Today I had the honor of participating in a hunt for a lost mine in the Buena Vista/Klau Mine complex in the Adelaida area of San Luis Obispo County.
The names have been changed to protect the innocent. I was accompanied by a caretaker we shall call Hephaestus as well as by a member of the Santa Lucia Rockhounds we shall call Indiana Murray.
We had old maps and the memory of an old man to work off of but no gps or modern maps.
This mine was old by the standards of the other mines in its vicinity as it was shut down and plugged generations ago and is now all grown over.
We did the Indiana Jones thing with machetes (less glamourously but more effectively Indiana used pruning sheerers) chopping our way through at times dense brush.
Unfortunately, at times, that included lots of poison oak.
I'm afraid of what is going to happen with my inevitable reaction to it.
At least I took all the precautions the moment I got home utilizing the full range of Tecnu products plus lots of showering and that included my little dog Tequila so we'll have to just wait and see what happens.
Ultimately, I believe we found the adit we were looking for although we might have found an old, plugged up exploratory shaft instead in which case that would probably place the adit further up the hill and buried in a thicket of poison oak and other overgrown flora.
Besides that expedition we did some cool rockhounding at various locations around the mine complex.
Despite the damage the EPA has done to the mine complex as part of the remediation process we still managed to find some bright red "hermes" ore along with some nice more metallicky (is that a word?) "meta-hermes" ore and some beautiful both white and lime-colored calcite and interesting marcasite and some pretty brecciated jasper, not to mention some small but sparkly quartz crystals.
We also got to see a beautiful quartz crystal vug bordered by massive calcite and a really nice cluster of calcite crystals right next to it but both were in a massive boulder and couldn't be collected.
All in all we didn't do too shabby.
Along the way we saw some beautiful wildflowers including shooting stars to go with the usual poppies and lupines.
We also saw some cool critters including a young rattlesnake warming himself in the sun as well as a mated pair of golden eagles effortlessly circling over us at one point along with plenty of cute amd fuzzy cotton-tail rabbits and even a flighty, semi-domesticated goat.
One other thing we did I neglected to mention is that we confirmed that indeed the correct location of adit #1 for one of the mines we were at was indeed misplaced and we confirmed the proper location for it.
I must confess I had a real hoot today and so did the other two gentleman I was with today and I hope we three do it again sometime.
Given how many hours we were out in the field and how much ambulating about we did I'm sure I lost a fair amount of weight today, something that I'm nowadays rather militant about doing on a consistent basis.
On behalf of Indiana Murray and myself I thank Hephaistos for inviting us and showing us around and keeping us safer than we would have been otherwise and showing us some cool sites and sights.
Fini
Saturday, April 12, 2008
Friday, April 11, 2008
My First Bakersfield Rock & Gem Rendevous Pt. 4
Sunday, April 6, 2008 ~ Day Three
It was nice to sleep in my own bed last night after two nights in a sleeping bag in the midst of the big bad city.
I woke up feeling antsy to get back over to Bakersfield and get ready for one last surge of entrepreneurial endeavor for the weekend. Things had not gone how I had hoped from a bottom-line standpoint although the show had been a real hoot, but now I hoped to recoup some of my expenses now that I had given up on actually turning a profit.
I hooked up with my ailing family member who visited me at the show the day before and was going to do so again today and then drive home in their own car with me at the end of the day.
The flowers along Highway 46 in San Luis Obispo County were still riotously plentiful and beautiful with the Poppies and Fiddlenecks and Lupines being the most prominent.
We were in a hurry to get to the show around opening time and I felt pressed for time.
I was rolling down the road on flat and straight Highway 46 eastbound between Blackwell's Corner and Lost Hills.
Traffic was light on this sunny and clear Sunday morning which found me going 76 m.p.h along a stretch of road posted 55 m.p.h.
I suddenly realized before I could respond that there was a white-colored CHP patrol unit right in front of me headed westbound and he immediately slowed and fired up his lights and turned around behind us to which we responded by pulling our two vehicles over.
Officer Knight was civil and professional but hardly warm and fuzzy.
I felt I was in no position to plead my case as he did get me fair and square.
However, I felt the situation was crappy at best as NOBODY goes 55 m.p.h. along that stretch of road under the conditions present that morning unless they want to get their arse run off the road or have somebody riding up their bumper and then probably going around them and quite possibly dangerously so with the possibility of a head-on collision resulting as is too oft the case on that stretch of road.
When and where there was light to no traffic it was safe to be going 75 m.p.h. given the conditions present at that time.
It's all a moot point now, of course, but I'm out over $300 when all is said and done if you figure in traffic school and I'm not exactly a happy camper.
Ship hattens. >:-O
I made a couple of choices after that.
One was to slow down overall as I have developed a slight case of Lead Foot and my never having gotten a speeding ticket before was destined to never last .
The other was that I was not going to negatively dwell on this all day but shrug it off and move on.
Of course, it helped me to shrug it off when the family member I was caravaning with offered to pay for the ticket given how they were the reason I was in the position I was in when I got that ticket. ;-p
I showed up at the Kern County Fairgrounds a bit later than I would have without being pulled over but it mattered not as there were few if any customers hanging out yet which was both good news and not-so-good news. ;-)
Right up front I'll tell you how the day went business-wise: much better than the previous two days combined (I grossed $242.17) but still fell short of breaking even but at least I made it close.
