Flatirons
Facets
Published by The Flatirons Mineral Club
Volume 45, No. 11 November
2003
Flatirons Facets
P. O. Box 3331
Boulder CO 80307-3331
Flatirons Facets is published
monthly by The Flatirons Mineral Club. The deadline for submission of articles
to Flatirons Facets is the 20th of each month. Permission is granted for
reprint if credit is given to the publication and author unless specifically
restricted.
The Flatirons Mineral
Club is a non-profit organization, established March 9, 1957, and dedicated to
developing and maintaining interest in all aspects of earth science and
associated hobbies. The club meets the second Thursday of each month at 7 p.m.
We meet at The
Senior Center, 9th and Arapahoe Avenue, Boulder, CO. Guests and visitors
are welcome. Membership dues are $15.00 per year (beginning October of each
calendar year). People interested in membership can contact the club either by
writing to the above address or by attending one of the meetings.
Deadline for the
December Facets is November 20.
****************
President's Corner
November kicks off my year as the new club president. And, the month is packed with great activities.
The Annual FMC Fall Show will be November 14-16 at the
Boulder Elks Club facility. As you will read elsewhere in this newsletter, we
have a great show in the works. Friday will see over a hundred school children
visiting the show with their classes. Saturday and Sunday will be a good time
to come with your family, with lots of activities for your kids and grandkids.
We need your help at the show, too. Be sure to sign up at the November meeting
to help, or better yet, contact Trick Runions,
who is organizing volunteers.
****************
Fantastic
Fun!
Our 2003
Flatirons Mineral Club Show
Do rocks and fossils get your blood flowing? Do gems, jewelry and
minerals get your heart pounding? Do you find it hard to sleep the night before
a big field trip? Do you enjoy seeing rock collecting friends, discovering new
treasures, and discussing our geologic wonders of Mother Nature? If any of
these things happen to you or appeal to you, then our Flatirons Mineral Club
Show on November 14, 15, & 16 at the Boulder Elks Lodge is truly for
you!
Think of our annual Gem & Mineral Show as the biggest,
greatest field trip of the year, one that brings all the rocks and gems to you.
No long trips to Utah or Montana, no flying to Europe, Africa, South America,
Asia, or Australia. You will find so much to see all under one roof , and the
selection of dealers is great this year!
You do not have to bust your back digging six-foot deep holes.
There are no pesky flies or "no see 'ums", you don't have to suffer
with that rock collector "watermelon slice" sunburn between your
shirttail and the top of your jeans. You don't need to worry about dirt
sticking to your sweaty hands, arms, etc.
This show is a field trip where you can save $20, $40, and more
just on gasoline. Who knows how much on groceries and a hot meal or two? How
about those motel costs for a much-needed shower? All those greenbacks you save
can be used on the finest array of gems, rocks, jewelry and fossils to help
build your collection.
Bring your family to the show, right down to the third cousin,
twice removed. Invite your friends, your colleagues from work. And POST OUR
FLYERS at work, in schools, on the church bulletin board, as well as at
your favorite rock shops, restaurants, and other favorite haunts. How about
posting a couple at the grocery store where you shop? Ask politely if they will
help our non-profit educational club. Starting November 6, turn your cars and
trucks into a rolling billboard by posting a flyer in the driver side rear
window. Always have a show flyer in hand to hand out to new acquaintances.
Above all, don't be shy! For every no, there will be many yes replies.
So, highlight November 14-16 on your calendar. We need your
help, every member's help and participation to generate the greatest fun and
enthusiasm. Each member is the key to our 2003 show. Working together we can
show Boulder and the rest of Colorado why rock collecting is one of the world's
most fascinating hobbies. So, let's work together, have fun, and make our show
the best show yet.
