elementary
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Post by elementary on Aug 13, 2013 0:15:44 GMT -5
When I posted those pet wood pictures, I mentioned that they came from the estate of Myrle Kirk who past away at 95 years young. I was able to get her slide collection. Much of it was labeled. Some came in binders. Some loose in boxes. But there was also a 3 foot high slide cabinet that was filled. Near the bottom was one drawer labeled "Rock Trips". The photos below are just a sampling of the images I found there. I will be compiling a book of the images (plus the ones from my club) much like the Agate Index's but focused on historical material. I hope you enjoy. NEW PHOTOS Wilson Canyon-Nevada May 1962 Opal Mountain March 1959 Last Chance Canyon April 1961 ------ Sidewinder Mtn for Verde Antique Marble Jan 1960 Rainbow Ridge Jun 1960 Opal Mountain 1965 Near Bryce Canyon May 1961 Mule Canyon February 1959 Silver Lace Last Chance Canyon March 1960 Last Chance Canyon Log March 1960 Horse Canyon 1962 Thanks for looking. Hope you enjoyed your history lesson! Lowell
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elementary
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Post by elementary on Aug 12, 2013 23:58:42 GMT -5
That is exquisite. Wonderful work. A gorgeous piece of lapidary and jewelry.
In other words:
Wow!
Lowell
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elementary
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Post by elementary on Aug 9, 2013 17:39:47 GMT -5
With summer winding to a close, and all the rocks I bought over the last three weeks finally stored, I had the chance to actually cut up some of my own material. I met a friend at our club's workshop and we sorted material donated to the club while our saws cut our personal stuff. The first one I cut - Baker Egg, was a disappointment and disappeared into the club's bucket of t-egg halves. The second one, from the southern Hauser beds, had an agate center, but no pattern or color. Dumped into the bucket. The third came from a place nicknamed Kim's Secret Spot, but it's been around now long enough I'm sure it's not too secret. I've cut about 3 to 4 other things from there which have not impressed too much, but I still had a double that I had been saving - fearing disappointment. Well, today it got chopped, and I'm glad it was the last one opened as if it had been first, I would have been even more disappointed with the junky eggs. The only down side is that the material is slightly cracked between the centers and one half of the specimen broke apart. I'm not sure how to polish the other intact half without it separating. Hope you like: Solid side Hollow side Together Thanks for looking, Lowell
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elementary
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Post by elementary on Aug 8, 2013 9:58:02 GMT -5
DIRTY DEEDS - oh love it so much.
For Those About to Rock
Hells Bells
Ride On
and from the soundtrack of that god-aweful Stephen King movie about Trucks Gone Wild, Who Made Who.
As for drinking food - Years ago it was Taco Bell before their meat became less than 30% of the content, and we called it hangover food as you could trick your body into eating as your brain thought that it was swallowing something else.
But there is a related subject you guys haven't broached ----- after a bout of the three day stomach flu - what is the first food you crave. After a bout of heavy drinking, your answers might be the same. For me, post food poisoning/stomach flue - I crave a cheeseburger (non fast food chain). Something from your local burger specialty shack: the place with no indoor seating and a line around the block. The place wrapping its burgers in thin wax paper that becomes transparent just by touching the burger, and is run by locals who gripe about the cost of running a business but have been there 30 years. You know their kids and they know yours. A place a typical out of town tourist looking for the familiar would drive right by but an adventurous soul would pull right in.
Damn... I'm hungry.
Lowell
yeah - high school in the 80's.
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elementary
fully equipped rock polisher
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Post by elementary on Aug 6, 2013 15:59:52 GMT -5
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elementary
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Member since February 2006
Posts: 1,077
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Post by elementary on Aug 6, 2013 15:38:18 GMT -5
The 2012 Agate Index Vol 4: Northern States is now complete and ready to be accessed. www.mediafire.com/download/hdmx7d1ahnegden/2012_Agate_Index_Vol_4_The_North.pdfFor instructions on how to download, see the initial posting on this thread. At just over 140 pages, it's shorter than the other documents but it hopefully will be an aid to everyone. Huge thanks to Mel (as usual) as this project would not exist without him. He does a fantastic job editing my document and advising what ought to be changed. Thanks to all who helped! See below the list of contributers for this volume. There's a few names you'll recognize. Boche, Mark - 27, 40, 54, 62-63, 67, 109-111, Bontempo, Daniel - 84, 89, 118, 126, 130, Brace-Thompson, Jim - 92, Brown, Jim - 106, Colee, Jamie - 40, 123 Corrigan, Tom - 44, 102, Donnieʼs Treasures - 97, Draper, Monte - 20, 29, 79, 89, 93, 112, 115, Foster, Lowell - 48, 75, 82, Haynes, Steve - 34, 68-73, 99, 117-118, Heuer, Dan - 85, 118, Hixson, Mel - 30, 54, 60-61, 74, 81, 85, 88, 95-96, 103, 119, 125, Holmes, Steve - 30, 39, 48, 55, Idaho Rock Shop - 104, Kepling, Teyet - 23-25, 31-33, 35-38, 42, 75-76, 90, 94, 113-114, 120, 124, 132-133 Orekar, Ed - 81, 95, 100, Price, Charles - 45, Rix, David - 46, Rush, Bob - 82, Schilling, Mike - 16, 19, 28, 79-80, 86, 105, 107-108, 122, 127, 129-131, Sellers, Brian - 75-76, 83, 109, 123, 125, Smith, Brian - 88, Speers, Steven - 7-13, 18, 21, Stoneviews - 81, 96, Tom Wolfe Minerals - 14, 17-18, 22, 26, 75, 97, Vesely, Roger - 49-53, 55-59, 64, Wise, Ron - 6, Woodward, Don - 50, 65-66,
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elementary
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Post by elementary on Aug 5, 2013 21:36:34 GMT -5
Thanks for all your comments.
