-gone'. They are a total loss with nothing left standing that did not leave the premises before the storm. The 4 and 5 storey buildings in the distance are casino barges that have washed up over a hundred feet from the shoreline.

One man I met across the street, John, had a yard covered with his collection of hundreds of 12" LP records and upside down cars half sunk into the ground. He found 6 out of 8 nicely carved posts from his front porch up to three blocks away. He showed me a photo of a beautiful wood sided home taken a week before the storm.

Everyone in the camp took shifts clearing out the rubble, fallen trees, wrecked appliances, and foundation piers. We slavaged as much of the cinder block onto four pallets ready to be fork lifted out. The giant Daewoo excavator, Daawoo front loader, and tiny Kubotou tractor were running all day clearing everything into giant piles on both streets. Lunch for the crew was courtesy of a church run community recovery center. Thin meat chili and a cheese roll. Tomorrow, when the machinery finishes clearing out the big pieces, we'll rake/shovel out whats left. Today's find - a makeup case full of not totally wrecked wedding photos of a viet family.

Dinner was hamburgers and corn courtesy of Salvation Army. Plain but good warm food followed by yet another burn barrel under the street light next to the dome. There is a permanently hot bonfire in the back for those who desire quiet. There is no shortage of wood to warm the night and entertain the pyromaniac burners.

Many people in the community prefer for the Temple Crew to do their clearing because we try to salvage what building supplies we can to help defray the cost of replacement. We are only doing lots for the people who were uninsured or underinsured. Mostly shrimpers and elderly who got little or nothing but free meals, blankets and maybe a FEMA trailer. Many of the folks here work the shrimp boats and used the cash to buy everything.

Although the distribution center is closed because most everyone is out in the field all day, there is a steady stream of folks coming to the temple to give or ask for aide. The community and the relief agencies are taking care of feeding us (along with everyone else) with endless carbs and sugary snacks. Last Sunday the temple had a great vietmanese luncheon for the 'day of sorrow' holiday the monk declared. Many many families came out for mediation and chanting. The church next door gave out a semi trailer full of blankets and warm coats. The traffic jam was worse than Van Ness Ave on a weekend day.

We are endlessly thanked for our efforts by everyone we pause to talk to. Yesterday we got an invite to eat at a six grill bbq set up next to a field of trailers.

Report From the Field
from Tom Price
Biloxi, Mississippi
Tuesday, November 15, 2005

Been a long time since there was an update from the Katrina Relief zone, so I'm going to take a whack at it. But where to begin?

First, the weather. Cold, rain, is this Seattle or what? We had a tough day a week or so ago, when our long suffering dome cover final split down the middle and sloughed off, in a rain storm. Louie and the crew hurriedly covered our stock, and a few days later we rigged a temp cover until a new one could arrive. But if we think we've got it rough, all we have to do is literally look out the back door: this man lost his wife in May, and his job and home to Katrina, and is now living in a leaky tent in his front yard. We cleared out his yard, and removed the tree that landed on his house, but he can't get back in yet because of a typical conflict with his insurance company; they've told thousands that since the waters rose first and THEN the storm hit, it was uncovered flood damage and not covered hurricane damage. While the lawyers argue, he and thousands more slowly loose hope.

Work and needs-wise, things are definitely shifting, at least in the Biloxi area. The immediate, hand out food/water/shelter/clothes part of the effort is winding down--in fact, for the time being we've closed the donation dome in Biloxi, so we can instead move our work crews inside where they can stay at least a little warmer, as the cold fog of winter slides across the gulf coast.

Instead, we've been focusing all our efforts on finding those who've been overlooked, like sending teams into Placemines Parish south of New Orleans. Some parts of PP were under 30+ feet of water for WEEKS, so you can imagine what the place looks like.

Austin (on Gregory's truck )delivers some clothes and food down near where the Mississippi meets the Gulf and borrows a little "protection" from one of the locals...

The Temple crew and the burners with HANDS ON USA in Biloxi have instead been tearing into the hard, dirty work of clearing people's destroyed homes. In some cases, it's so they can rebuild. In others, it's just to clear enough clean space so FEMA has a spot to part the trailer they'll be loaned for a year.

me, Louie, Austin, George, Cab and Max, post clean up on Elmer Street. The 85 year old woman in the hat has lived here for decades; all we found that was salvageable were her son's military records, and some dishes.