I will tell you this however: I can ill afford to NOT be in the Bakersfield Rock & Gem Rendevous given how much fun I had and how many folks I know are in that show and how much networking can be accomplished there.
I have been invited back next year and look forward to it.
Sometimes things aren't what they seem.
Sometimes what looks like failure is success and what looks like success is failure.
Maybe this show was about getting into next year's show and into this year's Antelope Valley Show and meeting folks like Lew and Shep and Jon and others for the first time.
Maybe this show was about getting my blog off and running with the exposure it has received after being mentioned twice on the Bakersfield Californian's Bakosphere blog.
One thing I have neglected to mention thus far about this show was the presence near my booth of a promotional table by the Buena Vista Museum that was manned by a one or two guys cleaning fossil specimens from Sharkstooth Hill and displaying a cool-looking megalodon (uber shark) tooth.
For some reason it wouldn't sell all weekend. ;-p
Anywho, I chatted them up more than once over the weekend and now am planning on visiting the museum while my girlfriend is down for the Summer.
As some of you may recall Huell Howser visited that museum in an episode of California's Gold.
I was able to purchase something for my girlfriend's upcoming birthday which item was hard to find and I found it in the perfect price range which was also nice.
Furthermore, I was able to do conduct a trade with Dale Harwood for some of his minerals in exchange for some of my South African cactus quartzes. I felt badly that a meteorite that I promised to purchase from Tom DeMaris I was unable to purchase but he graciously offered to hold onto it until we hook up at the Nipomo show this coming August.
A couple of hours before the show ended a chain-smoking Asian fellow with dyed hair pulled out early obviously not concerned about not being invited back next year given he was violating the terms of his contract by leaving while the show was still going on. He didn't belong in the show with his leaded plastic Chinese crap beads and jewelry.
Mike and I hung around per our contract and then efficiently broke down our booth while chatting with the other neighboring vendors doing the same.
It seemed the Afghans suddenly disappeared as if melting back into the mountains. One minute they were there and the next they were nowhere to be seen. ;-p
Seriously though, all the Afghans were as nice as anybody at the show.
Mike and I and my family member headed home caravan style west on Ming to North River River and north on it to Stockdale Highway and west on it to Highway 43 and north on it to Highway 58 and west on it to Lokern and then west on it to Highway 33 and north on it to Highway 46 and west on it to Highway 41 and home safely and soundly.
We were shocked to see how Bakersfield has exploded out to the west with its southwestern margins now in sight of I-5.
It seems inevitable it will someday soon reach out and extend to the interstate.
It seems foolish to pave over some of the most productive farmland on the planet.
It was nice to sleep in my own bed last night after two nights in a sleeping bag in the midst of the big bad city.
I woke up feeling antsy to get back over to Bakersfield and get ready for one last surge of entrepreneurial endeavor for the weekend. Things had not gone how I had hoped from a bottom-line standpoint although the show had been a real hoot, but now I hoped to recoup some of my expenses now that I had given up on actually turning a profit.
I hooked up with my ailing family member who visited me at the show the day before and was going to do so again today and then drive home in their own car with me at the end of the day.
The flowers along Highway 46 in San Luis Obispo County were still riotously plentiful and beautiful with the Poppies and Fiddlenecks and Lupines being the most prominent.
We were in a hurry to get to the show around opening time and I felt pressed for time.
I was rolling down the road on flat and straight Highway 46 eastbound between Blackwell's Corner and Lost Hills.
Traffic was light on this sunny and clear Sunday morning which found me going 76 m.p.h along a stretch of road posted 55 m.p.h.
I suddenly realized before I could respond that there was a white-colored CHP patrol unit right in front of me headed westbound and he immediately slowed and fired up his lights and turned around behind us to which we responded by pulling our two vehicles over.
Officer Knight was civil and professional but hardly warm and fuzzy.
I felt I was in no position to plead my case as he did get me fair and square.
However, I felt the situation was crappy at best as NOBODY goes 55 m.p.h. along that stretch of road under the conditions present that morning unless they want to get their arse run off the road or have somebody riding up their bumper and then probably going around them and quite possibly dangerously so with the possibility of a head-on collision resulting as is too oft the case on that stretch of road.
When and where there was light to no traffic it was safe to be going 75 m.p.h. given the conditions present at that time.
It's all a moot point now, of course, but I'm out over $300 when all is said and done if you figure in traffic school and I'm not exactly a happy camper.
Ship hattens. >:-O
I made a couple of choices after that.
One was to slow down overall as I have developed a slight case of Lead Foot and my never having gotten a speeding ticket before was destined to never last .
The other was that I was not going to negatively dwell on this all day but shrug it off and move on.
Of course, it helped me to shrug it off when the family member I was caravaning with offered to pay for the ticket given how they were the reason I was in the position I was in when I got that ticket. ;-p
I showed up at the Kern County Fairgrounds a bit later than I would have without being pulled over but it mattered not as there were few if any customers hanging out yet which was both good news and not-so-good news. ;-)
Right up front I'll tell you how the day went business-wise: much better than the previous two days combined (I grossed $242.17) but still fell short of breaking even but at least I made it close.
I will tell you this however: I can ill afford to NOT be in the Bakersfield Rock & Gem Rendevous given how much fun I had and how many folks I know are in that show and how much networking can be accomplished there.
I have been invited back next year and look forward to it.
Sometimes things aren't what they seem.
