Powdery white sculpting material from the sky!
Yesterday I decided that I would make another large snow-sculpture like I did last year. After some thought I decided that I wanted to make an angel. I made a big pile of snow about the right size and shape, and started to sculpt. I had got the head and wings roughly shaped when a girl came over to me and asked if I had really made a snow elephant last year. I said I had and she was duly impressed. She then asked "If you got really really good do you think you could make an igloo? I told her that I was pretty sure she could make an igloo herself. She looked doubtful at that, so I went inside and fetched a basin to mould bricks in. I showed her how to do it and sketched out a circle on the ground where they should go, and from that moment on my angel was forgotten.
By the end of the day (the daylit part, anyway) we'd aquired four more helpers and made two and a bit tiers of bricks. I was really enjoying myself (It's weird, but I don't feel the cold at all when I'm making snow sculptures) but by this stage some of the kids were clearly frozen and trying not to show it, so I declared that I was done for the day and went in. (The kids disappeared incredibly fast after that, proving that I'd been right in guessing that they didn't want to go in while I was still there.) I assured them that the igloo would still be there in the morning and we could work on it then, and fortunately I was right. The angel sculpture had been kicked and trampled to the ground, as had no fewer than three snowmen, but the igloo walls were fine apart from a few footprints.
It had snowed heavily that night, so building went even faster. The original girl didn't turn up again, but the kids next door did, and were great help. With them I got the igloo up to six tiers (higher than my waist) and then I again declared I was going in. I said I'd be half an hour to have my lunch and then I'd come out again. They said they'd be back out then too, but they didn't reappear. I guess they weren't let out again (which is fair enough, given that they'd probably soaked their clothes at this stage!) Instead one of the girls who helped make the elephant last year appeared and helped out. Last year she seemed to have some severe anger issues, but she seemed a lot calmer this year. Another of last-year's helpers turned up with a friend and she also was considerably better behaved than last year. She seemed to have learned a good deal of patience since then. (I think it's kinda cool to see them growing up, even if I only see them once a year :P ) Two boys turned up even later when we were up to the last few layers. They were amazingly cool and helped spotting gaps and strengthening the walls where they looked thinner than the rest. I was impressed at their grasp of structures. With all this help I got the igloo finished all the way up to the top, and the four who were still around made and placed the capstone themselves and we all filled in any remaining gaps.
By this stage it was getting dark, and it was impossible to see inside the igloo. Since all the work left to be done was inside I disappeared into the house, and returned with some tea-lights, and hollowed out spaces for them in the walls. They made a huge difference, and it was really quite bright inside with them. It was also considerably warmer inside (as it should be) and it's amazing how little you could hear once inside, given that there's a big road just the other side of the trees. We finished up the inside, then built some little seats. I got a fleece throw to put over the seats and some old fabric to hang over the door to make a curtain. By this stage it was completely dark, and the igloo was completely finished, so I went back inside, leaving the kids to play around until it was time to go home.
I'm typing this now wrapped up in many blankets and sitting on my bed. Every now and then I hear shouts outside, and when I look out I see people walking around the igloo and daring each-other to go inside. I think it's sad that people think it's funny to kick over snowmen, but I have to feel chuffed when I see teenagers walking along kicking over any snowmen they find and then stopping to admire my igloo before they move on :D I was even happier when I looked out to see a bright flash, as a kid took a photo of his parents crouched inside the igloo! It was a beautiful scene, right down to their little dog that was running around them barking.
One of the kids kept asking if I was going to get a picture of the igloo in the papers, 'cos there should have been a photo of my elephant in them last year, but I just don't really care whether it is or not. What I care about is that there are people playing in it, and enjoying it while it's there. And I care that I had a lot of fun making it, and I think that kids that helped did too. It was great hearing them talking about the elephant last year ("I made one of the legs" or "I painted the trunk! Are we going to paint this one?") and nice to think that they'll talk about this one too. What I'm really hoping is that when I move out they'll keep building interesting snow-creations. That would be cool!