The annual Alpine Butterfly Lodge Party was this past weekend, and much fun was had by all. We're all worn out and relaxing now from a party which expanded significantly from past years. While the main party (saturday) didn't seem much larger than usual, people came earlier and stayed later. Previously we've had maybe 10-20 people arrive on friday, this year we had 30, maybe 40. Instead of feeling like a party from Saturday at noon to Sunday at noon (24 hours), with > 10 guests from perhaps Friday at 10pm to Sunday at 6pm (44 hours), it was a party from about friday at 8pm to sunday at 6pm (46 hours), and there were at least 10 guests from friday at noon until monday at noon (72 hours).

People made lots of jokes about how it'll soon be a week long. I'd love to host a week-long festival, but I don't think the ABL is the place for it. Of course, as Rob says, "you could fit a lot of people on a seastead"...Hmm...We pondered possibilities for adding a "sleeping level", either at the ABL where our invisible deck is, or below the lowest deck of a seastead, using cargo nets. Anyway, it was crowded and busy, but definitely rad that our party has strengthened over the years as more people hear about it and our tangled graph of acquaintances grows.

Our house feels even more empty than usual after a party because we lost two housemates: Andy and Stacey departed today for marriage and their own apartment. Saddenz.

One of the neatest things at the party was The Cave. Last year I had the idea for a "Box of ideas", which people could draw from or add too. This year we talked about Good Ideas, Bad Ideas, Secrets (write a secret about yourself, but don't write your name), Crushes, and so forth. Then Anna had the inspiration to create a cave from chicken wire and fabric scraps, somewhat igloo shaped with a half-cylinder entrance floored with astroturf. The various pieces of text were written on paper and placed inside Easter Eggs, which were hidden in pockets around the cave.

Besides being neat and working well, The Cave definitely had an impact on my philosophy. I'm used to thinking in terms of abstractions and ideas. I focused on what people would write, what our categories should be, not about the physical space or manner in which it was implemented. To my intuition, the physical aspects don't seem that importannt. Yet they made a huge difference in the power of the experience and the number of people who were drawn into it. Squinting at little pieces of paper inside eggs in a small cave where you've briefly withdrawn from the crowded party feels different than drawing from a box in a room full of people. What is written on the paper still makes a big difference, of course, but so does the space in which it is read.

Would Go be as neat if the stones didn't look so pretty? Would art looks as good on the playa if it weren't superimposed on that stark desert background? Would I like Macs as much if they weren't so pretty? I don't think so. Implementation and aesthetics matter. Our mental processes are layered on top of physical ones, and physical reality influences how we interact and connect with ideas. I love learning lessons, especially when they don't involve painful mistakes :).

Note to self: Make sure coaststead looks fucking rad.

Synchronicity, or why I'm going to stop typing now. Unfortunately, Simon broke a bone in his left hand during a session of acrobatics, which have become a staple at our parties. Andy and I got to use some of our WEMT skills and splint it. Strangely, within a few hours of this, while walking hurridly in a crowded room, I slammed my left hand into a protruding metal object. While it hurt quite a bit, being high on adrenaline (extrovert getting paid lots of attention to) and mildly inebriated I ignored it during the party. Strangely, while it didn't hurt much yesterday, its been bothering me a lot today. I keep getting tingles in my hand that indicate my nervous system is being spoofed. Our theory is that its inflamed and pressuring a nerve, but not broken. The point tenderness doesn't seem severe enough for a fracture, plus it didn't swell near as much as Simon's when it happened. Not that it really matters if its broken, as it doesn't change how I'm going to treat it, mostly I'm curious to know just how deep the coicidence runs :).

Anyway, I should be good and stop using it, hard though it is for me to stop rambling about our mega-exciting party. Thanks to all who came, including many LJers, especially those who travelled from afar. Pix will be up sometime this week.

<< Party Pix (6/24/03) << || >> Singing Freedom Todo (6/12/03) >>