Survival

From BluWiki

http://www.burningman.com/preparation/
http://www.weschan.com/burningman.html (more links at the bottom)



Excellent resource info for Playa Survival - keep pressing the forward button at the bottom of the page

http://www.ae-zone.org/Tips/survivalpack.html



ORGANIZING A COMMUNAL KITCHEN

Are you planning to go to Burning Man with a group? Even a small one? edensomberg (at) yahoo (dot) com, a Burning Man veteran, has created some guidelines to help groups build a communal kitchen and plan group meals. Also included are meal suggestions and shopping lists for foods and supplies. May you be nourished!

   * Group Planning
         o Costs 
   * Health Regulations
   * Water
   * Kitchen Set-up
   * Building a Pantry
         o Storage
         o Sanitation
         o Live foods 
   * Meals/Recipes
         o Considerations for large groups
         o Breakfast
         o Dinner and recipes
         o Snacks 
   * Shopping lists
         o Basic items
         o Fruits and veggies
         o Condiments
         o Supplies 

Group Planning

At your first planning meeting, your group will need to make some basic decisions about eating. If you've been to Burning Man before, you'll know that most people feel satisfied eating much less than they normally would and tend to consume a lot more water. My group committed to serving two meals a day, and snacks at teatime and in the evening. We laminated a week-long calendar and penciled in lines for "chef" and "helpers" and "clean up," allowing people to sign up for shifts. We kept the calendar on a clipboard with the suggested meals and recipes.

Following are some good questions to ask when planning group meals:

   * Are we all comfortable eating the same foods?
   * Is there anyone that has special dietary needs?
   * Can we agree on how we're going to share the shopping, costs, transportation, set-up, cooking, clean up, and trash?
   * Can we bring enough water for cooking, cleaning, and drinking?

Costs

An easy way to calculate how much each person should pay is to charge each person $10 for food per day. This should also cover water and supplies.

Health Regulations

This will not apply to most of you, but it's still good to know the rules. No one wants to see any communal kitchen get shut down or have problems. The Burning Man policy on playa kitchens is as follows: "There are no health regulations that will apply to a 'communal kitchen' as long as you are not feeding people other than those that are a part of this group. Giving food away, or trading for food is the same as a restaurant in the eyes of the health department, and permits and cooking standards will be enforced. Signs for the kitchen are understood to be an indicator of something larger than a kitchen for a pre-defined group of people. Exchanging money on the playa for use of the kitchen also causes suspicion. Make all financial arrangements before you arrive, and serve only those who are part of your camp, or close friends or family of the camp."

If you are bringing large amounts of propane, you must educate yourself about and comply with appropriate practices for storing and handling these materials. Please review our fuel and hazardous materials storage fire safety agreement here: http://www.burningman.com/installations/fuel_storage.html

Water

The following water calculation worked best for my camp: one, 2.5-gallon container of water per person per day, used for cooking, cleaning, and washing

If you've got a small enough group, have each person bring the water they require, and ask that everyone donate one gallon to the kitchen for each day they will be there.

If you have a large group, I recommend arranging to pick up water from one of the filtered water companies in Reno (you'll have to leave a small deposit on the bottles). Always err on bringing more water than you think you'll need, and recycle as much water as possible.

Kitchen Set-Up

Even for a small group of people, having a well set up kitchen can not only make for a pleasurable place to cook and eat, but also serve as a communal gathering place.

I would recommend that each person in camp bring their own silverware and dishes, which can be labeled with a sharpie or masking tape. Plastic tablecloths are excellent if you've got a way to secure them to the table (duct tape works in a pinch here). If you have a small group, bring chairs to have a family-style dinner, or bring a bunch of blankets and pillows.

As for building the kitchen structure, my group brought a "carport" that you can buy at Costco. This is 8 poles with a triangular, sloping top that has a fitted tarp on it. Make sure that whatever structure you use has poles with decent heft, as thinner aluminum poles may bend or break. We tied down all of the corners to rebar for extra support.

Our "walls" were constructed out of old curtains and hooks, which attached to the horizontal poles and were affixed to the vertical poles as well. Two of the side spaces were left open for ventilation. For wind and dust protection, you should have the three sides around your stoves covered, but make sure they're tied down and not a fire hazard. Have a fire extinguisher close by just in case.