The absolute best news we've had lately came rumbling down the street, when the _wonderful_ people at Doosan Daewoo ( a multinational manufacturing company), who had heard about what we were doing and liked it, delivered to us "to use as long as you've got use for em" a BRAND NEW, still-plastic-on-the-seats articulating front end loader and excavator. OK, big whup you might think--till you've see what these things can do to a pile of rubble. Here Cab, Mischka, George, Phil, Richard,Chaos and others work the loaders, a tractor, rakes--it takes every piece to really clear a place out. Oh, see that big open space? A house was there just a few hours before...

And yes, orange "DPW" stickers are already on their way down there, so we can slap em on our new machines.

Our new toys, however, are raising the hackles of the contractors who're being paid to do similar work, and some politicians are siding with them--what, you don't want it done for FREE? Politics is intruding all along the gulf coast, from still-locked-down parts of New Orleans ( where we saw the Counter Current group and their mobile media bus at the very laid back New Orleans Decompression and BBQ, and hooked up again with the Third Line Circus folks, both of whom are working in some _tough_ hoods doing crucial work with forgotten communities ), to Waveland where the Rainbow Family is encountering some troubles with their _amazing_ "New Waveland Cafe," to Biloxi and the no so subtle attempts to push out the poor of East Biloxi, to make way for new developments that are sure to follow last month's decision to allow casinos on land again.

No matter--there's an almost limitless amount of need for help to just clean things up so people can get back to work and on with their lives...which is exactly what we've been doing. And when it gets dark at around 5pm, we come home for a big group dinner, sit around what appears to be the only allowed burn barrel in the whole city (somehow the police seem to sense we've got fire handled ), play guitar, race wheelchairs, and tell stories--the people who have volunteered and showed up in Biloxi are without a doubt some of the most interesting, amusing, funny, well-traveled, most open minded and biggest hearted people I've ever had the chance to meet. Lemme tip my cap here to (apologies for whom i'm forgetting): Juan, Max, Richard, Phil, Austin, Chaos, Mischka, George, Brett, Chris, Jeff, Cab, Louie, Cowboy, Gregory, Linda, Andy, Corry, Monte, Doctor, Teresa, Peter, Angel, Erik and all the others-- bless you, all

Work rebuilding the Buddhist Temple is nearing completion--which is also why we're moving our rather large tent city seen here into the dome in the back.

So, what's next? More of the same, more clean up, more helping people as best we can until...well, we don't know when. Some of us are jokingly calling ourselves "BEMA" ( Burning Emergency Management Agency, as opposed to the much reviled FEMA), and starting to wonder what we could do at next year's event to collect resources to help in other emergencies. Meanwhile, volunteers are signed up through Christmas it seems, and some are planning on coming in January. We've been having a blast explaining exactly who we are ( we're the only non-organize, non-non-profit, non-for-profit, non-church group working along the area, except perhaps the Rainbow Family in Waveland) and how we all know each other. Yea, the days are long, and nerves are getting rubbed raw, and some days cleaning yet another pile of rubble gets a little old. And yet somehow we get up, have another cup of Cowboy's brazilian coffee, another Louie omelet, another morning taping up ankles and knees, and grab our tools, and head out again.
-Thumper

Report From the Field
from Thumper
Biloxi, Mississippi
Friday, October 28, 2005

From Anthony in NOLA:

On the heels of another evacuation (and an actual storm this time, but I don't need to tell you that) we are having the 2nd annual New Orleans Decom.

This is a no money, no commerce, no big whoop event.

I'm bringing a grill and a cooler of some stuff to grill.

You bring something.

This is all about the relaxing. Come enjoy a day along the river with some other burners.

Where? At the fly, (it's officially riverview park) behind Audubon park. Drive til you find a small Nissan frontier truck with a large piece of tie dyed cloth on the caper top. Look around. I'll be close.

When: Sunday Nov. 6th. starting about 1 p.m. til the park closes at some point around 8:30.

The Biloxi Temple crew and friends are fo sho gonna be there--and we'll be bringing our BBQ, coolers of beer, and wheelchairs for racing ( it's a biloxi thing ).

We're happy to pick up every/any one along the way, and bring you back. Contact me for ride details, see you there!

