Mine is bigger than yours…
Everybody likes to brag. Some people are willing to really put effort into it. Whether it is women’s diamonds or men’s trucks they all want to be the biggest and baddest. It is no different for snowmen. Whether it is your neighbor or your town or even your country having the biggest snowman is sign of power, influence and cold weather. Based on limited research the real snowman contest got started in 1969 with Lloyd Koesling, a former barber and civic leader in North St. Paul. After visiting Disneyland and being inspired by the statue-building process there, Lloyd returned home bursting with excitement. He pitched the idea to the City Council. In 1972, the City Council donated a small plot of land for this ambitious project. Volunteers rallied together to help pour the foundation and construct the 72 foot giant snowman sculpture.
Anchorage, Alaska came in with a the 20-foot-tall real snowman, built by the Powers family, is dubbed, “Snowzilla” by local residents. The family had been building the giant snowman since 2005 but received a cease-and-desist notice from the city in 2008 after complaints from neighbors about increased gawker traffic.
A man in Buffalo, Minnesota constructed a 30-foot-tall snowman, complete with a 75 pound hat, a traffic cone for a nose, wooden eyes, and a smile that spreads across his face. He collected snow from around the neighborhood and continues to add to the snowman when temps are over 30. He loves expanding his family and seeing the joy it brings to tourists. The 30-foot-tall snowman is 20-feet-across.
In 1999, the ski town of about 2,400 residents set the record for world’s tallest “snowwoman” and she was no dainty lass. Her name was Olympia, and she clocked in at a towering 122′ 1″ tall (about 30 feet shorter than the Statue of Liberty) and a scale-tipping 13,000,000 pounds. She featured eyelashes created from discarded skis and bright red lips made from painted car tires. Schoolchildren made her huge red hat and her 8-foot long “carrot” nose. She sported a 100-foot-long scarf and her eyes were made from giant wreaths. Her arms were 30-foot spruce trees!
Sadly, it was announced by the Guinness World Records Austria is now home to the world’s tallest snowman. The snowman, nicknamed “Riesi” or “giant” in English, measures 124 feet tall. The pair of ski resort employees originally intended for the snowman to be 131 feet tall, and used snow cannons to build up a hump of compact snow 30 meters wide in a process that took 40 days. The snow giant survived winds of over 100 kilometers an hour on Tuesday evening, with only her 7 foot tall hat blowing off and needing to be rebuilt. “I did it for the children, who for the most part don’t know that when there were still real winters with lots of snow, snowmen were built in front of nearly every house.” After the world record was confirmed celebrations with fireworks were held near the snowman. It is hoped that Riesi will remain standing for tourists to visit until summer.
Ho, Ho, Ho
What do you call a snowman that plays piano?
Meltin’ John.
How does a snowman make you laugh?
It gives you an icetickle.
What was the snowman doing in the vegetable patch?
Picking his nose.
What do you call an old snowman?
A puddle.
December 6th Birthdays
1969 – Macy Gray, 1962 – Janine Turner, 1996 – Stefanie Scott, 1986 – Dulce Maria
1993 – Elian Gonzalez, 1967 – Judd Apatow, 1896 – Ira Gershwin, 1956 – Craig Newmark