Until (and after) they get the capitol lit for Christmas, make sure you frequent Northview Lane this Christmas season! Oh, and if I may make one last suggestion:
That’s all for now. Put in your Vince Guaraldi disc, get some hot chocolate, and head for Northview for a dose of Christmas spirit!
This photo came about when I ran out to the Garage Mahal to grab a plastic dish out of my “bachelor fridge.” I had a bowl of my notorious “Four Alarm Hamburger Noodle Bachelor Chow” in there, and it had seen better days. I figured now would be a good time to put the bowl and lid back into service. The frost that had formed on the lid, however, was begging for a photo. That’s what you see above. I took a quick shot with my macro lens while the frost started to melt, then went back to doing dishes. I wouldn’t mind seeing frost like this outside sometime, too! Remember this frosty photo?
I struggled with the orientation of this photo, since it looks quite like a little digital alien like this, or flipped upside down. Please turn your monitor or laptop upside down to view it the other way.
I never tire of photographing windmills and old farmsteads. Some days I think they seem cliche’ or that I’m overdoing it, but I have to remind myself that each one of them is special. They’re an endangered species of sorts, too. Tony pointed out that even in Alaska, one can tire of a certain type of photo. For example, you can only take so many Alaska mountain shots before one tires of it. Unique photos are elusive, and need to be hunted down…that’s part of what makes them special.
Variety is the key, I suppose…that’s why I’ve tried to vary my subject matter a bit lately. It’s important to keep a diverse palette of photo styles and subjects, so that none of them ever seem tired. That’s especially true of the North Dakota features which are so near and dear to my heart, and which inspired this website in the first place.
It turns out I’ve got experience there, after decades of bouncing my body off the earth (and whatever else gets in the way). I’ve stuffed my skull slightly through a friend’s windshield, trashed a few motorcycle and mountain bike helmets, taken a few hits to the head in karate (you can’t block ’em all), and I don’t even remember what else. I probably don’t remember because of my history of traumatic brain injuries! I’ve had some extended hospital stays to nurse my bruised melon in Montana and North Dakota. As far as I can tell, however, there has never been any permanent dain bramage.
Side effects of TBI’s can include headaches, nausea, dizziness, impulsiveness, difficulty finishing tasks, memory loss, and I forget the other ones I highlighted in the video. Strange…I can’t get past memory loss!
Anyway, I now have a brain. Stay tuned to see if I use it.
I didn’t know about it Wednesday, but let’s just say that I’ve made up for it. There’s plenty of ammo in this family to go around, and there’s always room for more.
I have friends in other parts of the country that have told me of gun stores selling completely out of guns and ammunition once Obama got elected. He has a dismal record of anti-gun voting, and is putting people in his administration with similar views of firearm ownership. Socialist politicians like the Obamessiah love unarmed, uneducated peasants. As for me and my house, we’re going to be neither.
If I may change the subject for a second: that photo above was shot entirely handheld while sitting at my kitchen table, with a non-stabilized macro lens, and manual focus. I have not cropped it, rotated it, or manipulated it in any way except to size it down for the blog. The seven Hydra-Shox rounds I wanted to show are quite well aligned..WOW! I guess after 38,000 photos, I’m starting to develop a steady hand. After my last trip to the range, I’d say the same applies when wielding my Glock or whatever else I’ve brought. Practice pays off, whether you’re “shooting” a camera or shooting a gun.
Don’t worry that Wednesday passed you by; go out and get some ammunition! After January 20th, they’re likely to tax it, serialize it, or eventually ban it. I guess that’s the real public service announcement after all. You don’t need someone to name a holiday in order to get yourself prepared.
If you’ve got a deer head to dispose of this hunting season, head east and visit the NDG&F headquarters on east Expressway! They’ve got a bucket waiting.
I love my ultra-wide angle lens, by the way. It’s the only way to make such a shot possible. Obviously there’s some perspective distortion in the corners, but I think it’s a nice photographic effect.
One neat feature of this monument is that it shoots a beam of light skyward at night. It’s most visible during those cold fall and winter nights, when we get a slight haze in the air. That’s pretty much every night during a North Dakota winter. That’s one more reason why I hope a second such monument is placed on the Bismarck side; we’ll have two columns of light shooting straight upward, similar to the monument at the site of the fallen World Trade Center buildings.
This bridge is open for traffic, but I expect far more wonderful things from it down the road. This monument area is nearly completed, but I think they’ll be adding some signage and a chunk of the old bridge. I also look forward to seeing what is built on the Bismarck side of the river, once all the pulverized concrete is trucked away and construction can begin. In the mean time, it’s worth a chilly walk to see how things are taking shape as the new Liberty Memorial Bridge serves the second part of its important purpose: honoring our nation’s veterans.
Once our capitol mission was accomplished, it was time to go look at things like motorcycle shops, trucks, and airplanes. Those are PJ’s favorites, and he seems to remember everything he sees. When I tuck the boys into bed, I always talk about our day and all the fun things we saw. I expect they’re going to grow up loving Bismarck-Mandan, and North Dakota in general, as much as their daddy does.
I’d like to pass along a belated thanks to all veterans. Closest to me are my friends Reed and Tony, although I’ve met many others and owe my freedom to millions of ’em. Military service is not something to be taken lightly. The memorial at the state capitol bears the names of North Dakota soldiers who lost their lives in service to their country. If you haven’t inspected this memorial, which has a new parking lot and is just south of the State Library building, please pay it a visit. Once again, the original blog post can be seen by clicking here.