Report From the Field
from Tom Price
Biloxi, Mississippi
Friday, October 28, 2005

This is a quicky: if you've got frequent flyer miles that you'd be willing to donate so people could go volunteer in the Gulf Coast rebuilding efforts, or if you'd like to go if only you could get there for free, please email me at Tom Price. No promises, but we'll see if we can't get a couple more warm, willing bodies down there getting the job done.

Report From the Field
from Stuart Updergave
Biloxi, Mississippi
Thursday, October 27, 2005

There is still a constant ebb and flow of volunteers through the temple - ten new arrivals in the last two days, in fact. Amani (from Seattle) has returned to the Biloxi area (working with World Shelters on her first trip down) to join us at the temple. Amani's friend Savi arrived this morning; she is 15 years old, here until at least Nov 1st, and will be receiving school credit for time spent volunteering here. Another burner crew (Chaos, Doc, Monty and Teresa) rolled in yesterday with a 24' truck (which they bought for an art project, but decided to use to help the people of Biloxi for now) - they've eagerly dived in, helping out on various projects already. Richard's friend Linda arrived yesterday morning - she's likely to take over cooking responsibilities after I leave. And there's another posse that came in (Ryan from L.A., Rachel and Mandy from Toronto) to help out as well, working in the free store and helping finish up the drywall effort in the temple building.

Jim left this morning to go spend some time with his son in South Carolina. While here, he talked to several bicycle shops to solicit donations of used bicycles. A shop in Ithaca NY committed to send 100 bikes down, and he is talking to a few shops in Seattle as well (including BikeWorks, which has helped many Sea-town burners find playa-worthy wheels).

We've made progress on getting basic services moved back indoors. Richard salvaged a stainless steel three-tub utility sink from the old Catholic church across the street; after cleaning and re-plumbing, it is now installed in the temple for us and the temple staff to use for dishes. Yesterday, Thomas moved the washer and dryer into the temple (they were previously residing in the driveway). And today, Chaos is going to plumb a sink and flush toilet in the bathroom to go along with the shower.

The cover on the large dome used for the store has taken some wind damage over the last few days. Richard spoke with Asha, the owner of Pacific Domes, who says they will fabricate and send us a new cover. This is wonderful news!

The store is still providing for at least 100 people per day, with supplies still rolling in. Occasionally, we get large resources for use by the temple volunteers and staff (such as the full-size chest freezer which arrived this morning - which will be used mainly to store ice as it comes in), but most shipments consist of food, water, toiletries and cleaning supplies for the community. Yesterday, some cots and blankets arrived, which were eagerly received given the cold nights recently. We are still working our various networks to drum up more donations of tents, sleeping bags and warm clothing. Steve and Elena (the Peace Corps / FEMA folks who stayed here a few nights) are bringing in some coats and blankets tonight, I just heard. Wonderful news!

I'm heading back to Seattle on Friday morning, with mixed emotions. I feel like I've barely begun to scratch the surface of the work that needs to be done here, yet wonder how much difference I am making personally.

cheers,
~stuart

Report From the Field
Biloxi, Mississippi
Sunday, October 23, 2005

Several times a day, we have the sound of the Red Cross truck driving past with its annoying horn-bleat, and the announcement "Red Cross. Hot meals, cold drinks." If only the meals were a little better. Once in every four or so is passable, but the rest leave something to be desired. At least it's fuel for the body, which is important to the people around here.

There are many who have essentially nothing. Houses gone, living in small tents in driveways. They come in each day to get some canned food and a case or two of water bottles - one old woman told me this morning that she needed water for fifteen people. It's interesting, though - nobody wants the canned water provided by the beer companies.

We've been setting families up with huge tents, two or three a day. On Saturday morning we sent another out to provide temporary housing for a family of six - they had been renting, and are currently living in a smaller tent. The owner of the place they were renting is apparently considering selling out to the casinos (which have permission from the city to move on shore now). This will leave these people homeless. Things like this are hard to take.

One of the predominant problems we're hearing is of people who didn't have flood insurance - they are covered for wind damage, but not water. If your house was destroyed by a spawned tornado, then that's clearly wind damage - but if it floated off its foundation and into the neighbor's yard, the insurance companies are likely to call that water damage. Most of the houses around here sustained water damage - unless they were lucky enough (paradoxically) to be destroyed by wind.

