BALTIMORE — Bundled up in a winter coat and gloves, surrounded by ice and snow, a sculptor named Angelito works. No, we're not describing conditions from last winter. We're talking about today.
"We're in this freezer that's about 18 degrees at all times," Kane Rose tells us.
The freezer in Northeast Baltimore is operated by "The Ice God," a company that makes ice sculptures. On a day like today, sculptor Angelito, and lead designer Rose are living the dream.
"Yeah, I wouldn't wish for a better job. If I had to be outside doing something, I don't know what I would do. I'd probably die," Rose said.
As soon as you abandon the relative comfort of 18 degrees and step outside, the winter garb becomes unbearable.
"It can give you a real thermal shock. You're hot, then you're cold, you rush out, and you get pins and needles as you're warming up," Rose said.
But that pretty much sounds like paradise for those working outside.
Jose Zavala and his co-workers at Joshua's Landscaping are layered up to protect themselves from the sun, but they'd ditch the sleeves in an instant if they could.
"Maybe less - in the 80s, it feels really nice to be outside working. But in the 100s, it's not fun," Zavala said.
It only takes a couple of minutes of standing out here in the sun today to really feel the effects of this heat. And these guys will be out here for hours. They say having plenty of water on hand is key.
"The body feels like we can't handle it. When you go down and then you get up, you feel like you start to get a little dizzy, so we know that that's not good air we're breathing, so we have to stop," Zavala said.
Although plenty of us are ready for the the oppressive heat to melt away, we'll likely be singing a different tune in a matter of months - especially the employees at the ice god.
"You're in here like 8, 12 hours a day, you're really wishing for the summer," Rose said.