Don - that Cycad is awesome! Sweet piece! I'd love to use it in the index, if you're willing to give up the site - is it protected as in Military Base or Wilderness Area?
Mel - if you want a small batch of the rootlets to tumble, I'll be curious to see how they turn out.
Don - Regarding the Hurricane Ridge. I see what you mean on the first item. I collected similar material with gr outside Holbrook in April. It was in with her wood slabs so I just placed it there. Thanks for the heads up.
Mark, I've broken out the scanner but it's not working right. I need to see if I need to update my version or if I just forgot a step.
Lowell
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elementary
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Post by elementary on Aug 5, 2013 21:26:37 GMT -5
It's driving me crazy, but I've seen the exterior markings on this specimen elsewhere, but I'm having a major brain fart. Anyone recognize the little squiggly lines on this? What the heck is it? Interior showing tube-like structures. I hope this helps, though I know these images are still lacking in quality. Anything? Bueller? Bueller? Lowell
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elementary
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Post by elementary on Aug 4, 2013 21:24:16 GMT -5
The Estate Sale Myrle Kirk, 95 year old former member of my club, continued this weekend. I headed over there to see if there was additional petrified wood I could snag. They had lowered the price so I loaded up and 100 lbs of various materials. I also bought a special something for my wife which got her interested in the sale as well and we went back today to find the rock at 50 cents a pound, so i bought another bushel load. Here's the highlights starting with the petrified wood: The stuff without ID tags: Large piece not labeled but most solid/largest specimen I got. Some pieces from near the Colorado River: Love the detail preserved in them: Usual stuff: Gabbs Sperry Wash, CA Some rarer or more unusual material - the first is a piece listed as Zion UT, and it solves the unknown pieces I listed at the end of the last posting I made. another Zion Thousand Oaks CA Last Chance Canyon (now off limits) Torrey UT Cuyama CA (again) Tonopah NV Hanksville UT (not sure if this is just agate, but filed with petrified wood) Butte Valley NV (Again) Hurricane Ridge UT Monte Cristo Mountains NV Saturday I bought the first box of this stuff, and i bought the rest today. I have heard a story of how one rockhounding family would drop off their mother in a specific area near Mule Canyon outside Barstow. She was there to do one thing: sift through the dirt for petrified palm tree rootlets. They then sold them to Greiger's in Pasadena (I know a few of you know this reference). I am thinking that this material might be the same stuff, but it's pure guesswork. Here is a closeup of one of the pieces. And now for something completely different from the last batch of different stuff: Looking at the piece, I though Cycad, but then I wasn't sure. The second picture shows the odd structural features, but it could be better. Ideas? Not labeled, but looks Utahish. A few non-wood items: Canadian Dino Bone: Opalized Wood (guessing) Some has flash) Crystals - .50 cents per pound (yeah - I grabbed handfuls for my classroom.) And finally - Ms Kirk was involved in archeology, but I don't know in what capacity. What she did have is a significant collection of pre-columbian artifacts. It made me sick to see them split up and sold. She had everything catalogued, but nobody could figure out where or how it was done, so all her work is being split between dozens of people who have no idea where the material they bought came from. When I saw the item below I thought twice about buying it, but finally I did ($75) when I was given permission to take all of Ms Kirks private files and papers, including her slides. I am hoping to find some notation that will allow me pinpoint where it came from. The slides include dozens of images (labeled) of rock hounding sites in the 50's and 60's. I'm scanning them and will be posting them here soon. Anyway - what i bought my wife: Hope you made it through this post without falling asleep. thanks for looking Lowell
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elementary
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Post by elementary on Jul 17, 2013 20:36:14 GMT -5
Most of my rocks are stored in buckets in the garage - labeled and sealed for when I'm trading or looking for samples.
Along my house a couple old wooden cabinets and I have about 5-9 buckets and 4-5 milk crates out there. Around back I have a rock garden.
It all depends on how you want these things organized. The stuff I have on the ground isn't labeled but I know it's too big for me to use anytime soon, or just not interesting to me.
Do you care about organization by location and type, or are you just needing a place to drop your haul?
My wife bought one of those artificial wood, square gardening beds. She filled hers with mulch and plants. If you build/buy a 10x10 by 6 inch garden bed kit, that would hold quite a bit of material and contain its movement to other locations. Just a thought.
