On Wednesday, the temperature at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport was -28°F as of 8 a.m., and temperatures are expected to decrease another degree or two before a warm-up begins. According to MPR Meteorologist Ron Trenda, this is our coldest official Twin Cities low temperature since 1996.

The deep cold has closed schools, for which there is a precedent, but it's also led to rarely taken measures such as the suspension of mail delivery, early closure for supermarkets and other businesses, and it even cracked a rail on Metro Transit's Blue Line. (Read more on this from MPR News.)

If you're able to spend this cold snap safely indoors, we've gathered some fun music-related activities to help you enjoyably pass the time.

Fun with paper

When the cold settles in, a lot of folks like to rock it old school; here are some hands-on paper-based activities you might enjoy:

• Draw yourself and three of your friends in the style of Julian Opie's artwork for the 2000 compilation album, Blur: The Best Of. We'll get you started with the inspiration and the grid in this PDF.

• Go loco with our logo — color it in wacky ways!

• David Bowie was as much a fashion icon as a music icon; have fun with these David Bowie Paper Dolls, courtesy our friends at the CBC.

• Print out these face shapes (set 1, set 2) and use them to draw a picture of your favorite rock band or artist. If you're so inspired, tweet it to us at @TheCurrent.

• Print out and color any (or all) of these musicians:
Mick Jagger, Kanye West, Elvis Presley, Jimi Hendrix, John Lennon, George Harrison, Lady Gaga, Loretta Lynn, Beyonce, Gladys Knight

Rock Documentaries

Mary Lucia loves rock and roll documentaries; Mary has talked about a Lynyrd Skynrd documentary that completely captivated her, and about a recent PBS Independent Lens documentary, RUMBLE: The Indians Who Rocked the World, about the many Native musicians who influenced and shaped today's music. RUMBLE is available for streaming in its entirety on the Independent Lens website until February 5.

Read a Rock and Roll Book

Each Wednesday morning at 8:30, Jay Gabler joins Oake & Riley in the Morning to talk about a rock-and-roll-related book. This week, Jay spotlighted Lou Reed: A Life. You can browse the entire Rock and Roll Book Club archive to find a title (or a number of titles!) that capture your interest.

Go down The Current Sessions rabbit hole

Watching The Current's studio sessions can be a bit like a certain brand of potato chips: you can't have just one. Visit The Current Sessions archive on our website to look for your favorites, or visit our YouTube channel to find our Current Sessions or MicroShow Series playlists, turn on autoplay, and sit back and enjoy until the temperatures nudge their way back up again.

Make Music

If you like to sing or play an instrument, a cold-weather sequester is the perfect time to jam! Try the acoustics in your bathroom like local musician Sarah Morris does, or you could shoot some video of yourself playing your instrument and share it on Instagram like Jason Isbell is wont to do.

Listen to The Current

No matter the weather, we at The Current will keep you company with great music. Listen on the radio, or stream us online, using the smartphone app or through your smart speakers.

Take care, and stay warm!