Long tail message of the month!

A year and a half ago I wrote a post on The Seven Wonders of Grand Forks. I had a free day in town and spent it locating these wonders, including the water tower pictured below:

It was delightful to receive this comment about the post last week:

Grand Forks, North Dakota - Smiley Face Water Tower

My grandfather designed the paint scheme, and originally painted this smiley face water tower. On one side of the tower the smiley face is winking. When my grandfather, Oscar Osmundson, went to the city to get paid for his work they were hesitant about paying him. A few people on the city council thought that it wasn't finished yet -- that he only painted half of one of the eyes on that side of the tower.

My grandfather laughed and told them the tower was winking, and they decided to vote on keeping it. The wink won, and that's how it sits today. Thousands of people drive by the water tower every year, and they all have my grandfather to thank for the smile that the wink puts on their face. [Chad Osmundson]

I continue to be amazed at the number and variety of people who come to the Blue Skunk.

Oh, for those of you who would like to see the wink:

Comments

[Paul C]

The reason we keep coming back is the wink behind many of your posts.

The wink reminds me of Godin's book Tribes. The workers in a balloon factory are nervous when the unicorn shows up. You never know what to expect. The painter of the water tower is a unicorn.

[Doug Johnson]

Hi Paul,

I’d not heard the unicorn in the balloon factory story before. I like it. I suppose I need to jump on the bandwagon and read Tribes. If YOU recommend it!

All the best,

Doug