EDC 2014 - Day 3 - Sunday

EDC 2014 - Day 3 - Sunday

After some difficulty going under, I got another glorious ~5 hours of ambrosiac sleep, and woke around noon or so. I had time to encapsulate most of Day 2, then we rushed out of the wonderful, welcoming warehouse that served as our primary base camp. For me it was extra-tough, 'cause they were all coming back there but my night would end at an airport at 6:00 am to fly home to Portland.
No silly bother with breakfast this morning, no! We wanted to get in, eat, get packed & loaded, and have plenty of time for makeup (whiteface!) and costumes.
We unloaded, we ate, I quickly assembled my bags, and I had hours to kill until go-time. I put on my Assless Chaps outfit. I think I had wavy black hair with it. It's a good way to be entertaining. I think Jenny-Penny, at least, is entertained by my costumes. :) RAD and Wanderlust just roll their eyes, other than Leah, who simply giggles uncontrollably when she sees me looking ridiculous. I read my Robert Jordan book a lot... over the course of the bus ride plus EDC, I've read nearly a quarter of Book 7. I also finished my Day 2 update.
As I was finishing it, I found myself sitting beside Sarah, whom I believe worked in sound & lighting. She mentioned cigars, and I recited The Betrothed, by Rudyard Kipling. She was delighted! It's rare to find a good audience for that poem, but people who own cigar stores are definitely the target audience.
And then it was off to the gates. Our first few Line Parties went well, but on the final one things went wonky and Amanda came down on her knee and ankle. :( It was miserable, though several people said it didn't look too bad. *shudder* It was bad for us. And she had scraped-up knee and swollen ankle all the rest of the night.

But man... did that girl bounce right up, smile firmly, and radiate "all is well". She walked (not limped) to the back and returned attention to the ongoing show. As she said later, while we sympathized over her ankle, "It's the not the first time I've sprained my ankle onstage." Kudos to experienced performers... the show must go on.
After resting and retouching our sweat-washed makeup, we headed out to do a photo set with a stop-motion videographer. We spent about an hour setting up the action shot, drilling, charging cameras, and all of the other things that inevitably turn a "quick shoot" into hours of timesuck. Then the videographer announced that he and his crew were going to supper. We rushed off and did the same. We got our shoots, afterward. I really hope we get to see that. We did some pretty cool stuff that they can put into Bullet Time Slo-Mo, like the Matrix.

Then Mr. Creature lit up with "Rides!" on his mind, and a handful of us scampered off to get crazy with the carnival. It was Creature & Dominic & our handler & I, plus 3 of the Toxic Bunnies.

Let me explain the Toxic Bunnies.  

Toxic Bunnies (not EDC 2014)

These aren't exactly the same costumes - ours were more neon-colored. But you get the gist. Superhot body, bikini, and freaky bunny-head with gas mask. The poor girls have horrible tunnel vision in the masks, and they can hardly hear. We guided them about, warning them of stairs or other obstructions. Two of them went up in a spinny-whirly ride with us. The guy to Dominic's immediate right just barely survived the ride. I think I had more fun watching him go through major terrified trauma, than I did on the ride. Poor dude nearly exploded.

Next we took the Toxic Bunnies up onto an Art Car / Mutant Vehicle. We danced a bit, and Creature shot off the vehicle's flame cannons, and the Bunnies posed eerily or danced sexily as the music demanded. It was a good place to chill and relax for a bit. I put Dominic up in a 2-high to see things from an elevated viewpoint.
The Bunnies headed back to home base, and we did too after a few more rides. Then Leah snagged me and Dominic and we danced merrily off to circle the Bassnectar stage en route to the Parade staging area. There, we lounged about for the requisite useless hour, and finally we set off. Only Jenna was there, and me & Dom & Joesai were pretty beat, so we didn't do a ton of stunts. I did do lots of my newly-discovered tumbling pass (see next paragraph), and backflips. It was an excellent parade. I had a couch-full of clowns nearby to provide exquisite distraction. I had waves of delighted party-goers, anxious to see they knew not what... but we knew! They wanted to see tricks! And we had them. :)

