Cunnamulla, QLD - Australia
Gotta be quick & get back to Koroit . . .
An excavator broke down - we borrowed one from a neighbor.
We reached the level and have pulled out some color - there's more digging ahead.
The temperature has cooled down a bit - last night was in the 40s - cool temps make digging much easier and more comfortable.
It's all good!!
. . . back to the mine . . .
.
Sunday, September 27, 2009
Monday, September 21, 2009
- Hoses, a Hole & a Hello
Cunnamulla, QLD - Australia
Things look promising. I won Lotto - I just collected my winnings, $31.55! It might not be millions, but it still is appreciated.
Something else appreciated was a very nice dinner at the very clean and tidy home of Lyn & Richard (cooperopals.com). They're good folks and dinner was delicious . . . and I didn't have to do the dishes. Thanks also for letting me send a few emails and for the tour of your cutting room. It's always interesting to see how other folks cut.
L and Richard have been busy digging - steadily moving mountains of dirt. As a matter of fact, while I'm here in town typing this and getting groceries, they're in Koroit digging. The hole is now about 90' x 40' and about 20' deep. There's another 15' to go to get to the level. Because of trouble with a few hydraulic hoses, there have been a few slight delays. It looks like some of the opal level will be exposed by Friday.
The walls of the excavation show promising signs about what lies below - pink / red / maroon sandstone with broad white streaks . . . apparrently good indicators.
For those of you unfamiliar with digging, the dirt which has been dug out of the ground occupies more volume when you pile it up then when it was packed tightly in the ground . . . about 3 times the volume. So when you dig a big hole, you have lots of dirt, piles of dirt. Each time you move the dirt takes time and costs money. A big part of successful excavating is knowing what to do with the dirt - planning ahead. Thank goodness L is an expert and really knows what he's doing. Richard is learning quite a bit from L. The two of them work together very well. I'm very grateful to have both of them there working so efficiently - as I said, they're moving lots of dirt . . . and doing it quickly and efficiently.
Thanks to Kim & Len for their continued hospitality and for letting me use their computer.
Soon a farewell to Glen. Safe travels and Happy Anniversary!
Yesterday I saw a small goanna (a type of lizard) - a bit over a foot long. They tend to come out only once it has really started to get rather warm. A couple of days ago a neighbor encountered a brown snake at his camp only about 300 meters from my camp. Don't worry Dawn, I'm keeping my eyes open.
Hello Dawn - even though we talk often, I miss you . . .
.
Things look promising. I won Lotto - I just collected my winnings, $31.55! It might not be millions, but it still is appreciated.
Something else appreciated was a very nice dinner at the very clean and tidy home of Lyn & Richard (cooperopals.com). They're good folks and dinner was delicious . . . and I didn't have to do the dishes. Thanks also for letting me send a few emails and for the tour of your cutting room. It's always interesting to see how other folks cut.
L and Richard have been busy digging - steadily moving mountains of dirt. As a matter of fact, while I'm here in town typing this and getting groceries, they're in Koroit digging. The hole is now about 90' x 40' and about 20' deep. There's another 15' to go to get to the level. Because of trouble with a few hydraulic hoses, there have been a few slight delays. It looks like some of the opal level will be exposed by Friday.
The walls of the excavation show promising signs about what lies below - pink / red / maroon sandstone with broad white streaks . . . apparrently good indicators.
For those of you unfamiliar with digging, the dirt which has been dug out of the ground occupies more volume when you pile it up then when it was packed tightly in the ground . . . about 3 times the volume. So when you dig a big hole, you have lots of dirt, piles of dirt. Each time you move the dirt takes time and costs money. A big part of successful excavating is knowing what to do with the dirt - planning ahead. Thank goodness L is an expert and really knows what he's doing. Richard is learning quite a bit from L. The two of them work together very well. I'm very grateful to have both of them there working so efficiently - as I said, they're moving lots of dirt . . . and doing it quickly and efficiently.
Thanks to Kim & Len for their continued hospitality and for letting me use their computer.
Soon a farewell to Glen. Safe travels and Happy Anniversary!
