I'm known as a neurotic proofreader, but it was actually my friend Luke Graner who pointed out this little gaffe along Washington Street. It could be a goof by whoever made the sign for the ECLC, I suppose; however, it seems to have escaped the notice of anyone in charge. If a sign with a blatant punctuation error shows up for your business or organization, it's prudent to have the sign company rectify the problem... especially if your business is education!
That reminds me of some of the vehicles I've seen around town with Bismarck spelled wrong. Even when I was a kid, I noticed that some of the Cass Clay trucks in Mandan had that misspelling. Then there was the time the phone books had "Bismark" on the spine...that one made the news when I was working at KFYR TV.
One of my other favorite examples of a sign snafu was this truck, which sits along the nature trail on the Mandan side of the Missouri River:
Below is a photo of the truck as it sits...it probably went through most of its useful life of service with that mistake on the door! I didn't look to see what the other side said, although I doubt it would have the same misspelling. I figure the artist got a phone call in the middle of painting "Bismarck" on the door or something. Don't you hate getting interrupted? On a hand-painted door, it's pretty hard to claim it was just a typo!
I'm not immune to making such mistakes, of course. I just think they're interesting to point out. I've made plenty of oversights of my own. It's embarrassing when it happens...especially to those of us who point out the occasional mistake of others!
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( 3.3 / 104 )
It seems like we're going to go straight from summer to winter, but hopefully we're granted a nice bit o' autumn to enjoy attractions such as Papa's Pumpkin Patch north of Bismarck. I haven't had that opportunity yet; this photo is from a previous visit. Take the first opportunity you get to visit the Patch this year, before the snow flies! It seemed a perfect subject for this month's calendar.
Click here to download the printable calendar in PDF format.
If you have Adobe Acrobat Reader installed, you're good to go. It may take a little bit for the program to load, but the file should download reasonably quickly. Click on the icon below to download the free Adobe Reader if necessary.
When you print the PDF, fold along the lines and tape or staple at the bottom. You will then have a free-standing desk calendar showing one of Bismarck-Mandan's neatest fall attractions.
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( 3.1 / 96 )
"But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope." I Thessalonians 4:13
This past weekend marks the tenth anniversary of the loss of my friend, Kirk Eckelberry. Anyone who knew him is well aware of the lives he touched as a Christian husband, local attorney, soccer coach at Shiloh, or just as a friend or neighbor. Kirk and I hadn't seen each other much since we were kids, but in 1999 we had reconnected and loved blazing around on our big Kawasaki Ninjas and camping out at the races. Sadly, I only had the one summer with my friend.
I've always skilfully put up walls in my heart regarding loss, especially in this situation. It wasn't the first time; my friend Norm Kukert died on his motorcycle right in front of me; my friend Brad Doll died on his motorcycle right before I arrived on the scene (I still have my collectible Scott Russell t-shirt with the tear from lifting Brad's bike into the truck). One race weekend, when I had a really bad feeling about things and packed up my gear without ever getting on the track and headed home, one of our racers was killed in a high speed turn two accident. A young motorcycle racer tells himself things like "It'll never happen to me." For many reasons, which I still don't understand, Kirk's death really pierced my heart.
I found out about his crash while getting my scripts ready for the ten o'clock news at KFYR-TV one night. I was stunned...that's not the way to find out your friend has been killed. We were looking forward to going racing together the next spring and had experienced a really fun summer of riding. Also, I wasn't a Christian at that time and was really fond of having a friend who was saved. I could see the peace and joy he had, and it was starting to sink in exactly why and how he could have those things. And suddenly he was gone.
Many of us, including Kirk's brother and myself, rode in a group of motorcycles at Kirk's funeral. I'm sure he would have enjoyed that. I have no doubt that he's in unspeakable joy up in heaven with his savior; the sadness I've felt has always been for those of us who miss him, most of all his family. That kind of pain and sorrow is the thing that I've shut out, bottled up, whatever sort of cliche' you want to apply. This time around, however, despite my best efforts to skirt around the anniversary of the day, I was able to come away with a sense of joy and love I never expected.
Kirk's family poured a lot of time and effort into me when I was a kid. When they had youth group events at their house or church, I was always welcome. It seemed as though I could smell pizza at the Eckelberry home from my house several blocks away! Many times i would come over and not even hang out much with the Eckelberry boys, but talk with Ma about my need to be "born again" or my need for a savior. Those things didn't sink in at the time, but they laid the groundwork for me to realize the truth down the road.
It was actually Jesus himself who said that we need to be "born again" in John 3:7 ("Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again."). Here I thought the term was just clever branding on the part of some Christian movement. Nope...the entire reason I'd been going to church all my life, the Lord Jesus Christ, is the one who said it. That's pretty high authority...after all, if we don't believe in what Jesus himself said, why go to church in the first place?
