Thankfully things are going to be back to normal this year. I’m super excited for Independence Day this year, despite some wrinkles in some long-made plans. It’s going to be a great week to be in Bismarck-Mandan, and I’m hoping I can dust the cobwebs off the cameras and capture some of it to post! After the whirlwind that has been 2013, as evidenced by the trickle of photos posted on this site, I’m long overdue for some camera time. My sweetie agrees.
This is a photo of the flag flying proudly over the parking lot of Arrowhead Plaza in Bismarck on the morning of December 12th, 2009. I was early for a meeting nearby, so I meandered over to the lot to catch the colors for a few minutes. Shortly afterward I found myself sitting between the Attorney General and Secretary of State, drinking orange juice and taking in a very fascinating briefing.
Today, June 14th, also marks a significant even in our nation’s history. In 1954, Congress passed a joint resolution adding the words “under God” to the Pledge of Allegiance. On June 14th of that year, President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed the bill into law. This has at times been controversial, although only to people who tend to affiliate themselves with a particular political party (ahem).
Display the flag proudly if you have the means to do so! Governor Jack Dalrymple has put out a proclamation “encouraging North Dakotans to observe the days from Flag Day through Independence Day as a time to honor America, to celebrate our rich heritage, and to express our gratitude to those who have secured our freedoms and to those who defend them still today.” Amen to that.
That’s one thing that makes these “Fallen Farms” so appealing to my eye that they merit their own category on this blog. The fact that these structures were new at one time, were home at one time, and were abandoned at one time is fascinating to ponder. Their presence dotting the landscape of rural North Dakota is both sad and charming at the same time.
I’ve been slow to dabble in HDR (High Dynamic Range) photography because I have seen so many examples of it done badly. HDR can be used to do some really cool, artistic things if you like…but in my opinion its best use is in capturing detail throughout a wide range of shadows and highlights (thus, high dynamic range). When I find a shot that works well with HDR to do so, then I play around with it.
This technique can also be used to make some artistic but not very appealing (to me, this is subjective) images. I’m more interested in the hyper-realistic qualities of HDR imagery, and a very few, well-planned shots lend themselves well to this technique. It sure is fun, though, when you come across such an opportunity. I hope to find more of these in the future and, of course, share them here.
As usual some windmills caught my eye. Some I marked in the trusty Garmin, and others I chased down. This one was particularly attractive since it was tucked behind some rather nice trees. I grabbed a few quick shots from the section line road and moved along to grab a few others that I’ll share in due time.
I don’t make promises; I prefer to mean what I say. That doesn’t mean that I’m 100% dependable, but I do my best. In this case, I had an object lesson for my boys. I said that I wanted to take ’em to Fort Lincoln, and I was set on doing just that. Events Sunday evening pushed the envelope, but we loaded up their little bikes and took off anyway. Nothing ventured, nothing gained. The Bible says, “let your yea be yea, and your nay, nay” – in other words, say what you mean, mean what you say, and you don’t have to promise or swear to anything. I told them how important it was for me to keep my word to them.
Thankfully, we arrived with a good 20 minutes or so to explore and even had the blockhouses to ourselves. We got in some riding, the weather was nice, there were no mosquitoes, and we actually loaded up just a couple of minutes before the rangers headed up to close the site for the night. Awesome!
These sodas are awesome – some for their novelty, some for their taste, and some for both. The best collection I’ve seen to date is at Runnings, although there are a bunch at Mac’s Hardware as well. Mac’s used to have an enormous display of these, but now they’re down to just a single refrigerated case.
If you spot these sorts of sodas around town, please let me know!
By this point it was too cold and windy for my little guys, so we headed home instead of watching the crane be dismantled. It’s always fun to see a big lift, though…even though it moves slowly, it’s a really neat spectacle to watch.
– The state legislature doesn’t assess property values;
– The state legislature doesn’t levy property taxes;
– The state legislature doesn’t collect property taxes…
And yet they’ve managed to not only tie the noose of public anger at property taxes, but they’ve also stuck their head in the loop and tightened the knot. Meanwhile, the culprits behind high property taxes at the county level get a free pass without any accountability.
