Monthly Archives: January 2006

Monthly bandwagon

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Jump on! If you’re an Internet junkie or frequent the blogosphere at all you’ve probably run into the Four Things Meme. What’s a “meme” you ask? According to the Wikipedia, it’s a piece of information traveling from one mind to another, with an analogy of “language as a virus.” That pretty well describes the “Four Things” phenomenon.

So, here are my answers to the list that’s going around:

Four jobs you’ve had in your life:

1. Ski patrol at a famous ski resort
2. Undercover shoplifting investigator
3. TV news technical director
4. Law enforcement

Four movies you could watch over and over:

1. Real Genius
2. Oh Brother, Where Art Thou?
3. Paulie
4. Top Gun

Four Places You’ve Lived:

1. Montana
2. North Dakota
(that’s all I’ve got…various places around each state)

Four TV shows you love to watch:

1. Boston Legal
2. 24
3. Seinfeld
4. Miami Vice

Four Places you’ve been on vacation:

1. Deals Gap, NC
2. Disney World
3. Glacier Park
4. Brainerd International Raceway

Four blogs you visit daily:
1. Tween
2. XPLSVtv
3. FARK.com
4. Any of the fine blogs (mostly ND) listed on the panel to the right

Four of your favorite foods:
1. Italian Sausage Pizziola Pasta at “The Walrus” in Bismarck
2. A&B Pizza – italian sausage with black olives
3. Applebee’s boneless buffalo wings – heavy on the sauce
4. Bourbon Street Steak

Four places I’d rather be:
1. Bed
2. Racing my motorcycles
3. SCUBA diving in warm caribbean water
4. Snowboarding the top of Challenger

Four albums I can’t live without:
1. Vince Guaraldi: “Charlie Brown Christmas”
2. Tangerine Dream: “Pergamon”
3. Seal: self-titled
4. B-52’s: “Naked on the Moon”

Four vehicles I’ve owned:
1. Nine motorcycles, several at the moment
2. Chevy Astro van with a stick shift
3. Chevy Luv pickup with a tendency to get airborne
4. Snowboard “Mavis”

Four people to be “tagged” who have to complete this:
(Consider yourself “tagged” if you’re reading this.)

Around the World in oh, about an hour

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I believe the route “around the world” started at least as far back as the 1970’s. It’s a route along a set of narrow, windy gravel county roads west of Mandan. I’m told that stoners used to drive this route and do their thing; I can’t attest to that. In fact, I never even heard it called “Around the World” until a few years ago.

My first encounter was actually part of a mountain biking trip. In the early 1990s during the Bike Route store’s heyday there were lots of neat organized rides. One such destination was at a big chunk of beautiful land called “The World” by local bikers. I’d heard about the place but never been there. So I threw my bike in my truck and followed some guys out there.

As it turns out, “The World” is land that had been owned by my best friend until about 1987! It’s a beautiful parcel with a valley below, a big cedar A-frame house facing the southwest…and open to mountain bikers! It was a fun realization…and incredible biking. And while nobody could tell me why it was called “The World,” I think we can connect the dots here.

But “Around the World” still hadn’t occurred to me. What is it? Well, it’s basically a dirt road that takes you from Highway 10, about 10 miles west of Mandan, to Highway 6, about 5 miles south of Mandan. Head west on Highway 10. When you reach County Road 83 at the top of a hill, take a left and off you go. Be careful, though. The road is narrow in places, windy with blind corners, and has some steep dropoffs too. Oncoming traffic is NOT easy to see in many parts of this road.

It seems like you’re on your way to the Black Hills, but it’s really not that far of a drive. You will know you’re on the right track when you pass this, the Sweet Briar school. Yes, I believe it’s still in use. It was in the 1980’s.

Follow the road for quite a while until it curves west. At this point it technically becomes County Road 138. At this point you’re Mandan bound again. There are several intersections, but don’t be tempted to turn on any of them or it could be a long day. If you see a sign indicating County Road 83 again, don’t take it. Stay on the road you’re on.

You’ll pass this abandoned farmstead. Every time I see one of these I have to stop and take a picture, even at night like this one. (The benefits of a good camera – shots in low light that look good.) This one was taken just after sunset on a cloudy evening, thus the color.

A short while later due east and ta da! — County Road 138 intersects Highway 6 right beside the Mandan Airport. You’ll see the rotating white/green beacon as you approach. Then just hop Highway 6 back into town, and you’re driven Around the World!

Cowards strike Sertoma Park

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During a recent walk along the path I made this discovery. Some real tough guys descended on Sertoma Park to prove themselves with a can of spray paint recently. In a daring feat of epic proportions, they painted the hidden side of a remote park building, probably not in broad daylight. It’s amazing to think of the courage it must have taken to commit such an act!

I am not proficient when it comes to reading “gangsta” but out of this I get a crown, an unintelligble character and “PS Krew.” Well, PS must stand for Pusillanimous* Spraypainters or something. In any case, what’s the point? You’ve painted it where nobody’s even gonna see it till Spring.