****************
November
Show Lineup
The Flatirons Mineral Club Fall Show (Nov 14-16) is shaping up to
be one of the best ever! Here is a
partial list of vendors who have signed up:
Amethyst Rose, Westminster CO (jewelry)
Bad Boys of Cripple Creek (minerals)
Best Little Ore House, Boulder (minerals)
Bonanza Stamps & Minerals, Boulder (minerals)
C&N Lapidary, Louisville (lapidary)
D&J Rare Gems, Salida (gems, jewelry)
JJ&L Rocks, Hickman NE (minerals)
Tom McSherry, Boulder (variety)
Paul E Moot, Cheyenne WY (variety)
Silver N Stone, Denver (lapidary/jewelry)
Timberwolfe Minerals, Canon City (minerals)
In addition to the above commercial vendors, there will be many
demonstrations, mini-classes, and representations from organizations such as
the US Geological Survey.
****************
CLUB MEETINGS
November Meeting -- "Show and Towel" (Annual
towel show). It's time once again to clean and present those fabulous finds
from this past year of collecting. Please bring your finds and a towel to
display them on. As in the past, we will award ribbons for the best of: 1) a
club trip, 2) a personal trip, 3) lapidary and jewelry arts, and 4) last but
not least… the ugliest rock! This year, I think we should also present a ribbon
for the best towel! We will also award our junior members in the above categories.
This may sound a little competitive to some, but in truth, it's just our way of
having a little "show and tell" that is centered around our hobby.
Please don't hesitate to bring your fabulous finds (and not so fabulous
finds?), buried treaasure (and unearthed leaverite?), and lapidary/ jewelry
projects. Even if you're certain that your cool rock/crystal/fossil/project
won't win "the prize", bring it anyway. I, for one, enjoy seeing what
others have been up to, and showing off my own treasures.
December Meeting -- This will be our annual Christmas
Party and voluntary "mini gift" exchange, full of fun and surprises.
Details will be announced in the December newsletter.
****************
Get Involved
in 2004
Interested in getting more involved with the club? We are seeking volunteers who would like to
help to continue the great meetings, programs, and field trips we have had
these last few years.
This year, we are approaching these jobs somewhat differently. In
the past, each of these activities fell on only one person to do the job. This
year, we will have several people working in each area to spread out the
load.
Here are some opportunities:
Meeting Programs:
Several people are needed to help find speakers for our monthly
meetings.
Field Trips: Paul Boni will continue to serve as
field trip chairman, but is looking for others to help him plan and lead these
trips.
Club Show: The club show next month
looks to be even bigger and better than the last two. Become part of the planning group for 2004.
Board Member: We need two new Board members, to serve 2-year terms (expiring
2005). The Board meets each month at one Board member's home, on the Monday
before the Club meeting. These meetings are interesting, provocative, and this
is where all of the important Club business is conducted.
To volunteer to help in one of these areas or if you have further
questions, please contact Dennis
Gertenbach
****************
It's
November, so your annual club membership dues are past due!
In case you forgot, dues to FMC were due on October 1. They are
still only $15 per family.
You can pay in several ways:
MAIL A CHECK TO: Flatirons
Mineral Club
P.O. Box 333l
Boulder, CO 80307
Pay only Gerry Naugle
or Melinda Thompson at an FMC meeting.
One of us is at the sign-in table when you attend a meeting.
Mail a check MADE OUT TO
FMC to: Melinda Thompson
3385 Hickock Pl.
Boulder, CO 80301
If you pay by cash, be sure to GET A RECEIPT.
Remember you receive monthly newsletters, monthly meetings and
guided field trips when you belong to the Flatirons Mineral Club.
****************
Nature's Own
sale to benefit Global Response
Nature's Own, the fossil/mineral store, is selling everything at
50% off.
From now till December, its president, Roy Young, a philanthropic
geologist and a founder of Global Response, will donate 100% of all sales
accompanied by a Global Response coupon to the Boulder-based organization,
which coordinates international letter campaigns to prevent environmental
destruction.
Print as many coupons as you wish at www.globalresponse.org/coupon and use
them at the Crossroads Mall, Nederland, Estes Park Old Town, Ft. Collins, and
breckenridge Nature's Own stores.
