Laundry again

Woooo, Burning Man, what a party! Glad that’s over and done.

While folks go back to their desk jobs in September, I sit in the laundromat day after day. I’m up to my eighth load of laundry with at least four more to go. As I type, yellow sunflower petals churn in the laundromat’s largest washing machine.

I feel like I foot the proverbial bill after the party for my installations. The Triangles will take three full days to separate from their frames, wash, sew, and repair. The Sunflowers may take even longer to fix. Then there is all the camping equipment: shade fabric, a truck tarp, cot, tent, and sleeping bag. Unfortunately, the Playa is hard enough on projects that these pieces degrade further each year. At some point the lights won’t be fit to show anymore.

I could ask for help, but a lot of these repairs are specialized for the person who built the pieces: me. I guess I just want some appreciation and acknowledgement for the tedious work that goes into preparing these pieces beforehand and the arduous repairs afterwards when everyone else is off to their next adventure. Cleaning, however, can be meditative. I hack away at the mountain of clean-up work so I can start my next work. I’ve got another solid week ahead of repairs. I’m just loathe to bring out the Triangle ever again so some people can go joyriding for their disposable pleasure.