If you have more than ten people, you'll need at least one two-burner stove (my group was lucky enough to have two commercial propane dual-burners, which were enough for about 100 people). Depending on your use, it will probably be cost-effective to bring one or two 5-gallon propane tanks. Keep these in the shade and a decent distance away from the flame. If you're using Coleman-type stoves along with a larger tank, you'll need to buy an adaptor and a hose, available at most large camping stores.

In addition to a "prep" table, around which you may want to build a pantry, consider bringing at least two other folding tables to use as serving and washing stations.

Building a Pantry

The best way to build a pantry is around a large folding table. On either side of it, stack up 5-6 milk crates (with the open space facing you, like you would in your closet). You want your top milk crate to be your height or a little taller. Secure the crates to each other with cable ties (two ties on each side, all the way up). You'll need a 2 x 4 or a similar piece of wood that's 1.5' longer than your table and has a hole on each end (or a nail on the underside of each side of the board that fits securely in the holes of the crates). This goes on top of the crates and gets secured by the method of your choice or with more cable ties. Then secure the middle crates to the table, and you're all set up. Buy a bunch of screw-in hooks and attach them to the underside of the board. This is where you can hang your cookware and utensils.

I used this table for the cutting boards and the knife block. It's most useful arranged at a right angle to your cooking stove(s). My group used one side of the milk crates to hang a bulletin board (with yet more cable ties). This was a good place for the kitchen clipboard.

Storage We stored our large bags of beans, lentils, and rice on a pallet with a tarp cover. Large baskets (available in thrift stores) work great for smaller bags of food, spices, and supplies. Store the baskets and pallets under your tables.

You actually don't need refrigeration or ice for any of the foods I've listed. We kept most of our fruits and veggies covered in our Ryder truck, and by the end of one week, we had some veggies that had gotten a little dried out (which we refreshed by soaking in water), but nothing had spoiled. Vegetables can be stored in burlap bags on pallets or stacked in vegetable flats, which you can get from grocery stores. These have good ventilation. What might work well is to keep damp burlap bags over all the veggies. See the Fruits and Veggies shopping list for produce that stores well.

Sanitation Especially after a few days, sanitation can become an issue. While you're getting ready to serve the next meal, set up a few dish racks next to the "sink," which for us was a 5-gallon sparketts bottle on a tabletop dispenser over a large, plastic bin. You can add grapefruit seed extract (it's germ-killing and serves as a bleach substitute), and sunlight should take care of the rest.

Live foods You can easily add sprouts to your Burning Man diet. All you need is a mix of seeds and/or nuts. If you're mixing, you need to know the approximate sprouting times for each (alfalfa, lentils, black beans, garbanzos, sunflower seeds, etc.), and a few mason jars with the metal list replaced with a piece of screen and then screwed on with the top. In most cases, the seeds should be soaked overnight and then strained and rinsed or misted a few times a day. Keep the jars tilted so they can drain. You can recycle the rinse water to wash dishes.

Meals & Recipes

Considerations for large groups It is especially important when cooking group-size pots of rice to note that you'll use proportionally much less water. Try to calculate portions of pasta, beans, rice, and granola ahead of time so you'll have a fairly correct assessment of how much food to bring. Even with making calculations based on per-person consumption, we tended to cook more than we needed, particularly with bean and lentil dishes. When you're cooking with dried beans, make sure to give them adequate soaking time, which will lessen the cooking time. If you forget to soak, add more water than you think you'll need (which you can strain later), and keep that pot on a low simmer for several hours that day.

Breakfast Serve with sliced bananas, oranges, grapefruit, apples, and tea or Chai

   * Granola and soy milk
   * Oatmeal with almonds, raisins, and bananas
   * Pancakes (if you're strictly vegan, pancake mixes without egg are hard to find, but you can make your own mix). Cook sliced bananas for a few minutes before you top your pancakes with them.
   * Make fruit compote out of apples, pears, and a little citrus. A banana or two can be added. This is delicious over cereal or by itself.

Dinner and recipes When making rice dishes for dinner, prepare extra plain rice (store overnight in a covered pot), and in the morning add soy milk (or water), honey or maple syrup, raisins, apples, bananas, and cook it up for breakfast!

The following are recipes that worked well for my group:

   *

     Dahl and rice with apple chutney:
     Cook the lentils (they can be soaked to lessen cooking time) until they are ¾ done, then add: salt, fresh ginger, turmeric, cardamom, cayenne, ghee, cumin, coriander, and some very thin lemon slices (with peel). It's best to dry roast the spices in a cast iron pot before adding them to the dahl.