Sometimes what looks like failure is success and what looks like success is failure.
Maybe this show was about getting into next year's show and into this year's Antelope Valley Show and meeting folks like Lew and Shep and Jon and others for the first time.
Maybe this show was about getting my blog off and running with the exposure it has received after being mentioned twice on the Bakersfield Californian's Bakosphere blog.
One thing I have neglected to mention thus far about this show was the presence near my booth of a promotional table by the Buena Vista Museum that was manned by a one or two guys cleaning fossil specimens from Sharkstooth Hill and displaying a cool-looking megalodon (uber shark) tooth.
For some reason it wouldn't sell all weekend. ;-p
Anywho, I chatted them up more than once over the weekend and now am planning on visiting the museum while my girlfriend is down for the Summer.
As some of you may recall Huell Howser visited that museum in an episode of California's Gold.
I was able to purchase something for my girlfriend's upcoming birthday which item was hard to find and I found it in the perfect price range which was also nice.
Furthermore, I was able to do conduct a trade with Dale Harwood for some of his minerals in exchange for some of my South African cactus quartzes. I felt badly that a meteorite that I promised to purchase from Tom DeMaris I was unable to purchase but he graciously offered to hold onto it until we hook up at the Nipomo show this coming August.
A couple of hours before the show ended a chain-smoking Asian fellow with dyed hair pulled out early obviously not concerned about not being invited back next year given he was violating the terms of his contract by leaving while the show was still going on. He didn't belong in the show with his leaded plastic Chinese crap beads and jewelry.
Mike and I hung around per our contract and then efficiently broke down our booth while chatting with the other neighboring vendors doing the same.
It seemed the Afghans suddenly disappeared as if melting back into the mountains. One minute they were there and the next they were nowhere to be seen. ;-p
Seriously though, all the Afghans were as nice as anybody at the show.
Mike and I and my family member headed home caravan style west on Ming to North River River and north on it to Stockdale Highway and west on it to Highway 43 and north on it to Highway 58 and west on it to Lokern and then west on it to Highway 33 and north on it to Highway 46 and west on it to Highway 41 and home safely and soundly.
We were shocked to see how Bakersfield has exploded out to the west with its southwestern margins now in sight of I-5.
It seems inevitable it will someday soon reach out and extend to the interstate.
It seems foolish to pave over some of the most productive farmland on the planet.
Thursday, April 10, 2008
My First Bakersfield Rock & Gem Rendevous Pt. 3
Saturday, April 5, 2008 ~ Day 2
Woke up earlier and colder than the morning before with a strong north to northwest wind moving the tent sides and making me exposed left arm feel VERY cold!
Tried to get back to sleep after covering up better and did albeit lightly and for only a little bit longer.
Finally bestirred myself and found Mike was already up and about.
I went into the bathroom to brush my teeth and noticed vendor "Andy" (not DeLong) walking in right in front of me and he asked the guy then finishing up his shower if the showers were any good to which the other replied effusively that they were great to which I roundly agreed (the men's showers at the north end of the Kern County Fairgrounds really do rock I must confess).
At this point "Andy" asks us if the girls have showers as well.
Whah?
This struck me as odd and a bit creepy and reminded me of a similar incident involving him when he and I and Kirk Brock were setting up one Friday evening for the October '06 Cayucos Gem & Mineral Show.
At that time Kirk and I were shooting the breeze talking about the just-completed 2006 Big Sur Jade Festival from the previous weekend which I had just done for the first time as well as our shared Germanic ancestry.
At one point "Andy" asks out of the blue if there are any places around there to meet girls.
It just struck me as an odd way to ask an odd question for a 40-something year old guy there for a rock show.
In hindsight I should have told him to go to The Graduate in SLO and hook up with some easy and vapid, not to mention stoned, Cal Poly coed. ;-p
Anywho, following that strange little incident I went out with Mike and hunted down some donuts and a breakfast pastry and orange juice which was fun as I almost never have donuts and hadn't had orange juice in many days (remember Seinfeld's "Soup Nazi"? I'm an"orange juice Nazi" or "orange juice snob" as bad as any "wine snob").
After that we got back to the Kern County Fairgrounds and got ready for the first day of the weekend which started out okay and kept up a fairly slow but steady pace.
Sales for Saturday were slower than I'd like as folks seemed to like to look but not buy stuff as much as I'd expect. I ended up grossing a measly $95.25 which brought my two-day total to just over $100.
As bad as sales were I more than made up for it meeting cool people and networking.
Some of these people I first met on Yahoo groups and others I met at previous shows like Manny Hernandez and his wife and their cool daughter and son-in-law and yet some others for the first time at this show like Lew and his lovely wife.
First off I met a wonderful couple from Santa Cruz County whom I first encountered on my Central Coast Rockhounds group named David and Julie Konno. Talking to them was a pleasure as we discussed my two favorite topics, rockhounding and disasters, (they are rockhounds and endured the Loma Prieta Earthquake a short time after moving to the Santa Cruz Mountains in 1989). Also, the man was an army vet like my dad had been and he had been stationed out at Fort Irwin where my dad almost got sent to Goldstone Tracking Station when he worked for NSA (ooooh ..... evyl NSA). >:-O
I also had the privilege on this day of meeting Shep Koss after he got back from leading a field trip out to Ant Hill in conjunction with the Rock & Gem Rendevous. Before this day Shep had merely been that active rockhound on LA-Rocks whom Donald Kasper likes to argue with. ;-p
Anywho, Shep "rocks" and after a delightsome conversation with him Mike (who is the SLO Gem & Mineral Club Field Trip Coordinator) and I (club veep) made preliminary arrangements for him to lead the SLO Gem & Mineral Club on an Ant Hill excursion (the Santa Lucia Rockhounds and the Orcutt Mineral Society are welcome to join us, too, as we are a small club and those other two clubs are our friends, not competitors).
