Okay, grrrrr.
David and I are planning to be part of a larger camp at BM this year. For the most part, it seems the folks are all cool, easygoing, participatory, etc. We have had two meetings, with a lot of progress made, camaraderie built, etc.
However….the linchpin of the camp, the person who volunteered to coordinate food and cooking, has found excuses not to be at either meeting. On top of that, she developed a menu for the week without getting an iota of input from her campmates. The menu is full of heavy foods, chicken almost every night, lots of cooking, etc. Completely counterintuitive, and counter to the way I like to eat on the playa.
The way she has presented this reeks of control issues. She's being rather aggressive, and the message is: if you have a problem with this, tough. I get the distinct feeling she would get defensive and confrontational if we suggested a different approach. After she sent out her email with the menu, one person almost immediately withdrew from the "food group" and wants to cook on her own. We could do that, but it seems like a cop-out.
This person is a serious alpha female, not exactly easygoing. I fear for the gestalt of our camp because of it. There are a few other things that are going on with her that make me really nervous.
After our negative camp experience in 2004, we are not willing to forego a pleasant experience at BM in order to mollify campmates. We are trying to figure out a political way of guiding the situation, because there are many good things going for this camp. We are thinking to offer to cook two or three meals and present it as "taking some of the load off" this person.
The problem is, I'm starting to feel some anxiety and I totally hate that physical feeling. My heartrate is up just writing this. I seriously don't want a confrontation with this person, she would chew me up. But I resent being bullied as well. I know we will find a way to resolve this, but I felt the need to vent. So thank you!
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Glass Act 