Nowhere and Nothing

When Pedro first described his idea to me, a grand staircase in the middle of the playa, the name “Stairway to Nowhere” quickly came to mind. It had a ring and a snark to it, rolling off the tongue and making an illusive reference to “Stairway to Heaven.”

The problem is that as I thought about the concept of “nowhere” I thought of it as the absence of direction. “I’m on a road to nowhere” a path without direction. A sense of aimlessness from the absence of a destination. A burner friend of mine, Joe Buchman, then gave me an inspiration.

“You know,” he said. “You might be better off with nothing.”

“Come again?” I said.

“The word ‘nothing’ represents a void, the absence of anything. For some, it’s also an idea of God. For others, the infinite void is the cosmos, .. the universe.”

I turned this idea around several times. I liked that it wasn’t the obvious, nowhere. Nothing was much more provocative. When I talked to Pedro about it, he kind of grooved on it as well, smiling with mischief and delight.

“I like it!”

So that’s how it becomes The Stairway to Nothing, a vehicle to ascend to the void. In some ways, for some, a stairway to heaven.

An Old Desert Bar at 6 O'Clock

For many years, Campo Misterioso occupied prime real estate along 6 o’clock at Rte 66. But it wasn’t much beyond a shade structure, an archway, and a bar. Then, in 2015, Stuart got Pedro inspired when he had to tear down some old fencing.

“This weathered wood would go great with this old, saloon-style swinging door I have!” With that, a western bar was formed, stone-soup fashion out scrap materials from Stuart backyard and Pedro’s uncles Rio Vista farm. Suddenly, in a small corner of the playa was a classic, Hollywood Western saloon front, complete with an out of tune piano, a bar serving rot gut whiskey and beers, lounge chairs and tables for card playing. People came in, attracted by the Hollywood Front, the sound of piano playing or Pedro’s “hippie trap” out front, but they quickly became infected and stayed to marvel, drink and swap stories.

In 2017, Jules and I joined Campo Misterioso and helped Pedro setup the massive front and interior. There was a think-big, can do attitude along with a deep sense of camp empathy seasoned with jackassery. Spending time and building with Pedro became one of the joys of our lives and, hence, the Wood Butcher’s were formed.