So, as I write the tumbler is tumbling away energetically in the background. I requested the tumbler from Suzy and Dad for Christmas because I am the type of person that most often leaves a rocky stroll with pockets full. I mean come on, there are plenty of things you can do with rocks, plus they can just look neat too. Anyway, and because my dad is the type of person who still owns the same rock tumbler he has had since he was eight, he decided it was time to bestow me with my very own.
It is fortuitous, though, how I eventually came to receive my super spiffy Lortone Rotary Tumbler (model 3A), abrasive and polish kit, and 8 lbs of miscellaneous "rocks". Whilst chatting with Suzy on the phone one day before Christmas, I told her about my desire to tumble some rocks. She, having known my father for long enough, noted this and categorized it in her brain probably under "enabling" and moved on. You see, it runs in the family to do this rock thing, and to pick up other useful things, and to not want to let go of those things, until you are forced to by a loved one. Ahh...stuff! Fate was on my side and as they visited a gem and mineral show, Suzy noticed the tumbler. She remembered my request and said something along the lines of "Hey Bill, guess who wants a rock tumbler for Christmas." I imagine that this was all she had to say cause Dad would take any excuse to peruse at this kinda shin dig. In the end I got my tumbler and the quirky genes will just live on in me.
Recipe for Rock Soup or
Part One of "The Tumble"
Rocks of assorted sizes but about same hardness
60/90 Grit Silicon Carbide
Water
"In the history of mankind's desire to collect examples of the surrounding natural world, agates, with their varied patternings and often vivid colors, must have been one of the first geological specimens to have been collected. It is therefore, not surprising to find that many of the names we use today are also ancient. Names such as chalcedony, agate, and sard were used in the early years of the first millennium by people such as Pliny and Theophrastus."
Ah, just five more weeks to go before we see the fruits of this labor. I think I like the tumbling noise in the dining nook, for now. If worst comes to worst, I can move it to my studio downstairs!
