field trip - hunting for rocks!

Last weekend I serendipitously joined a Lapidary Society when I stumbled upon their annual rocks & minerals/gem show and, after speaking with several senior members, signed up and was excited to learn there would be a collecting field trip the next weekend out to the Lavic area in the Mojave Desert!

I got up at 4:30 AM on Saturday morning so that I could leave by 5 and get to the first meeting point 30 minutes outside of Barstow at 8:30. I met some modern-day prospectors on the National Trails Highway, who were heading out to spend the day mining/panning for gold and platinum. By 9 AM I had met new and longstanding members from the Pasadena, Whittier, and Glendora clubs, and we started a caravan west out to the first collecting site. This first site had an endless bounty of jasper as far as the eye could see, and there were SO many beautiful specimens it was hard not to pick up everything in sight. I took pictures of what I saw but didn't take, but collecting pretty much took precedence over documentation...! From the jasper/agate site we moved on to look for thulite (a green and pink marble), and an impromptu side trip to hunt for chalcedony roses right before heading back on I-40.

Of course a trip out to the desert ensures fine cactus encounters. Here I spotted what I think is Opuntia basilaris var. basilaris at the thulite site, and Echinocactus polycephalus when we were searching for chalcedony roses. I saw some teddy bear/jumping cholla too and made sure to keep some distance from them, but not before checking out their furry, toothpick-like spines.

It was pretty incredible to be in the company of extremely passionate and adventurous people all in the pursuit of awesome rocks and being outdoors in the desert. The average age of the people there was 60, and pros that they were had their collecting jackets/vests, hats, rock hammers/scoops, and walking/hiking sticks to facilitate efficient collecting. Many of them would call a newer member over to show a chalcedony growth atop some rhyolite, or a particularly gorgeous example of thulite with deep pink rivers swirling on a lush green sea, point out a piece of brecciated jasper, or, towards the end of the trip excitedly examine a fossilized clamshell that a new member had sharply eyed and picked up! I feel amazingly charged and alive when I interact with people who have retained a sense of wonder for their surroundings, and who seem impervious to weird modern perils and jaded points of view.

 

Sunday morning I could not sleep in, so after a bit of toast I filled up a bucket with warm water and went to work lightly cleaning the jasper, agate, and thulite I lugged home. I also found some little chalcedonies and druzys that I laid out on a paper towel layer on the kitchen table, but damn was I way more interested in handling and examining every piece than photographing it all! My sister stepped out and watched me for a bit before asking "What are you going to do with all of these?" and I just looked at her, my hands full of gleaming wet rocks and I exclaimed "I don't know!" I realize I will need to have a good-sized house, excellent cleaning/purging habits, a ton of willpower, and a whole lot of nothing to start with (haha), in order to keep my collecting tendencies in check. I'm looking forward to more field trips, because this hands-down beats picking around an excavated construction site all the way, in every way.

your days in one

Joining skein 5 to skein 6! This new skein is super irregular - I've been feeling lumpy, thicker parts of wool as well as skinny, smooth areas...which makes me pretty excited to feel/see these irregularities in the finished knit!

A badass prickly pear (Opuntia) cactus tree amongst some oaks one morning. Not sure of the exact species. I love seeing how this specimen managed to grow up and out to compete for light on the otherwise very shady forest floor. Nature you are, always have been, and always will be utterly amazing.

 

I started one of those "write-down-good-things-that-happen then tip-it-all-out and read-at-the-end-of-the-year" jars at the beginning of the year. I've been treating it as a method of staying positive (duh), and by writing down the good happenings on scraps of used paper I've sort of been recycling, too.

Snagged this Archival roll-top rucksack that was on mega-sale for no apparent reason (??!) last month, and it has replaced my previous work bag, though I don't hesitate to use it for weekend romps outdoors/running errands/everything. I've been a fan of the rucksack-style pack for ages, but have always frowned upon the double-strap style (really inconvenient/time-consuming) and have pretty much been waiting around for years to find one with a single-strap closure in the perfect materials & color (and price!). Really lucked out with this one...

Sand for succulents/bottling for memories.

My string of pearls plant (Senecio rowleyanus) produced one flower this winter that smelled curiously and deliciously like that of a clover blossom - strong, too! It has since gone to seed, but its heady scent was a wonderful thing to come home to and be greeted by after a long day.

I inevitably end up with a handful of images every month that I meant to mention, but lost along the way, so this is my way of rounding them up and keeping track of things! Not really necessary, but it's fun.

excuse me for a second: Bloglovin (<-- knee-jerk reaction to the announcement of the end of Google Reader).

the book of CACTI and Other SUCCULENTS

I guess I talk about my plants an awful lot and well, here's some more of that! I found this book while thrifting last year, but only really began to appreciate its usefulness with my own recent burgeoning cacti and succulent garden. A clarification I was happy to read in this book is that cacti are the "best-known" family of succulents, but all succulents are not cacti (!!!).

