Plants of the Week!

Spring has sprung. Finally! My job took me to rural Lake County to do some botanical surveys last week. We got to camp out for a couple days which is more camping than I did last year. We are starting the first of many rounds of botanical surveys this month. I am so excited to relearn plants.
At the site there are many rare, endangered, threatened or watch list plants out there. This one is Lomatium ciliolatum var. hooveri.

This pretty one is Fritillaria affinis var. affinis. I love the Fritillaria genus. They are so pretty.

This plant is Dodecatheon hendersonii I think, but I'm not sure. It's written in my field notebook but I am too lazy to get it! These plants are not rare but still pretty.

It should be a fun spring!

Endangered Species of the Week

Last Friday I was out in the field working on a tiger salamander project. It's a trapping project so when there is a 50% chance of rain we have to go out and check the traps to see if we caught anything. Salamanders need wet conditions to move from their upland area to the nearest pond to breed and use the precipitation from the rain on the ground to prevent drying out. I have never seen a tiger salamander before so I have been excited to see one.

As we were checking our traps we noticed a large amount of birds congregating in a oak tree. As we were moving closer we flushed a bald eagle! I don't think they are federally listed anymore but its still exciting to see our national mascot.
Look at at that pretty silhouette. Bald eagles are large majestic birds and it was cool to see one in the field. It was hanging out with these vultures and were all feeding on a dead cow in the field. We spooked them but as we left the area, the birds returned to their feast.
So we continued on our trap check and BEHOLD, there was a tiger salamander in our trap!
I was able to hold it and get a photo taken with her. We determined it was a female and she was gravid. My coworker who has a permit to handle the CTS gave me a tutorial on how to handle and do the required measurements we needed to do. I had experience handling endangered snakes and such so it was more of a refresher.
All in all it was a great field day. Most of the time we only capture tree frogs and small mammals so it was exciting to see something different.

Still no plants of the week. Not much flowering out there yet!

Amphibian of the week

So this week I decided to mix it up a bit! Actually its a bit early for flowering plants but we are heading into amphibian breeding season so hence the new feature. This little guy is is a toad (Bufu boralis).
I think my coworker said it was a western spade foot toad but I am not sure and I forgot to write it down. My fault for not bringing out my notebook in the field.

So I started a new job working with a small consulting firm in Berkeley. I am pretty excited and so far its been fun. There is tons of fieldwork which is nice and a change from what I have been doing. Hopefully all the sites are as pretty as this one!

Don't worry, the plant of the week feature will be back soon.

I know I'm a little late to the party

But I love this album. I've listened to it 3 times today!

WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN??

I have no idea. November 2008 is quite a long time to be absent. I have no excuse.
Well, I have a good feeling about my blog these days and I am ready to get back into the swing of things. You see, I got this for Christmas!
Ok so Betsy and I both got this for Christmas. I love it! This camera takes way better photos than my other one. It's been fun remembering how to take SLR photos where you have to adjust everything on your own. There is a steep learning code when your used to the point and shoot method of picture taking. Luckily I have my trusty manual at the ready. Betsy laughs at me about this.

One of the great features that I have missed with a point and shoot is adjusting for depth of field.

This was my first attempt at getting all of the rail in focus. As you can see, I am not that good at using the camera yet but I am working on it. My goal is to shoot at least one photo a day.
The camera came with a zoom lens which is nice. I love interchangeable lenses.
We bought this camera to document our lives and family but, (don't tell Betsy) I am excited to take flower photos with it. Look at that picture! Its like your a bug preparing to land on the coyote brush flower! Wow! So lifelike.
I hope this new camera will help me to start blogging with some regularity. I need to restart the Plant of the Week segment. Now, I have no excuse not to.

When nature strikes back

Today was tough in the field. This morning I had to collect some data
and as I was doing so a bee flew in my hair, panicked, and then stung
me. Lame. My head hurts but luckily I am not allergic.

Then at another site I slipped in the mud. Sort of embarrassing to walk around with a big mud stain on your butt. At least it was a nice day today!

Get out and vote!

Yes, it is finally here. Election day! I am so relieved this election season is almost over. I am also relieved that I figured out what I am going to vote for.

We will soon be able to relate to each other in terms other than yes or no.

Barock the vote!

Rain

I love the first rain
Happy Halloween!!!

What am I going to do?

I have yet to sort out all the issues in the upcoming election. The election is 7 days away and I still haven't read up on all the propositions. And there are lots of them, 22 in San Francisco, and 12.5 for the State of California. Not only that but who am I going to vote for School Board? Superior Judge? I have no idea.

Does 34 propositions seem excessive to anyone? 34. We have to decide about a wide variety of issues, gay marriage, animal rights, renewable energy, public energy, tons of bond issues, legalizing prostitution, redistricting, reinstating JROTC and my favorite, deciding whether or not to name one of S.F.'s sewage treatment plant after George W. Bush.

I almost always vote no on every proposition in every election, especially the bond issues. I feel that we don't need to tack on more and more debt every two years for projects that probably will go over budget. I know sometimes the best way to pay for infrastructure is through bonds but California is broke people. We need to pay off our debt.

