I must admit it is fun to see the sparks fly while grinding or cutting metal.  Here I am rounding off the sharp edges of rebar that will be used for some garden art that we will have for our show this coming weekend at the Los Angeles Arboretum in Arcadia.  The Monrovia Rockhounds host this annual gem and mineral show. Pairing the world renown arboretum with this show provides a guaranteed weekend of fun for the entire family.

Saturday and Sunday, March 3 and 4.  The show is free with admission to the arboretum.  Hope to see you there.

We love fluorescent minerals.  When exposed to various wave lengths of light the color we see changes.  It all has to do with electrons getting excited and jumping around.  Light and what it does is amazing.  Hope you enjoy these pics from our fluorescent minerals that we have collected and worked with.

We were recently treated lunch with writer and friend, Thomas Farley, of Las Vegas.  Those of you in the rock hobby have read his articles in Rock and Gem magazine, just one of Thomas’ endeavors.  Thank you, Thomas!

The lunch conversation, of course, included rocks.  Thomas told us about Cactus Joe, a plant nursery, specializing in succulents and cacti.  Located west of Las Vegas, in the Blue Diamond area, we passed this before, coming and going to Pahrump, but never stopped. 

We visited on Super Bowl Sunday.  The outside of the building does not do it justice.  Inside can best be described as a botanical garden, rock show and yard art display, all in one.   The staffs were friendly.  We had fun browsing.

We are home and enjoying unseasonably warm winter weather, yard work, had a day of “junking” (thrift store shopping), and getting ready for our upcoming spring shows.  Take some time to check out what is inside.  You never know what you will find.