Rain Gauge Blues

 I started this site for a place to "jot down life stuff." I prefer to write about things interesting and extraordinary, but unfortunately I do not encounter much of that in my life. Most of it is mundane. 

Can mundane be interesting? Probably not. But that won't stop me from bragging about my new rain gauge.

A rain gauge is not a complicated instrument; at least it shouldn't be. But humans are really good at making very simple ideas into very convoluted concepts. As I posted on social media a few days ago, I started shopping for a new rain gauge because my old one wore itself out measuring all the water we got over the last week. As far as I can tell, I got between 0.5 and 6.5 inches of rain in my backyard since last Friday. I don't know for sure because I couldn't read the measurements on the glass tube anymore. 

I suspect all that UV exposure from all those sunny days when the rain gauge rendered itself useless really did a number on the thing.

After about 20 years of service, it was finally time to put the old boy out to pasture. Also, that mysterious crusty brown stuff at the bottom was probably radioactive.

So I set out to buy myself a new one -- something nice, but not too expensive. I searched Amazon because 1) I am too lazy to actually get in my car and go to a store and 2) I do not have to encounter other human beings while I shop at home. Hey, it's a win/win.

As I mentioned on social media, I found one that I really liked on Amazon, but I suspect AI attempted to pitch the product and I wasn't very impressed:

Not impressed at all. Too bad, because I liked this one.

So I kept looking. Eventually I found something that rang my bell. 

The one I chose said it was "freeze proof" but I call bullshit on that. When it gets below 32 degrees Fahrenheit, water is going to freeze, it doesn't matter if the water is inside the tube or outside the tube. Furthermore, water, in its frozen state, is going to expand inside the tube and the gauge is going to crack. Folks who choose not to believe in science can go ahead and leave their new rain gauge outside during a Minnesota winter and we'll see how it fairs.

But what really sold me on this particular product is the claim (I swear) that it was "Made in the USA." My parents taught me to always support American businesses when I can, so I did just that. 

So I was a little disappointed when this crap showed up:

Luckily, as an American citizen, I am used to being misled.

Disappointed as I was, I couldn't be bothered to send thing thing back. After all, it was shipped and delivered to my doorstep within 24 hours. So, I unpackaged the shiny new rain gauge -- which came with its own cute little stand -- and I have spent the afternoon sitting in my yard, drinking coffee and smoking a cigar, waiting for the rain to come and be measured.

If that's not mundane, I am not sure what is.

"She's a beaut, Clark."