elementary
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since February 2006
Posts: 1,077
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Post by elementary on Jul 18, 2010 1:13:50 GMT -5
You could call it a slathering of slabs!
And that's a beautiful pile in more ways than one!
Lowell
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elementary
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since February 2006
Posts: 1,077
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Post by elementary on Jul 17, 2010 23:37:40 GMT -5
I never knew her, but by the look of her profile she was a prolific. It also showed that the last time she logged on was May 8, 2010, so even though her last post was in October of last year, she still dropped in. The website in the profile is still up and running, though I don't know if it is being monitored. www.mnironrange.com/index.htmI mention this because there is a guestbook that you can write a message in if you so desire. It's an open one so anyone can read it, so if you have something to tell the family that they would like hearing, that might be the place to put it. Lowell
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elementary
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since February 2006
Posts: 1,077
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Post by elementary on Jul 17, 2010 16:38:56 GMT -5
Whew! That one almost got my finger! Remember to feed your rocks or risk losing digits! RTH cares.
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elementary
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since February 2006
Posts: 1,077
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Post by elementary on Jul 17, 2010 16:33:42 GMT -5
A while back I showed the rock boxes that I put together for my students. My latest 'box' is going to be given to my club's silent auction. If it doesn't go for the minimum price, then it goes back to me (which isn't back since I put so much time into these guys.) You'll notice that the variety of material covers USA and Mexico, but the specimens are either small or fractured in some way. Still, I think it will be a great gift for a youngin' trying to learn about what our better known agates. The box will also come with a pamphlet that will explain what each piece is an example of (sagenite, plume, moss, fortification, nodule, thunderegg, etc.) If I have enough time, I'll print the photo of the specimen over each write up. (Can't get the teacher out of me, even during summer...) (Also - I gotta dust the stuff before I photo it...) The box contents: Starting with California: Acton agate (w. tiny dendrite in lower left) Horse Canyon (closed locality) North Cady Seam (with plume) Hauser Bed Thunderegg Owlhead Mountain Sagenite (closed locality) Turtle Mountain Blue Agate Fortification Other American: Baker Egg (Tavernier type) New Mexico Woodward Ranch (plume) Texas Dryhead Agate (tiny specimen) Montana Black Hills Agate (Fairburn? - Tiny Specimen) S. Dakota Lake Superior Agate with Parallax (shadow) Bruneau Jasper (Idaho) Carnelian from Northwest (exact source unknown) Maury Mountain Moss Oregon From Mexico Blue Agate (t-egg cores) Mexican Red Hot (Sonoran Red Hot) - I think... (Boy these closeups show where I missed some scratches...) Nodule (Unknown location) Fire Agate Thank you for looking! Lowell
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elementary
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since February 2006
Posts: 1,077
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Post by elementary on Jul 17, 2010 14:17:25 GMT -5
My students always ask if I believe in ghosts, ufos, etc.
My response is this - I don't develop my belief from the media - especially TV. All the kids love Ghosthunters etc, and I tell them that they're buying into a show that HAS to find ghosts in order to succeed. I explain that the show's profit comes from advertisers and when more people watch the show, more money can be charged to put commercials with the show. People don't watch ghost shows where no ghosts show up. (Propaganda is a 6th grade standard - we also talk about the different kinds of persuasion used in ads.)
I tell them that they should base their opinions on their own experiences and the stories of people they trust. The best ghost (and mystery) stories I heard come from family and and friends and co-workers.
As for UFOs, sure I believe - U stands for 'unidentified' and not 'Alien'...
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elementary
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since February 2006
Posts: 1,077
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Post by elementary on Jul 17, 2010 2:17:09 GMT -5
Pardon me for saying this, but THAT'S SO COOL!
Those indexes/posts actually have an effect. That's awesome! (Like that hunk of rock you just bought! I love the raggedness of the pattern.)
What are you going to do with it? Cut? Cab? or Sit on shelf?
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elementary
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since February 2006
Posts: 1,077
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Post by elementary on Jul 15, 2010 22:27:29 GMT -5
My thoughts and prayers will be added too.