The roof on Liem's shop is finished now - but we still see him or his wife Twin a few times a day. They stopped by today (Sunday morning) to deliver a big bag of egg rolls, and invited me and Thomas to go down to their [friend|family member]'s shrimp boat. We went down for a while and saw the boat back in from last night's run, and came home with another grocery bag full of shrimp. It was my first time to the beach since I arrived. Seeing the huge casino barges sitting on the land firsthand is really humbling. Every fresh view into the damage caused by Katrina continues to humble me.

Today is the first time the store has been closed since it opened, nearly six weeks ago. This came about partly because Richard and the other volunteers wanted a break from it, and partly because Thay (the master monk) requested a day where he could have services without the interruption and chaos of people coming in to get supplies from the store.

Cowboy (or Jay) and Bob (who is frequently rather silent) continue to do covert ops, bringing us ice and hooking us up with tools as needed. They're here as grassroots volunteers, working to set up a permanent free clinic in Biloxi.

There's an old Vietnamese woman who sits in the back of a pickup truck outside the temple gates nearly every morning, selling fresh persimmons and some other fruit I haven't identified yet.

Pirate Pete (burner from Maine, who has been here for several weeks) is an unstoppable bundle of energy. He frequently will load up the basket on his bicycle with the latest useful booty and go for a ride through the community - giving out flashlights and batteries, baked goods, etc.

We've had several new volunteers arrive: Jim Rohrssen, from Lopez Island, WA; Steve and Elena, who work with FEMA and are here to coordinate with us - they have been in the region for five weeks, in various locations; Michelle and Karen from Florida (Michelle is here with another crew, and they both plan to stop by periodically to help out); and Gregory, a long-time temple crew burner from Austin (who arrived with a huge converted bus, pink with flames on the windows). Jim has been organizing fundraising events on Lopez since the Saturday after Katrina hit land, raising $5000- the very next day. He's planning an event on Nov 19th that will feature gulf coast (Cajun / New Orleans) cuisine, along with blues and zydeco music. If you've been down in the Gulf volunteering and are interested in talking about your experiences at this event, contact Jim.

I rode into Gulfport on Friday to get a replacement cell phone. Along the way, there were lots of areas that didn't seem to be terribly damaged - until you noticed that many houses had uniform roofs: big blue tarps. This reminded me of flying in - as we curved northward from our route skirting the edge of the Gulf, the number of blue tarps covering roofs was incredible - Thomas likened it to flying into L.A. and seeing pools in nearly every yard.

We recently received a shipment of school supplies - approximately 250 book bags filled with notebooks, pencils and folders, an equal number of interactive learning aids, a bunch of boxes of crayons, etc. We're going to schedule a kids' day soon to give all this stuff out.

Richard says that the odds are good that David Best (who designed and led the efforts to build the temples for Burning Man every year prior to 2005) will come down to do some work on Chua Van Duc temple. The temple structure itself is relatively plain, and Thay wants it spruced up - when he saw my photos of this year's temple burn, he got very excited and made sure I would help him get some improvements made to his temple.

We're expecting for the promised excavator to arrive sometime between Wed and Fri this week. Hopefully by then Richard will be able to cut through the politics so that we can actually put it to use helping people get their yards cleared, damaged houses demolished, sites readied for trailers.

We continue to eat well - we got a huge delivery of pastries this morning, which were nice to snack on for the early risers. Late morning, Jim made a big batch of fruit crepes. We just got finished with lunch - Thay invited the entire crew in for a Vietnamese meal - noodles with tofu and vegetables, rice, fried egg rolls, followed by an odd (to western palate) but enjoyable dessert (a mochi-like gooey 'shell' surrounding a bean-based (lotus?) filling with ginger), followed by a tea service. And tonight, I'm planning to fry up the egg rolls Twin gave us, to go with grilled shrimp and salmon burgers.

As can be expected, many people here are paying close attention to storm season, particularly since Hurricane Wilma is so close. While Thomas and I were at the shrimp boat this morning, I looked south into the Gulf of Mexico. There's a line of clouds running SE / NW, about 50 miles out. Yes, that's Wilma. She is currently looking as if she might run aground at or around Marco Island, FL, where Bev and I went with a bunch of friends for New Years several years ago.

