Its oh so quiet Shh Shh

[Stefan-A]

When it's like that, just a layer up high carried by the jetstream, it makes and interesting halo around the sun. But it's raining where you are so you can't even get that.

Yeah, it sucks.

[ConcinusMan]

You're not really missing anything. Abrasive, irritating to the lungs, grey dust to sand consistency, turns into a black muck when it gets wet, will strip the clearcoat off of your car's finish no matter what method you use to remove it, when the top 6 inches of soil is ash, it's difficult to grow anything but weeds.. etc.

There's nothing good about it unless you happen to be a glass blower. If that's the case, it makes pretty colors.

[ConcinusMan]

Hey everyone, take a look at this garter snake caught near seattle. I cannot think of any species it could possibly be other than ordinoides but regardless of species take a look at those stripes. AWESOME! (it's easier to download it and/or zoom in.)



It's on this website: http://www.seattlepestanimalcontrol.com/snake.htm

Elegans was my first thought when I saw the pic, too, but I'm wondering if there are ribbons in WA? Did some searching... this is the only page I found that diferentiates between T. e. elegans & T. e. vagrans and it does seem e. elegans are found in Washington: http://www.natureserve.org/explorer/...viewMiddle.wmt (link didn't work... search for Thamnophis... or here's the copy & pasted version:

2.102240
Thamnophis elegans
Terrestrial Gartersnake
G5




CAN: AB, BC, SK USA: AZ, CA, CO, ID, MT, NE, NM, NN, NV, OK, OR, SD, UT, WA, WY



2.102647
Thamnophis elegans vagrans
Wandering Gartersnake
G5T5




CAN: SK USA: AZ, NN, OK, WY

I'm still totally convinced, because it also places them in Idaho, Utah, Montana, and South Dakota? That's a huge range for my fave garter, but still doesn't seem right. Oregon and Washington I'll buy, but Nebraska???

No ribbons in Washington. That's why it's the only Thamnophis you will find in pet stores here. When they say no "native wildlife" in the pet stores, they mean ANY sirtalis. Private breeding and keeping falls under a different set of rules however. As soon as you make a business of it, all T. sirtalis are out, even if the particular ssp isn't native to the state since WA doesn't differentiate between an eastern and a concinnus. Anyway, it can get complicated.

The point is, yes, I know there are elegans in WA. Just not where I live, and certainly not on an island (almost an island) in the middle of puget sound.

The guy sent me better pics of that snake. It's definitely and ordinoides and here it is:

[Odie]

I see it Close/squint your eyes enough and it looks like a red single strip

[ConcinusMan]

What? she strips? I would have noticed that. Oh wait, "stripe" must have been what you meant. What attracted me to this ordinoides was not the way she strips. I offered her no tips. What makes this snake attractive IMHO and rather not so common, is the shark contrast between the color of the dorsal stripe and the color of the lateral stripes. Well defined orange/redish dorsal and yet light yellow and well defined lateral stripes. Combine that with a dark background color and that is a winner. Great looking snake. Especially for a species that occurs in great numbers and in spite of the numbers, most look quite drab and dull.

I could see thousands of ordinoides and pass them up but if I found that one, it would be a keeper.

[ConcinusMan]

I didn't have time before, but now I post 2 more pics of that snake. Looks like it's probably a male:




Pretty nice for a WA ordinoides. Real nice. Also happens to have a higher than expected upper labial scale count (most I've found have 5 or 6 uppers and sometimes 5 on one side, 6 on the other) and a proportionally larger head than I expect to see but that's no matter, it's still an ordinoides, make no mistake. And a nice looking one at that.

[Stefan-A]

Biology and physics is the two areas of science I got the best grades in and with minimal effort in spite of my very poor math skills.

English, psychology and biology in my case. Worst grades in math and religion, although that last one was just because I liked playing devil's advocate.

This is all relevant to the topic.

[ConcinusMan]

English, psychology and biology in my case. Worst grades in math and religion, although that last one was just because I liked playing devil's advocate.

This is all relevant to the topic.

I'm sure it is. I have no doubt. It also sheds some light on your personality, as we see it here, that is. (I also did well in psychology) I won't even get into my exploits as the "devils advocate" most people can't even handle it if I told them about my past deeds. Hell, I can barely come to terms with it. I don't have to tell them, it's a matter of public record. Of course, deeds recorded do not necessarily reflect what a person's soul is "made of". Nor do they reflect what really happened. You absolutely cannot trust recorded history. If you saw my records it makes me out to be charles manso... well.. Not that bad but not even close to who I really am. Stupid moves on record while ignoring all the great deeds and accomplishments and generosity makes for very unbalanced picture wouldn't you agree?

I'm sure I could have done much better in the subject of English, if the subject matter and the method of teaching had been different. After self-teaching by motivating factors, (I wanted to learn and seeked out the knowledge on my own) I am at a much higher level than what is recorded in my education records. I know this to be true based on tests while I was in pris... on vacation.

[Stefan-A]

I'm sure it is. I have no doubt.

I disagree.

It also sheds some light on your personality, as we see it here, that is.

Oh, you're going to have to be more specific than that.

I won't even get into my exploits as the "devils advocate" most people can't even handle it if I told them about my past deeds.

I may have misunderstood what you meant here, but a "devil's advocate" is someone who takes a position he or she does not necessarily agree with for the sake of argument.

Stupid moves on record while ignoring all the great deeds and accomplishments and generosity makes for very unbalanced picture wouldn't you agree?

Absolutely. However, the reverse is also true and they never cancel each other out as far as I'm concerned. Especially not if they occur more or less simultaneously.

[ConcinusMan]

People with certain personality types tend to be interested in, and good at learning in certain key areas is all I'm saying.

About the devils advocate thing, I told you I wasn't very good at english. I guess I misunderstood what you meant.

I'm saying I've made some terrible mistakes done things that go against who I really am. Those deeds are a matter of public record and if you only look at that, it makes me out to be quite the azzhole without values. Nothing could be farther from the truth. I am deeply sorry for those things, even as I did them. I feel at the time, I had no choice. That is not reflected in the record. Methamphetamine addiction can turn an angel into a demon overnight. Anyway, it was long ago and terrible decade for me. I have moved on.