Four Years Worth of Collecting...

...makes for a heap of stones.

Yesterday I washed and sun dried the stones. And then I began to sort and grade the stones.



Lake Superior Agate:



My 'Minnesota Mix'. Small stones of agate and jasper (etc.) to be used to tumbling rough.



Colorful Quartz:



Jasper and Dark Agate:



Still a lot more to do. When I finish this up, I have more buckets to clean and sort.



I pull the bigger chunks of Lake Superior Agate out. It doesn't tumble polish well. I use it for gifts and trading.

I sort by type of stone as I showed above. Then I will resort by grade. The 'gem grade' go into my personal buckets that I will not sell or trade but I have gifted much of it in years past.

I also sort some by size. I use wire mesh to size grade. I lay the mesh on top of a bucket and I pour the stones onto the meshes.

I use a 1/4th inch mesh to pull all the tiny stones out. I save those in a jar. Someday when I have enough of the tiny Lake Superior Agates to make a load, I will tumble polish them and use them in art.

And so, I have been taking the time to put my collection into order. It's quite a job. I'll probably work at it for a week.

Feather and Stone

I found a feather with a round spot on it and a small stone that is round while out walking looking for agates this evening. Two treasures carrying a circle.

Southern Hospitality

So, who is reading from Florence, South Carolina? That is where the abusive hate mail came from in response to my post about the pot seed dealer. They came to my blog from another blog, not naming it here..and they exited from their comment.

It's interesting how people can be. I think most people would just move on to something that does interest them rather than stop and act out the way that person did.

I think they need to get some help.

If I ever travel...I'll go north.

Mysteries Abound

OK. So I was off on that little adventure. The first thing I did was to go to town so I could get an accurate air pressure meter at the hardware store. The first thing I had to find out was if there was air in the bladder and if so, how much. I already knew that I could start refilling the air to between 18 and 28 PSI.

So I got the gauge. I stopped on a gravel road on the way home and procrastinated by picking agates.

Then I get back, lug that heavy air compressor across the farm yard and up the steps and into the house. I got all my little gadgets stuffed in my pockets (flashlight, pressure gauge, a few rocks). And down in the basement I go dragging that hose down with me.

I check the air pressure. Uh, nope, that can't be right. Hit the little release valve on the gauge and check it again. And again. And a fourth time.

There's over 40 PSI air already in the bladder.

Hmmm. Stand there puzzled and thinking for awhile.

So I plug the pump in to see what happens. BING! The water pressure gauge AND the air pressure gauge both start rising until they level off. I stick a bucket under the release and open it up...we got water. Lots of water.

I have no clue what just happened. But I'm not taking a chance on it happening again. Tonight I'm going in and unplug the pump before I go to bed. I don't want to wake up to the same thing tomorrow.

And I'm leaving that air compressor in the house. That thing weighs a ton. Ugh.

Huh.

Okaaaaaay.
So if I'm getting any of this right, I have to empty the water out.

I got to be careful not to get the floor wet. I got to be careful not to be standing in a puddle when I plug the darn thing back in. I can't be sticking my fingers on any electrical stuff with the juice coming in from the line. (Ever play around inside a circuit breaker box? Great fun for scaring the crap out of family members)

And I got to pump the air into that little shrader valve thingy which fills the bladder inside the top of the tank. And if it leaks I can grab a valve cover off a car but I think I'll snatch one off my wagon or wheelbarrow instead.

And I can't be blowing up the tank by putting too much pressure in it. Dude, that would probably have the same effect as a grenade going off and pelt me and everything in the basement with shrapnel. Mom would skin me if I busted all her canning jars down there. Of course, I might have already skinned myself and saved her the trouble and no one would find me for 2 days. (gasp)(heh)

And then...what? Plug the pump back in and see what happens? Time the thing to see when it kicks in while the tank drains?

This ought to be interesting. But horses need water and family needs a break from the worries of farm and me in their hair.. so...here goes nothing!

Wish me luck.

Tank - water pump

Inspectapedia

I'm reading the water tank safety page now. Interesting stuff here.

yep. It's the pump again.

So I wake up this morning and go over to the farmhouse. I unlock and go in. I head for the sink and turn on the water and.... nothing.

So I climb down the ladder-like stairs down into the old basement. The pump motor is running furiously. I unplug it so it doesn't burn itself out.

I know what it is, it's been told to me. There is a bladder somewhere in the pump that has a slow leak. When it doesn't have any more air in it, it somehow causes the water not to come up from the well outside. And my stepfather uses the air compressor to put air back into it.

So this is not something that I can do. I don't know how to do it and I definitely can't risk doing it wrong. If I messed it up, that would be a bigger problem. Besides, it's only been told to me, I don't actually even know where this bladder thing is or what it looks like. And I can't lift the heavy air compressor to get it into the house anyways. (The spine stuff interfering with life here again.)

Interesting predicament.

Now the thing to do is to call my folks friend who lives a few miles over and has his own well drilling business at his house. (Same church, Knights of Columbus member like my stepfather.)

But it's Saturday. And it's the fourth of July. And I know this man has a family. What if he is taking his little kids to a parade or picnic over at the third town away today? And then fireworks tonight. That's what folks do around here.

And tomorrow is Sunday. I don't take to asking folks to come work on the Sabbath. It just ain't right. I won't do that. Nothing is so important that it can't wait until Monday.

Guess I got some thinking to do.