Two Atlantic storm season records have been broken in the six days I've been here: first, Wilma became the most powerful storm on record (as measured by barometric pressure - it bottomed out at 882 millibars), and now tropical storm Alpha - the 22nd named storm of the season - has formed and is causing more flooding in the Dominican Republic and haiti. The previous record was 21 storms, established in 1933.

There is still work to be done here. If you want to come down and help out, please call Richard at 530-401-4007.

Addendum, Monday 24 Oct 2005:

It's getting cold and windy. Even those of us who are used to the vagaries of playa weather woke up cold this morning. People here need tents, sleeping bags, blankets, warm clothes. If anyone reading this has connections to camping supply stores or companies and can get donations sent this way, please do so! Coordinate through Richard (at the number above) for delivery. When I get home to Seattle on Friday, I'm going to starting pounding the pavement trying to get donations from the various outdoor companies there.

Tom

Report From the Field
Biloxi, Mississippi
Saturday, October 21, 2005

Here's the latest from Biloxi sent in by Stuart Updegrave...

There has been a flurry of activity around here the last few days, with progress on a lot of fronts. Phil Lindsay (father of Matt of the BM temple crew) got a water heater installed in the temple on Wednesday, about two hours before he and the kids left. Phil also led the ongoing effort to replace the water-damaged drywall and insulation in the temple. As a result, we've been able to take hot showers (as opposed to using a very playa-style frame-and-tarp shower). Our washer and dryer are still out in the parking lot, though. But hey, at least we *have* them.

There has been a lot of work to repair the damage to the temple's garden (which was recently graced by a turtle that Richard probably rescued from a soup pot).

We had a huge influx of clothing on Wednesday - after being picked through for a few days, the remainder got bagged up and is going to be made into quilts for Pakistani refugees displaced by the recent earthquake near Kashmir.

Richard managed to acquire a forklift for a while from Dave Romero, but Dave reclaimed it a few days ago. Richard, the consummate deal-maker, had already scoped out the other forklifts in the area (they make unloading large shipments of water and other goods so much easier), and wandered down the block to a marine supply shop down the street, owned by a Vietnamese man named Liam (ok, so that's what it sounds like, but probably not how it's spelled). They cut a deal that the temple crew would help Liam re-roof his store in exchange for use of the forklift - so Thomas and I spent a few hours yesterday and this morning working up on the roof, until the heat got too intense.

A lovely side benefit of doing this is that we made friends with Liam and his wife Twin (again, phonetic). She gifted us with about 10 pounds of whole shrimp, which I boiled this evening and served with a big pot of hoppin' john (good southern food - rice, black-eyed peas, bacon, tomatoes, jalapeno peppers). Certainly the best meal I've had since I got here. This morning, Twin told me that she would bring over some fresh egg rolls tomorrow for me to fry up for the crew. After dinner last night, a few of the guys made jokes about getting me a skirt and keeping me in the kitchen - funny thing is, I brought down a few sarongs, and would be just as happy to cook for people as to do roofing, drywall, landscaping, whatever.

Richard has a line on a few items of heavy machinery - an excavator and a loader. We were sitting around last night and he was musing about how to find people who might need lots cleared for trailer placement. Shortly thereafter, a guy pulled up outside and asked if we could spare any ice (the freezer in his FEMA-issued trailer had broken already). Richard gave him a couple bags, and chatted a bit. Turns out he's on the Biloxi City Council, lives a block or two away, and is willing to work with us on identifying local folks who might benefit from having their sites cleared once the equipment arrives.

We've had a big loss of population in the last few days - besides Phil and his kids, three of our other crew also left on Wednesday. Vu, a Vietnamese guy (who works as a policeman in Jackson) left this evening. On Tuesday, however, Thomas (one of the leads on this year's project The Machine) showed up here, after working three weeks with the World Shelters crew. World Shelters is an organization from Arcata, CA, which has been setting up temporary shelters both for agencies and needy families. Many of their volunteers are also burners, most of whom came down from Seattle.

Report From the Field
Biloxi, Mississippi
Sunday, October 16, 2005

In the field with Richard, aka- Big Stick:

This week has been awesome, the weather cooler and no rain. Our distribution center is running well! Stocked with loads of cool stuff from all over the US. We are still seeing 200 people daily through the big red Pacific dome. The kids are great and the families are really starting to show trust and appreciation for us.