Yesterday I saw a small goanna (a type of lizard) - a bit over a foot long. They tend to come out only once it has really started to get rather warm. A couple of days ago a neighbor encountered a brown snake at his camp only about 300 meters from my camp. Don't worry Dawn, I'm keeping my eyes open.
Hello Dawn - even though we talk often, I miss you . . .
.
Friday, September 18, 2009
- A Repaired Ram, Digging & Ooops
Cunnamulla, QLD - Australia
My friend, who I'll refer to as "L", arrived this morning at 2am with a repaired ram. Later, after dawn, along with another friend and the owner of the other excavator, Richard (cooperopals.com), we reinstalled the ram into the arm of the excavator. I'll spare you the details of moving the ram which weighs about 3/4 of a ton and wiggling and delicately moving the ram so it would line up with the right holes in the arm of the excavator . . . it all fit back together properly and worked beautifully . . . until a hydraulic hose blew . . . that meant an early lunch . . . but by now L probably has replaced the hose . . . we'll be digging again tomorrow morning and should be down to the opal level in about 3 more days - it feels like it's 3 days until Christmas (I hope)!
It's getting warm here - it has been over 100 degrees . . . more and more lizards are out and about. I haven't seen any snakes.
Dawn had a bit of bad news for me. Her son James had a fender bender today. Luckily he and the other folks involved are all ok. He was using my car . . . but no worries James . . . accidents happen. I'm glad you are ok and nobody was hurt.
.
My friend, who I'll refer to as "L", arrived this morning at 2am with a repaired ram. Later, after dawn, along with another friend and the owner of the other excavator, Richard (cooperopals.com), we reinstalled the ram into the arm of the excavator. I'll spare you the details of moving the ram which weighs about 3/4 of a ton and wiggling and delicately moving the ram so it would line up with the right holes in the arm of the excavator . . . it all fit back together properly and worked beautifully . . . until a hydraulic hose blew . . . that meant an early lunch . . . but by now L probably has replaced the hose . . . we'll be digging again tomorrow morning and should be down to the opal level in about 3 more days - it feels like it's 3 days until Christmas (I hope)!
It's getting warm here - it has been over 100 degrees . . . more and more lizards are out and about. I haven't seen any snakes.
Dawn had a bit of bad news for me. Her son James had a fender bender today. Luckily he and the other folks involved are all ok. He was using my car . . . but no worries James . . . accidents happen. I'm glad you are ok and nobody was hurt.
.
Monday, September 14, 2009
- A Ram & Rambling
Cunnamulla, QLD - Australia
(I didn't get much sleep last night so the usual elegance of my prose probably will be lacking in the words below . . . the story will be told rather simply . . . )
Another friend with an excavator has joined us. Yesterday morning there were 2 excavators digging at my mine - they plan to be there for the next 6 weeks. It is amazing to watch them at work and see how much dirt they can move. They've dug down to a depth of about 20 feet and need to dig about 15 feet deeper to the opal level which is at about 35 feet below the surface.
One of the excavators had a bit of a leak of hydraulic oil from one of its rams. Yesterday afternoon the ram was removed and is now on its way to have its seals replaced. It should be back at work in about 2 days.
Working with excavators is new to me. I don't mean to sound like an idiot, but as a kid who used to play with toy trucks in my sandbox, the step up to a real excavator is quite amazing. A few days ago I was helping my friend do some maintenance on his 40 ton excavator. I had to crawl underneath it to tighten about 30-something nuts and bolts. Of course the machine was running so that it would be able to rotate so I could get to the nuts. Crawling around in the bowels of a running 40-ton excavator was a new experience for me as well a very greasy, oily, noisy and smelly one as well.
Usually when I come to Koroit, I bring at least one book. This time I brought a copy of Shoenfield's Mathematical Logic, however, as interesting as it is, I have had virtually no time to read it. I have been working nearly all day every day.
. . . and to my favorite reader . . . almost every day I awake at about the time the sun rises - as another day begins I think of you dear Dawn. Thank you - I love you - I miss you . . .
.