I also had the privilege of meeting Jon Meredith of the Del Air Rockhounds whom appreciates a loud Hawaiian shirt as much as I do and even "one-uped" me in the Laid-Back Department by going barefoot at one point over the weekend which chagrined me as I'm usually the one going around barefoot or "besandled" (did I just invent a new word?) when nobody else is and even when it is downright inappropriate such as in say ..... a cold, windy rainstorm in December.
I do have one gripe with him though: his loud shorts were just too much and offended my impeccable fashion sensitivities . ;-p
Vivian Watts of the Antelope Valley Gem & Mineral Club came by my booth and introduced herself and after a brief discussion press-ganged me into being in their upcoming show the last weekend of this month. Actually, I was delighted she allowed me into that show as I had wanted to get into it and had discussed this possibility with another member of that club who was a vendor at the show and he had recommended I contact her so that worked out perfectly for both of us.
When the show ended for the day Mike and I closed up once again and then I headed home to Atascadero. The member of my family who was having the health concern on Thursday needed me in town overnight in case there was a problem and to sweeten the deal they offered to pay my gas going and coming to which I assented.
I headed up the 99 Freeway to Highway 46 but found a detour required me to go the next exit north (Whisler Road) and then turn around and come back down the freeway to get off on 46 as the overpass was shut for repairs.
I hate backtracking so I headed west on Whisler for the first time in my life as I love taking new roads and took it to Highway 43 and then turned south and drove into lovely downtown Wasco where I picked up the 46 again and got gas there and headed home.
Next: My First Bakersfield Rock & Gem Rendevous Part 4
Woke up earlier and colder than the morning before with a strong north to northwest wind moving the tent sides and making me exposed left arm feel VERY cold!
Tried to get back to sleep after covering up better and did albeit lightly and for only a little bit longer.
Finally bestirred myself and found Mike was already up and about.
I went into the bathroom to brush my teeth and noticed vendor "Andy" (not DeLong) walking in right in front of me and he asked the guy then finishing up his shower if the showers were any good to which the other replied effusively that they were great to which I roundly agreed (the men's showers at the north end of the Kern County Fairgrounds really do rock I must confess).
At this point "Andy" asks us if the girls have showers as well.
Whah?
This struck me as odd and a bit creepy and reminded me of a similar incident involving him when he and I and Kirk Brock were setting up one Friday evening for the October '06 Cayucos Gem & Mineral Show.
At that time Kirk and I were shooting the breeze talking about the just-completed 2006 Big Sur Jade Festival from the previous weekend which I had just done for the first time as well as our shared Germanic ancestry.
At one point "Andy" asks out of the blue if there are any places around there to meet girls.
It just struck me as an odd way to ask an odd question for a 40-something year old guy there for a rock show.
In hindsight I should have told him to go to The Graduate in SLO and hook up with some easy and vapid, not to mention stoned, Cal Poly coed. ;-p
Anywho, following that strange little incident I went out with Mike and hunted down some donuts and a breakfast pastry and orange juice which was fun as I almost never have donuts and hadn't had orange juice in many days (remember Seinfeld's "Soup Nazi"? I'm an"orange juice Nazi" or "orange juice snob" as bad as any "wine snob").
After that we got back to the Kern County Fairgrounds and got ready for the first day of the weekend which started out okay and kept up a fairly slow but steady pace.
Sales for Saturday were slower than I'd like as folks seemed to like to look but not buy stuff as much as I'd expect. I ended up grossing a measly $95.25 which brought my two-day total to just over $100.
As bad as sales were I more than made up for it meeting cool people and networking.
Some of these people I first met on Yahoo groups and others I met at previous shows like Manny Hernandez and his wife and their cool daughter and son-in-law and yet some others for the first time at this show like Lew and his lovely wife.
First off I met a wonderful couple from Santa Cruz County whom I first encountered on my Central Coast Rockhounds group named David and Julie Konno. Talking to them was a pleasure as we discussed my two favorite topics, rockhounding and disasters, (they are rockhounds and endured the Loma Prieta Earthquake a short time after moving to the Santa Cruz Mountains in 1989). Also, the man was an army vet like my dad had been and he had been stationed out at Fort Irwin where my dad almost got sent to Goldstone Tracking Station when he worked for NSA (ooooh ..... evyl NSA). >:-O
I also had the privilege on this day of meeting Shep Koss after he got back from leading a field trip out to Ant Hill in conjunction with the Rock & Gem Rendevous. Before this day Shep had merely been that active rockhound on LA-Rocks whom Donald Kasper likes to argue with. ;-p
Anywho, Shep "rocks" and after a delightsome conversation with him Mike (who is the SLO Gem & Mineral Club Field Trip Coordinator) and I (club veep) made preliminary arrangements for him to lead the SLO Gem & Mineral Club on an Ant Hill excursion (the Santa Lucia Rockhounds and the Orcutt Mineral Society are welcome to join us, too, as we are a small club and those other two clubs are our friends, not competitors).
