I recently received a promotional mailer from a local business which had a scratch-and-win game on the back.  Well, as you can see above, there wasn’t a whole lot of mystery to the game in this particular case.  I scratched it off anyway, and voila’ – I was a winner of one of many potential prizes…even $25,000!

Well, I could certainly use a new vehicle right now, and $25,000 would buy a pretty nice Toyota Tacoma or something.  So I figured it might be interesting to visit the local business and see what the catch was.  I’m a born skeptic with this kind of thing.  I didn’t plan on any special trips, but kept the mailer in my truck in case I was in the neighborhood.

For years I’ve had a unique opportunity, as I have received mail at multiple addresses…PO Box, rental property, that sort of thing.  So I was amused when I got my hands on a couple more of the mailers.  Either this was really my lucky week, or something strange is afoot.

As I’d planned to do anyway, I perused the fine print.  It looks like each “WINNER” receives a chance to choose an envelope which may or may not contain a prize.  Makes sense.  The odds of winning each prize are clearly stated on the mailer if you are curious.  They’re far better than the PCH or Powerball, by the way.

I never did venture down to this business; I was simply too busy.  It’s too bad, because I missed a chance to grab a winning envelope.  While you might suspect that I’m ranting against this business for deceptive use of the word “WINNER”, that’s not the case at all.  In 2016, if someone reads a mailer like that and thinks they’ve really struck gold by scratching their way to a big win, then I need to sell them the Grant Marsh Bridge.  It’s just a ploy to get you to pay attention, and by reading the details it’s easy to surmise what’s up.  They want to get you into the store, they’ll give you a chance to pick a prize (at no cost to you, by the way), and along the way see if they can sell you something.  Hard to be offended by that, although I’m sure many would try.

It’s remotely like the Publisher’s Clearing House – if they can keep you busy adhering labels, scratching off “game cards”, and hunting through all sorts of product listings in search of that stamp you need to send back, there’s a good chance they can play on human nature and get you to buy something.  I mean, after all, if you have to do so much to even qualify to win, doesn’t that mean the Prize Patrol could be right around the corner?

I’m of the mindset that if someone offers me a free chance to win something, I’ll take them up on it.  I don’t have any illusions about it, but I don’t mind taking advantage of the opportunity if I’ve got the time.  No hard feelings if I don’t win, and as long as we’re both understanding what’s going on with the contest there’s no reason not to simply take it for what it is: a business trying to attract customers and sales, and a consumer taking a crack at winning free stuff.

Crews spent some time lashing the Lewis & Clark riverboat to the shore this weekend as the river level jumped up in the area.  The park is closed and water is high due to ice packing in downstream.

Every year they take this boat out of the water with a huge crane and set it on some heavy duty cribbing until spring.  That’s all fine and dandy until the water rises to the level of the boat anyway.

Even the ice machine wanted to get into the act.  That’s a pretty decent seal, although I doubt that water is going to do the compressor or electrical components any favors.

I didn’t take a look at the water level indicator further down River Road, but I did notice some water in the ditches and low lying areas further north along the road.  Hopefully we don’t have to deal with more flooding this year, in Bismarck or anywhere else in North Dakota.

This is the photo that started it all on January 1st, 2006.  Ten years ago.  Wow.  A lot has changed since then. Not only am I much more occupied with work, freelance work, and being a husband and Daddy, but I’ve also had to ride out some major health issues and lots of moving: moving my family into a new house, moving my studio/office at work, and moving my church.  So I don’t post daily anymore, but I do share what I can.  I keep thinking that soon enough I will be able to get out with my cameras more.  Meanwhile, I took some time to chase down even more photos like the one above:

This angle looks so straightforward, doesn’t it?  The fact is, I only recently discovered it.  This is actually taken from down Sixth Street a little ways.  That’s the best way to get the NORTH DAKOTA CAPITOL sign in the shot without having it dominate the photo.  Getting farther away gets a perspective that matches it in size with the pioneer statue, and allows both of them to grow in relation to the capitol tower.  It’s a fun shot to get, but not when there’s a lot of traffic whizzing across the frame on Boulevard Avenue.

Here’s what I’m talking about.  If you just go to the bottom of the mall and take a photo from the road, this what you get.  The capitol sign is large, the tower is small, and the pioneer statue is all but indistinguishable.  I don’t know why I didn’t think to venture farther away and set up my shot down 6th Street before this, but I’m thankful for this year’s epiphany.

The parking lots on the north side of the capitol were redone a year or two ago, and that opened up this shot from the backside of the legislative wing.  Previously this angle was obscured by trees, and I’m sure it will be once again someday as newly planted ones grow to adult heights, but for now I have a brand new perspective on the capitol that was not possible when I first started doing this bloggin’ thang.

This year I had a clear sky at sunset and decided to try something a little different.  I’ve had a blast taking shots of the entire capitol complex from the northeast hill and posting it as my blog’s Facebook cover photo.  That’s fine, since it’s such a wide angle shot that it crops very nicely into the 851×315 dimensions required by Facebook.  But what about a traditionally framed shot?  Well, rather than worry about the DOT / Heritage Center buildings I opted this time to pan west toward the sunset and include only the judicial and legislative wings of the capitol along with the tower.  It worked great with the peachy sunset colors, too.

Well, here’s to another ten years!  It looks like I’ve posted in the neighborhood of 3,500 photos so far.  I sure hope I have plenty more photos and musings to share!