Some of the issues are just confusing. Take Prop 7, the renewable energy generation initiative. Is this a good thing or just another scam by big energy? How does it differ from Prop 10 which is the renewable energy and clean alternative fuel act? I have no idea. I am not a lawyer so I cant decipher all the fine print.

All I really have to go on is the Arguments section in the voter guide where both sides voice their opinions. Is this the best way to figure out the issues by having a debate with myself as I read the arguments for and against? I do admit that sometimes I read each side in a different voice. It helps when you have to cram the week before the election like I always do!

Hey, is that the internet in your pocket?

So, it is official. I just got the letter in the mail that I have finally graduated from SFSU. What a relief. I am glad the journey is over.

One of the motivations Betsy used to get me to finish my thesis was the promise of a new iPhone which totally worked. I worked so hard to finish.
But lets be honest. I needed a new phone. My old phone was this piece of crap Nokia. It sort of worked. The front screen broke about 1 year ago and it has this weird dust under the screen...
that makes it useless in the sun. Who is calling me? I have no idea. I can't see.
but not anymore! Holy smokes I love my new phone. I have owned it for about a month now. I know, I know, everyone has one now but I love it just the same.
Look how great it looks next to my old phone. I love the fact that when I am out in the field monitoring construction I can pass the time watching You tube videos or checking my e-mail, or even surfing the net. Instead of lugging the heavy Jepson manual out in the field, I can access and key out a plant, and confirm easily. Dope!
Gosh, that last sentence makes me sound like a dork but I don't care!

It's funny how fast you get used to something (Internet and GPS in your pocket) that you don't know how you ever lived without them. Remember when you didn't have a cell phone and had to plan to meet up with friends? Remember when you got your first cell phone and couldn't imagine living without one? The iPhone kicks it up a notch. Just last week my co-worker and I were stuck in traffic trying to get through the Caldecott tunnel and we used the maps feature to go up and over so we were not late for a field meeting. 2 months ago I would have been screwed.

But there are some dangers of owning an iPhone. There is an increased chance of becoming a douche bag. You may know that person who is constantly on their phone, or constantly looking up the answer to a silly debate you may be having, or showing you some "cool" feature on the phone? I don't want to be that guy. I think for the first few weeks I was too embarrassed to tell anyone about owning an iPhone. It was silly, but becoming a douche bag is one of my biggest fears.

Since I have the Internet in my pocket, one would think I would blog more. I should try to get on that!

Traffic blows!

Sick

I love the ocean!

suck it Eriogonum

I turned in my thesis today. At about 4pm. I am now a Master of Science. How I hated you Eriogonum these past few weeks. How you made me work 14 hours a day so I can finish writing about you. I felt like this bug, just sitting there sucking on your nectar.
Well all of that is over. I have my life back. I can come home from work and do whatever I want. I have no idea where to begin!

Mobile garden

Living here in the big city space can be limited. Many of us don't have the luxury of a yard to plant a garden or stretch out on a hammock. Sometimes you have to get creative.

I have been watching this truck come into bloom for the past few months. I even see the guy watering his truck sometimes on my way to my car in the morning. I hope he doesn't loose his yield to grazers!

How come I never blog...

Because I am in jail. Thesis jail. Hopefully I get released soon.

Verbascum blattaria

The Plant of The Week has been lacking on my blog these days. Most flowers have done their thing for the year and I haven't seen anything new in quite some time. Luckily this week I found something worthy of keying out. Verbascus blatteria or Moth mullen in the Scrophulariaceae family. I knew the more common wolly mullen but I have never seen this species.

The key was quick. This baby is a non-native in California. It has very pretty purple filaments which are hairy and distinctive. Enjoy!

Nation,

I am part of the movement. I received a bracelet for my birthday!

thanks Nate and Courtney

California in flames

Whats with all these fires. It is hard to breathe out there. I am glad to be in the office today!

Friday off...

I work an alternative work schedule. I work 8 nine hour days, 1 eight hour day, which means every other Friday off!!!! I love it. So last night I celebrated by working on my thesis on our roof deck. What a celebration it was! I am almost done with the discussion. It is hot in our neighborhood. I love it! I used to live in the foggy Presidio and welcome the change.

One good thing about the roof deck is the awesome sunset you get to witness. The other, sometimes your neighbor sets up his projector and we get to watch movies. Last night was perfect for movies on the roof and we watched a Sci-fi mini-series. I was skeptical at first but was soon hooked. I am not sure what the show was called but it dealt with objects from a motel room and it had Peter Krause.
This morning I decided to get up early and go surf!
I haven't gone surfing in quite some time and I am feeling it right now. My arms are like rubber. The waves were small and the conditions were poor but it was sooooo fun to be out in the water. I was even able to stand up. My arms ran out of gas pretty quick but I had a blast.

Friday is shaping up to be a good day!

WTF???

I noticed this car yesterday when I was in Berkeley.
I thought Volvo wagon drivers were for Hillary...