The constant witness and the visible joy of my friends spoke to my heart, and there was a point down the road where I accepted Jesus as my savior, I became "born again", I got "saved"...whatever term you wish to ascribe to it. I am now a Christian in every sense of the word. I wish I could have told Kirk in person, but I know that some day in heaven I'll get the opportunity to do just that.
The reason I can now write this with such joy and with an unburdened heart is that I was able to find and call Kirk's mom, "Mrs. Eckelberry" to me, and finally tell her how I miss Kirk. More importantly, I was able to thank her for caring enough for me to spend the time witnessing to me, inviting me in for pizza or to church, and always making me feel welcome. I was able to tell her that her kindness and the influence of her son Kirk were the pivotal influence in my life, that now I'm a Christian husband and daddy. That kid who had no regard for his eternal destination or relationship with the God that created him is a Christian man, active in a great church and trying to serve God every day. That's fruit to their account, and the blessings they gave me were hopefully returned by letting her know what a wonderful difference she made in the salvation of that boy.
Sure, it's still painful to miss Kirk and all the fun we had planned. I especially think of his wife and two little kids, especially when I go out riding these days. Rather than focusing on the loss of my friend, however, I can now think of the joy that his brief re-entry into my life has brought. Someday in heaven we'll all share in unspeakable joy, and the pain of this life will be a distant memory.
I was listening to a sermon by Charles Stanley the other day, talking about the legacy we'll leave behind. My salvation is part of the legacy of Kirk and his family. I'm not alone; there were many people who got up at Kirk's funeral to describe their memories of him. One in particular that stood up was a woman who only met him once. She was in a very bad place, financially and otherwise, but Kirk helped her. He did so in a kind and loving way, and his influence on her was great enough that she came to stand in front of all those people and relate her experience with Kirk Eckelberry. Many people remember Kirk like that.
From now on I'm going to remember the joy of being friends with Kirk and his family, to be grateful for my soul's salvation through their investment in me, and the knowledge that someday I'll see him again in the presence of our Lord.
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( 3.1 / 127 )The photo stream continues...
Bold Witness. This driver has Bible verses all over the truck. I didn't look, but I suspect even the top of the trailer declares the gospel!
Someone had the right idea, setting up this old chair beneath the lone tree up along Promontory Point in north Bismarck. It's a perfect vantage point for sunset viewing. The chair has since been removed.
Classic sodas on sale at Mac's Hardware on south 26th Street.
Norwegian Pride on display at the Kirkwood Mall. Ole Wan Kenobi?
Another fresh batch of magazines for the AR-15 arrived, ready to get stuffed full of ammunition. They've got plenty of company.
Slugbug. Slugbug. Slugbug. Slugbug. Slugbug. Slugbug. No slugbacks!
Waiting for the first (west) span of the old Liberty Memorial Bridge to go BOOM. Cappuccino from the B&J Tesoro on 6th Street helped keep things warm.
I didn't know the First Lady was in town, but I recognized this plane from all the way over on University Drive.
Of all the times to be walking out on the sandbar. This was a very fast moving cell. My wife and I were able to walk back to the truck, however, before the rain came upon us because we were on the south edge of the storm.
This church is one of about three or four deserted buildings that make up the ghost town of Arena, North Dakota. It sits to the northeast of the Bismarck-Mandan area.
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( 3 / 170 )I back up the little card in my cell phone regularly, as with my wife's phone (and my GPS, and everything else). I had a lot of neat photos in there, so I figured I'd share a bunch of them.
Spotted back behind St. Alexius Medical Center, near the Emergency Room entrance. I used to be a frequent flyer there back in my extreme sports days. I always had a regular bed, the one along the east wall by the phone. They spelled "toweth" wrong.
My camera all set up to take a time lapse of bugs climbing all over my polarizer filter (oh yeah, and a wind turbine being assembled).
I spotted this miniature dragster in Mandan.
I went out riding after church one evening and took a brief opportunity to look up something in my Bible. I have some friends who are going through quite a setback with their little baby and I needed to seek some answers as I watch them going through it.
One reason why I quit racing, although I'm not saying I won't start up again someday. No, this isn't my wheel. It was sent to me by a racing pal.
Ah, the river at sunset.
Finishing up with sunrise photos at the old Occident elevator at Almont. I left a tripod in the shot for my friend Watson (inside joke).
I spotted this mongrel on the Minot Air Force Base. Note the old front end on the truck with the newer model back end and tail gate.
This is the foot bridge across Hay Creek (I believe) at the Game & Fish OWLS site in east Bismarck, beside the NDG&F office.
Two key tools in getting neat photos of rural North Dakota: knobby tires and a good GPS loaded with trail maps and section line roads.
Lots more to come...
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( 3 / 173 )
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