Today was a great day. I had planned to drive to Conata Basin for some rockhounding but changed my mind at the last minute. Instead, I drove to Railroad Buttes. It is a lot closer to home and I haven't been there yet. It is just south of the Badlands, so the terrain is similar.



I found a Prickly Pear (aka Beaver Tail) cactus in full bloom. The flowers were full of bees so I kept my distance. It is looking pretty gnarly but it is the first one I have seen in bloom this year, so I'm sharing it. Deal with it.



It was very windy and more than a couple of times I thought the wind was going to blow me right off the cliff. I didn't overdo it, afraid I might twist a knee and be laid up for a week. No, thank you.

I found a nice outcrop of some rocks that I had never seen before. They are thin like pieces of glass, and even clink when you bang them together. I thought they might be Calcite but testing them indicates they are quartz and I have never seen quartz in this form. [EDIT: a local rock hound told me this stuff is chalcedony.]




Some other cool ones that we call "signers". That means they have signs (patterns) of the rare Fairburn Agate, but are not quite gem quality enough to be called a Fairburn.




Then to top off the day, this:

When you see stones like that you can certainly understand where the passion comes from. They're really cool and interesting... and there's things like that out there just WAITING for you to find them!

I think that is why I love being out in Nature so much. Discovering things that have been around for thousands, if not millions of years. I was 60 years old before I finally saw a mink in the wild. I have seen pictures or seen them in zoos. Then one day, I looked up from my gold pan and there he was running along the far side of the creek.

When things like that happen, I thank the Creator for giving me that experience. There are people around the world who have never seen one, or a real gold nugget or have ever smelled the pineapple/vanilla scent of a Jeffrey Pine. I try to be grateful.

Speaking of Mother Nature (that b*tch).   We had a storm blow through here and lightning hit a transformer. Our power is back on now, but people over in Custer are still in the dark. The energy company here is fantastic. They know how we freak out when we don't have internet and are forced to talk to each other.

Now I have to go around re-setting the time on all my clocks.

There are two kinds of people that I cannot tolerate: liars and thieves.

I have a neighbor who lives down the hall from me. She is the sweetest person you would ever meet. She is a widow and has trouble walking due to knee replacements. She is a Gold Star mom. Her son served in the Navy. When he got out, he decided he didn't like all that water and joined the Army. He served in Iraq and Afghanistan and was killed in action.

Last night, at 2:45 a.m. two low-life A-holes, broke into her car and stole it. She has a handicap placard and her license plates indicate a Gold Star Family. She is devastated. The property is monitored with video cameras so we know when and how many there were that did this.

For people like this, I would vote to bring back firing squads. People like this make it very difficult for me to remain "ladylike".

Quote from: LoriDee on June 30, 2024, 10:22:51 PMToday was a great day. I had planned to drive to Conata Basin for some rockhounding but changed my mind at the last minute. Instead, I drove to Railroad Buttes. It is a lot closer to home and I haven't been there yet. It is just south of the Badlands, so the terrain is similar.



I found a Prickly Pear (aka Beaver Tail) cactus in full bloom. The flowers were full of bees so I kept my distance. It is looking pretty gnarly but it is the first one I have seen in bloom this year, so I'm sharing it. Deal with it.



It was very windy and more than a couple of times I thought the wind was going to blow me right off the cliff. I didn't overdo it, afraid I might twist a knee and be laid up for a week. No, thank you.

I found a nice outcrop of some rocks that I had never seen before. They are thin like pieces of glass, and even clink when you bang them together. I thought they might be Calcite but testing them indicates they are quartz and I have never seen quartz in this form. [EDIT: a local rock hound told me this stuff is chalcedony.]




Some other cool ones that we call "signers". That means they have signs (patterns) of the rare Fairburn Agate, but are not quite gem quality enough to be called a Fairburn.




Then to top off the day, this:

Very nice pictures!

Chrissy

Good news!

My neighbor whose car was stolen recently has her car back! She asked me to show her how to install a Club on her steering wheel.

They left the car parked in front of a house, out of gas. The tank was full when they stole it. The property manager and I reviewed the security video. Three of them, one no bigger than a school-age child. They looked at several vehicles in the lot before choosing hers. They used a Slim Jim to get in and drove off. They also took about $10 in quarters and a sweater from the vehicle.

Who steals little old lady's sweaters?

These criminal masterminds left behind a lot of chewed gum and a ski mask. The police now have their DNA as well as the security footage.

The police said nine cars were stolen in the first two days of July.

I need to find a better place to live.

Quote from: LoriDee on July 06, 2024, 05:01:49 PMI need to find a better place to live.

OR you need to go full Robocop and electrify the outer shell of your car...

Or one of those South African security car flame throwers, throws flames out from under the doors to stop car jackers!!!!!

Quote from: Sephirah on July 06, 2024, 06:05:54 PMOR you need to go full Robocop and electrify the outer shell of your car...

