1/28/18 Gem and Mineral Show

There are 41 shows in and around Tucson for the Gem and Mineral Show.  We elected to go to one not too far from us instead of facing the traffic downtown at the convention center.  We found our way there - not easy with all the construction going on - and thoroughly enjoyed ourselves.  The exhibits were outdoors and we walked around chatting with people and viewing their tables of rocks and gems for sale.  One of the more interesting specimens was of a crinoid (a soft coral animal) encased in turquoise.  We have seen many crinoids over the years, but never one enmeshed in a semi-precious stone.  The same vendor also had a smaragdite (a fibrous mineral usually green in color) - the largest in the world.  It is 5540 carets.  The one next to it is the second largest in the world and is 3120 carets.  We also saw plenty of crystals, ammonites, fossils, arrowheads chipped from obsidian  and lots and lots of slab rock.  It was chilly when we got up this morning (39), but quickly warmed up to about 75.  On our way home we stopped to buy a few day's worth of groceries and then went home for lunch.  We took a little "feet off the floor" time and then went for a walk in the neighborhood.  We were delighted to see that most people here use gravel instead of grass.  Growing grass here would be an enormous waste of water.  Tomorrow we will go to the museum to meet with the volunteer coordinator.