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elementary
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since February 2006
Posts: 1,077
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Post by elementary on Jul 15, 2010 22:23:30 GMT -5
and poured forth a menagerie of hell upon the land. Abominations, demons, and monsters walked the earth. In the skies, strange beings sailed through the celestial heavens in ships unknown by man or god, sending down beams of pure energy across the terrain to scatter and frighten the native population. Bigfoot sightings, chupacabra video, and now Chinese UFO's!!!! buzz.yahoo.com/buzzlog/93848?fp=1It's the end times!!!! Repent repent!!!! ((or, more closer to the point, it's the fact that people love hearing about the strange and unusual rather than the mundane, and it's fun to wonder what the heck some unusual thing is...and it's kind of disappointing to learn the truth...Still, some weird headlines lately...) I'm going now...
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elementary
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since February 2006
Posts: 1,077
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Post by elementary on Jul 15, 2010 22:17:47 GMT -5
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elementary
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since February 2006
Posts: 1,077
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Post by elementary on Jul 11, 2010 21:58:36 GMT -5
Wow,
That is a beauty!!!
I've posted before that a person should make the stone look how they want it to appear when they have it on display, but in this case, the natural look is so smooth and beautiful, I don't think you should touch it. Find some nice three prong stand and display it as found!
It's a wonderful stone that really doesn't need any augmentation - except maybe some oil to heighten the banding a bit (as it looks when wet.. )
Lowell
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elementary
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since February 2006
Posts: 1,077
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Post by elementary on Jul 11, 2010 21:39:55 GMT -5
Don,
I've had success at one particular spot at the Potato Patch. I came across a recently dug hole and dug down into a layer of golfball to baseball sized geodes - a lot of them. There were three types in that hole - hollow (narrow walled) with brown, clear, or bluish crystals, solid with a bright blue interior, and hollow with some type of zeolite material inside - pink and white crystals - very fine and destroyed if the geodes were cut with a saw. The problem was when I returned, the person who came after me dug INTO the hillside and not DOWN. Their overburden buried my spot under five feet of debris. I have dug through that once to get back to the layer, but ever since then - people have dug deeper into the hillside and piled more and more junk on my productive spot.
I've not come across the common opal in any quantity, and I've been lucky enough to not come across those buzz-happy serpents.
I've found some fire agates on the Colorado R. side of the Mountains towards Palo Verde, but nothing major. I've not gone to the Opal Hill Mine (where it can be dug for a fee) but I've a friend who scored some very nice pieces when he went there.
My dad actually worked for Joel Hauser years ago and I've been to his personal museum. (My family knows their family several ways.) I've also been able to go through his rough in his backyard and come away with several buckets of material - even led a field trip to the house for my club three years ago. They're an amazing family and Joel did a lot for this hobby, especially in SoCal.
Lowell
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elementary
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since February 2006
Posts: 1,077
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Post by elementary on Jul 8, 2010 2:41:13 GMT -5
POST YOUR BEST OR MOST UNUSUAL STUFF - just reply to this thread!
We are hoping to fill up some of the gaps in the material in the previous Agate Indexes. To do this, we need your help. Below are some of the items that I know we are missing or could have a better representation of in the index. If you have a sample of these items, PLEASE photo and post it here and allow us to add it to the next edition of the Indexes. All you need to do is label it by name, location (nearest city is fine), and state.
Material we need or would like addition photos of:
Black Rock Desert Black Agate Thunderegg (Nevada) Berkeley Nodules (CA) Coldwater Agate (Iowa) Keswick Agate (Iowa) Kentucky Agate Cycad (any state) Union Road (Missouri) Muggins Mountains (AZ) Mulligan Peak (AZ) Del Norte Thunderegg (Colorado) Wolf Creek Nodules (Colorado)
Anything else that you have local (even if not as spectacular as more famous agates/jaspers) post! Show off what makes your state great!
