When the skies get dreary, going black and white is a good plan. It also lent itself to this shot of an abandoned church in Judson as I breezed through with a friend on Saturday. We weren’t able to pull off the photo trip we wanted due to weather and soggy section line roads, but we hit a couple of old familiar sites along the way to scratch the itch and get a little something to show for our gas and snack expenditures.
I noticed some outrage on social media yesterday about the fact that KXMB was showing the feet of Bismarck-Mandan’s latest murder victim, pictured at the scene of the crime. Upon reviewing the news story myself I also noticed a shot that looked like it was a little too Peeping-Tom for my tastes.
It looked as if the KX crew was trying to shoot between pallets and get video of the officers checking out the body. As KXMB guest anchor Ron Burgundy would say, “Stay Classy, KX News”.
This is no departure from a long legacy of ambulance chasing at KXMB. I’ve written about it extensively before as one instance of this behavior caused a great deal of pain for my extended family. How’d you like to find out your son is dead because it was on Channel 12? The fact of the matter is that to anyone who knew the victim, especially those close to her, those aren’t feet. They are HER. DEAD. Is branding that image into the minds of people who are now grieving the loss of a loved one worth whatever feather KX News feels is placed in its journalistic cap?
The first time I pointed this out got me a call from a former KX news personality who was all lawyered up and demanding that I take any criticism off the Internet (as if anything can be removed from the world wide web).
The second time I pointed this out my blog was removed from the KX Net’s websites, who were syndicating it with my permission. Apparently they couldn’t take any open scrutiny of their news practices.
When I worked at KFYR-TV the employee manual stated that any sensationalism in the news would not be tolerated. Nobody had to tell us that; it was a matter of professionalism. It was reinforced in writing and in detail when an out of state company bought the Meyer Broadcasting stations. Maybe the out of state company that bought KXMB should put a lid on irresponsible behavior like this.
I had to photograph this from a distance, as the land upon which it sits is posted. That’s no biggie; usually if I find a place that I want to photograph and discover that it’s posted, I look up the name on the NO TRESPASSING sign and call them to ask permission. Aside one drunk so-and-so northeast of Bismarck, all have been quite accommodating.
Many times they simply want to know who’s on their land; they post it so people don’t run around indiscriminately, but they grant permission if asked. That’s how I’d be if I owned a large chunk of photogenic land in rural ND.
It’s been a while since I’ve seen a fence with so many boots perched atop its posts. The one north of Bismarck along 1804 is pretty photogenic, but the way it winds around a curve can be a challenge. This one goes straight up an over a hill. It’s in Morton County, and I’m not sure I remember where. I’d have to ask my GPS.
So……….apparently this happened quite a while ago, but as you may know I’ve had a year or two with very few photo jaunts. This tilted weather vane sits along North 26th Street and used to point to a large, red barn. For some reason, that barn appears to have been razed.
I swung by again a few years later, and yes…it was still functioning normally.
So…wha hoppen? I have no idea. I looked through Google Earth to discover that it seemed to vanish in late 2013. The structure looks sound, so who know why it suddenly disappeared. Maybe it was damaged in some way and deemed too costly to repair. I think I’d recall hearing about a fire if that caused its demise. Strange.
Well…dang.
On a cold, blustery day a week and half ago I found this old piece of equipment near a stretch of barbed wire fence in rural Morton County. It’s hard to tell here that it was actually starting to snow sideways, something that makes flash photography nearly impossible. Thankfully I caught just enough of a break to light this shot and get back into the truck to thaw my fingers!
I went to Scheels to look at ammunition yesterday and was pleased to find these signs around the store. It’s nice to see a business which still regards the most important Christmas holiday! It was actually a thrill to see a regional business stand up to pressure against Christianity in public. In the future I won’t even consider going to another sporting goods store (especially one that doesn’t even carry handguns, ahem).
The greatest news ever given. I was elated to see it proclaimed at Scheel’s. Not only is the company giving its employees to celebrate as they wish, but they’re also proclaiming the good news of the Lord Jesus Christ – good news that I’m willing to bet is enjoyed by the majority of Scheels’ customers.
Thanks again to Scheels and other North Dakota businesses who support people of faith and stand up for what’s right!
I recently took my boys to a friend’s house east of town for an epic afternoon Nerf gun war with a bunch of other boys. That gave me some time to roam with my camera, and along Apple Creek Road I had to stop by this crazy old stump. It just keeps getting more and more hollow, and the birds love it on a windy day like the one we were having. I’ve always been stricken by the way that the stump looks like a castle.
The sky actually didn’t cooperate with me tonight. I was working on an idea I’ve had with the Square Buttes in the foreground of a sunset shot, but the sky really didn’t do a whole heck of a lot. So I zoomed in on one portion of the horizon where there were actually some clouds. As you can see, most of this is the result of jet contrails. Oh well…it got me out of the house for a while. 🙂
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.