I discovered, on this magical final night, that I have a tumbling pass! :) I don't know why I didn't do this before now. If I do a Cartwheel Step-Together into a Back Handspring Stepout, it looks like a real tumbling pass. I guess, technically, it is. It's just... sorta cheesy. I dunno. *shrug* But I like it. And, I can do it over raved-out kids sitting crosslegged together. As I step up from the BHS Stepout I get to look at their faces and see them process what just happened. It's super-fun.
Then we wandered off, to more popups, and more rides, and more delightful EDC fun. At one point a bunch of us converged at Cosmic Meadow, just past the stage from our Greenroom windows. We went deep into the crowd, and then Dominic and I started chucking Jenna and Amanda up into the air on drops.
Oh, what sweet bliss. To coil up like a practiced machine, integrating with another machine(s), to perform a Big Trick. Seeing the faces of those watching is indescribable. I don't know how the flyers do it. I kept getting too much attention. I'd finish a trick, watching thousands of faces looking at me, and I'd drop down in a crouch, into the dark, hot, wet air that's already been breathed too many times. I wasn't tired or overheated (much)... I was just recharging circuits blown out by attention overload. Then I'd hear a drop coming, and I'd motion frantically for the required acrobatic components, and *whomp* we'd be back up in the limelight on a drop.
I gotta say, acrobats: work your flicks. A flick that peaks on a drop is an amazing thing. And if you get strong flicks, a spectacular Toe-Touch is easy to add. Hit that on a drop, and you'll blow minds.
I was resting after a big drop stunt, and an athletic girl came up to me and said, "I'm on an Allstar cheer squad. Will you do a stunt with me?" I thought I was going to die. *sigh* You see, a few years back I would have had the joyful abandon to happily cast the Karmic Stunt Flyer up into a trick, making her night wonderful and amplifying my own experience. But, alas, my long years have finally brought a modicum of wisdom. It's often (perhaps even usually) a bad idea to stunt with non-performers. They're not covered by insurance. They might mess up. A random act of God might occur. If anything goes wrong, insurance doesn't cover it, and an injured flyer or audience member can say, "Your performer hurt me at your event." It just ain't worth the risk. *pained sigh*
We all eventually moseyed dreamily back, and I went back to the weight room. There was an amazing variety of very modern equipment there. I haven't been in a weight room since college, 20+ years ago. The new stuff is incredible. I was working isolated muscle groups in direct opposition to many of my acrobatic typical movements. Meaning, I was getting super-efficient counter-strengthening. Plus, all the stuff that I do need for what I do. I worked out really hard, for the first time in over 20 years. I spurn weight gyms - me & my bases lift ladyweights(c) Jon Dutch, but golly, was that nice!

Then I jumped in the shower and got cleeeeeean! So nice after hours of sweat (much of it not mine) and dance belt.

For those who aren't in the know on dance belts... they're like jock straps for athletes, but they're for dancers. Think of it as a bra for your junk. But they're tight, and they dig into your hips, and they crush your jewels into diamonds, and taking off a dance belt after hours of punishment is like drawing a breath of fresh air after nearly drowning.

I tranformed into my still-favorite costume to bid EDC farewell. Zebracorn is the best. His poor horn is wilted, his tail bedraggled, and rips & tears adorn his very flesh. He's disbursed top-shelf rum to visitors at the ship wreck, BRC 2012. He swam at Horning's Hideout for the String Cheese Incident, 2010. He's been all around, and people react better to Zebracorn than to any of my other outfits. He's my BFF, my Zebracorn. Some day he'll grow decrepit and old, and potentially pathetic, crowing, "I used to to BACKFLIPS! C'mere, you're small, do an Angel with me, let me park my walker..."I was all packed and ready, and not much use in helping others organize & pack their own stuff. So, Zebracorn ventured out for a farewell skip through EDC.
I was immediately sidetracked by J-Money, who I enticed to join me on the top floor, overlooking the entire festival. It's a pretty gnifty view, for sure. Then we moseyed down a floor, where, to my delight, two raver girls wanted their pictures taken with a Zebracorn. I propped them up in a Fan, one on each hip, and as we waited for their boy to figure out how to make the camera-phone work, they asked if I was too tired to hold them up that long. I chuckled (it's an easy trick to hold for long minutes) and told them that they were the ones who would have a hard time holding the pose. Then, I tickled them. They started to convulse but I told them to stay tight, and they did, long enough for the picture to take. It was awesome. I randomly tickled two strangers in a stunt. That was me, winning EDC.

