So, I finally finished reading Gage's run on Wildcats World's End...have to say...not actually impressed with his work on Tao. It never really felt like the character I know from Moore's Wildcats or Sleeper...he seemed too megalomaniacal. Too unsubtle. He wasn't at all a persuasive, charismatic character, he felt like a standard arrogant supervillain who got beaten because he let the heroes talk him into something stupid. It didn't feel anything like Tao.
The quinzee is an interesting structure. With several people, it would take 45 minutes or so to pile up the necessary snow. The beauty of the quinzee is that it is designed to work where snow is not packable, though packable snow is usable as well. You can use the fluffiest, powderiest snow and it will still work. After you make it the correct size (mine was smaller than I wanted, as I did it myself and finally got sick of shoveling), you let it sinter for 3 hours. This will turn powdery snow to hard pack as the water vapor rises through the snow, refreezing and re-structuring the crystal structure of the snow as it goes. After a minimum of three hours, you can dig it out. Insert sticks 12-18 inches long around it so that when you reach the stick, you know not to dig any further. For insulation and structural purposes, the walls have to be that thick. Make sure that your sleeping area is elevated as I said in my journal. This allows cooler air to pool at the entrance. Some people say to make air holes, but I find that the door is enough. If you elect to cover your door somehow for further insulation, then I would put air holes.
As I was saying before, mine was slightly smaller than I wanted. You should pile the snow at least as tall as you are. This will give you enough interior room while maintaining 12-18 inches inside that you can stretch to your full length while laying down. You should also be able to sit or crouch inside without bending over. But don't make it too big, unless you want to put a lot of people inside. The bigger the space, the more air that one body has to heat. They can get quite large, though. I've seen one on YouTube fit fifteen people.
If you make it right and if it's cold enough (below freezing, basically), you shouldn't worry about this caving in. I've heard (not witnessed as I did not have a thermometer) that you can get a quinzee in subzero temps to reach above freezing temps inside. If you build it on a pond, don't freak out at loud pops, vibrations, etc. Ice expands and contracts as it cools at sundown through the night and then warms again in the morning. An added bonus of getting your snow off the ice is that when you expose the snow, it actually freezes deeper as it is no longer insulated by snow, thus strengthening your sleeping platform. Lastly, as far as i can think of at 1AM after a few beers, make your entrance as small as possible. You should have to go hands and knees to get in.
What was the name of the program needed to view the comics you gave me? I'm having a mental blank and can't remember the name or where I put the installer on that hard drive, and at the moment my laptop's playing up so I'm on the desktop...and can't read the comics without the program. And I'm right in the middle of the X-Force stuff, dammit to hell!
