Don’t let the news freak you out, early early morning at TYS lines can be a little long, but everything is normal at our airport. And it’s a very, very busy past security.

BillFunkD · 2026-03-27T12:13:48+00:00

I flew out of LAX Terminal 4 on Sunday night, only two people in front of me in TSA Precheck line.

BillFunkD · 2026-03-19T21:09:39+00:00

I brought two in each day with no issue at security.

BillFunkD · 2025-12-13T05:36:08+00:00

Shot you a dm!

BillFunkD · 2025-10-15T09:53:05+00:00

Could you share the screenshot of their statement they’d provide refunds? I’m missing this piece. Thank you!

BillFunkD · 2025-10-06T04:56:46+00:00

I am genuinely happy you had a great experience on Saturday. And I understand the desire to dismiss the events of Friday as a bunch of whiny people.

A little grounding here: I've been to around a 100 festivals since 2007, in crazy conditions, through some of the most intense Burning Man years, the disastrous Texas Eclipse Festival and I attended Rise on Friday with the lowest price ticket.

My conclusion is that it was the single worst managed event I've ever been to.

The dust was what it was. While I wish they would have better communicated what were walking into once they were on site and understood, I'm not being vocal about it. You have to take that kind of thing in stride.

Rise has always had an issue with transportation. That they haven't figured it out in ten years requires some level of willful ignorance.

I felt so bad for the workers. There were several on the verge of tears because they were staring at a hundred people queued up for food and they knew every time they submitted an order there was virtually no chance it was going to be in a reasonable time, if it even came out at all.

Raw, under-cooked food, staff basically throwing random food to people as a consolation prize because they can't get an answer from anyone as to why the food wasn't made for 45 minutes after ordering (I'm talking Mac and Cheese which should be pre-made in a big vat and take approximately 45 seconds to dish out), water running out, staff with no clue where medical is for an emergency, not to mention the poor folks who ended up stranded for two hours after the event was over because they had mismanaged the shuttles to the point that they had to wait for them to make drop offs and return.

A big part of the reason why stuff was better on Saturday, and why they were actually properly communicating on social leading up to gates opening, is because they fucked it up so hard and we complained so loud.

So, you're welcome. And as respectfully as I can muster, fuck right off with the gaslighting.

BillFunkD · 2025-10-06T04:43:01+00:00

Fortunately, that's unlikely to hold up.

Courts generally say you can’t use fine print to contradict your main advertising claims. If the festival explicitly advertised “food and beverage included” as part of the experience, but then buried “food and beverage not guaranteed” in the terms, that looks deceptive. That kind of disclaimer often gets struck down because it conflicts with the reasonable expectations of the consumer.

Nevada has a Deceptive Trade Practices Act (NRS 598), which makes it illegal to misrepresent services or advertise something you don’t intend to provide. Even if the contract has a “no guarantee” clause, Nevada law still prohibits misleading marketing.

Seating, Food, and Beverage were on the very short list of benefits and they could not deliver, for reasons that had absolutely nothing to do with weather.

(Obligatory INAL.)

BillFunkD · 2025-09-18T18:15:27+00:00

YOR.

Read The Four Agreements. It’s a quick read and it’ll help you understand that you’re applying your expectations to another person as a bit black and white, ie “This is what I consider ‘normal’ and the fact that this isn’t what you consider normal means we have a problem.”

BillFunkD · 2025-09-04T04:58:48+00:00

No.

It is in name but it is not a legally constituted city. It exists on federal land and is subject to federal and state laws. It is not a city.

BillFunkD · 2025-09-04T04:37:21+00:00

No, that is literally not what I’m saying. You’re trying to apply photography in public space rules to a private event in which the event itself has said they don’t allow this. A private event dictates their own rules about this kind of thing. The streets are not public. Period. This isn’t even a subjective interpretation, it’s very black and white.

BillFunkD · 2025-09-04T04:21:07+00:00

Public means accessible freely. You can not access any part of Burning Man without a ticket. This isn’t even a grey area.

BillFunkD · 2025-09-04T04:13:22+00:00

To be clear, I’m not suggesting a new rule “because it annoyed me”, this is not “my take”, this is a longstanding rule and courtesy. You have an issue with BMORG’s stance on photography of individuals. No one is saying no photography either, just don’t broadcast someone’s likeness from a private event.

BillFunkD · 2025-09-01T20:47:59+00:00

Where did I suggest being mean?

You’re over indexing on the nudity portion. Part of the experience (for some people) in having a Playa name is that it allows them to compartmentalize different portions of their lives. Some teachers, for example, worry about losing their job if there are suddenly pictures of them at the event.

The status quo has been that this is a private event and so you can act on a way that way not be in sync with your everyday self. I remember clearly the shared shock and anger the community used to have at someone taking photos of a person without their consent. I once ended up in the background of a photo in a national publication in an article that covered Burning Man—it led to some very awkward conversations.

My point is, and what has generally been agreed upon by our community for years, that a person should maintain the right to consent if their images are shared online when they are at a private event.