We unloaded 600 sacks of rice on Wednesday by hand and, when we found out that 36,000lbs (that's 760, 50lb bags) were arriving on Friday we decided to steal a fork lift, “just for awhile.” Anyway, we as volunteers distributed more rice this week than any other grass roots bunch anywhere in the south. Rice anyone?

Three new Playa Pals that drove across country are really making a huge difference. After a day of travel recovery, all is well, just remember it is a climate of constant change. We are looking forward two new volunteers from the West and North West, the Machine Crew is here and clicking and we are tricking. The big shots are totally impressed with our “people power” attitude, and the professionalism. What did they expect!

We had a grand BBQ last night “Saturday” thanks to the fine folks that gave donations at the decom, that I heard was awesome. It was the first big sit down dinner we had in days. “Thanks to all that kicked in”.

Huge hurdles have been overcome, the temple now has electricity due to all's efforts, no more generators Yea!!!

The insulation and drywall inside the temple is being installed by several groups of volunteers and the spirits are good. This facility is the shining star in a pile of blown out rubble.

Swag (in the form of Team Duke t-shirts from the John Wayne Foundation, via Patricia Aquette--don't ask) bought us a ton of phones and wi-fi, two potential techi type burners who installed the system in our World Shelter playa worthy structure and message zone shined like a star on a dark night. We were able to check our mail and go on line for the 1st time without being rushed. It was glorious!

Some of crew have finished rebuilding a temple in Bayou La Batre (about 30 miles away and hit hard) and will start painting it on Monday.

We continue to struggle a bit dealing with the devastation and trying to find common ground with good people that have lost everything, but we know that the little difference that we make is making a change in the lives of East Biloxi.

Later, Richard

Report From the Field
Biloxi, Mississippi
October 11, 2005

Hey-oh,

Things are still pumping down here in Biloxi. After a few slow days with no new shipments of supplies, the store is stocked once again. The slow days were actually a much needed little break for us. Because word got out that we had limited supplies on site, few people showed up to shop. During this time, we were able to go out and see the neighborhood. Several of us were able to clear out some yards. I helped clear out a man named Rudy's yard. He had an amazing story of being swept away from his trailer when Katrina hit. He ended up in the water with 30 ft waves breaking all around. He washed up 4 miles away from his house. After living on the streets for 5 weeks, a kind person allowed him to set up a tent on their property where their house had been destroyed. He totally broke down on us while he told his tale. I got a little choked up myself. Rudy has nothing left in this world. We have been bringing boxes of goods to him. Truthfully, this has been the saddest story I've heard during my time down here (and I've heard a lot). I wish I could do more.

Yesterday, we received our first shipment of goods in 2 days. The news travelled like wild fire. I woke up this morning @ 7AM to people waiting outside the gate ready to shop. People were also waiting for a shipment of 45000 lbs of rice to be handed out. The group giving out this rice was also handing out $250 gift cards to the Biloxi police dept. I had no idea what was going on when I saw about 30 officers show up. It was a very bizarre scene.

3 new burners have shown up this week. It's really nice to see fresh troops arrive. Most of the reliefspark.org members have left, except for my main man, Juan, so new faces were definitely a welcome sight. We have one more burner arriving late this week. Anyone interested in coming to Biloxi needs to be prepared to bust their ass. Hitting the ground running is a must. There is still a lot of work to be done.

Power was restored to the temple this morning. We plan to start installing the insulation and hanging the dry wall today. We also plan to lay down some sod around the temple grounds later this week.

If you want to contribute to our playa effort here in Biloxi, you can still call our volunteer coordinator, Richard @ 530-401-4007.

Thanks,
Dan

Report From the Field
Biloxi, Mississippi
October 7, 2005

We are still working really hard down here. Tuesday night, we had our biggest group yet stay on the temple grounds. A group of 3 www.ReliefSpark.org members arrived with a huge truckload of supplies. They were 10000 lbs overweight! On their cross-country journey here, they blew out 3 tires because of the heavy load. Also staying with us Tuesday night was a group of 3 independent filmmakers from Berkeley and a group of 5 or 6 random volunteers who helped us unload the truck. Our on site chef, Seth, kicked out another tremendous meal that left all of us rubbing our bellies. Every night, he dishes up a new gourmet meal. Thanks Seth. You rock!

