Happy Iceworm Festival!

I love nearly everything (still miss getting the Sunday paper Sunday morning) about living in this little town located on a remote corner of our planet ... but the Iceworm Festival is my favorite time to be a Cordovan!

We are a hardy bunch ... over the past 26 years we've attended the Iceworm Festival, Mr. DillyDally and I have seen everything in terms of weather ... but 2011 was charmed ... clear skies and sun!

We always begin our Saturday activities with the Catholic Church's annual Pancake Feed!  These four chefs cook for hundreds every year!  And most importantly, they have fun doing it!  The chef wearing the green apron mixes up multiple 5 gallon buckets of sourdough starter each year for the pancakes.  His wife was recently telling me many stories of sourdough "running a muck" in their home over the years!  I love that kind of history ... someone needs to be writing this stuff down!

Next, we were off to the Survival Suit Races!  The waters of Prince William Sound are very cold ... even in the summer ... if you fall in, hypothermia will take you in a matter of minutes.  Knowing how to properly use a survival suit is a must.  

This is a team comprised of students from my school ... they run down the deck and have to get into their suits ... 

... getting into a suit is tougher than one would think ... it is important to do it quickly, but in order for you to survive, it must also be done correctly.

After jumping into the water, they swim as quickly as they can to a survival raft ...

... once all four members of the team are in the raft ... the clock stops.  Here a boy scout leader is assisting troop members into the raft!  It is fun to cheer on the teams ... a place where everyone wins!

Next it is off to be inspired by the Arts and Crafts display!  This hooked rug was made by an elder in our community ... she designed it herself ... it is of her home here in Cordova.  She is an amazing women with talent that is admired by all.

This quilt was made by a friend to celebrate her parents 50th Wedding Anniversary.  What a treasure!

I love the way the quilter used Alaska themed fabric in this pattern ... it is beautiful!

 

Beautiful!

Stunning!

Lovely!

A couple of Popsicle Sticks quilts from our Popsicle Party last summer.  You can read about it here.  The one on the right was made with Bali Pops ... the one on the left was made with scraps from the quilter's stash!  Both are beautiful ... it is such a fun pattern! 

Alaska Native beading and beading on glass balls.  The glass balls were used years ago on Japanese nets as floats ... and continue to be found while beach combing area beaches ... they are a treasure!

Local artist painting on black velvet ... gorgeous!

This was made with a mystery pattern our guild did last spring.

Another beautiful quilt made with Bali Pops!  See ... there is a lot of dillydallying going on in Cordova!

This was a quilt sponsored by the Cordova Historical Society a few years back ... a block for every month of the year.

Lego creations are on display every year as well.  They are always very creative ... and almost make me miss stepping on those little pieces in the middle of the night many years ago when the DillyDally children had them everywhere!  Fond memories!

Next it is our annual parade!

Former girl scout and her son Skye are there for his first Iceworm Parade!

Our Citizen of the Year!  He is so deserving ... relentlessly working for all aspects of our community!  I always refer to him as "my second favorite Norwegian" ... come on ... I have to let Mr. DillyDally be my first favorite!

Scouting is an important part of our community ... Mr. DillyDally and I were both leaders for many years ... we love what it does for youth here in Cordova.

Here are many of the girls with their float ... too dang cute!

Here are the Boy Scouts with theirs ... don't they look great?

Aboard the fire truck are Miss. Iceworm and her royal court.  Baby Iceworm greets the crowd!

Every year the parade ends with the "big" iceworm wiggling its way down main street.  Cordova's children serve as his legs every year ... they are always sooo excited ... once in place they are unable to see where they are going.  This year the iceworm forgot to wait for their guide ... a bit of a pile up on the back end! ;-)

With their guide in place ...

... and everyone back on their feet ... they were able to safely make it down the street!  The entire crowd cheered!

My cough and cold were getting the best of me, so we skipped the ice cream and cake social.  This was the view from our front deck after the parade ... what lovely weather!

Remember ... I am not a photographer ... all I do is point and click on a camera with few bells and whistles.  But I wanted to catch proof that we did have a fireworks display.  It was wonderful and is so appreciated by everyone.

As the sun sets on Cordova's Iceworm Festival I am reminded why it is so important to those of us who live here...

... it is all about friends ... family ... and community coming together to create their own fun for one another.  Such a simple concept yet so powerful.  Yep ... I love my little town on this remote corner of the planet!