The 2008 PolarTREC teachers have been working very hard. I am amazed at the skills we have learned in such a short period of time. I can: download photos to a web page, wow, even my journal if you are reading right now, I downloaded. I have learned how to record and place a podcast on the web; I have even learned an Alaskan native dance for the building of an Igloo. And though the training has been amazing, one still needs a moment to re-charge, to collect them selves and catch a breath before continuing with instruction. I am astounded at the skills I have learned in such a short period of time, but tonight many of us have gone out to play. Yes, we traveled to the world ice art championships and thought the sun had long set, our excitement was undiminished. I have never in my life seen such beauty in ice. The detail, use of design and the obvious passion these artists have for their work is apparent in everything. A dragon fly perched on a flower in sub zero temperatures, a surfer timeless on his endless wave, all magnificent!
Chinese Ice Carver
But this was just the start, for then we found the four person, ten block competition, and for these teams the work had barely begun. Men and women from China, Mexico, Louisiana, Washington so many places I was unable to talk to them all, working diligently to bring magnificence to life in frozen water. The background sound was that of chainsaws, the sights magical as one person after another shared their creation of art. One man while talking to us opened a suitcase where he had numerous fins for a mystical creature that would be attached prior to judging. Now remember, an ice competition, so all these fins were intricately detailed, yes in ice! And then a woman, wielding a Stihl saw, 48 inch blade as she worked her magic on a block of ice weighing over six thousand pounds. Large cranes moved among us as blocks of ice swung precariously prior to the perfect placement in a masterpiece, and then I saw it, the best most magnificent thing I had seen in ages: for there written on a huge block of ice were the words, "Hi Jillian, I love you." So you tell me, was this not the most perfect evening?
I love you!
Love is Priceless!