I also had the privilege of meeting Jon Meredith of the Del Air Rockhounds whom appreciates a loud Hawaiian shirt as much as I do and even "one-uped" me in the Laid-Back Department by going barefoot at one point over the weekend which chagrined me as I'm usually the one going around barefoot or "besandled" (did I just invent a new word?) when nobody else is and even when it is downright inappropriate such as in say ..... a cold, windy rainstorm in December.
I do have one gripe with him though: his loud shorts were just too much and offended my impeccable fashion sensitivities . ;-p
Vivian Watts of the Antelope Valley Gem & Mineral Club came by my booth and introduced herself and after a brief discussion press-ganged me into being in their upcoming show the last weekend of this month. Actually, I was delighted she allowed me into that show as I had wanted to get into it and had discussed this possibility with another member of that club who was a vendor at the show and he had recommended I contact her so that worked out perfectly for both of us.
When the show ended for the day Mike and I closed up once again and then I headed home to Atascadero. The member of my family who was having the health concern on Thursday needed me in town overnight in case there was a problem and to sweeten the deal they offered to pay my gas going and coming to which I assented.
I headed up the 99 Freeway to Highway 46 but found a detour required me to go the next exit north (Whisler Road) and then turn around and come back down the freeway to get off on 46 as the overpass was shut for repairs.
I hate backtracking so I headed west on Whisler for the first time in my life as I love taking new roads and took it to Highway 43 and then turned south and drove into lovely downtown Wasco where I picked up the 46 again and got gas there and headed home.
Next: My First Bakersfield Rock & Gem Rendevous Part 4
Wednesday, April 9, 2008
My First Bakersfield Rock & Gem Rendevous Pt. 2
Friday, April 4, 2008 ~ Day One
Woke up in the Kern County Fairgrounds before sunrise cold and sore and needing to pee but not wanting to get out of my cozy sleeping bag all snuggled in with my Tequila. FYI, Tequila is my irascible and irrepressible little female Chihuahua/Jack Russell "Terror" mix pooch.
Anywho, I knew we needed to roll in order to be ready when the show opened at 9 a.m. I also knew Mike's alarm would soon sound and gawd I hate the sound of alarms as they have of the Pavlovian effect of making me feel disappointed and frustrated.
Therefore, I bestirred myself and Mike and we got rolling and were soon inside setting up which went fairly smoothly as we now have done enough shows together as a team now to have an efficient routine down.
Nonetheless, we were not really ready until an hour or so after the show officially began but it didn't matter as it turned out.
The quiet morning turned into the quiet afternoon and all I made was about $6 which was an unmitigated disaster.
The non-Afghans in our room all seemed to suffer alike but the Afghans who were wholesalers of imported material from Asia did fine selling to other dealers in the show of whom I wish I could have afforded to be one such.
Lew Helfrich got us signs by midday inside and outside letting folks visiting the show know we were in there as this year's show was the first to use that room in Building Two as last year only used the room at the north end of the building and the year before that and the other three previous shows were all outdoor "tailgate" events.
I suspect that contributed to a slower start for us but the main reason traffic and sales were so slow was the fact it was a weekday/workday and we have a crappy economy right now and folks are holding onto their money more while they see what happens.
Don't they realize the terrorists want them to not spend their money at my booth. ;-p
Oh well, at least I got to walk around....a lot...as did most of the other vendors.
I talked to Andy DeLong and his wonderful wife who were located next to us and indulged in grazing through Dale Harwood's innumerable mineral specimens and exchanged verbal crap with Manny Hernandez and his wife as I did throughout the weekend (we do so goodnaturedly).
Do they really want me in their show the first weekend of next month in the next building to the south? (shameless promotional insertion for one of my next shows)
Anywho, the day turned into the equivalent of "Dealer Day" at the Big Sur Jade Festival which is before that show really gets going with the public coming in.
The nice thing about that day was that at least I got the worst day of my career over with now. ;-p
After we shut things down for the day Mike and I went back to our camp and found other campers had set up next to us.
We freshened up as minimally as two bachelors can get by with and then drove up to Mexicali Restuarant on 18th Street which we learned about when we stayed at the Best Western across the street to the south when we did the May 2007 Bakersfield Show. The food was great as we expected and I highly recommend the place to those of you who haven't tried it.
We then found directions to the theater complex off Ming near the 99 Freeway and watched The Ruins.
Now here is some free advice that will save you $9.50: don't see The Ruins in a theater; watch it when it shows on one of the premium movie channels you're already paying for or when it reruns on the Sci-Fi Channel.
The beginning sequence was creepy with the girl freaking out and unable to get a signal on her cell phone while down in this dungeony-looking place and then something suddenly thrashes out at her and then we switch to a Mexican beach resort scene with beautiful horny young twenty-somethings.
Following a titty scene intended to earn the movie its "R" rating along with references to oral sex prizes for winning a bet we moved to the jungle where we quickly see one fellow get his brains graphically blown out by a large caliber handgun as well as another fellow gets his legs partially eaten down to the bone by a Venus Fly Trap-like Uber-Flora and then said remaining legs eaten down to the bone are then painfully graphically amputated by a main character who happens to be a med student in order to prevent infection.