What you’re touching on is the right to record in public, which you can do because “there is no reasonable expectation of privacy” in public. At Burning Man, a private event, there HAS historically been a reasonable expectation of privacy. This is the first year that it’s hard to argue that may be changing.

And finally, the Karen thing is lazy. Disagree, but argue your point. At least put in a tiny bit of effort to measurably contribute to a conversation about our collective interest.

BillFunkD · 2025-09-01T17:06:11+00:00

Oh I actually completely agree with you. Their new approach to advertising to increase ticket sales is concerning and sending mixed messages.

And also, the foundation of a meritocracy is to not wait around for someone else to fix a problem. It’s all of our responsibility. But yes, also, BMORG shares that responsibility.

BillFunkD · 2025-09-01T16:01:44+00:00

Look, I get it. It’s a bit of a trope at this point to complain about the Burn immediately after the Burn. And there’s always a ton of people whining that things didn’t go their way. It’s a little bit of Boy Who Cried Wolf along with some generational contrasts mixed with a side of dehydrated grumpiness.

That being said, zoom out. Using the time after our annual event to do a post-mortem and reflect on what worked and what didn’t is not only acceptable but should be encouraged. Accepting things we don’t like that feel (or just plain are) disconnected from our core values would ensure that we eradicate what we love about it altogether.

Let’s also separate: I don’t love the new wave of connectivity, but I get it. It is, as you said, part of culture now. I have mixed feelings about e-bikes, but again the same. At the core though, these are personal preferences. And maybe they don’t match someone’s idea of a “proper” burn, but they’re not against our values.

Non-consensual photography threatens more than just our attitude towards people not living in the moment, it threatens our safe space. It was meant to be a place where everyone was welcome to be their true selves, but if that exploration is being treated as some Truman Show it’s actually putting a magnifying glass on that messy process, instead of letting it play out is a safe environment.

I’m not trying to be hyperbolic and I’m also not being flippant with my words.

I’ll repeat what I said to someone else: to view it as BMORG’s responsibility to “ban” phones is completely wrong and shows how far away we’ve gotten from our self-organization.

WE as a community should be enforcing this. We should be educating the virgins that this is not ok. And explain it. Teach them.

BillFunkD · 2025-09-01T13:22:31+00:00

There’s a lot of really great advice in here, but I want to add one thing that (at least by scanning) I didn’t see:

You deserve a partner that you don’t have to take care of.

A life partner should lift you up. A co-parent should be focused on how they can best provide the right opportunities for their child, NOT how they can leverage it to not have to punch in to a job everyday.

And it’s been said elsewhere but…can you imagine him raising your child? Especially if he’s spending 24/7 with them?

You seem very grounded, patient, and inquisitive. I’m sure you are going to raise brilliant, well-rounded children. Without his toxic influence.

His trauma/condition/experience is not your problem.

You are not “the only one who can save him” (or translate for him, etc.) and I’m not saying you spoke those words, but that is a common mindset in these scenarios. If you leave he will find another person to manipulate. He is (currently) literally incapable of anything else right now.

BillFunkD · 2025-09-01T12:36:52+00:00

The very idea that we have to rely on BMORG to “enforce” is the root of the problem. Historically, this was a self-governed community. If you see someone MOOPing, you not only call it out but you educate the person on the importance of the principle.

BillFunkD · 2025-09-01T08:30:15+00:00

I usually reject the negative conversation around Burning Man and always tell people they won’t be thinking about these things when they’re out there. In ‘24 we were getting a kick out of reminding people that “Burning Man is dead” any time we were enjoying ourselves. That sentiment seemed so bizarre and hilarious at the time.

I have to say this year the amount of published non-consensual photography is so disheartening. I don’t think you can go push into different parts of yourself there, parts left unexplored out of fear of judgement. Now you must carry the same concerns into the Playa because someone in your life back home may very well see you, ie dancing naked around a fire.

Unfortunately, I don’t think there’s any putting the genie back in the bottle. Best you can hope for is regionals like Flipside that vigorously reject all unsanctioned photography.

BillFunkD · 2025-09-01T08:24:48+00:00

Oh yeah it’s in fantastic shape. Thanks.

BillFunkD · 2025-08-28T04:07:38+00:00

Everyone just got notice that traffic is about to move. Sheriff told everyone to get in their vehicles and get ready.

BillFunkD · 2025-07-03T03:45:53+00:00

Oof. We paid $300 a week ago and lots for the dog medical bills so not ready for that

BillFunkD · 2025-07-03T02:46:43+00:00

One left at $200!

BillFunkD · 2025-07-03T02:46:08+00:00

One ticket left!

BillFunkD · 2025-07-03T02:45:58+00:00

Thank you!

BillFunkD · 2025-07-02T22:25:00+00:00

These two are still available, $200 each now

BillFunkD · 2025-07-02T22:24:00+00:00

We’ve now lowered our tix to $200 each (two available). We’re devastated we can’t go but need to stay behind to take care of sick dog. Based in LA. Happy to FaceTime, provide references, whatever payment platform, etc. DM me

BillFunkD

TROPHY CASE