Not having been raised in a state where the temperature just drops below freezing one night and then predictably and reliably stays there for several months on-end, the culture of homemade ice rinks was new to me. But it happens here. People flood their yards in late November and then get free ice skating for the next three or four months. They flood parks, too. In fact, it's an art form. Here's Ana, now two-and-a-half, noticing it for the first time. Last week the city erected a fence around the soccer field; everyone is just waiting for the freeze to come. Once it does, city workers will open a fire hydrant and begin the process of making an ice rink for all the neighborhood kids. The party will last until the spring. For now, the kids still play soccer in the rink and wait. While I'm used to this ritual now, it's still strange to me. But to Ana, who's absorbing it in stride, this strangeness will be as benign as Christmas lights some day.
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