The Magic of Just the Right Cold! Yes It's Possible!
A few tales from Alaska- seems like the right week to share about it!
Living in Alaska taught me about the different types of cold that I hadn’t known existed.
It’s interesting how winter wonderlands are created. Each morsel, each speck of white is a literal snow-flake- a crystal of water frozen to take the most unique shape and shapes I had ever witnessed! I actually didn’t even know that such IRL- in real life- structures existed until I saw it with my own eyes. Those paper snowflakes that my first grade teacher had me cut out I thought was just a fun project- I didn’t know that real snowflakes actually looked like that.
My favorite thing to do was to get out my DSLR camera and marvel at the snowflakes even closer through my telephoto lens. In the pile of snowflakes, there would seem to be a few that stuck out perfectly in the light almost as if to show itself off: “here I am in perfect form! Take a picture of me!”
Before this IRL experience, I had learned somewhere, at some point that each snowflake was unique like fingerprints, but since I hadn’t actually seen it, the knowledge stayed in my brain. Now experiencing it IRL, the reality of the knowledge imprinted itself into my heart. The wonder of it, like a shooting star in a pitch dark sky- whoosh!
So these water formations only become crystals when it’s just the right temperature of cold. Above freezing or right around freezing, the molecules kind of just ball together in small lumps and clumps- perfect for snowball making and snowpeople building, etc. And when the temps are too cold, like it often was in Alaska- like way in the negatives, then the molecules become tight little tiny specks.
But just at that sweet spot, when it’s cold, cold- but not just cold cold- and it’s cold, cold, but not unbearably cold- then pop comes the structure and the formation of these beautiful, absolutely amazing ice crystals. The geometry of them is incredible! Just like the picture at the top of this story….
Another scientifically fascinating and fun thing about the cold that I experienced in the cold of Alaska, is the reaction of frigid air when hot water is thrown at it. We would boil some water, go outside and instead of the water falling to the ground, it instantly became particles that would immediately evaporate into the air.
There were also the times we filled balloons with water and sat them alongside the front walkway. They would stay frozen in colorful balls all winter long. Kind of like this…
…I always had to make sure that I fully dried my hair before going outside, because otherwise my hair would freeze and then just break in half like spaghetti before putting it in the pot to cook!
And then there was the extension cords that ran outside of the house and connected to our cars. It wasn’t because we had an electric vehicle. In that extreme cold, the battery will often go dead trying to keep itself warm enough. So we had to “plug in our car” every evening just keep giving life to the battery. When it was crazy cold- like 30 below (without the windchill) the extension cord would go from like a malleable limp string to a frozen snake- like a stick!
Driving over frozen lakes was very cool too! The first time we did it, I was definitely praying the whole time- but then after that it was like, “of course we should take the short cut!”
And then there was the most helpful thing about living in Alaska in the winter. If the freezer was filled up, well then the back porch became a second freezer. No need to worry about running to unpack the groceries, while I tended to cranky toddlers right after a shopping trip!
Speaking of living in Alaska with young kids- well that was an adventure in and of itself, and for another story telling piece…