(I didn't get much sleep last night so the usual elegance of my prose probably will be lacking in the words below . . . the story will be told rather simply . . . )
Another friend with an excavator has joined us. Yesterday morning there were 2 excavators digging at my mine - they plan to be there for the next 6 weeks. It is amazing to watch them at work and see how much dirt they can move. They've dug down to a depth of about 20 feet and need to dig about 15 feet deeper to the opal level which is at about 35 feet below the surface.
One of the excavators had a bit of a leak of hydraulic oil from one of its rams. Yesterday afternoon the ram was removed and is now on its way to have its seals replaced. It should be back at work in about 2 days.
Working with excavators is new to me. I don't mean to sound like an idiot, but as a kid who used to play with toy trucks in my sandbox, the step up to a real excavator is quite amazing. A few days ago I was helping my friend do some maintenance on his 40 ton excavator. I had to crawl underneath it to tighten about 30-something nuts and bolts. Of course the machine was running so that it would be able to rotate so I could get to the nuts. Crawling around in the bowels of a running 40-ton excavator was a new experience for me as well a very greasy, oily, noisy and smelly one as well.
Usually when I come to Koroit, I bring at least one book. This time I brought a copy of Shoenfield's Mathematical Logic, however, as interesting as it is, I have had virtually no time to read it. I have been working nearly all day every day.
. . . and to my favorite reader . . . almost every day I awake at about the time the sun rises - as another day begins I think of you dear Dawn. Thank you - I love you - I miss you . . .
.
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
- Great Rocks & Moving the Excavator
Cunnamulla, QLD - USA
More pretty rocks have been found. Yesterday we spent a few hours slicing and cutting.
My friend handed me a few pieces of rough to cut for him. One of the pieces contained a bright thick blue band of opal in hard dark ironstone. It was a delight to cut. The result was a large rounded triangle of very bright blue/green clean faced opal - bright bands of color and shifting pattern as you move the stone. . . the kind of rock that really makes you either speechless or just go "wow". I'll try to add a photo here in a few days. Yes, it's for sale . . . it looks like the price will be at least $4,000 and worth every penny - you'll be the only kid on your block with one!
I need to say bye bye and get back to Koroit - my friend is going to be moving his excavator over to my mine this afternoon . . . I've been waiting for this moment ever since I first bought the mine.
.
More pretty rocks have been found. Yesterday we spent a few hours slicing and cutting.
My friend handed me a few pieces of rough to cut for him. One of the pieces contained a bright thick blue band of opal in hard dark ironstone. It was a delight to cut. The result was a large rounded triangle of very bright blue/green clean faced opal - bright bands of color and shifting pattern as you move the stone. . . the kind of rock that really makes you either speechless or just go "wow". I'll try to add a photo here in a few days. Yes, it's for sale . . . it looks like the price will be at least $4,000 and worth every penny - you'll be the only kid on your block with one!
I need to say bye bye and get back to Koroit - my friend is going to be moving his excavator over to my mine this afternoon . . . I've been waiting for this moment ever since I first bought the mine.
.
Monday, September 7, 2009
- Digging in Koroit
Cunnamulla, QLD - Australia
For the past few days I've been helping my friend with his mining - he's been finding some very pretty material.
Within about a week the excavator should be moving over to my place to start digging there. It will take a few days to get down to the level (the layer where ironstone & opal are found) - the level at my mine is about 33 to 36 feet deep. Once we're down to the level the color will be exposed . . . I'm very excited to see what will be revealed.
I will try to keep you updated. Hopefully I'll be able to get some good or at least informative video and photos of the process.
The sun is back - it has been mostly clear with a few clouds here and there.
On the way to town this morning I saw the usual suspects - about 10 kangaroos and 5 emus . . . luckily I didn't hit any of them. I've seen several lizards including a few down in my mine, but luckily no snakes. This past winter was not very cold - so it appears many of the snakes did not go into their usual hibernation. Several of my friends have warned me that they have seen snakes around. So far, there have been none I have seen.
Dawn has been at work changing the look, layout and coloring of the blog - I think she's made good progress. As always her work and talent are appreciated greatly.
Off to get some groceries, give Dawn a call, then back to the mine.
.
