“Where are you visiting from?”  is a good conversation opener in the Southwest during the winter.  There is a good chance that the answer will be from somewhere cold.  Bruce, self-proclaimed “Unaminer,” was no exception.  Bruce, a snow bird from Montana, delighted us with stories of his gemstone claim, the Montana Blue Jewel Mine.  He carried a small box filled with precious gemstones, faceted and rough, the results of hard-rock mining.  The real treat was the ruby, in the rough, pictures above.

 The Gold Show in Quartzsite was the smallest and last of our six shows but, in some ways, the biggest in diversity and experience.  We are home now, but wanted to share with you one more experience of our trip to Arizona this winter.  March we will be at the Los Angeles Arboretum and Botanical Gardens for the annual gem and mineral show, then in Death Valley National Park for the spring art show.