Then I headed out by my lonesome. It's kind of an eerie, ostracized feeling. Virtually everyone at EDC is either with a group, or headed toward a group. Wandering alone is isolating and surreal. For me, at least. I dunno. Hopefully that adds to the Zebracorn mystery, or something.

I did two circuits, passing through the always-delightful Discovery Stage just beyond the main entrance to the Performer's Headquarters. On my final circuit back, I saw a zebra-girl! She had zebra-striped legs, and a zebra-striped top. I felt all awkward and middle-school-stricken. I was compelled to do a one-handed handstand against a nearby wall. Then I laughed at myself and walked over and confessed that I felt obligated to show off for her. She was delighted.
A few minutes later, we all traipsed back through the same area. Dominic and I had slung a large chunk of the circus' gear across the bar, and were porting it like slaves, on our shoulders. She saw me and jumped up and down and pointed me out to her friends, saying, "That's him!" I gave her a high-five as we walked past, headed back to the Wanderbus and away from the magic of EDC.
At about 6:00 we pulled up to LAX. I stumbled into my Normal Clothes. I felt pretty normal until they pointed out the eyeliner I couldn't get all the way off, and my black, white and blue hair. I pointed out that I was traveling from Las Vegas to Portland, two of the most likely places to find such things. I think they were right - at the airport I felt like I was drawing a lot of stares. I only did one handstand, and that was outside the airport. Hm, okay, I did do another one inside the airport, but that was only because the conveyer-belt-walkway thingy demanded it. It was fun to balance on. I also got to walk briskly backwards on some other conveyer-belt-walkways. It's amazing to watch the world recede from you at that rate, on foot. You can't get that perspective anywhere else.
I read my Robert Jordan book until boarding, then read it on the plane. I watched Vegas recede, and I watched Portland blossom on approach. I hopped a MAX and had a wonderful phone conversation with a friend I've been missing. Then I bussed to Creature's house, got my car, drove home, and stumbled back into normalcy at 10:00 Monday morning.I watered the garden, checked vital emails & messages, checked my phone (which didn't work properly the whole time I was in Vegas) and went to sleep for a few hours until my Monday started at 2:30.
Thank you, EDC. Thank you, Insomniac. Thank you, Wanderlust Circus. Thank you, Rose-city Acro Devils.And, thank you, patient reader, who at least scanned and potentially even read my spammy memorialization of a spectacular weekend as a performer. :)

(Facebook Note from 6/23/2014)

EDC 2014 - Day 2 - Saturday

EDC 2014 - Day 2 - Saturday

I woke up yesterday at around noon, after a glorious 4 or 5 hours of sleep. That's more than I expected and more than I need. Dutch was watching a movie (he is also cursed with the Early Riser gene) so I hopped online and wrote my "Day 1 - Friday" journal entry. I finished just in time to grab my stuff and hop on the Wanderbus with our happy-though-bleary-eyed crew.

We went to a spendy breakfast place - Nacho Daddy. Outside of the breakfast place they had 4 ziplines running across the road. Periodically a group of people would fly across the sky, 5 stories high. Pretty cool. I can't imagine spending $9 for breakfast, so I sat and talked with English while others ordered and ate. Johnny is one of the core anchors of my EDC experience. On Day 1 (Friday) I watched him at Base Pod, whirling and writhing like a Dance Elemental, and I had tears in my eyes. He's a beautiful entity when the music moves through him. I don't think I would want to go to EDC if Johnny English wasn't there to translate sound into motion for me.

We rolled into the venue and got all set up. We had 2 hours of down-time before we needed to head out.

I should explain that we each have different uses for "down time". The girls & English spend all of it doing the exquisite makeup and hair that transcends them into objects of pure beauty. It's Leah's and Creature's most intense and stressful time, getting everybody properly dolled up while tending to their own beautification requirements. Dutch & Joesai & Dominic & Money & I are largely off-duty during this time - 5 minutes of eye-makeup, 2 minutes of costuming, and we're good to go. It's totally unfair and we still occasionally feel tiny twinges of guilt for not having to go through what everybody else has to go through before every performance.

