Refraction recounts the experience of working in Prudhoe Bay, Alaska, a remote Arctic outpost and home to the largest oilfield in North America. It's the story of one person's journey, told in a series of reflections on a time spent living in a frozen wasteland. Justifying the endeavor as a modern-day gold rush or a romantic odyssey could otherwise be viewed as another distorted image hovering above the horizon-another refraction.