I love love love illustrations in old books. It doesn't even matter what they are of, but man, look at these! The close-ups of cactus blossoms and bracts, the image of the lady for scale, and the impeccably handwritten labels matched with the arrows. Amazing.

Propagation methods...

This rolled newspaper trick was such a helpful tip for some of my spinier friends. And the watering tip - essential. Ever since A gave me this baby barrel cactus, I've been keen on collecting my own specimens, but I find that I usually cannot resist the $2 succulents at Home Depot when I make a visit.

Cactus medley! I've been a little lax about identifying all of these...I think most of them are in the Opuntia tribe, except for the one on the bottom...

Aloe vera, jade plant, hen & chick, and Sedum.

It's easier to label these images if you actually know the names of all the plants...!

Last week I came home to see all the pots neatly grouped together, and some of my succulents in glass (on the far left) had been rearranged. The work of mischievous/thoughtful gardeners, I believe! As the days continue to get longer, I like to sit out on the porch with a cup of tea as I watch the last vestiges of sunlight stretch, linger, then fade away.

elyria canyon

I felt pretty suffocated by the urban environment the whole past week, so this morning I went to Elyria Canyon Park in Mt. Washington, which is only a few miles from where I live. Apparently this spot boasts one of the "finest" California Black Walnut woodlands, which were once plentiful in California but now exist only in scattered pockets like these. Said walnut trees were in the beginning stages of budding today when I visited, and they were beautiful indeed. With the park being in a canyon, one is surrounded by beautiful hill-top houses, but as I had wanted to escape into nature, the sight of the houses and adjacent developed neighborhoods made me feel ever more restless and slightly regretful of my decision to explore new places (note: which is not a bad thing - I was glad that I was getting out of my comfort zone). I tucked a sprig of black sage into my pocket as I reoriented myself for the way out, but then I spied an opening to the north, where I realized the park continued.

 
It was after this point on really, that the trail sparked my interest again...! This path took me way down, low enough that I couldn't see any man-made structures whatsoever. Just trees! I don't mean to sound overly picky about this hiking spot by the way - it's a good thing subjectivity makes the world go 'round. The trails aren't challenging by any means, but the variety of birdsong and the quietness of the canyon is a major plus. It wasn't until I climbed another hill and reached a bend, that I got REALLY excited.


See this? Mistletoe! American mistletoe (Phoradendron serotinum) to be exact. I've always been fascinated by their "witches broom" clumps that I'd see in the barren branches of deciduous trees, and I finally got to see some low enough to the ground to investigate these crazy parasitic plants. It's kind of a good thing that I was alone on this walk, because I was positively gleeful at this discovery, and took my sweet time to investigate its berries, leaves, and attachment to the host tree.


Not too far down the hill from the mistletoe-laden walnut trees was this gigantic patch of prickly pear cactus. Beautiful! I made off with some tiny growths off of a fallen paddle, that I wrapped in a bandanna and placed into my backpack.

Around the prickly pear patch were tons of lupine and these curious other purple blooms. I think they're a variety of blue-eyed grass, which is part of the iris family. I couldn't stop looking at them, but didn't try to take any home with me. Edit: They're wild hyacinths (Dichelostemma capitatum capitatum), another name for them being 'blue dicks' hehe!

"let me have the last word!!!"

One of two Kodak film tins found today at the PCC Flea Market for $1!

"The Hollow Earth" by Raymond Bernard, which I got more for the graphic quality of the front & insides, rather than for its content (though it's kind of fascinating, flipping through and looking into the belief and 'evidence' of the Hollow Earth Theory...).

Test shot of an assortment of vintage canning jars given to me by A. I realized that the wider the angle I use, the more vignetting occurs...

Today was a hectic flurry of a day, which was a little unexpected, but it was busily productive so I'm not complaining. After traversing the flea market with sister and mom, I went around the town I grew up in for ten years, shooting pictures of a bunch of locations to build up a reference library for a project that needs to get underway soon. One of the locations to visit on my list was the Huntington Library, and it turns out that a family friend of ours was given some kind of super-membership that extends to additional friends, so as an on-again off-again member, I'm a member for another year again - hooray! I got re-registered, and walked around the gardens and buildings - admiring flowers, and soaking in the heat of the afternoon. Before I left, I stole away to the Desert Garden to walk amongst the cacti and succulents, where I simultaneously felt inspired by the beautiful growths while envying the variety. I got through most of the locations, but as that wound down I decided I had no energy left for SuperBowl festivities, so the rest of the afternoon was spent cleaning and rearranging items in the house. I can confidently say that I'll sleep well tonight. It's already next week!

I liked how this fallen barrel cactus had a blanket/tarp nestled underneath it, as if for support/warmth(???)/protection. I'll gladly (stupidly) cuddle you, cactus!