****************
Prospecting
School Offered
The Cripple Creek Parks and Recreation Department has announced
their 5th annual Cripple Creek School of Prospecting, to be held January 23-25.
The course teaches the basic principles of geology and prospecting, and
includes a tour of the Cripple Creek and Victor Gold Mine (the only working
gold mine in Colorado) and the Cripple Creek District Museum. The course fee is
$99, which includes all fees and materials. Call 719-689-3514 to make your
reservation for the class. The J.P. McGillis/Midnight Rose Casino
(1-800-635-5825) has a special rate of $49.95 for those attending the class.
****************
Club Field Trips
Paul Boni
Stoneham Barite! November 8. Trip leader: Paul Boni. Meeting place and time to be
arranged. This trip is tentative as of this writing. I am still working out the
details but am confident that the trip will go. I also reserve the right to
cancel due to weather concerns. Otherwise, we have permission to bring the club
onto the barite claims at Stoneham. This site has been off limits to general
rock hound community for the past few years due to commercial mining for barite
specimens. It is a famous collecting locality and produces some world-class
specimens of blue barite. This is a fortunate opportunity and I'm hoping for
good weather and a good turn out.
We will be on private property. Thus, due to liabitlity concerns,
this trip is limited to current club members. This is mostly digging work.
Picks and shovels are the main tools to use. November on the high plains can be
windy and cold. Plan and dress appropriately. Vehicle access is via county road
until the last quarter mile. 4-wheel drive may be necessary for that last
quarter mile if the road is muddy. Otherwise any car will do.
Platte river Gravel Bars, November 23, 1 p.m. Trip leader: Paul Boni. Driving directions: Take Hwy.
36 to Denver, exit Broadway (just before 36 merges into I-25). Go south on
Broadway to 70th St., turn east. Continue east on 70th St. to the Platte River.
Just before 70th crosses the Platte, you will see a parking lot on the right
(south) side of the road. We will meet in that parking lot.
Fossilized wood, including palm wood, agates, jasper, river
tumbled crystals (quartz, smoky quartz, amazonite, and topaz have been found by
club members), spear points, colored glass, etc. are found among the gravel bars.
This time of the year the river is running low and numerous gravel bars are
exposed. Tools: a 5-gallon bucket or collecting sack is all that's needed.
Call for Specimens, Photographs and Lapidary/Jewelry Projects. I am in need of
specimens collected during this past year's field trips to fill a display case
at our club show in November. Photographs of our exploits are also needed. I
will care for all specimens loaned as if they were my own (except I won't keep
them :0)) and return them after the show. The best specimens will, of course,
be entered into the "Towel Show". Perhaps some specimens can then be
displayed at the club show? I also want to put together a case of lapidary and
jewelry projects, crated by club members. This can be anything from beading
projects, wire wrapping, faceted or cabbed stones, silver and gold work, pet
rocks, gem trees, etc. Don’t be shy now.
****************
Upcoming Events, Nearby & Elsewhere
Thurs., Nov. 6, 7-9 p.m., Fireside Chat "Recent developments
in K/T extinction theories", by Dr. Doug Nichols, U.S. Geological
Survey. Please check the Dinosaur Ridge website for an announcement
of the exact location of this lecture in Morrison.
Fri., Nov. 7, 6-10 p.m. "Rock out for Dinosaur Ridge", will be a
fund-raising dinner sponsored by the Friends
of Dinosaur Ridge, to be held at the new Red Rocks Park visitor center and banquet
facility. This special evening program will include dinner (sirloin staeak or
salmon), live music by The Blues Bretheren, and a silent auction of donated
items including dinners, fossils & replicas, gems, books, a stargazing
party, and a dinosaur chess set. A limited number of tickets are available, for
$75 per person. If you wish to help support activities at Dinosaur Ridge and be
part of this special evening, please contact Joe Tempel (720-971-9649) or any
Friends of Dinosaur Ridge member.