Next thing you see is the Venus Fly Trap-like Uber-Flora hauling off the severed legs while the survivors watch in abject disgust and horror (one of the few times we are in perfect emotional sinq with the main characters).
Ah, and then two surgeries on a girl (the girl in the earlier titty-scene) (once by med student character and then by the girl herself in a feverish panic to remove the man-eating plant from inside her body).
Oh joy, and everybody dies but for the one girl who we thought was the weakest link in the chain at the start of the movie.
Naturally, her escape merely spreads the monstrous plant to the outside world where the stage is set for an even worse sequel but prolly a really cool computer game..
I must say the premise was great but the execution was as bloody as that of the young Greek at the base of the Mayan pyramid in the movie. ;-p
We finally got back to our camp in the Kern County Fairgrounds and were able to fall fast asleep immediately despite the late night talking from the tent complex next to us.
Next: My First Bakersfield Rock & Gem Rendevous Part. 3
Woke up in the Kern County Fairgrounds before sunrise cold and sore and needing to pee but not wanting to get out of my cozy sleeping bag all snuggled in with my Tequila. FYI, Tequila is my irascible and irrepressible little female Chihuahua/Jack Russell "Terror" mix pooch.
Anywho, I knew we needed to roll in order to be ready when the show opened at 9 a.m. I also knew Mike's alarm would soon sound and gawd I hate the sound of alarms as they have of the Pavlovian effect of making me feel disappointed and frustrated.
Therefore, I bestirred myself and Mike and we got rolling and were soon inside setting up which went fairly smoothly as we now have done enough shows together as a team now to have an efficient routine down.
Nonetheless, we were not really ready until an hour or so after the show officially began but it didn't matter as it turned out.
The quiet morning turned into the quiet afternoon and all I made was about $6 which was an unmitigated disaster.
The non-Afghans in our room all seemed to suffer alike but the Afghans who were wholesalers of imported material from Asia did fine selling to other dealers in the show of whom I wish I could have afforded to be one such.
Lew Helfrich got us signs by midday inside and outside letting folks visiting the show know we were in there as this year's show was the first to use that room in Building Two as last year only used the room at the north end of the building and the year before that and the other three previous shows were all outdoor "tailgate" events.
I suspect that contributed to a slower start for us but the main reason traffic and sales were so slow was the fact it was a weekday/workday and we have a crappy economy right now and folks are holding onto their money more while they see what happens.
Don't they realize the terrorists want them to not spend their money at my booth. ;-p
Oh well, at least I got to walk around....a lot...as did most of the other vendors.
I talked to Andy DeLong and his wonderful wife who were located next to us and indulged in grazing through Dale Harwood's innumerable mineral specimens and exchanged verbal crap with Manny Hernandez and his wife as I did throughout the weekend (we do so goodnaturedly).
Do they really want me in their show the first weekend of next month in the next building to the south? (shameless promotional insertion for one of my next shows)
Anywho, the day turned into the equivalent of "Dealer Day" at the Big Sur Jade Festival which is before that show really gets going with the public coming in.
The nice thing about that day was that at least I got the worst day of my career over with now. ;-p
After we shut things down for the day Mike and I went back to our camp and found other campers had set up next to us.
We freshened up as minimally as two bachelors can get by with and then drove up to Mexicali Restuarant on 18th Street which we learned about when we stayed at the Best Western across the street to the south when we did the May 2007 Bakersfield Show. The food was great as we expected and I highly recommend the place to those of you who haven't tried it.
We then found directions to the theater complex off Ming near the 99 Freeway and watched The Ruins.
Now here is some free advice that will save you $9.50: don't see The Ruins in a theater; watch it when it shows on one of the premium movie channels you're already paying for or when it reruns on the Sci-Fi Channel.
The beginning sequence was creepy with the girl freaking out and unable to get a signal on her cell phone while down in this dungeony-looking place and then something suddenly thrashes out at her and then we switch to a Mexican beach resort scene with beautiful horny young twenty-somethings.
Following a titty scene intended to earn the movie its "R" rating along with references to oral sex prizes for winning a bet we moved to the jungle where we quickly see one fellow get his brains graphically blown out by a large caliber handgun as well as another fellow gets his legs partially eaten down to the bone by a Venus Fly Trap-like Uber-Flora and then said remaining legs eaten down to the bone are then painfully graphically amputated by a main character who happens to be a med student in order to prevent infection.
Next thing you see is the Venus Fly Trap-like Uber-Flora hauling off the severed legs while the survivors watch in abject disgust and horror (one of the few times we are in perfect emotional sinq with the main characters).
Ah, and then two surgeries on a girl (the girl in the earlier titty-scene) (once by med student character and then by the girl herself in a feverish panic to remove the man-eating plant from inside her body).
Oh joy, and everybody dies but for the one girl who we thought was the weakest link in the chain at the start of the movie.
Naturally, her escape merely spreads the monstrous plant to the outside world where the stage is set for an even worse sequel but prolly a really cool computer game..
I must say the premise was great but the execution was as bloody as that of the young Greek at the base of the Mayan pyramid in the movie. ;-p
We finally got back to our camp in the Kern County Fairgrounds and were able to fall fast asleep immediately despite the late night talking from the tent complex next to us.
Next: My First Bakersfield Rock & Gem Rendevous Part. 3
Tuesday, April 8, 2008
My First Bakersfield Rock & Gem Rendevous Pt. 1
Thursday, April 3, 2008 ~ Set-up Day
I got up early and got my stuff packed up both at home and at my storage unit mad loaded it into my poor overworked and overloaded pickup truck.