I typically have 2 "outfits" at shows: Nondescript Old Nerd, and Acrobat. On Day 2 (Saturday) I decided to dress up while off-duty. I wore my silvery-white Tiny Booty Shorts that I inherited from the Lost & Found at the cheer gym where I work. They used to belong to a 10-to-12-year-old gymnast girl. They barely fit me in a super-tight fashion. I also have white-and-tinsel wig that goes well with them. As I walked across the main lobby, the usually-taciturn Performer Liason lady called out, "You forgot your clothing!" and tittering laughter rippled across the lobby. She said it with a smile, luckily. When Leah saw my outfit she couldn't stop giggling. She has a lacy top that fit me, and she allowed me to wear it. It made me look like Baby Ray from the Fifth Element.

As Dominic dressed in his old-timey outfit, he jokingly put on tight booty-shorts. I crowed in delight, praising the look and suggesting that we all conform. To my pleased surprise, it ended up happening! The long pants we usually use would be way hot, plus the booty-short look is a lot more EDC, where minimal is best. We looked kinda like old-timey Chippendales' dancers. I think it worked well.

We hiked up through the nearly-solid heatwall, with our delightful 3-person waterboy crew of Dan, Alex and Hailey. J-Money labeled them "Gumbies" and they accepted. Hailey used to do all-star cheer for 10 years, and used to tumble out of Fulls. She was appropriately impressed with our stunting... well, appropriately interested is probably more accurate. Cheerleaders are never impressed with us unless we do a 3-High, Juanita Roll, or High H2H Death Drop. I think that our 3 Gumbies were super-excited to be attached to us. We're a fun group that produces lots of really happy audience. And they keep us super-hydrated, and make sure we're happy.

We did our couple of runs along the Entry Lines, and we've got it dialed in well enough now that I feel like we're actually entertaining folks instead of pestering them. It was nice to have Noah there barking for us. But the lack of Blake is always painful when we do the Entry Lines and Popups. I miss our Little Boy Blue, so much! It's a very different EDC when it's Blakeless. :(

Back to base camp, and then out to the Aerial Stage. Anngela's friends were there, and they're our biggest fans. We did a great set there, then headed out for more Popups and Stage Sets.

Our Day 2 Stage Set at Circuit Grounds turned into a nightmare. :( Dutch and Jenna and Dominic really dialed in their Stage Set, but I spearheaded the Unprepared Crew in having virtually no idea what we were doing. I can't take full responsibility for how miserable our set was, however... about half of our tricks included Amanda, who's been in Austin for the last month, so she hasn't done any of these tricks for at least that long. Some of them she hasn't done for quite a few months.

So, Joesai & Anngela & Amanda & I figured out a sequence of tricks, and started out. It started well, though our Basket Toss Back Tuck didn't have a drop to launch on. We sorta stumbled through the next sequence of tricks... we've never actually run through them, nor even blocked through them. We were woefully underprepared. Next there was a rest time while stilters & dancers entertained. And then the acrobats threw ourselves back into the meat grinder.

Things started out okay. Amanda & I threw an Angelbesque. We came down and Flagged up to 2-High. We'd decided to throw a Liberty, and I hollered it up at her, but I couldn't tell if she heard me. I popped it, and things went awry, and I tried to save it but we were too close to monitors and lighting equipment, and I had to bump it down awkwardly. We crowned things off with a High Hand-to-Hand that bowed out, wobbled, tried to overcommit, and finally flat-out arched to the ground. I pulled up hard, and she came down on her heels, but it looked like exactly what it was: narrowly averted disaster. I felt like an extra in Saving Private Ryan as we crawled out of the fire-fight, replaced by a concerned-looking Joesai and Anngela.

I was too busy sucking air and focusing on the next tricks to pay much attention to Joesai and Anngela. Joesai just gave me thumbs-up on it: Assisted Cartwheel into Cul De Sax, then Camel Sequence, finishing off with their awesome Backpack Lever. It's good to hear that our confused gallumphing was mitigated by some excellent partner acrobatics. Props to Joesai & Anngela!