I think that if someone’s so insecure that they need to spray paint their name somewhere, they should have the sack to do it somewhere out in the open. What kind of chicken goes and paints places where they’re guaranteed not to be caught? Who’s the tough guy in that equation? Give me a break.

So, if you’re looking at tagging around Bismarck or Mandan, do us a favor. Show a little initiative and do it where there’s constant traffic. Take some risks…and pay the penalty when you’re caught. Otherwise, just huff the contents of your spray can and save us all the inconvenience. Cowards.

*pusillanimous = “contemptibly timid”

So long, Dakota Prime Time

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Tim Cook is no longer at KFYR-AM 550 Radio. It’s a shame, I really liked his local talk show in the evenings, but that’s the way it goes. I don’t know if it was due to ratings or something else, just that I’ll miss hearing the show and the guests. In an age of canned radio, KFYR stood out with a local talk show in the evenings. Maybe they’ll try to resurrect that format down the line, who knows?

I talked to a DJ friend of mine a short while ago, and she said it’s great that she can pre-record the bits where she talks between the songs, get her whole day recorded in a couple of hours, and be home giving her little kids a bath while she’s on the air. But how good is that for us, the listeners? What happens during severe weather or local emergency? Any radio station that does choose to do local stuff, and not pre-record their DJs into a computer and stuff ’em in a playlist, deserves our support. Otherwise all the local stuff will go the way of Dakota Prime Time. That will do area listeners a huge disservice.

For the record, KFYR’s not automated during primetime. I don’t know how things are operating these days in local radio, but when I left the broadcasting busines one person would oversee several stations. If we ever had an emergency such as the ammonia spill in Minot, there’s no way one guy could get the word out on all stations in a manner consistent with a broadcaster’s duty of public service.

KFYR-AM is still the state’s EAS (Emergency Alert System) leader from what I recall, which pretty much means they can never go fully automated. I suggest they use that to an advantage, and do something better than have a guy playing tired Eagles songs during primetime.

Glen Schmidt Family

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The Glen Schmidt Family played last night at Cornerstone Community Church in south Bismarck. They have a unique gift of music with a gospel-bluegrass style. They’re really quite amazing! You can hear a sample of their music on their website at www.glenschmidtfamily.com. If you get the opportunity to hear them play at a local church or at Buckstop Junction events this summer you really need to take the time to attend!

Driving laws need to be tougher

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Check out the court reports from this week in the local newspaper and you’ll see a shameful statistic. Not only are there several DUI charges in there, but nearly half of them also involve driving under suspension or revocation. There are also a number of drivers arrested for driving under suspension or revocation, two of them their fourth offense!

This is ridiculous. If someone has enough disregard for the safety of others to drive under the influence, they certainly are reckless enough to keep driving after someone takes their license away. The law needs to be tougher.

When someone is convicted of DUI they should lose their vehicle. Period. It should be confiscated and either auctioned at the police auction or turned over to the leinholder if it’s being financed. Obviously taking away a little plastic card is not enough to prevent these people from getting behind the wheel and putting us all at risk.

Friday snowfall

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Those fluffy flakes Friday morning were sure welcome…unfortunately many of them didn’t stay! There were plenty of good photos to chase if one doesn’t have a day job; since I do, I had to find snow that hadn’t yet melted. But snow on the thresher is always easy on the eyes. Hopefully we’ll get a lot more where this came from, before it gets too cold to snow…

11-11-11: All Veterans Memorial

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Most people in Bismarck have probably seen the Veterans Memorial at the state capitol grounds. But how many have inspected it up close? It’s got a unique distinguishing feature that you’d have to experience up close. Not only is the ceiling a perfect hemisphere, making for some interesting acoustics below…it also has a special way of celebrating North Dakota’s veterans every November 11th.

This globe in the middle of the memorial also sits near the focal point of the ceiling above. Strategically placed in the side of the sphere is a tunnel, pointing down at the globe from the southeast.

As the big brass plate on the pedestal of the globe says, on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month the sun shines through that portal and illuminates the state of North Dakota, which is raised on the map. It is normally polished too, but is somewhat tarnished right now. I’m sure that’ll be touched up either for Spring or certainly for Veteran’s Day.

I’ve never been able to make it here at 11am on November 11th, the day that Veteran’s Day is always celebrated. Perhaps next winter I’ll be able to post a photo of the raised ND illuminated by the 11 o’clock sun.

Moonlight at the wind farm

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If you haven’t headed north lately you may have missed the 35 gigantic windmills near Regan, just southeast of Wilton. As a matter of fact, you can see the flashing red obstruction lights atop these beasts from north Bismarck.

There appear to be two clusters of them and will soon total 60 towers in all. They are all accessible by service roads for the curious, but you MUST check in before you go out there. The roads are all marked No Trespassing for visitors who have not checked in.

This picture was taken by moonlight Saturday night from the section line road. While the generators turned by these big boys do make some noise, they are deceptively quiet. Because of that, they’re kinda weird to watch. The 80-foot blades move pretty quickly for something so huge.