     For apple chutney, cook several chopped apples with some orange and/or lemon juice. Add cinnamon and a dash of cardamom and nutmeg, and cook it down until it's the consistency of apple sauce. Add a can of the chutney of your choice, then garnish with a few thinly sliced orange halves and serve with the Dahl.

   * A nice rice dish to serve with Dahl: Fry rice in ghee on low heat until it starts to color. Add cinnamon and cardamom and fry for 1-2 minutes. Add almonds, raisins, and water, bring to a boil, then simmer until rice is cooked. A variation can be made with coconut milk and curry paste.

   * Vegetables can be added to any meal:
         o Steam any type of vegetable and add to your pasta. Top it with the tahini sauce (see below), or pasta sauce. A variation would be to sauté the vegetables with spices and/or curry for an Indian meal.
         o Make curried squash, bell peppers, and carrots with a peanut sauce, sesame oil, coconut milk or tahini sauce.
         o Steamed (or raw) marinated veggies:
           Marinate beets and carrots, or carrots and cucumbers in a combination of rice and balsamic vinegars, a dash of lemon, garlic, and sesame oil. Add a few very thinly sliced red onions to the raw cucumbers and carrots. This is especially delicious served with falafel in a pita with tahini dressing.
   * Indian potatoes and cabbage:
     Slice and chop potatoes and boil until they're soft. In the meantime, sauté the following in olive oil or ghee: Crushed, dried red chilies, ginger, whole mustard seed, cumin, bay leaves, coriander, turmeric, and salt. Add sliced cabbage and potatoes. Drizzle on some lemon juice, cover, and simmer for about 15 minutes.

   * Pasta and sauce:
     It's best to buy your pasta in bulk and your sauce in jars. Cooking them should be self-explanatory.

   * Mac and "cheese":
     You can make a "cheese" out of nutritional yeast and spices.

   * Vegetarian sushi:
     Steamed carrots, squash, or raw carrots, bell peppers, cucumbers, avocados. You can add sunflower seeds and/or sprouts.

   * Vegetable soup:
     Boil sliced potatoes while you sauté onions in olive oil, or ghee. Boil a pot of water and add bouillon for soup base. Drain potatoes and add to soup base along with onions and other veggies. Leftover plain pasta can be added, as well as beans.

   * Burritos:
     Cook black beans and rice, add steamed or raw veggies to tortillas, along with salsa, sprouts, etc. Fried bananas would make a delicious dessert.

   * Falafel:
     Fried foods can be very satisfying on the playa. Buy a boxed or bulk falafel mix, add water and fry, and serve in pitas with tahini and a mix of small, cubed, raw veggies (cucumbers, red onions, carrots, and some red onions).

   * Tahini:
     Mix tahini with enough lemon juice that it starts to thin out. Do this in a glass jar with a screw-on lid and just shake it. Add soy, tamari, or Braggs. I don't use proportions, but there's probably about a third more lemon juice than soy, and probably twice as much tahini as lemon. This ranks as one of my favorite hippie foods ever. Serve it on salads, steamed veggies, and on falafel. After a day, it will thicken up and can be spread on bread as a mayo substitute, or thinned again with a little water.

Snacks

   * Chips and salsa
   * Sliced fruit
   * Sliced veggies
   * Hummus
   * Peanut butter and graham crackers
   * Date rolls
   * Chocolate
   * Popcorn (season with nutritional yeast and herbs)

Shopping lists

The following lists are just to get you started. Shop in bulk -- it's cheaper, and you'll have less packaging to deal with.

Basic items

   * Dried black beans (Don't get canned beans. You'll have more trash to deal with.)
   * Dried lentils
   * Soy milk
   * Granola
   * Pasta
   * Pasta sauce
   * Chips (Go to Costco for chips and salsa.)
   * Salsa
   * Date rolls (They store well without refrigeration.)
   * Dried fruit
   * Nuts
   * Rice- sunflower seeds can be toasted in a pan and are yummy served on almost anything
   * Tortillas
   * Nutritional yeast
   * Emergen-c (available at health food stores)
   * Chai
   * Cooking oils
   * Chocolate
   * Nori (for sushi)
   * Popcorn
   * Tahini
   * Falafel mix
   * Spices: cinnamon, nutmeg, fennel, curry power (or store-bought paste), saffron, turmeric, salt, pepper, mustard seed, ginger, cardamom, cayenne, coriander, bay leaves, dried red Chilies/peppers
   * A few jars of Indian chutneys
   * Pancake mix (I recommend making pancakes over French toast; bread's no fun to store, or you can make a solar oven and bake your own.)
   * Garlic
   * Nuts and seeds for sprouting
   * Wine
   * Peanut butter
   * Vegetarian bouillon. Bring a lot; this can be used in any rice or soup dish for extra flavor.
   * Pita bread

Fruits and veggies Get lots of unripe fruits and veggies, like avocados and pineapple, so you'll have some for later in the week. See the Storage section for tips on how best to store your produce.