I’d expect another Measure Two type initiated measure to appear on the radar soon. In fact, while I opposed Measure Two on the last ballot I would certainly vote for the abolition of property taxes in North Dakota. I just saw the bad mechanics of the last attempt and didn’t want to put the state in a bind. If it had simply said “No governing entity may levy property taxes” I’d have voted yes. I imagine that a lot more people will be voting yes for whatever property tax measure hits the ballot, regardless.
I met one of my representatives for coffee back when Governor Hoeven got this ill-fated “reform” shell game started and pretty much predicted the debacle we’re facing now. I warned that the legislature will assume responsibility for the tax & spend behavior of the counties, and will be the bad guys in the eyes of voters no matter what they can and can’t do to relieve property tax burdens. Here we are.
Some days the legislature makes just about as much sense as the signs pictured above – and those signs would work even better as a descriptor of the failed transparency bills in this session, but I’m not going there…yet.
One of the reasons I got into photography in the first place is that my video work takes me to places and shows me things that are so amazing that I wanted to be able to share them with others. One of the others is a love of North Dakota, particularly my home town area of Bismarck-Mandan. As a result, our local landmarks hold special significance for me.
While wrapping up a helipad photo shoot last night I noticed something that had almost escaped me: a perfect vantage point for photographing the Beacon! Naturally I took a few seconds to spring into action and grab a couple of quick shots. Since what I’d been seeking is a simple, direct, squared-up shot, I didn’t need to squander any time trying to brainstorm something funky. A few clicks later I had some different shots of one of my favorite local landmarks, just as I’d always hoped.
Here’s a refresher on my long relationship with the Weather Beacon:
It was fun to joke about the Beacon, as if it actually made the weather, during my KFYR days. The TV station control operator (me, five nights a week) was in charge of changing the weather beacon to reflect the updated forecast throughout the broadcast day. On our program log in the control room, in between entries for commercials and programs, were occasional reminders to update the weather beacon.
The poor Beacon almost faded into history in 1997. It was showing its wear, and the cost of modernizing it was prohibitive. That was, however, until KFYR Radio rode to the rescue. Phil Parker and Mark Armstrong headed an effort to Save the Beacon!
At this time, Meyer Broadcasting was still intact. While I was hard at work on the TV side of the building, I also freelanced the website for KFYR-AM Radio. As part of the campaign to save the Weather Beacon, we had a couple of pages on the website urging people to help donate.
You can click here to see the original Save the Beacon page from my archives. Yeah, the Web has come a long way.
The campaign was a success in that it raised money toward the Beacon’s restoration, increased public awareness of its plight, and served as a rallying cry to its rescue. While the entire cost of the Beacon’s renovation was not raised, its importance to the community was indisputably proven. Through a matching grant from local government and plenty of donations, the project was underway.
As part of the KFYR website, we were happy to post that the Beacon would be saved. Cliff Naylor did a report on the Beacon that aired as part of a live telecast from the roof of the Provident Building, atop which the Beacon still sits.
You can click here to see the post-campaign page from my archives and watch the video.
As I recall, and the details in my head are quite murky, the Beacon was restored but still had some gremlins. I believe it was then refitted one more time and has functioned ever since. None of it would have been possible without Phil and Mark. To this day, the controls reside with KFYR Radio instead of the television station. In fact, why don’t you call the PH Phactor on KFYR 550 AM and ask Phil about it?
Weather Beacon white as snow, down the temperature will go.
Weather Beacon red as fire, temperature is going higher.
Weather Beacon an emerald green, no change forseen.
When colors blink in agitation, there’s going to be precipitation.
Provident Life used to sponsor TV spots featuring the Beacon and its rhymes. Since they’re no longer doing business there, the ads don’t run. That means that the weather beacon itself is somewhat obscure now, with newer Bismarck-Mandan residents unaware of its history. For those of us who have lived here a long time, it’s good to see the weather beacon standing tall. No matter what the forecast, there’s something great about seeing it red in the spring, green when things are just right, and white when Thanksgiving and Christmas approach. Thanks to everyone who helped keep it up and running!
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