The Captain of the Ferris Wheel

Coachella #4, Day 3

I went to college in Southern California but never went to Coachella during those four years. To be honest, I didn’t even know what Coachella was, and I could count the number of concerns and musical shows I had been to on one hand as a college student. I wasn’t quite cool enough to have a group of friends who went to Coachella, and I really couldn’t have afforded to go had I been invited in any case. Fast forward to adult life, and I’m making up for lost time.

While most people who say they read Playboy for the articles are lying, I really do go to Coachella for the music. My favorite Coachella was year 2 when I went essentially by myself and stayed sober all three days. I enjoyed the empty, early afternoon sets in the blazing sun as much as the epic dance shows of the evenings. My formula for musical bliss is just a Camelbak and a GA wristband. That’s not to say I don’t like the rest of it.

Anyone who knows me knows that in many ways I’m very SoCal. I come into my element dancing in the sun. I like pretty things and pretty places and pretty people; that’s not a sentiment you’ll hear often in my current home of San Francisco. I like fashion and style, though I may not be that fashionable. Taste isn’t a given, but interest is real. I love the style of Coachella.

People really do go all out with their outfits. Though I appreciate looking at those outfits, as there’s plenty of eye candy of the sensual and spiritual sorts, what I appreciate more is sensing the way people about their own outfits. Coachella, more than any experience I’ve had, highlights the stark contrast of the individual to the mass.

At Coachella, everyone is trying to stand out so no one does. It’s easy to get lost in a crowd that can top a hundred thousand at a single stage, but it’s equally easy to pause and look at any individual. You tell so much about a person by looking at them. There’s a story around every person, and unlike in a big city which may be similarly teeming at a given time, every story is between a lot and little bit epic.

I love noticing the details in people’s outfits, particularly at Coachella where people take the utmost care. Taking a moment to really, carefully look at a person and bask in the result, one can imagine the process: “Do these colors match? Should I wear this bracelet, or this one? These socks, or those?” Does anyone even notice? Well, I do.

Coachella reflects a desire to feel and be a certain way. For most, the story people tell themselves about the lifestyle Coachella represents is as if not more important than the substance of the event itself. Or perhaps that is the substance and music is just the sideshow. I’m not even sure myself.

Everyone wants to think they’re special, and they are. It’s not true that no one stands out at Coachella. The musicians certainly do on stage, and some people’s outfits are true stunners due to natural gifts, artistic ability, or most often some combination of the two. Though most people ultimately don’t stand out, almost everyone tries to. It’s a bit like New York, and while this may seem bleak, I actually think it’s great.

We rode the ferris wheel last night. It was my first time. We were in line for a little bit, and my friend observer called the ferris wheel operator the captain. Though, he then noted with humor that said captain of the ferris wheel simply sent people round and round, to nowhere. I realized that at Coachella, we’re all the captains of our own ferris wheels. There’s nothing wrong with that; ferris wheels are fun.

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