Quote from: davina61 on July 07, 2024, 02:48:46 AMOr one of those South African security car flame throwers, throws flames out from under the doors to stop car jackers!!!!!

The neighbor said she couldn't see her parking spot from her apartment. She needs to go to the laundry room to look out. She is now parked next to my Jeep because a) I can see both vehicles from my living room window, and b) I have a rifle with a scope. 

I have a cargo rack on top of my Jeep. In it is a 4-tine rake, a shovel, a folded tarp, and a gas can. There is a small plate on each side that I wanted to decorate, so I put a decal on that reads:

"Zombie Outbreak Response Team"

I came out of Walmart and a woman was looking at my cargo rack. She said she had no idea there was such a thing. I assured her that there is and we are highly trained for such matters.

She looked puzzled for a minute, then asked, "Should I be worried?"

I said, "No, we got this covered."

She smiled and walked into the store.

I ordered another parts kit to rebuild the bearings on one of my rock tumblers. It is a modification that will convert the plastic bushings to metal bearings. The package arrived at the UPS Hub in Rapid City on July 4th... still waiting. The latest tracking update shows it still there but the delivery date has been moved to "not later than July 10th".  I think they lost it.

In the meantime, I have tumblers still rolling. They are now on day 12 of a seven-day cycle. My thought was to shut them all down at once and do the maintenance and rebuild at the same time. Running them longer won't hurt the ones in the smoothing and polishing phase. They just get smoother and shinier. But after seven days the grit breaks down and doesn't accomplish much.

On the other hand, the Stage 1 tumbler has very coarse grit that aggressively shapes and rounds the stones. The grit still breaks down after seven days, but larger rocks start getting smaller. So it looks like I will be washing rocks this afternoon and let the tumblers sit idle while I wait for parts.

You know they have lost or it got pinched when you get the message damaged , had that on something that was "impossible" to damage!

I meet with my psychologist this morning to discuss... issues. Then take the stack of forms over to the County office for the Veteran Service Officer. He will then be submitting a VA claim to have my disability rating reviewed. He told me that since my existing claim (spinal injuries) is over 20 years old, the VA cannot reduce my rating. It can only be increased, so I have nothing to lose to have it re-evaluated. Many VA regulations and policies have been changed since 1990, so the review will follow current guidelines. We will see how it goes.

Good luck with the VA, Lori

I got a call this afternoon from my Veteran Service Officer. He has all the paperwork and is submitting my claims today. Over the next three months, they will pull copies of my military and VA records, schedule exams, and then submit their findings to the Compensation Board for a determination of ratings for each claim. He assured me that if I disagreed with any of the findings, he would help me submit an appeal to have the decisions reviewed. The good news is that even if they decide to disapprove all of the claims, my current claim is untouchable since it is over 20 years old. So my rating cannot go down, only up or no change.

So now it is just wait and see.

On the other side, reporting things that happened to me while in the service opened up a box of things I had buried for 50 years. I am dealing with that and I have a great psychologist to guide me through those triggers. Even if the claims process fails, at least I will be able to deal with some old scars and become a happier person. It is still a win.

I was sorting laundry and found a lighter in my pocket. I keep my lighters in my vehicle. I figured I would take my pre-bedtime walk and put it back where it belongs.

I stepped off the elevator and a man asked me if I had a lighter. I handed it to him and he said I saved the party. He invited me inside where friends and family were gathered around a cake waiting to sing "Happy Birthday". Introductions were made all around.

We lit the candles and sang "Happy Birthday", (they sang in Spanish), and everyone applauded as she blew out the candles. The party broke up as it was getting late and everyone said thank you for the use of my lighter. I was happy to be of service and I got invited to a birthday party and I don't know any of the people there. Win!

Sometimes, it's little twists of fate that can make me smile.

@LoriDee
Dear LoriDee:
Thank you for sharing and posting that "feel good" story regarding your lighter and "saving" the Birthday party.

That was a great example of things that we do, even little things, can have a bigger impact on other lives, plus
it give you a wonderful feeling of helping another person in their time of need.

Yes, there is great importance and impactful results that can come out of "chance" meetings and unexpected circumstances. 

Again, thank you for sharing.
HUGS, Danielle

It is already 88 degrees at 9:00 a.m.

Technically, Rapid City is not "in" the Black Hills but is the "gateway to the Black Hills" similar to the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains in northern Colorado. At an elevation of 3,356 feet above sea level, we are not exactly "flatlanders" either. The highest point in South Dakota is just a short distance to the southwest of here.

Here's a fun fact:

At 7,242 feet, Black Elk Peak — previously known as Harney Peak — isn't just the highest point in South Dakota. It's the highest elevation between the Rocky Mountains in the western United States and the Pyrenees Mountains in France.

Happy Friday, Everyone!