I had the added drama of a dear loved one having a health problem that morning which added stress to the day.
I tend to obsess and get bogged down when I'm trying to leave town. I often worry I'm forgetting something or feel this or that which I neglected to do for many days previously absolutely MUST be done now right before I leave town or I won't be able to rest. Quite clearly I'm not the least bit OCD. ;-)
Around noontime I called Lew and his wife answered and I found out they were actually opening up the venue (Kern County Fairgrounds Building Two) early for us starting around noonish instead of sixish like our contracts stipulated.
That was nice albeit I was not in a position to take advantage which would turn out to be irrelevant given how Friday played out.
Eventually, I got away and hit the road caravan-style with my business partner Mike Lyons around threeish that afternoon.
We took Highway 41 east from Atascadero to La Panza Road and then east on it to Highway 58 and then east on it to Bakersfield. The wildflowers were fantabulous and mind-blowing especially in the area around the junction of Calf Canyon Road (Hwy. 58) and Shell Creek Road. There were lots of Lupines and Fiddlenecks and Poppies and prolly some other types, too.
I always enjoy the drive across the northern end of the Carrizo Plain as the San Andreas Fault Zone utterly fascinates this geo-nerd/rock geek and the same goes for the Temblor Range which Highway 58 does a great job of putting on display through all the interminable curves. We stopped at a little hole-in-the-wall store in McKittrick, the ass-end of Kern County.
The only cool thing about McKittrick is there are tar seeps there you can read more about here.
I noticed driving through the area of the tar seeps that much of the ground is discolored black and there are zones where plants don't seem too thrilled to grow even more so than usual for the area.
Furthermore, there are plenty of places in the oil fields that appear abandoned without signage warning to stay out and there are no fences which begs the question "Is there good rockhounding for fossils in that area?"
Anywho, the hole-in-the-wall had water and snacks and a toilet which took care of us but I couldn't help but notice all the dust on much of the merchandise which begged the question "Has that stock been there too long or simply is there a lot of dust in the air in that area or maybe even a bit of both?"
We got into Bakersfield not too much later which now stretches out shockingly far to the west compared to just a decade ago thus mixing the beauty of the San Joaquin Valley with with the population density of OC. ;-p
We arrived at the Kern County Fairgrounds and discovered that some dealers both inside and outside were already pretty much set up and others were well into their set-up leaving us a bit behind which I didn't like believing we would be pressed for time in the morning. Silly me!
Mike and I decided to set up our camp first and did so adjacent to the bathroom/shower complex at the north end of the fairgrounds.
After achieving that objective we returned to Building Two and got busy setting up which we failed to finish that evening as Ms. Bossy who works for the fairgrounds came in at 9 p.m. all high and mighty and told us we needed to clear out.
Nobody appreciated hearing that, especially those of us who were behind on our set-up as we were under the impression we could work late. Ms. Bossy, consoled us by letting us know how lucky we were to have been there until 9 p.m. as she claimed we should have been cleared out at 8 p.m. She made the claim show chairman Lew Helfrich told her to do that which might be true but my internal b.s. alarm was tripped by her claims she was simply following orders.
In the end analysis it mattered not as we would have plenty 'o' time in da mornin' and all that following day.
Before retiring for the night we bs-ed around with fellow-dealers Ernie DeFever and Tom DeMaris who were still up and about and got caught up with them which was nice.
Now I must confess something a wee bit embarrasing here so don't laugh too hard as I'm really putting it on the line coming out of the closet like this. I HAD NEVER CAMPED OUTDOORS as an adult so last Thursday night was the first time I had done so since I was a kid in SoCal back in the Late '70's/Early '80's up near Wrightwood.
Oh, and then there was that sleepover up on the roof of our house when I was in Junior High or thereabouts.
Anywho, I was definitely not used to that and to make my first time be in Bakersfield was perhaps a mistake as it would have been in any large city due to all the nocturnal urban noise.
If it wasn't the sirens then it was the traffic or something else but in any case a contant noisome din which I'm not accustomed to experiencing here in Atascadero at night.
I got in bed around a quarter after 11 p.m. but got back up later and listened to music in my car and returned to bed about 1 a.m. and fell fast asleep.
Fini
Next: My first Bakersfield Rock & Gem Rendevous Pt. 2
I got up early and got my stuff packed up both at home and at my storage unit mad loaded it into my poor overworked and overloaded pickup truck.
I had the added drama of a dear loved one having a health problem that morning which added stress to the day.
I tend to obsess and get bogged down when I'm trying to leave town. I often worry I'm forgetting something or feel this or that which I neglected to do for many days previously absolutely MUST be done now right before I leave town or I won't be able to rest. Quite clearly I'm not the least bit OCD. ;-)
Around noontime I called Lew and his wife answered and I found out they were actually opening up the venue (Kern County Fairgrounds Building Two) early for us starting around noonish instead of sixish like our contracts stipulated.
That was nice albeit I was not in a position to take advantage which would turn out to be irrelevant given how Friday played out.
Eventually, I got away and hit the road caravan-style with my business partner Mike Lyons around threeish that afternoon.