Lowell
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elementary
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since February 2006
Posts: 1,077
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Post by elementary on Jul 7, 2010 23:13:55 GMT -5
Agate Index 8: New Mexico and Nevada is now out! Over 40 pages of material (Thanks all!) This project started in February and since then, with the help of many many people, we've been able to put together 8 databases for material across the country that collectively have been downloaded over 500 times. I'm putting out another request for photos in the ID section. Please read and post pictures of your local finds that you may not see in these databases. They surely are not complete, and we know that. But with your help, they can be more accurate. Where else can you be part of a project that is FREE to all and asks you to be the expert. Thank you again. The American Agate/Jasper Index is designed to be a database of material found in North America. The main goal of this collection is to aid people with identification of specimens as well act as an visual guide to quartz gem materials. Each index will focus on a different region. These are designed to be downloaded for free and are created from photo submissions by rockhounds across North America. Updates will occur periodically as new material is submitted here and via email. (PLEASE submit new material!!!!) To download a file, click on the desired link and then click on the BLUE download box. Wait about 10 seconds and a prompt will then appear to download the file. Click on it and it will load. Volume 1: Utah and Colorado {2nd ed} (warning - 16 MB) www.4shared.com/document/mNXTQALM/Agate_Index_Vol_1__2nd_ed_.htmlVol 2:Wyoming and Montana www.4shared.com/file/224404408/51585e57/Agate_Index_Vol_2.htmlVol 3:Idaho and Washington www.4shared.com/file/229956030/cc07189f/Agate_Index_Vol_3.htmlVol 4:South Dakota, Nebraska, and Oklahoma www.4shared.com/file/242786005/91b2476f/Agate_Index_Vol_4.htmlVol 5: Texas www.4shared.com/document/oCLei3tU/Agate_Index_Vol_5.htmlVol 6: The South - Mississippi, Louisiana, Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Arkansas, Missouri www.4shared.com/document/nXCjumab/Agate_Index_Vol_6.htmlVol 7: Arizona (Warning 16 MB) www.4shared.com/document/XplaNpW1/Agate_Index_Vol_7.htmlVol 8: New Mexico and Nevada www.4shared.com/document/_pQZhI8C/Agate_Index_Vol_8.htmlOnly two volumes left for the first set (Oregon, California). We hope you find these files interesting and helpful. Thank you to everyone who has contributed and commented and downloaded these files. They are for you. Lowell and Mel
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elementary
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since February 2006
Posts: 1,077
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Post by elementary on Jul 7, 2010 23:13:25 GMT -5
Agate Index 8: New Mexico and Nevada is now out! Over 40 pages of material (Thanks all!) This project started in February and since then, with the help of many many people, we've been able to put together 8 databases for material across the country that collectively have been downloaded over 500 times. I'm putting out another request for photos in the ID section. Please read and post pictures of your local finds that you may not see in these databases. They surely are not complete, and we know that. But with your help, they can be more accurate. Where else can you be part of a project that is FREE to all and asks you to be the expert. Thank you again. The American Agate/Jasper Index is designed to be a database of material found in North America. The main goal of this collection is to aid people with identification of specimens as well act as an visual guide to quartz gem materials. Each index will focus on a different region. These are designed to be downloaded for free and are created from photo submissions by rockhounds across North America. Updates will occur periodically as new material is submitted here and via email. (PLEASE submit new material!!!!) To download a file, click on the desired link and then click on the BLUE download box. Wait about 10 seconds and a prompt will then appear to download the file. Click on it and it will load. Volume 1: Utah and Colorado {2nd ed} (warning - 16 MB) www.4shared.com/document/mNXTQALM/Agate_Index_Vol_1__2nd_ed_.htmlVol 2:Wyoming and Montana www.4shared.com/file/224404408/51585e57/Agate_Index_Vol_2.htmlVol 3:Idaho and Washington www.4shared.com/file/229956030/cc07189f/Agate_Index_Vol_3.htmlVol 4:South Dakota, Nebraska, and Oklahoma www.4shared.com/file/242786005/91b2476f/Agate_Index_Vol_4.htmlVol 5: Texas www.4shared.com/document/oCLei3tU/Agate_Index_Vol_5.htmlVol 6: The South - Mississippi, Louisiana, Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Arkansas, Missouri www.4shared.com/document/nXCjumab/Agate_Index_Vol_6.htmlVol 7: Arizona (Warning 16 MB) www.4shared.com/document/XplaNpW1/Agate_Index_Vol_7.htmlVol 8: New Mexico and Nevada www.4shared.com/document/_pQZhI8C/Agate_Index_Vol_8.htmlOnly two volumes left for the first set (Oregon, California). We hope you find these files interesting and helpful. Thank you to everyone who has contributed and commented and downloaded these files. They are for you. Lowell and Mel