Yesterday, Shawn and I travelled to Crowley, LA to pick up 5000 lbs of rice. I had no idea that it was 160 miles away. Always check a map before agreeing to go somewhere. It took us most of the day to accomplish this. The people in the community are STOKED.

Richard is talking to fellow burners daily who are considering coming here to volunteer. It's great to hear that so many people are willing to sacrifice. He has done a fantastic job of assuming the role of volunteer coordinator. He is really holding this whole thing together.

We are very close to getting the electrical permit from the city of Biloxi. Once we have this we can install the insulation and dry wall in the temple. I can't wait to see the temple with walls.

The weather here has turned much cooler. Last night it drizzled all night long. This morning temps were in the lower 60s. It's not expected to get above 70 today(YEAH). It will remain cool for the next few days.

Spirits are still very high. Our group is working in a lot of different directions with the common goal of helping people who really need it. This is one of the best groups I have ever worked with doing anything. We all feel personally rewarded. I can't tell you how good it feels!

The idea of Kamp Katrina at BM 2006 has been tossed around. Any sponsors or takers?

Report From the Field
Biloxi, Mississippi
from DAN
October 4, 2005

Things are happening down here in sunny southern Mississippi. The Biloxi temple crew is really making a difference in the Vietnamese community. Everyday our free store is serving about 200 families. We have cleaned up the temple grounds and some of the adjacent properties. Because of this we have created one of the cleanest streets in the community. Our crew has been committed to outreach. Some of us have been using a truck generously donated friends of the southern California crew members to deliver goods to people who can't make it to the temple. We have even delivered goods to a temple in a neighboring town that was virtually wiped out.

Our group is made up mainly of 10 burners from all over (with several more arriving in the coming weeks), 7 film industry folks from southern California and Phil Lindsday and 4 of his kids. Our group is getting along fabulously. Spirits are high. Everyone has a real sense of accomplishment. It is a real special feeling that we all have when we sit back after a full 12 hour day of busting our asses and reflect on the good things that we our doing for this community that needs help.

The monks at the temple are really appreciative of our efforts, as is everybody in the community. They thank us from the bottom of their hearts everyday. They fix us meals and invite us to tea many times a day. I was concerned that the food distribution was beginning to be a distraction to the daily business of the temple. After all, we are taking up a large part of the parking lot and hundreds of people arrive each day. When I asked one of the monks about this, he said that if we were not there helping these people, there would be no reason for the monks to be there either. They are truly grateful. I feel warm every time I hear them thank us.

Our operation is totally pro. It is so kick-ass that many of the organizations like FEMA and the Red Cross are starting to base some of their services out of the temple grounds. Everyday, other groups come by to check out what we are doing. As far as the working conditions, it is HOT and SMELLY here. Temperatures hit 90 everyday and the humidity is 100%. The smell of rot is always in the air. We are situated across the street from a building that is filled with rotting meat (yummy). I think I've gotten used to it. I no longer have a gag reflex when I smell it. The nights cool off just enough to fall asleep. If it was 2 degrees warmer, I would probably toss and turn all night long. As bad as it seems, everyone really digging it. The playa really prepared me for these less than ideal conditions.

We now have a washer and dryer on site. This is very good because recycling clothes that you sweat in all day is not the best thing. Our playa style shower was constructed 2 days ago. We no longer have to raid the near by construction site showers late at night. It came in handy yesterday when I had to wash some rotten chicken juice off of me. I was tasked with moving the 250 lbs of salmonella infested chicken that had been living in our refrigerated truck to the trash. One of the boxes busted on me. I was mortified. Anyway, I promptly took a shower and washed my clothes.

Semis are dropping off supplies on a less frequent basis. The store is getting cleaned out daily. When I first got here, it seemed like trucks were unloading things all day long. People still need things though and will need them for a long time. We are expecting 2 big truckloads in the next few days. We need everything, especially diapers and cleaning supplies. Toilet paper and paper towels are big on the list as well as canned meats. If you would like to send anything, the temple is accepting mail now.

The address is:
Temple Van Duc
179 Oak St.
Biloxi, MS 39530

The people here have lost everything. Everyone has a personal tragedy story. They hide their sadness well though. They always smile when you help them out. I'm so proud of what we are doing here. The Burning Man spirit is alive and well here in Biloxi. If you would like to come here and help or donate anything, please contact Rich @ 530-401-4007 to see what our needs are. This is a dynamic environment with things changing hourly.