I hope you find a solution.
Lowell
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elementary
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Post by elementary on Jul 17, 2013 20:25:02 GMT -5
Always love the shine and the rocks and the glitter and the glamour!
But I keep on forgetting about the coin:
I've got a family collection that goes way back. Is your 1859 self-collected, inherited, or purchased or gifted?
Just curious cause I love the piece.
Lowell
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elementary
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Post by elementary on Jul 17, 2013 11:09:01 GMT -5
And then you deal with the honesty of the people you hire.
There's a story out of Tuscon about a well-known dealer who has source of material in mexico. He was expecting a shipment to arrive during the show, and then got word that there was a truck parked on a street corner selling rough from the back -----> it was the shipment he was expecting and the drivers (not the best paid people) decided to up their pay grade by selling off some of the material.
At least, that's the story I heard....
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elementary
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Post by elementary on Jul 17, 2013 0:10:15 GMT -5
Jean,
Yep - about Calexico, but I wrote the location as it is written on the specimen. I believe the actual site might be Pinto Mountain on the other side of the border. I have a book that talks about this location but provides no images. The book dates back to 1961 or so which also is the date written on the specimen.
It's exciting finding pieces that have some documentation.
John,
I don't think I have any wood from you. I'll never say no to specimens from you. Thanks for the thought.
(Oops - daughter calling. Time to put her to bed.)
Glad you all are finding the material worth discussing,
Lowell
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elementary
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Post by elementary on Jul 15, 2013 10:57:03 GMT -5
Tom,
Normally I don't buy pet wood at estate/yard sales because it's not labeled. I'm more of a nodule nut than a weird wood guy. This time, when I saw the notes put on the rocks, I bought as much as I could afford. Material isn't as interesting to me if I've lost its origins.
Besides, it will help with the Agate Index as well with some new sites that weren't included yet. (speaking of index, I have two people sending me a ton of new material photos from Oregon and SoCal.
As I said at the top, I'm beginning to get itchy to get back into that pile to see what other specimens are there. I know I put back another SB canyon one, and I'm thinking I should have kept it.
Panamark - wow! 1000? took me long enough! Thanks for noticing.
Lowell
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elementary
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Post by elementary on Jul 14, 2013 23:10:41 GMT -5
Pat,
What I meant by not liking the translucency could be equated to a detective 'not liking' a suspect because he doesn't match the description exactly.
I love the stone - even if it isn't a Fairburn, but it is a detail that - to my limited fairburn knowledge - doesn't exactly match.
It's a little mystery, and mysteries are fun (but I like them best when they are finally solved.)
Anyhow, I hope that makes sense. (and Fairburns are gorgeous creatures - of which I don't own a sample as of yet.)
Lowell
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elementary
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Post by elementary on Jul 14, 2013 21:57:40 GMT -5
Wow! I love that lapis! That blue is intense!
Great job!
Lowell
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elementary
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Post by elementary on Jul 14, 2013 21:53:55 GMT -5
Here's the wood specimens I bought Saturday. In looking over the variety, I realize I am hoping for another shot at that pile as some of the pieces come from areas that are either closed or are rarely seen. Here's a rundown of the material. I hope it interests you. Mule Canyon, CA Calexico, Mexico (collected 1960) Farmington NM Niger Head (which is misspelled on the label and I believe is called Grassy Mountain now due to the nature of the original word...): [ Bruneau Canyon ID Hanksville UT Escalante UT Zion UT Butte Valley, NV Napa CA Santa Barbara Canyon, CA Cuyama CA Unknowns: Thanks for looking through the pics. :Lowell
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elementary
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Post by elementary on Jul 14, 2013 13:45:23 GMT -5
Does anyone else see a resemblance to President Nixon?
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elementary
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Post by elementary on Jul 14, 2013 13:37:27 GMT -5
Thanks for the feedback.
For $5 it was worth the risk.
What impressed me was the tumbled look and the way the banding encompassed the stone.
What I didn't like was that it is translucent. I've not had that much experience looking at Fairburns other than photographs, but they seemed to be opaque (tho educate me to any fallacy in my thinking.)
Again, finding a solitary stone in a collection out in california seemed odd, but it does have a whiteout label with an inventory number, which seemed to indicate that this stone was of higher importance than other items there. The problem is that the estate sellers didn't find the catalog or tossed it, as they were hired to just move the collection, and I would imagine they would see such material as expendable.
I'm going back in two weeks to pick up the woman's slide collection as it may have photos from her field trips in the 60's, and I don't want that material to vanish into nothingness. Maybe they'll be able to provide the index then.
Thanks for looking and giving me your opinion.
Lowell
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elementary
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Post by elementary on Jul 13, 2013 21:01:31 GMT -5
Actually I put on my shiny red heels and and click them together while chanting.
My wife asks me to refrain from this behavior while in public....
(and Paul - except for the drive, the North Cady's wouldn't be terrible for kids - you just need to keep an eye on them)
Lowell
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