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elementary
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since February 2006
Posts: 1,077
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Post by elementary on Jul 7, 2010 18:35:08 GMT -5
Went hunting for a half day in the Hauser Beds. We left at 5:00 am and by the time we reached the beds at 8:00, the temp was already over 80 degrees. By 1:00, the temperature had gone up to 114 degrees so we stopped what we were doing and headed home. My dad drove and my wife went out for the first time to see what this hobby was all about. She brought out the wildlife, as we saw more lizards than ever before and even a snake (the kind that doesn't rattle). Our stops were for white t-eggs and eroded cores, seam agate, and that tan and white banded jasper I tumble. Here's a picture of some finished pieces of the white agate (left) and the banded jasper (right). We found a large bagful of the white agate during our brief hunt for the white t-eggs: and later found 1/2 a bucket of the banded jasper (most I've ever come across): Also saw a strange bump in the road and decided to pry it out. As we were doing this, it fractured. Turned out to be a large hollow geode. We also decided to walk a stream bed and found some good seam agate: When I have time, (for those interested), I'll put together a driving tour of the beds and all you can find there. Happy hunting, Lowell
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elementary
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since February 2006
Posts: 1,077
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Post by elementary on Jul 6, 2010 22:41:48 GMT -5
Friend of mine donated a slab of dino bone he polished to our club's silent auction later this month. I think he did an incredible job. He picked it up at the Harris House sale last year. It was part of a 300 lb haul we made of dino bone. Opening bids? Come to our meeting! Lowell
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elementary
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since February 2006
Posts: 1,077
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Post by elementary on Jul 2, 2010 10:57:55 GMT -5
I should have said V-22 (Which is the Osprey - the tilt wing aircraft seen at en.wikipedia.org/wiki/V-22_OspreyThe M designates I believe Marines. The air force version would have (as my limited understanding allows) would have had a different beginning letter.) Lowell
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elementary
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since February 2006
Posts: 1,077
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Post by elementary on Jul 1, 2010 17:50:21 GMT -5
Mel,
I agree about the memories triggered by specific stones. I can be pulling out a bucket of stuff and find a piece that suddenly pulls me back to a desert tortoise sighting, a field of flowers, an unusual find, etc.
I enjoy hunting near Castle Butte because usually I'm allowed an air show of some type (it being north of Edwards AFBase). A few years ago, my wife was working on a project to bring the MV-22 to the military bases out here in California (can't remember for which branch, though). Her firm was doing the envir. impact reports. So I was hunting on the hill overlooking the Boron Wood site and here comes an MV-22 roaring down the valley. Dang things are LOUD. I watch it turn and make another run. It does this for a while. Now I'm thinking, is this thing supposed to be in the state yet? I call home as I watch and ask Karen - "Uh, are those planes of yours supposed to be here yet?" Turns out these belonged to a different branch and already had their go ahead to be flying. So, (how does this story relate everyone is now asking) as I stand, I put my hand on a chunk of jasper, and it has some interesting color and patterns in it. Probably the most interesting find of the day. I haven't cut it yet, but each time I run across it, I remember that day and that oddball plane's flight across the sky.
Lowell
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elementary
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since February 2006
Posts: 1,077
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Post by elementary on Jul 1, 2010 11:08:06 GMT -5
Nice work -
Hey - I like that petrified wood. Here in So. California most pet wood sites have been vacuumed clean by the masses. You either gotta dig deep or walk a long way to get to the stuff.
For the wood, is it all chunks, or do you get any rounds?
Lowell
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elementary
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since February 2006
Posts: 1,077
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Post by elementary on Jul 1, 2010 10:59:51 GMT -5
Dangnational poppy (almost wrote poopy) material you got there Mel! I don't think I've seen a specimen that purty of dat stuff! Makes me want to dig deeper in the crate of that stuff you left behind when you moved that's been sitting by the sit of the house collecting spider webs and snail shells! (Your move gave me the best rockhunting I'd done up through the Harris house sale last year!) So - here's my poppy eyes for your poppy jasper: Lowell
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