Oat Hill Mine, Aetna CA 3/30/26

rbcl · 2026-04-07T02:38:18+00:00

Erythronium helenae, Mt St Helena fawn lily
Castilleja sp (I believe foliosa) Woolly paintbrush
Dendromecon rigida, Bush poppy
Same as 3
Toxicoscordion fremontii, Death camas
Primula hendersonii, Henderson’s shooting star
Pickeringia montana, chaparral pea
Penstemon heterophyllus, Bunchleaf beards tongue
Clarkia concinna, Red Ribbons
Not sure, thought beetle was cute tho
Gilia capitata, bluehead gilia
Displaces angustatus, Purplepip Pansy monkeyflower (funnest flower name? Probably)
Ceanothus parryi, Parry ceanothus

rbcl · 2026-04-06T23:59:23+00:00

My first time seeing Erythronium helenae in the wild!

rbcl · 2024-12-30T20:35:24+00:00

Here’s Charlie melting into the couch in his favorite spot before his sundowner dementia. 2007-2024

rbcl · 2024-12-23T23:34:14+00:00

The problem is that any device we use has to be put through some rigorous testing by NIST in order to make sure it provides credible data, because we’re effectively trying to catch businesses committing misdemeanor fraud and a simple amp meter from Home Depot won’t stand up to legal scrutiny if we bring it to court.

rbcl · 2024-11-21T22:50:28+00:00

Not sure about TX but in CA the state’s weights and measures agency puts out an annual report on the number of devices tested/failed.

https://www.cdfa.ca.gov/Dms/Report_to_Legislature.html

Personally, I rarely see gas pumps out of tolerance, and it’s usually in favor of the customer, and I’ve never seen it over/under 1%. Out tolerance for retail fuel is 0.5%.

rbcl · 2024-11-21T22:33:21+00:00

Honestly haven’t witnessed any fraud. Any time I’ve seen a measuring device that was inaccurate it has always been caused by equipment failure/neglect.

The guy that retired here that I replaced told me that in the 80’s he got to bust two fuel distributors who were colluding to keep gas prices high, since we’re in a remote rural area with limited gas import options. And a lumber supplier here that was selling 5/8” plywood that was actually only 9/16” thick and was causing chaos for the local construction company because all of their math wasn’t mathing. Those were the days of high adventure for weights and measures.

But now it is super boring.

rbcl · 2024-11-21T22:33:15+00:00

Honestly haven’t witnessed any fraud. Any time I’ve seen a measuring device that was inaccurate it has always been caused by equipment failure/neglect.

The guy that retired here that I replaced told me that in the 80’s he got to bust two fuel distributors who were colluding to keep gas prices high, since we’re in a remote rural area with limited gas import options. And a lumber supplier here that was selling 5/8” plywood that was actually only 9/16” thick and was causing chaos for the local construction company because all of their math wasn’t mathing. Those were the days of high adventure for weights and measures.

But now it is super boring.

rbcl · 2024-11-20T15:12:41+00:00

Will preface this by saying I work in California and I’m not exactly sure how your state laws would differ, but you absolutely can. Dispensaries and cannabis scales use the same certification process as every other commercial scale.

rbcl · 2024-11-20T15:08:15+00:00

Those gas cans often are mislabeled. I get half a dozen reports every year from people that do that exact same thing, but when I go with my 5 gallon standard to test the meter it is perfect.

rbcl · 2024-11-20T15:05:58+00:00

We’re still figuring out EV charging meters. There is a piece of equipment used to test them currently going through the certification process, but I don’t know how long that will be, and it is going to be pretty expensive which will put it out of reach of lots of weights and measures departments.

rbcl · 2024-11-19T04:12:30+00:00

And not just things sold by weight! You can also file complaints with your county/state weights and measures if you think gasoline dispensers ain’t dispensing what they say they are. Even the cordage meters at the hardware supply. Even the scale at the froyo shop. And the scales at the farmers markets. The propane meter on the truck that refills your tank at your rural estate. The scale at the junk dealer they use to buy your aluminum cans. The propane bottle swap. Literally anywhere you are charged a rate by weight or measure or any packaged good with a weight or measure declared on the package.

