No, I’m not being fresh. I wanted to introduce you to Baby, one of the friendly faces at The Birdhouse! I can’t actually claim to know whether Baby is male or female, but I guess that’s hardly important. All I know is that this is one talkative bird! I caught Baby in mid-“hello” for this shot.

I did find out that Chipper, the energetic little lovebird that greets visitors from atop his cage / amusement park, is a little off these days. Apparently he’s had a stroke or something, causing him to have a poor equilibrium and be a little less comfortable with folks he doesn’t know. I was really sad to hear this because I believe he’s related to Scooter, my little lovebird. They’re the same age, anyway.

I recommend The Birdhouse as a wonderful place if you’re looking for a pet bird; however, I’m going to be very adamant about one thing: birds are not your average pet and have lots of special needs! They require lots of attention and interaction as well as regular care such as having their wings clipped. They are also susceptible to a myriad of household dangers, including toxins present in air fresheners and scented candles. While it’s common knowledge that Scooter is allowed to fly in our house, it’s only through years of diligent care and constantly working with him. We’re definitely a rare case. If you plan on being a bird owner, you have to accept some lifestyle changes in order to accomodate your new friend.

Even if you just want to say “hello” I recommend a trip to The Birdhouse. But please don’t decide to take a birdy home as a pet until you’ve thought it through and decided to accept the commitment. I spent two weeks thinking it over before I got my bird. It was worth it, but every bit as big a responibility as I’d imagined. I had a little bit of foreknowledge, as my parents had a parrot over at their house, and I got to hear all of their bird stories…good and bad.

If you’ve lived in Bismarck-Mandan for a while, you’ve probably been told that the Missouri River can be a treacherous place to swim. There are dangerous undercurrents and other such hazards like this whirlpool I spotted today. The way this picture is framed, it’s hard to determine the size of the funnel. It was several feet across, easily large enough to cause serious problems for a swimmer.

This nasty trap was situated on the Mandan side of the river, north of the Grant Marsh Bridge. It’s not in an area where I’d expect to find swimmers, but you never know. I’d certainly hate to fall in while fishing from the shore or fall out of a boat nearby.

So, consider yourself warned: the Missouri River can be hazardous. Please use at your own risk!

There was a tradition we had back in the 1980s, when I was in high school and college: about this time of year, before everyone left town for school, we would have a great big sendoff. This took place on the sandbar in the middle of the Missouri River, beneath the cliffs of the Double Ditch Indian Village. We’d walk down a crazy path like the one you see in this photo, be shuttled across the water to the sandbar by pontoon boat, and there the festivities would take place.

We’d have a generator and a sound system, volleyball nets and footballs and frisbees, bonfires, and would enjoy one last night of fun with everybody. Double Ditch Loop, which actually used to BE a loop through the park area, would be packed with cars. It was a really good time. I’d take a six-pack of Mountain Dew and go out there with my friends, most of whom live out of state now. I bet they all remember hot summer nights on the sandbar, though!

These uniquely shaped rocks are from an area north of Mandan on Highway 1806. They’re part of the excavation and construction of the earthen dam of the Harmon Lake project. While they look pretty bizarre, they’re simply the result of normal geologic processes. They’re called “cannonballs” and are not all that uncommon in our area.

Just like a Tootsie Pop, they have a center that differs in composition from the outer layers. I don’t think their internal composition is what makes them stand out so much; rather, it’s their round or egg-shaped appearance. In the case of these particular rocks, their size is remarkable too.

I’d heard about the Harmon Lake project a while back, but never seen it for myself until recently. It’s not often that a guy finds himself traveling north on 1806…heck, it even turns to gravel just a stone’s throw north of here! If you do find yourself in the area, however, it’s not easy to miss the big piles of dirt to the left of the roadway. Originally the concrete tower of the overflow control unit stood out like a water tower; now it’s not even visible from the highway side of the dam any more.

This is the backside of the dam. Construction is still underway, but was halted on this particular day because of rain. Once it’s completed, this will be a recreational area for all to enjoy. The project actually began in 1969 (just like yours truly) when it was first designed, but is only now coming to fruition. Upon the groundbreaking back in 2003, it was expected to be completed in 2005. I guess they missed that mark.

This 2100-foot long, 67-foot tall dam and the 144 acre lake it will create are a joint effort between ND Game and Fish, the cities of Bismarck and Mandan, and the State Water Commission. The USDA’s NRCS (Resource Conservation Service) kicked in a grant for almost eighty percent of the project’s anticipated $11 million cost.

That’s odd…driving across the Memorial Bridge, catching something out of the corner of your eye…and yikes! It’s hovering oxy-acetylene tanks! It’s just a coincidence that they happen to be at eye level from the bridge, but it’s a pretty neat anti-theft technique for job sites.

When the crew wraps up at the end of the day, they can simply gather any equipment that might grow legs overnight by appealing to would-be thieves and attach it to the cranes. They then lift it in the air, lock up for the night, and go home assured their equipment will remain until morning. Another purpose is keeping the crane’s ball and hook weighted so the wind can’t play with it. It’s not a bad plan.

So, unless you’re a crane operator and a locksmith, you’re out of luck trying to make off with any free equipment from this site. I’ve even seen some job sites where a 4×4 ATV hangs suspended from the crane…it’s a clever and unique anti-theft mechanism, and I applaud whoever came up with this idea. I’m guessing it works pretty well!

If you’re one of those who, like me, enjoy the 18th floor of the North Dakota State Capitol, you’re going to have to find something to replace it for a while. The observation floor is closed until further notice, likely for a year.

I was surprised to see these signs a few weeks ago, so what do ya do in such a situation? You ask someone “in the know.” I’m not talking about someone at the info desk or any other Capitol employee. No, I’m referring to someone who’s actually doing the job. So, I poked around upstairs where all the carpet, electrical, and cubicle work was going on. I ran into a nice guy who explained that, once they got the sprinkler system going, the 18th floor is going to be used for intermediate offices while the floors below it are being remodeled.

While the 17th floor is undergoing its updates, the employees from there will be on the 18th. Then they’ll move back down a floor and the people from the 16th will move up two floors for a while. And, as far as this guy was aware, that was going to be the case for floors 15-17 only. I just hope that they get done soon so we can go up to the observation floor again as soon as possible.

The floors below are stacked with construction materials already, at least they were when I took these pictures. I’m going to miss the ol’ 18th floor for a while. It’s fun to get good cloud pictures from there, look at the historic photos they have posted up there, or even just count the sunroofs in the parking lots below. It’s also good exercise, as I take the stairs instead of the elevator.

If you were planning a trip to the top of the Capitol any time soon, don’t bother! Go to the Heritage Center or the State Library instead. When it opens again, you’ll see more pictures here.

I was surprised to find some major excavation going on at the OWLS site east of Bismarck today. To say “OWLS site” is like saying “PIN number” because OWLS stands for Outdoor Wildlife Learning Site. So if that’s one of your pet peeves, too bad. There are other OWLS in the area, by the way. One of them is on west Century Avenue.

They’re obviously trying to make the channel of the manmade lake deeper. Now is probably the best time to do it, but I sure hope it’s able to fill up before the fall migration season. Lakes like this are a waypoint for migrating bird species as well as photographers. Right now the OWLS lake, which is fed by a natural stream running along the east edge of Bismarck, is in dire need of more water.

The floating bridge I was standing on for these photos is drooping badly, and areas I never thought would be exposed to the air are poking well above the watermark. I don’t know what that does to the wildlife, but it can’t be fun. Hopefully we’ll get enough rain to stock it up again soon!