As the muted daylight begins to wane I look down the line of eager faces.  We are all cold, standing in the frigid air, misty clouds of exhalation hovering around our heads.  I am clad in nothing more than a t-shirt and jeans and now, adding that special flair, goosebumps.  A girl is walking down the crowded line of waiting people, earnestly asking for our compliance.

“I know it’s absolutely freezing out here,” the girl says, “but if you could just fill out this survey you’ll be entered in a contest.”

By the time she reaches my group the ink in her pen has frozen, it will no longer write.

“Wow, I’ve never had that happen before,” the girl tells my husband.

He uses his Zippo to warm the ink just long enough to fill out the survey.  Our potential prize turns out to be nothing more than a case of Monster energy drink that neither of us want.