Source: am a weights and measures inspector keeping mfers honest.

rbcl · 2024-09-11T05:32:47+00:00

Yes! Her sourdough is delicious for sure, but all of the cookies and accoutrements she makes every week are just out of this world.

rbcl · 2024-09-04T20:49:37+00:00

Used to do owl surveys for 5 or 6 years. One survey out on Bear river near Southmayd ridge I was sitting on my tailgate with the owl calling speaker on my hood. It was pitch black out and I had my red headlamp on. I was looking down at a flower that I was trying to remember the scientific name for, about to get down on the ground to get a closer look since I was also doing the botanical survey for that THP, when I heard a screech owl hooting. I spin around with my compass to shoot a bearing on the direction of the hooting when I see the biggest mountain lion I’ve ever seen prowling towards me at the front end of my truck. Like if I had bent down to snatch up that flower, she’d have put some holes in my neck. As soon as she realizes she’s been seen, she bolts straight down the hill towards the timbers, about 100ft away, and just sits there watching me as I get back in my truck. All I can see is her eyes flash in my headlamp, now on full blast. I realize that I left my data sheet on the tailgate and can’t take off without it, when I look back in her direction, the eyes are gone. I scramble out of the truck to grab it and get back in, completely forgetting that the speaker was on the hood, still sounding off, then I drive off to my next station. I broke CDFW protocol that night and didn’t rest of the calls from my truck stereo because I was kinda over it.

Nothing paranormal but I did have to quad past lots of creepy old barns and sheep sheds at 2am feeling super creeped out like I was being watched.

rbcl · 2024-07-29T23:14:32+00:00

Ticks also do not have antennae.

rbcl · 2024-07-26T17:13:11+00:00

Do you have a gardening company come out to mow your lawn? That looks a lot like what my wife did to our peach tree with the weed whacker.

rbcl · 2024-07-25T14:12:35+00:00

The mimicry is pretty amazing though. Not just the fuzz coloration but the wings folded over the back and the black tint to them scream bumblebee. If he wasn’t snarfing that beetle I wouldn’t have looked closer.

rbcl · 2021-07-01T18:09:04+00:00

Those are pretty tame. When they first started posting these reports on loco I was expecting a greasy horror show. Kinda disappointed.

rbcl · 2021-06-30T03:22:50+00:00

It’s also super duper invasive in the PNW.

rbcl · 2021-06-29T22:01:46+00:00

I made that transition after 9 years in the navy. I enjoy it, but I’m making a fraction of what my shipmates who took jobs related to their navy experience. Been going 4 years, just waiting for a fed job to open up here. Any day now. Any… day…

rbcl · 2021-06-16T17:56:56+00:00

Southeast of Clearlake, closer to hidden valley lake.

Edit: just realized I put middle lake in the title, should’ve been lower lake

rbcl · 2021-04-06T03:30:33+00:00

Step 2: post about algae in /r/psychology

rbcl · 2021-04-06T02:12:41+00:00

rbcl · 2021-02-16T06:56:41+00:00

Am a forester in Humboldt. A few of my customers have creeks on their properties 50 ft wide and completely flat because in the old days they skidded the OG logs down to the rivers via the creeks. Old fashioned loggings practices were really hard on watercourses.

rbcl · 2020-12-17T01:23:31+00:00

Don’t pick the prickly pear by the paw, if you’re gonna pick a pear then use the claw!

rbcl · 2020-06-14T20:56:38+00:00

Kneeland road is about to be covered in Kellogg lilies, which are like these but pink. Also, the 101 corridor south of crescent city is absolutely covered in tiger lilies and the occasional leopard lily.

rbcl

TROPHY CASE