If Part 1 was all nerves and prep, Part 2 is the real tea from the Playa. From 27-hour gate delays and flour-thick mud to surprise reunions, camp chaos, art-fueled awe, and emotional breakthroughs, Siobhan and Brenda break down exactly what happened when the desert said, “Oh, you wanted to grow? COOL. Let’s begin.
Summary
Pack your goggles and leave your comfort zone at the gate, this episode of Ducking Realitea is a no-holds-barred debrief of Burning Man 2025. Host and first-timer Siobhan and veteran Burner Brenda return from the dust with stories of storms, mud, 27-hour gate lines, social anxiety, relationship curveballs, surprise reunions, and the kind of spiritual nudges only the Playa can deliver.
What starts as a recap becomes a tender, hilarious, and radically honest look at what Burning Man actually teaches you about resilience, connection, and yourself. Brenda breaks down the hard-won wisdom of surviving the mud (literal and emotional), the messy beauty of community, and the glow of art on the open playa. Siobhan shares her own anxieties about belonging, safety, being “the new kid,” and the unexpected pride of realizing she handled one of the toughest Burns in recent memory and handled it well.
From art cars to awkward encounters, Temple to dancing through a storm, from heartbreak to closure and everything bizarrely in between, this is Burning Man as it's really lived: raw, funny, disorienting, transformative, and unexpectedly tender.
If you’ve wondered why the Playa keeps calling people back or how anyone survives a week where your bike sinks, your shoes disintegrate, and your soul gets periodically tested this conversation for you,
Because Burning Man isn’t just about the burn.
It’s about the rebirth.
Brenda
Brenda is a seasoned Burner, Gate volunteer, and community builder who’s spent the last seven years embracing radical self-reliance on the Playa. Off the dust, she’s a hardware builder, animal lover, and storyteller who met her partner at Alameda’s Fireside Lounge, proof that magic happens when you least expect it.
Resources & Mentions
Burning Man Organization – burningman.org
The 10 Principles of Burning Man
Black Rock Radio (mentioned as helpful during weather delays)
Pollination Station (neighboring camp with focus on bee education)
💡 Key Takeaways
Surviving adversity leads to self-discovery (and the best stories!).
Radical self-reliance, resourcefulness, and mutual support are crucial at Burning Man and in life.
Weather, unpredictability, and challenging circumstances can create magic and growth.
The true gift of Burning Man is its community: forging relationships across adversity, culture, and time.
Burning Man’s ethos isn’t just for the playa it’s for building better communities everywhere.