Category / Just For Fun

by Leo Suarez

RalCon Grows Legs, Celebrates Four Years of Blogging


The Raleigh skyline from the Boylan Bridge in February 2007.

RBC Plaza may be the tallest structure in Raleigh but RalCon has it beat with age and wisdom. Today four years ago, this blog started and has been steady ever since. Downtown Raleigh has plenty of stuff going on and those paying attention should know that there is always something to talk about.

My biggest disappointment is not having enough time to really take this blog further and carry out my ideas. Slowly, it will all happen.

The support of the blog has been great and I want to thank every reader for following. The blog generates no money and there are no plans for ever monetizing it through advertising. For those interested, I’d like to share some visitor statistics.

  • Estimated RSS subscribers: 900
  • Estimated E-mail subscribers: 150
  • Average Monthly unique visitors: 3000

I seldom get e-mails with questions or comments for me and “my authors”. It is funny to me that some think there is a crew behind the website but let me assure you that this is a one man show. If you are interested in contributing however, get in contact with me and we can work something out. As long as your writing is relevant to downtown Raleigh, there is room for it on RalCon.

In 2011, my goal is to push the RSS subscribers up past the 1000 mark, even with my modest personality and no desire to market this thing.

Thanks again for following.

by Leo Suarez

RalConniversary: 3 Photos, With Wallpaper!

While not necessarily the best photos that have appeared on the blog, these three make for great desktop wallpaper. I’ve used them myself and now want to share them. I’ve included multiple versions of the most common screen resolutions used by readers of RalCon, gathered by the power of analytics, as well as the original version if anyone would like to play with it. Enjoy!

You are free to do what you want with the images at a personal level. Please respect my Creative Commons license (non-commercial, attribution) if using them on the web. Thanks. Click on the photo for a larger preview.

Satellites and Antennas

Fullscreen 4:3
1600×1200
1400×1050
1280×960
1024×768

Fullscreen 5:4
1280×1024

Widescreen 16:10
1920×1200
1680×1050
1440×900
1280×800

Original photo

Density

Fullscreen 4:3
1600×1200
1400×1050
1280×960
1024×768

Fullscreen 5:4
1280×1024

Widescreen 16:10
1920×1200
1680×1050
1440×900
1280×800

Original photo

The Raleigh Skyline

Fullscreen 4:3
1600×1200
1400×1050
1280×960
1024×768

Fullscreen 5:4
1280×1024

Widescreen 16:10
1920×1200
1680×1050
1440×900
1280×800

Original photo

by Leo Suarez

How Much Fun Did You Have During The Winter Storm of 2010?

I’m sure lots of people were enjoying the winter weather we had this weekend, especially the kids that are staying home from school this week. For those that watched the local news each and every minute up until the storm, I’m also sure it is a big relief that the apocalypse did not happen.

For more media of snow and Raleigh over the past few days, click below to re-live it all.

Photos on Flickr tagged with Raleigh and snow.

Videos on Vimeo tagged with Raleigh and snow.

Pictures on Twitter on snow in Raleigh.

by Leo Suarez

RalConniversary: 3 Best Videos

Video wasn’t my strongest skill but I did take some over the years. Enjoy these three videos that have made appearances on the blog.

The Shimmer Wall (under construction) from Leo Suarez on Vimeo.

This video was taken on June 14th, 2008. It shows just a small piece of the then new shimmer wall on the still under construction Raleigh Convention Center.

Snow in Downtown Raleigh from Leo Suarez on Vimeo.

This video was taken on January 20th, 2009. Between 2 and 4 inches of snow fell in downtown Raleigh that day.

Raleigh Pillow Fight from Leo Suarez on Vimeo.

This video was taken on April 4th, 2009. Just watch it and make plans to participate this year.

by Leo Suarez

Three Years of RalCon. Three Years of Downtown Geeking.

Yes, this is true. The RalCon blog turns three today and in order to celebrate, a theme of three will take over for the next few days. I’d invite all readers out for a beer but maybe I’ll save that move for when DTRaleigh hits a larger milestone.

Anyway, it all started as a hobby and I’m still keeping it going. I was the guy that hated English classes in school and now I write in my free time. What are the odds? I had hoped to have a special announcement for this day but it’s not quite ready yet. Everyone will have to wait.

For now, enjoy a blast from the past and look at the blog archived on October 15th, 2007. (via archive.org)

by Leo Suarez

The Rise of RBC Plaza Through Time

One year and a few weeks ago from now, the crown of RBC Plaza was lit up. There was good discussion on the blog that day so jump back in time and re-live it. Digging through my photo archives, I found lots of pictures of the tower under construction. Here is a small collection showing the tower grow from nothing to 500+ feet high.


View of the construction site from Fayetteville Street on October 19th, 2006.


The tall red crane is being put together on January 20, 2007.


The lower floors for parking are under construction on June 26th, 2007.


The building starts to make a dent in the skyline, showing its blue glass on December 12th, 2007.


RBC Plaza has now topped out and more glass follows its way to the top on April 12th, 2008.


The crown is being put together on April 27th, 2008.

RBC Plaza now towers at the top of the Raleigh skyline.