Tues., Nov. 11, 7-10 p.m. Gates Rock and Mineral Club meeting. Pete Modreski
(USGS) will be giving the evening program on "Colorado geology, rocks,
minerals, and gemstones." The group meets in the Gates Rubber Co.
administration building on the east side of Broadway (900 S. Broadway, just
south of I-25); vistors are always welcome to their meetings and there is no
admission charge. For more exact diretions, you may contact Mr. John Kleber.
Wed. Nov. 12, 7 p.m. "The Discovery Of The Earth: The Quest
To Understand Our Planet", Dr. Walter D. Mooney, USGS-Menlo Park;
Denver Museum of Nature and Science, Ricketson Auditorium. Contact museum for tickets.
Nov.
14-16 - Flatirons
Mineral Club Annual Show. Boulder
Elks Lodge, 3975 28th St., Boulder, CO. Info: Andrea Elliott. Dealer info.: Gerry Naugle or John Hurst.
Sat., Nov. 22, 1:30-5 p.m.
Littleton Gem & Mineral Club
Silent Auction, Littleton Community Center, 1950 West Littleton Blvd. Contact Larry Havens.
****************
Dinosaur Dig Opportunity
The Morrison Natural History Museum has a most interesting new
project afoot: they are beginning a re-excavation of the "sauropod
quarry" site on Dinosaur Ridge, located just above the town of Morrison,
at which the type specimen of Apatosaurus (Apatosaurus ajax) was excavated in
1877. The project is being led by Dr. Bob Bakker, and they are enlisting a
corps of volunteers to help with the dig. If you stop by the museum, dino
curator Matt Mossbrucker would love to tell you about the project and perhaps
sign you up to help, and you can read about it on the MNHM website, by looking
for the "Jurassic Journal" and "Ajax Project" pages.
****************
Letter to
the Editor
To all Rock, Mineral, and Fossil Collectors in the Rocky Mountain
Region:
I am writing to express my deep concern over recent events at the
Denver Museum of Nature and Science. If
any of you readers have visited the museum since June, you will have noticed
the new exhibit "Space Odyssey" and the new west facade of the museum
building. These new features are the first manifestations of the new emphasis
being placed on interactive "education" of the public in space
science and technology. You also will
have noticed that the mineral exhibits in Coors Mineral Hall are coated with
dust from the new "Space Odyssey" construction adjacent. The natural
history dioramas on the second and third floors are deteriorating and are in
need of refurbishment. Museum management continues to reduce the curatorial
strengths in these areas and has no evident plans to maintain these exhibits in
their original beautiful condition. I am concerned that the emphasis on space
science will expand until natural sciences in our Museum will disappear.
As of this writing Dr. Jack Murphy, Curator of Geology, has been
verbally informed that he will either be terminated or placed on half time
status, his option, as of Dec 31, 2003. If terminated he will receive no
retirement benefits. If he opts for half time status he will receive no health
or fringe benefits for as long as he is employed by the Museum. Jack has
devoted his life from the time he was thirteen to this institution and has been
Curator for over 30 years. He has always been very supportive to us in this
hobby. This treatment of a dedicated employee is immoral at best and continues
the pattern evidenced above.
The Museum has been a major cultural institution and tourist
attraction in our city for over a century. Many of our children and
grandchildren got their start in becoming aware of our natural environment
here. If you agree with me that the major emphasis of our museum should be on
the natural sciences you may write to the Chairman of the Board of
Directors. As time is very limited, I
urge you to write soon to:
Mr. Michael Wilfley
Chairman of the Board of Directors
Denver Museum of Nature and Science
c/o A. W. Wilfley and Sons
PO Box 2330
Denver CO 80201
Signed, Ken Erickson, Aurora CO
Ed. Note: a copy of your letter should be sent to: Dr. Russell Graham,
Chief Curator, Denver Museum of Nature and Science, 2001 Colorado Blvd.,
Denver, CO 80205
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Updated 1/14/04