Trip to Duluth plus Snowshoe Adventure

After the two day blizzard last week, I wasn't sure how the roads would be driving to Duluth, MN. I went to bring the agates for Tom Shearer to photograph for the new agate book. The roads were not nearly as bad as I thought they would be. Although there were a few cars off the road on M28, the rest of the drive was uneventful.

Tom has a similar work ethic to my own. Other than taking a break for dinner, which Tom and his wife, Sandy, were kind enough to treat me (thanks!), we took pictures of rocks all day without stopping. When we returned from dinner, we went through the rest of them so Tom knows what I was looking for with each specimen. All I can say is that he is a magic man. If you think that this agate book is just a redo of the first, think again. Between Tom's photographs and the research I've been doing that I'm in the process of reducing down to text and diagrams, this next agate book will be universes different. I am extremely excited. I don't know if I'll make the January deadline to get the book to the printer, but I'm doing everything I can.

Below is a picture of Tom holding a 25 pound Lake Superior agate from Michipicoton Island.




Although I'm working on the book all day and night, I am trying to keep up an exercise schedule. Last night, Renee and I snowshoed my property. We noticed that for some unknown reason, most of the apples are still clinging to the trees. That will make the deer happy. As the snow gets deeper, they will be able to reach the branches and eat apples all winter long. Just in case you are wondering, in my yard we have a little less than 2 feet of snow on the ground.