The World’s Tallest Snowman (I Mean Snowwoman)

Is it possible for a whole town to be Adultitis-free? I don’t know about that, but Bethel, Maine sure comes close.

In 1999, the ski town of about 2,400 residents set the record for world’s tallest snowman.

In 2008, the record was finally broken.

By them.

This time, they built a “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!

Olympia was built with a series of concentric circles with the help of over 100 volunteers. A crane dumped the snow into frames, and volunteers climbed in for long hours shoveling and packing the snow. It took a little over a month from start to finish.

I think this is the coolest thing I’ve seen in quite some time. (Thanks for passing it along, Marilyn!)

I wonder how many people scoffed at the volunteers who contributed to this whimsical project. “An epic waste of time and resources!” I can imagine them saying. Another example of taking things too seriously.

Lots of people live in areas with snowy winters and the ones with Adultitis spend a big chunk of the winter grumbling about it. A snowy day is an exciting one for kids; a cause for celebration. I know that there are a lot of extra hassles that come with the snow when you’re grown up, but it sure is nice to see a community that still knows how to have some fun with it.

How are you doing in that department?