We took Highway 41 east from Atascadero to La Panza Road and then east on it to Highway 58 and then east on it to Bakersfield. The wildflowers were fantabulous and mind-blowing especially in the area around the junction of Calf Canyon Road (Hwy. 58) and Shell Creek Road. There were lots of Lupines and Fiddlenecks and Poppies and prolly some other types, too.
I always enjoy the drive across the northern end of the Carrizo Plain as the San Andreas Fault Zone utterly fascinates this geo-nerd/rock geek and the same goes for the Temblor Range which Highway 58 does a great job of putting on display through all the interminable curves. We stopped at a little hole-in-the-wall store in McKittrick, the ass-end of Kern County.
The only cool thing about McKittrick is there are tar seeps there you can read more about here.
I noticed driving through the area of the tar seeps that much of the ground is discolored black and there are zones where plants don't seem too thrilled to grow even more so than usual for the area.
Furthermore, there are plenty of places in the oil fields that appear abandoned without signage warning to stay out and there are no fences which begs the question "Is there good rockhounding for fossils in that area?"
Anywho, the hole-in-the-wall had water and snacks and a toilet which took care of us but I couldn't help but notice all the dust on much of the merchandise which begged the question "Has that stock been there too long or simply is there a lot of dust in the air in that area or maybe even a bit of both?"
We got into Bakersfield not too much later which now stretches out shockingly far to the west compared to just a decade ago thus mixing the beauty of the San Joaquin Valley with with the population density of OC. ;-p
We arrived at the Kern County Fairgrounds and discovered that some dealers both inside and outside were already pretty much set up and others were well into their set-up leaving us a bit behind which I didn't like believing we would be pressed for time in the morning. Silly me!
Mike and I decided to set up our camp first and did so adjacent to the bathroom/shower complex at the north end of the fairgrounds.
After achieving that objective we returned to Building Two and got busy setting up which we failed to finish that evening as Ms. Bossy who works for the fairgrounds came in at 9 p.m. all high and mighty and told us we needed to clear out.
Nobody appreciated hearing that, especially those of us who were behind on our set-up as we were under the impression we could work late. Ms. Bossy, consoled us by letting us know how lucky we were to have been there until 9 p.m. as she claimed we should have been cleared out at 8 p.m. She made the claim show chairman Lew Helfrich told her to do that which might be true but my internal b.s. alarm was tripped by her claims she was simply following orders.
In the end analysis it mattered not as we would have plenty 'o' time in da mornin' and all that following day.
Before retiring for the night we bs-ed around with fellow-dealers Ernie DeFever and Tom DeMaris who were still up and about and got caught up with them which was nice.
Now I must confess something a wee bit embarrasing here so don't laugh too hard as I'm really putting it on the line coming out of the closet like this. I HAD NEVER CAMPED OUTDOORS as an adult so last Thursday night was the first time I had done so since I was a kid in SoCal back in the Late '70's/Early '80's up near Wrightwood.
Oh, and then there was that sleepover up on the roof of our house when I was in Junior High or thereabouts.
Anywho, I was definitely not used to that and to make my first time be in Bakersfield was perhaps a mistake as it would have been in any large city due to all the nocturnal urban noise.
If it wasn't the sirens then it was the traffic or something else but in any case a contant noisome din which I'm not accustomed to experiencing here in Atascadero at night.
I got in bed around a quarter after 11 p.m. but got back up later and listened to music in my car and returned to bed about 1 a.m. and fell fast asleep.
Fini
Next: My first Bakersfield Rock & Gem Rendevous Pt. 2
Monday, April 7, 2008
The Troubles With Troubles
Today I lost a dear friend whom I shall never forget.
He was named Troubles.
He was only a cat but that seems so insulting as he was so much more than a mere animal.
He was my friend for nearly fifteen of my nearly thirty-eight years.
He and I were a team and a damned good one, too.
He and I endured a lot of hard times together.
He and I shared some amazing times together, too.
He had been suffering in recent months from a recurrence of an oral cancer he had surgically removed a few years ago.
His prognosis then was that he would quite possibly experience a recurrence which turned out tragically prophetic.
He was a real trooper through to the end even fighting going into the cat carrier and then fighting being taken out of it at the vet's office.
He died peacefully on the table as I caressed him and talked to him comfortingly but I doubt he heard me as he was heavily sedated.
He was buried beneath the window to my bedroom where I lived most of his life at mom's house.
He was positioned next to and facing the grave of the only other cat he ever really befriended and for whom he was the only other cat she befriended and that is my cat Sammy.
He and she were effectively boyfriend and girlfriend and had they not been neutered and spayed I'm certain they would have mated at every opportunity.
He was one of the coolest cats I ever met and steady as can be which was comforting.
He outlived his entire clan and was the last of his line.
He was a beautiful gray color with white paws and with short hair on an average-sized frame with luminous yellow-green eyes.
He had a high-pitched cry which made him seem less tomcatish and more kittenish.
He had a habit of not liking to have you approach him directly but wait for him to come up to you when he'd show you his side and arch his back expecting you to rub it.
He was sort of the patriarch of the entire collection of cats living with mom.
He was pretty much at the top of the pecking order until recently when the long-haired, red-headed, crazy Scotsman of a cat Willy started finally pushing him aside as top cat.
He will be sorely missed.
He has already left a vacuum in mom's house as I can feel the relative emptiness there caused by his absence.
He was the sort of cat that one has the privilege of knowning once in a lifetime.
He was Troubles but certainly no troubles.
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