Somebody's Heart is Burning

I hear a robin singing, singing,

Up in the treetop high, high

To me and you, he's singing, singing

The clouds will soon roll by.

Somebody's heart is burning, burning

Somebody's heart is burning, burning

Somebody's heart is burning, burning

Because he sees me happy.

~English language folk song taught in Ghanian colonial schools

Okay, the above really doesn't have anything to do with anything, but it uses the word "burning" and that's a kind of clue to what this post is all about.

I have a secret. And I know--because I read Ramona Quimby books in the second grade and she always said that if you have a secret you're not supposed to put tape over your mouth and let everybody know you have a secret; the best way to keep a secret is to simply talk about something else... I know that. But.

I am really excited and my heart is burning, burning...

And the other thing is, I have this weird phobia, a strange kind of superstition--which is strange in itself because I'm not really superstitious about anything else--but I have always had a strange aversion about talking about my travel plans, especially when they involve something really, really exciting.

Like, for instance, I went to Disneyland in January. Bet you didn't know that, did you? Well, I did. And it was great, but I'll write about that later.

The gods are capricious and occasionally cruel, and I fear that if they catch me gloating they will throw not only a monkeywrench in my plans, but the whole damn monkey. So I'm only going to say this once.

Are you listening?

Come closer.

No... CLOSER...

I'm going to whisper it...

I've got a ticket to Burning Man!

There. I've said it. I'm not going to say it again. But now you know where I'll be in September.

I've also got other plans for this summer, but that's another story. I'm going to have to go burn sage or wait for a planetary conjunction before I tell you about that one...

Mekka-lekka-hi-mekka-hiney-ho!