I don't go to the Gerlach Regional anymore. I may again in the future (5 years out?), but don't have much interest in it right now.

I kinda did all the Burningman there is to do... I went to the original burns on the beach in SF and in the desert, then came back to the event after a decade away and camped alone on my motorcycle, camped with a theme camp, ran my own theme camp, worked in a service camp, and then was a Burningman employee with commissary, showers, paycheck, free ticket, and early arrival a full week before the event.

So, after something like 15+ years, I feel like I have participated with the event in all the ways I can, and it was getting "normal" for me. There weren't a lot of new experiences, so I felt like I wasn't being fully present in the event, and being a Participant. I had kinda become a Spectator.

My wife and I now go to Otherworld (the Victoria, BC regional), and then participate with local arts events that we and other Burners have created or curated.

Now, with Larry's passing, I think the event will grow/change/morph. I don't want to see the transition happen. I want to go back in 5 years, when the event has been reimagined in the spirit of the last 30 years, and see what it has become. Be a Newbie again. I'm excited for that opportunity!

But for now, I will stick with the local regionals. And revel in the joy of discovery that new burners experience! Their excitement gives me hope for the world.