Bob Collins
The St. Paul Winter Carnival is underway. It’s becoming harder to know when it’s going on anymore. In recent years it adopted a rather Abe Vigoda-like place in the collective consciousness (“He’s alive? I thought he was dead!”) when announcements came in that the warm weather has canceled the ice sculpture competition. They don’t do the big slide at the Capitol anymore. And there are quicker ways to blow zillions of dollars these days than building ice castles.
The Medallion Hunt was a big deal when the St. Paul Pioneer Press was a bigger deal.
The Vulcans? I still don’t get the Vulcans. But I digress.
The Winter Carnival is underway and the ice sculpture work is starting around Rice Park. Later today, when we go over to celebrate winter with our every-Friday-lunch-hour skate at the rink outside Landmark Center, I’ll snap some pictures and post them here.
Which brings us to…. your pictures.
In Ely the other day — Wednesday, if you’re aching to know for sure — the town park was filled with giant boxes of packed snow. I’m guessing they’ll be carving snow sculptures this weekend.
People who make ice sculptures are usually professionals. People who make snow sculptures often aren’t. It’s an art form for the people, by the people, and perishes from this earth in short fashion.
I’d pay big money* for your pictures of snow sculptures past, and the story behind them. Use this form.
And while I’m on my usual Friday topic — embracing winter — here’s one from the mailbag.
Sara Kimm sent this picture of a pick-up hockey game last Saturday in the Groveland neighborhood (it was Hockey Day in Minnesota). The girls beat the boys. “I shared photos with the other hockey parents. One family is from Australia and the mom sent the photos to friends and family there and told me, ‘I sent them because they have no idea what life is Minnesota is like.'”
As I recall, it was no more than 9 degrees on Saturday. Pressed for the truth, Sara admitted the girl with the T-shirt, is hers. That’s embracing winter!
(* = This is a lie)
Photo via Getty Images.