Then I went back out with Anngela for a J-up to Cupie, with the Toe-Touch to twisty-thingy. It went okay. Our Walkup Extension Fulldown Barrel Double-Barrel Walkover was okay, but disappointing 'cause usually it snaps like a wet towel, and draws Oohs and Aahs from the well-entertained souls of the onlookers. I crawled back through the trenches and motioned for Noah and Leah to rescue us. Dominic had brought the bar over, so we set up for that, and Amanda did a good set there while I barely managed to hold my arms overhead. Then it was time for our final few tricks.

As we set up for our first trick, a Candelabra, I could hear someone from the back calling, "Last Trick!" I wanted to cry... we had a Chinese Star to unleash, followed by a 3-High. We finished the Candelabra and slunk offstage like well-beaten curs.

I must say, this is all from my viewpoint. Joesai and Anngela most likely felt quite pleased with the Stage Set. It was Amanda and I who suffered so passionately out there, suffering like captured butterflies impaled on the cruel gaze of a disappointed crowd. *sigh*

Amanda and I consoled one another backstage and shared a sad hug. Then we rushed off to the Daisy Float to prepare for the parade.

Ah, the EDC parade. *heavy sigh* It's such a lovely theory, and I have to admit that it does give a great spectacle to a whole lot of crowd. But oh, the cost! We waited for over an hour for the various floats and performers to assemble. It actually only took about 15 minutes for that part to happen, and then the next 45-to-60 minutes were spent waiting for... who knows what. Some kind of logistics to be figured out. I know it must be as complex as knitting four different-colored sweaters simultaneously with hands, feet and lips while reciting Blues Traveler lyrics backwards. A handful of people were

super

busy for that eternal hour, but ~200 performers were standing around experiencing the early stages of zombification.

I felt especially bad for the chrome-plated Cyber Angels - there are 6 of them and they're really high-powered visually when they stand in formation, so while everyone else got to lounge and sit, they had to stand rigidly at attention in formation. It looked great, but *whew*... those poor girls.

We were informed that we'd been assigned the task of pushing the Radio Flyer wagon with Flower Gals. It's a shiny red wagon the size of a minivan, with a DJ station and sound system plus a dozen homogenized flower girls. We groaned and whined, of course... it's my belief that the acrobats put more physical exertion into our performance sets than anyone else, even the Mirror Men who perform on Tumble Trak. Their runs certainly use a lot of energy, but it's just not as exhausting as throwing people around. I know this; I've done lots of both. Anyway, Creature and Noah and Johnny and J-Money gallantly stepped up to take the bullet for the bases. Bless their overworked hearts! And it turned out to be fun... pretending to groan and shove at the wagon was a good performance opportunity, and there were so many pushers & pullers that it didn't actually end up being strenuous at all.

I bumped into the Dancetronauts, which I know from various Burning Man style events. But I didn't know any of them, sadly.

Finally the parade rolled out. To our immense delight, we were just ahead of (and often flanked by) my favorite costume set this year! I shall pause to settle my emotions and calm my libido before continuing. And, I must set the scene with some background story.

EDC has some of the world's most high-powered, best-designed, and most expensive costumes. These costumes are draped over the most stunning, graceful, hard-bodied women on the planet, and professional makeup artists labor for hours to create masterpieces of physical beauty. Individually they leave the observer dry-mouthed and knock-kneed. As a matching group of identical beauties, they create a surreal ambiance of angelic perfection. The guys who work around these ladies wear the same kind of shell-shocked look you see on people who win a million-dollar lottery. It's pretty incredible.

So, the irony of this year's Best Costume is the simplicity. These girls are chosen for their bodies, only... each of them looks like they were hand-picked from a gymnastics squad. They epitomize the American standard of Perfect Athletic Body. They wear postage-stamp sized bikinis (yellow, red or blue) and a duck-head-mask that totally conceals the face, leaving hair and body visible. There's no makeup or bling or glamour... just perfect bodies and duck-faces.