   * Potatoes*
   * Cucumbers
   * Bell peppers
   * Carrots*
   * Onions (yellow, white, or red)*
   * Squash* (get several different varieties)
   * Cabbage*
   * Coconuts (or coconut milk)*
   * Bananas (unripe)
   * Watermelons (unripe)*
   * Oranges, grapefruit, lemons, and limes*
   * Melons*
   * Apples*
   * Pineapple
   * Garlic*

• Starred items will last particularly well.

Condiments To save on money and time, I recommend raiding your cabinets and those of your friends for the following:

   * Soy sauce
   * Braggs
   * Balsamic vinegar
   * Rice vinegar
   * Salt
   * Pepper
   * Sesame seeds
   * Lemons
   * Nutritional yeast
   * Cooking oils
   * Sesame oil
   * Honey
   * Maple syrup
   * Molasses
   * Ghee (This is butter without milk fat. It can be stored indefinitely without refrigeration. Available at most health food or Indian specialty stores.)

Supplies Hit up the local thrift stores for some of the following:

   * Dish racks
   * Water dispenser (like a tabletop base with a spigot that a 5 gallon jug can be inserted into)
   * Large plastic bin ("the sink")
   * Biodegradable dish soap
   * Sharpies
   * Large baskets
   * Sponges and scrubbies (tie with bungee to "sink")
   * A few 5-gallon buckets with lids (for storage, garbage, compost, etc.)
   * Ziplocs, a bunch of plastic bags, and some aluminum foil
   * Large cooking pots (at least two)
   * Large cast iron pan
   * A few saucepans and a large griddle (a large baking sheet can be substituted)
   * Long-handled cooking spoons and slotted spoons
   * A few spatulas
   * Serving bowls, trays, and dishes
   * Sharp cooking knives
   * A knife block
   * Several large, wooden cutting boards
   * Toothpicks
   * Tupperware
   * Cloth napkins
   * Large mixing/prep bowls
   * Large strainer
   * Measuring cups
   * Extra cups and bowls
   * A veggie steamer (baskets, metal etc)
   * Cable ties
   * Duct tape
   * Masking tape
   * Plenty of milk crates
   * Folding tables
   * Comfy chairs
   * Pallets for storage
   * A bulletin board
   * Thumbtacks
   * Notepad and pens
   * BBQ lighter (Tie to or create a holster for it next to stove.)
   * Fire extinguisher
   * Trashcans with tight lids
   * Heavy-duty trash bags
   * Hammer
   * Sledgehammer
   * Nails
   * Screws
   * Screwdriver
   * Matches
   * Tarps
   * Bungee cords
   * Rope (Buy a whole spool. If you don't need all of it for the kitchen, I can guarantee someone will need it to tie down his or her tent.)
   * Pieces of carpet/rugs

Shelter Systems' Suggested Life Support Ideas We suggest these items to help with what you might need on your trip to Burning Man. You can use this list to put together your own kit.

Support Kit Includes: 14 - 18" Stakes incase the ground is loose Strong Bungee Cords if you decide to set guy lines. Large Plastic Tub: to seal away cloths and other items away from the dust. Smaller size plastic tub (for gear, etc) Dust Masks: a must if you want to breath in a dust storm, you could wrap your head in a scarf Goggles: a must if you want to see in a dust storm Duct Tape: always handy (see heavy duty UV Duct Tape above) Baby Wipes: to get dust off your hands, face etc with out taking a bath Solar Shower: Small Sledge Hammer: use for driving your shelters' stakes when setting up your dome Rubber Gloves: if you use your hands the skin of your hands need protection against the caustic dust Battery Powered Light: on for camp, one for bike (a must to protect you from collision Extra Batteries Plastic Bags: to keep things clean; dust will be every where String, potential for lots of wind Extra Grip Clips: handy for any thing dealing with tarps wind etc glow sticks: extra bike and walking at night; with out which others on their bikes can run into you shade cloth: keep your dome cool; make a shaded porch area from your dome to your car's roof rack large heavy duty trash bags: to keep anything clean from dust chapstick tarps a small first aid kit, including: bandaids (multiple size) antibiotic ointment asprin or ibuprofen tums ace bandage any required prescriptions ice chest small camp cooking stove soap can opener sunscreen tooth brush

