By TOM DIDDEL
As Missoula finally felt the snowy touch of Old Man Winter’s wrinkly fingers last week, a new internet craze, coined “Frosting,” was spawned.
According to a Montana Kaimin article, Missoula resident John Brownell created the fad after his gazebo collapsed under the weight of the snow.
The steps to Frosting is described in a KPAX news story: “All you have to do is find a summer outfit, pretend it’s 80 degrees outside, find a friend to take your picture, and have fun!”
Like the neighborhood children who continuously kick their soccer balls into the grumpy neighbor’s yard, it seems Frosters take pleasure in taunting miserly ol’ winter.
It seems easy enough, raid your grandparent’s attic for the most outrageous summer attire, set up a summer like background in a foot of snow and snap a picture.
Then, while you are desperately trying to raise your core body temperature before hypothermia sets in, you can upload your photos to Frosters Anonymous. They’re up to over 4,000 likes in just over a week.
It only takes a glance at these pictures to realize why they became such a hit. They are hilarious.
It's a Frosting lesson from Make it Missoula's favorite mama, Elke Govertsen, and her family. (Click to enlarge...you gotta see the detail!)
I, however, am skeptical of new fads (I have been burned before). Everyone has seen the hot new thing come and go with similar results. In the eighties, we lived through Parachute Pants and New Coke. The nineties brought us American Gladiators (I still want to test drive the Atlasphere).
We soon found out that Parachute Pants ripped at the mere sight of any sharp object, New Coke tasted like the Original Coke with the added ingredient of what I can only assume was camel spit, and while American Gladiators did enjoy a slight resurgence in 2008, it eventually left us like the Hasselhoff’s television show. Bathroom floor cheeseburger anyone?
All this leaves us with the question: What happens when you mercilessly taunt Old Man Winter?
We all witnessed the shellacking my beloved Denver Broncos took when the “Tebowing” phase got out of hand. So far, news organizations from Bozeman, Billings, Great Falls, and even as far away as Columbus, Indiana have reported about Frosting.
So, as Missoulians look forward to the melting snow, rain, freezing rain, more snow, followed by standing water and the inevitable freezing of the standing water into an urban ice skating death rink, maybe we should rethink our quick embrace of this craze.
Or, perhaps we should just sacrifice the ball in favor of a much-needed laugh and endure the grumpy neighbor’s stare as he shakes his fist in anger.
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Have you gotten your Frost on yet? We wanna see your photos!
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Tom Diddel has lived in Missoula on and off for nearly thirty-eight years. He enjoys skiing, hiking, and many other outdoor activities. He holds a B.A. in English Literature from the University of Montana and is currently working as a Freelance Writer and a Para-Educator.