So, to my immediate right was the head of the line of Duck Girls. She was in yellow, and she had long wavy auburn hair, and she moved and danced like a wood dryad who'd sipped at moonshine and could no longer restrain her inner music. All during the parade I kept realizing that I was staring at her with a poleaxed-calf look on my face... the look a dog gives a master who's just come home from a long day at work. I fell in love with this girl and I never saw her face. It was eerie, but wonderful. After the parade I bumped into a bunch of off-duty Duck Girls, and asked her name. It's Ashley. They offered to go find her for me, but I bolted and ran. I don't want to

meet

 her... stammering and blushing is something I'm good at, but it's an underappreciated communication style, and I have no desire to make her feel as uncomfortable as I would be, confronted with having to talk with her. She's much better as an ephemeral fantasy girl, dancing mysteriously through my dreams. *dreamy sigh*

Wow. The Ultimate Duck Girl got a background story

and

 an entire paragraph. I'm glad I'm single; writing stuff like that gets me in big trouble with a girlfriend when I have one. It's not like I want to

date

 her. I simply fell in love with her. It's not my fault.

During the parade I bumped into Kaysha, the nice girl I met yesterday near the Aerial Stage. She was so excited to see me, and hugged me, and told me how awesome I was, and hugged me again... it's so bolstering to the self-esteem to have people think so highly of me. It's not just 'cause I lift people and do backflips, either... I talked with her and gave her a handrub, and did some good bonding in the 10 minutes we had to get to be friends. I was thrilled that she found me in the parade. :)

After the parade a group of us bolted over to the carnival rides - I was with Creature, Amanda, Brandy, Dutch, Jenna, Noah, Joesai, a few others. Creature talked to the operator and pitched "We're Performers, can we go to the head of the line?" That quick, we were strapping ourselves into a series of chairs, facing out in a ring. I was by Amanda, and offered to unfasten her lock-belt at the top and hold her hands so that she could experience the free-fall portion without the constraints of her protective apparatus. She squealed happily and pretended to be glad we couldn't actually do that. We chatted on the long, long ride up to the top. As we reached the pinnacle, I gave her a worried look and confided without a trace of veracity, "Last year this ride had a mechanical failure, and a bunch of people died." She looked at me in horror, and right on cue *WHOOSH* the earth far below us rushed hungrily upward. It was wonderful! I've wanted to ride a ride like that all my life, and I finally did it!

Next we bumped into the line for the double-hammer-head huge spin-ride, where the cages with people on them can spin independently while the twin hammerheads go round and round. I was with Creature, and I jabbered without pause about mechanical failure, and releasing stress over things we can't affect, and all kinds of random mental jibberish. I had a wonderful time, but afterwards Creature said he won't ride with me anymore 'cause I simply won't shut up long enough to let him enjoy the ride. *unappreciated sigh*

I did some tricks with Amanda, but Creature pointed out that we were no longer in costume, so we shouldn't be performing. I grudgingly admitted that he was right. And... the photographer who snapped some shots of me & Amanda stunting turned out to be with a Las Vegas newspaper. *wince* Insomniac is gonna be understandably upset if the Vegas paper has shots of random people doing stunts that

aren't

 recognizable as EDC performers. Sorry, Insomniac. My bad. :(

Not long afterwards, I was talking with Amanda about something and we wandered slightly away from the rest of the group, with Dominic beside us. We noticed we'd momentarily lost our companions, and rushed back to find them, but alas! They were gone! I stood on Dom to look for them, and later I discovered that we were 50 feet away from them, but picking friends out of thousands of ravers is nearly impossible. We wandered off slowly and forlornly, and suddenly Kaysha appeared, hugging me and exuding excitement to have found her acrobat again. Yay! I invited her to come with us, but she was with a big group that had its' own agenda. She looked so sad and regretful as she waved goodbye and followed them into the crowd.

I asked Dom & Amanda what we should do next, and they said they were ready to head back to base camp. I rushed off to find Kaysha and join her, but alas, the heartless crowd's appetite for fresh people had already consumed them.

Instead, we headed back and ate yummy food. The catering here is exquisite! Only Sasquatch (another event) can compete with EDC's catering. I had time to shower and get totally clean before we rolled out. We drove Dutch and Anngela to the airport - they had to fly back to Portland for Conclave filming. And then we headed to the warehouse and settled in for the night, exhausted and sore and filthy (other than me!) and totally happy and at peace. Being a performer for an event like this is amazing. It hurts, and we complain, and it feels like we're totally unappreciated by everyone except the crowd. But at the end of the day, we're the luckiest people at the event, and those of us who've been doing this for a while really, really appreciate that. :)

(Facebook Note from 6/22/2014)