food suggestions: water, you can buy ice there other drinks (soda or juice) canned food is great (can leave on hood of car during the day and by sundown it is piping hot and ready to eat, but make sure to bring can opener) gatorade makes a powder to add to water--great when you really need to re-hydrate fast string cheese chips and other salty snacks oranges (keep well and full of water) single serving soy/rice milk cartons couscous (cooks instantly- good with canned beans or pasta sauce) beef jerky dried nuts/fruit chocolate (keep in cooler) salt,pepper,spices to add to your food

I bet you keep your eyes closed when spraying that !!!

I thought you were just joking....alcohol dries the skin out even further that it already is, the only baby wipes we use are alcohol-free, with aloe and possibly lanolin in them.

well, yeah, I do close my eyes when I spray my face.........I don't suffer from dry skin, so, it seems not to affect me so much. I can see how in might bother some, though. but, watered down, I'd not think it'd be so bad..........

really is quite cooling, though, as a spritz. I offered it to lots of folks last year, they all commented how cooling it was, compared to regular water........alcohol evaporates faster at the same temp, so, removes heat faster as well. at least, that's my theory.

I also carry a bag of assorted essential oils, in case anyone is in need.


Remember everything you bring to the playa will get covered in dust no matter what you do. Whatever you bring may get trashed or lost, so don't bring stuff you're too attached to. And washing all of the playa dust out of your stuff is nearly impossible.

Transportation, Shelter & Sleep

Sleeping Bag (get a cheap bag; Costco or WalMart sells cheap ones for $10)

Pillow

Air Mattress & Pump

Place to sleep in: Tent, RV, Cargo Van, or SUV

Eye mask

Earplugs (everyone around you will be partying and w/out this you won't get any sleep!)

Heavy-duty aluminum foil (if you plan to sleep in your vehicle, you cover your windows to keep the light out)

Food, Water, & Personal Items

Water (2 Gal/Day per person in addition to what your camp will provide) & containers to hold them

Food (non perishable/canned tems are key; stuff you can boil in a pot or heat w/ hot water works well)

           -Mac & Cheese (makes a great casserole if you mix in tuna or salmon)

           -Cheese, Crackers & salami

           -Cup-O-Noodles

           -Beef Stew

           -Red Bull and other drink mixers

Goggles (you will need this when the dust storm mits)

Face Mask or bandanna (again, helpful during duststorms)

Water Bottle

Camelback or other water-holding backpack

Suncreen (SPF 30 or higher)

Plates, bowls, cups, forks, spoons – things you need to eat with

Plastic zip-lock bags to store all this stuff to keep some of the dust out

Trash Bags (we need to pack all the trash out)

Plastic Drink Cup (you bring this with you on the playa at night to parties for alcohol) that you can attach to your costume

A couple of rolls of toilet paper (there are porta-potties but they run out of TP frequently)

Your own stash of alcohol – for the pre-parties and for new friends

Gifts for your new friends – BM is a barter economy; those asian lycee jello things are really popular at night on the playa

Chapstick

A couple of towels

Handy wipes

Moisturizing lotion

Vaseline

Getting Around on the Playa

Old, trashy bike (you'll be unhappy without one)

Extra tire tubes and mini bike pump

Headlamp, EL Wire, LEDs, or whatever else you want to light up your bike (you don't want people running into you at night)

Clothing & Costumes

Sunglasses (bring 2 pairs, one will break or get lost)

Costumes (jumpsuits or flightsuits are key; they have lots of pockets to hold stuff

Clothing you need to wear on the playa: shorts, shirts, pants, a couple of sweatshirts, etc.

Wide brimmed hat and baseball cap

Lots of clothing made of fake fur

Light-up stuff and blinky shit (EL Wire, glow-sticks, etc.)

Shoes (trail running shoes work well)

Socks (bring several pairs

Flip-flops

Other Things to Bring

Camera (disposables work best unless you have a trashy camera you don't mind breaking)

Flashlight & extra batteries