Report From the Field
Biloxi, Mississippi
from Tom Price, aka Thumper [as dictated to Will Chase, aka Playaquest]
Sept 26, 2005

Flying into Biloxi, Mississippi, I was stunned at the number of swimming pools until I realized that every house didn't have a swimming pool, but a blue tarp for a roof. To give you an idea of the level of destruction, imagine a flat neighborhood near the ocean. Raise the sea level 15' and bring it inland 10 miles. Then add 100+ mph winds for 12 hours.

I have yet to see a single home that's habitable. There are no stores open. All the wrecks of homes have orange spray-painted runes, marking the number of bodies and the date they were searched. Four-story casinos the size of several football fields floated inland bulldozing office complexes before settling sideways in residential neighborhoods. It's been a month since Katrina ... but it looks as though it could have happened days ago. The stench of rotting flesh is everywhere, and a constant reminder of the many bodies of humans and animals left unclaimed.

One of the few bright lights (actually one of the only lights period) are the flood lights illuminating the bright red geodesic dome now serving as a gathering place and 24-hour free supermarket that the Burning Man Temple Crew erected in the parking lot of the Van Duc Buddhist Temple. Half the team of volunteers works from sunrise until long after dark, unloading, sorting and giving away food, medical supplies, clothing, diapers ... everything a person needs to survive. The other half are using their tools and heavy equipment (cranes, bulldozers, etc.) to rebuild the Temple pretty much from the ground up.

The entire 3-acre complex is run completely as a gift economy. Some people bring things, some people take things ... nothing changes hands except the occasional thanks.

Traditional non-profit groups like The Red Cross, Oxfam and World Shelters are now using an adjacent block at a catholic church that was also cleared out by the Temple Crew. To give you an idea of what that job entails, when they first arrived, the parking lot was covered in 3 feet of mud and filled with cars, boats, trucks, and two houses that had ripped off their moorings and drifted down the street. What's hard to comprehend is that this description applies to everything in a 10-mile wide, 100-mile long strip of Mississippi.

One of the few amusing things here is seeing this 3-acre spotless parking lot with pickup trucks adorned with Burning Man Temple Crew logos and a bright red geodesic dome, and someone has attached to the front fence a sign that reads "Reserved for Theme Camps Only".

At night the only sounds are gas generators and cicadas (but we're working on getting some house music). And of course all of this is a backdrop for a constant stream of Vietnamese immigrants who don't speak English, but immediately get their head around the gift economy. Temples are where the Vietnamese are traditionally used to coming to get what they need, so this is quite fitting.

As I speak, there's a crew of Rangers building a shelter for people to sleep in at night.

How You Can Help
People are asking what's needed. The short answer is everything. The needs change from hour to hour, as supply trucks arrive and unload their cargo. But what we need no matter what is fuel, cash, and people who can come and stay for a while to work. If you come, we have everything you need to live. There's food to eat, places to sleep and people who need your help.

People want to see their money being used well ... a bunch of my friends gave me money when they heard I was coming here, and I gave it to the guy who's running the place, who used it immediately to buy gas to keep the generators running, the refrigerators cold, keeping a minimal electrical grid going, fans, power tools ... and to fuel the bulldozer and crane. Essentially everything needed to keep this operation going. Material relief we have ... for the time being, there's no need for food and clothing ... that time will come.

The important thing to remember is, even a month later, there's still a need for basic survival supplies ... those things are still coming, but we are at the receiving end of an avalanche of good will. What's most needed is somebody who can help organize the receiving and distribution of these supplies. It's hard to assess what people's needs are ... they first need to figure out where to go and how to get help. These people are incredibly traumatized, as you can imagine, and every bit helps.

If you'd like to show up in Biloxi and help, please call Tom Price on his cell phone at 801-712-5371 for instructions. The circuits are loaded, and sometimes sketchy, but keep trying. If you'd like to donate cash, you can do so immediately by making a payment to Tom's PayPal account, which is the email address: price_tom (at) hotmail (dot) com. He will ATM the money out and immediately put it towards the continuation of the operation. For any other questions or comments, please email katrina-relief (at) burningman (dot) com.