Day 1: The Zombies are Coming

Dear Diary,

I know that I haven’t written a diary entry in years now but I figured I’d start it up again today.

Please don’t mind my terrible handwriting – my nerves are frayed and it’s hard to see straight when you’re crying. First, I’d like to give a shout out to my iPod Touch. Without it, I’d be listening to the terrible moans outside and I would have torn all my hair out by now. Second, I would like to thank Spotify for having offline playlists that work with iPod Touches. Without Spotify, I’d be be stuck listening to iTunes music selections from 2000. And third, I’d like to pat myself on the back for purchasing that solar powered charger last Christmas. Fuck yeah for impulse purchases.

It’s 6 pm or at least that’s what my watch says. I wish I could go to sleep but all I can do is rock back and forth until this wave of nausea settles down. Marbles is lucky. He finally exhausted himself and he’s sound asleep. He should have enough cat food for about two weeks but I’m not sure what to do then. The Pet Food store is about a half an hour walk from my house and frankly, I don’t have any handy weapons lying around the house (should have bought that baseball bat when I had the chance). The closest police station is about an hour walk and I have no clue what I’d do once I get there. I feel like the token Asian for a bad horror movie.

Electricity and water are still running. I don’t suspect this will last for long. I need to add a camping burner to my list of things to procure.

Here’s my list so far:

*camping burner
*cat food
*waterproof matches
*baseball bat or other interesting weapon choice (machete? gun? flamethrower?)
*gauze/band aids
*fish hooks
*beef jerky
*ramen
*vegetables and fruit (underrated in a zombified world)
*large water container (preferably a portable basin)
*duct tape
*batteries
*first aid kit
*toothpaste
*trash bags
*paperback books (they’re lighter than hardcover books)

I have absolutely no clue as to how I plan on getting to the store or back in one piece. Once again, I wish my boyfriend and I had saved enough money and moved into an apartment with a bathtub. As a kid that has lived through annual hurricane seasons, bathtubs are handy when you want to consolidate water. Since I’ll have to make do, I have filled up every bucket, pot, bottle and solid container in the house with water. I’ll probably be good for a couple of days. As for food, I have enough pasta and udon to feed a car full of clowns for a month. I’ll need to cook all of the meat in the fridge before the electricity powers off.

Yes, I know I’m blabbing. I’m scared shitless. My boyfriend is still out there and I have no clue if I’ll ever see him again. He forgot to charge his phone last night and his phone died before the shit storm occurred. I wish he was here. He’d know what to do. He always knows what to do. I fucking miss him and I’m going to start crying again. At this rate, I’ll die of dehydration rather than from a zombie bite. Wouldn’t that be ironic. I wish I could tell him that I love him. Fuck, I’m crying.

Let’s talk about what happened. Movies and pop culture refer to them as zombies or ‘the walking dead’. They always tell you the origins of the zombies, how it occurred, what happens when zombies are loose and basically, pokes fun at the remaining survivors. Unfortunately, most zombie movies/books/comics don’t have a nice fairy tale ending.

We’ll go back to earlier in the day. One second, I was making breakfast, the next, a blood curling scream. I rushed over to the window and saw a bloody lifeless body on the road several blocks away. People had rushed out of their cars and were staring at the pool of blood that was expanding at an alarming rate. Someone started frantically yelling for an ambulance even though we all somehow knew that the person was probably dying. People starting sobbing as others finally snapped to and were calling for help. At that point, I suddenly smelled smoke in the house as I rushed to turn the stove off. Damn it. I burnt my eggs. I rushed back to the window right when the screaming started again. Everyone was running away like ants pouring out of an anthill. I didn’t understand what was happening at first until I realized that there were new bodies on the ground and were coming back to life. No one loses that much blood and lives to tell the tale. Fuck me. I just about crapped my pants.

I locked all the doors, made sure all the windows were closed and have been waiting ever since. I can hear my upstairs neighbors whimpering whenever my music gets too quiet. If I didn’t think I’d attract zombies, I’d tell them to pipe down. We’re all doomed.

Well, diary, today was damn shitty. I’m going to find my boyfriend if it’s the last thing I do and then we’ll get the items on my list before things get even worse. If God wants to show up, I wouldn’t object to a gun falling out of the sky. Or two.

Good night,

Samantha

Why You Should Go to Burning Man

Sunday night, after attending the Sunset Lake Dance party , my friend and I went to a burger place to refuel our energy tanks. We overheard a conversation where this older guy was saying that burning man was overrated. He had gone to burning man twenty years ago and derived that burning man was just a bunch of topless women running around and that instead of paying so much money, he could just go down the block to see the same thing. I tried to explain to him that that wasn’t the purpose of burning man but he snickered. I got pissed off and made sure we promptly left.

I have not yet gone to burning man but I have attended just about all the burning man events held in San Francisco to make up for not attending the burn last year. I am sure burning man is ten million times more awesome than I could possibly ever imagine but even I know that you do not attend burning man just because there might be naked people running around.

First of all, Burning Man is not costly. You purchase your ticket which is a maximum value of about $300 and whatever travel tickets, gear, shelter, food and drinks you will need while you are out there. You can always figure out ways to save money like grabbing a ride from a friend. But the entire cost of the trip comes out to about $1000 and can be even less if you already have some/all of the gear or if you are staying with a camp. Here is an example of a burning man preparation list . (As you can tell, you needn’t bring everything on there like tiki torch lights.)

Burning man takes you away from everyday life and puts you in a harsh environment of extreme hot and freezing temperatures while being surrounded by other fellow campers with an added bonus of amazing art installations and beautiful music . Also, don’t forget those pesky dust storms.

Burning man uses art as a universal language where people express themselves through dance, music, art, crafts, etc. Because of this, there is a constant flow of awesomeness that encompasses these campgrounds. Sure, booze is plentiful and people may be in some sort of intoxicated state but the event is a mind blowing trip even if you are completely sober. You get lost in all the fun activities and art pieces surrounding you.

Burning man itself is a large community. You can think of it as a home away from home. People bond together and explore things they had never before imagined. The best part is that people are unusually understanding and take you in with open arms. As a community, burners enjoy giving away gifts and sharing unconditional love and only ask for you to share the same with others.

Burning man is a culture in itself. Saying that you discourage people from going to burning man because you can find topless women at your local bar is pretty ignorant. I hang out with my burning man friends so I can get away from close minded people like you. I was once pretty close minded myself but I am glad that I am not anymore. I am fond of the community because they accept me as I am. If you could live in a world where everything is fun and everyone is happy and unconditionally accepting, wouldn’t you want to be a part of it to? I can’t wait until Burning Man 2009.

If you are interested in attending burning man, here is the: first timers guide, an explanation on theme camps, on art installations and of course,
where to get burning man tickets.

Syd Gris is my new homeboy

My friend Larry (twitter.com/quidquid) referred me to http://www.opelproductions.com/sydscorner.php. I am loving it. I’m having an awesome time listening to this music and rocking out to it. I just need to upload these tracks to my ipod shuffle and I will be all set.

Getting pumped for Burning Man 2009.

Bring it.