For the past few days I've been helping my friend with his mining - he's been finding some very pretty material.
Within about a week the excavator should be moving over to my place to start digging there. It will take a few days to get down to the level (the layer where ironstone & opal are found) - the level at my mine is about 33 to 36 feet deep. Once we're down to the level the color will be exposed . . . I'm very excited to see what will be revealed.
I will try to keep you updated. Hopefully I'll be able to get some good or at least informative video and photos of the process.
The sun is back - it has been mostly clear with a few clouds here and there.
On the way to town this morning I saw the usual suspects - about 10 kangaroos and 5 emus . . . luckily I didn't hit any of them. I've seen several lizards including a few down in my mine, but luckily no snakes. This past winter was not very cold - so it appears many of the snakes did not go into their usual hibernation. Several of my friends have warned me that they have seen snakes around. So far, there have been none I have seen.
Dawn has been at work changing the look, layout and coloring of the blog - I think she's made good progress. As always her work and talent are appreciated greatly.
Off to get some groceries, give Dawn a call, then back to the mine.
.
Thursday, September 3, 2009
- Arrived in Koroit
Cunnamulla, QLD - Australia
On Wednesday I arrived in Cunnamulla and quickly drove out to Koroit. All seemed to be well at my camp and down in the mine.
When I opened the doors of 2 out of 3 of the sheds at my camp, I was greeted by rather large, well fed redbacks. Luckily they don't move too quickly and were easy to eliminate.
Down in the mine at the base of the shaft was a poor, thin, hungry, cold and slow moving bearded dragon (a common type of lizard). I picked him up, put him in the bucket and took him up to the surface. He seemed to be happy when I let him go at the base of a tree.
Yesterday (Thursday) I had a bit of a dig and found a bit of color - some small nuts.
It's been a bit rainy so the excavator has been slightly delayed. In 2 or 3 days (at least within a week) excavator digging should start. We're going to start in an area of the mine that could be very exciting and I think will yield some beautiful rocks . . . more later once the pretty rocks are exposed. . . .
.
On Wednesday I arrived in Cunnamulla and quickly drove out to Koroit. All seemed to be well at my camp and down in the mine.
When I opened the doors of 2 out of 3 of the sheds at my camp, I was greeted by rather large, well fed redbacks. Luckily they don't move too quickly and were easy to eliminate.
Down in the mine at the base of the shaft was a poor, thin, hungry, cold and slow moving bearded dragon (a common type of lizard). I picked him up, put him in the bucket and took him up to the surface. He seemed to be happy when I let him go at the base of a tree.
Yesterday (Thursday) I had a bit of a dig and found a bit of color - some small nuts.
It's been a bit rainy so the excavator has been slightly delayed. In 2 or 3 days (at least within a week) excavator digging should start. We're going to start in an area of the mine that could be very exciting and I think will yield some beautiful rocks . . . more later once the pretty rocks are exposed. . . .
.
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
- Arrived in Australia
Brisbane, QLD - Australia
The eagle has landed. I just arrived in Brisbane. In 24 hours I'll be in Koroit.
I'll admit, I'm a bit jet-lagged, tired, dizzy and my eyes hurt. Due to my jet-lagged state my prose might not be as eloquent as usual . . .
I did want to mention a little bit of travel critic info . . .
Many of you may not realize Delta has just started flying to Australia. Due to the fact I had a pile of Delta frequent flyer miles, I decided to spend a mere 140,000 miles for a round trip on Delta. The 2 main cities one would arrive at from the USA are Sydney and Brisbane. I like to fly into Brisbane because from there I can catch a puddle-jumper flight to Cunnamulla, then drive to Koroit. At this time there is no flight from Sydney to Cunnamulla. Delta only flies into Sydney, so I needed to purchase a Sydney - Brisbane round trip on another carrier.
Yesterday my Delta connections became severly screwed-up within the USA, resulting in a bit of tension and over an hour on the phone and getting rerouted through Cincinnati . . . and barely making it to my flight in LA. The flight from LA to Sydney was on a Boeing 777, which is a wonderful airplane. However, Delta's service was rather poor. Food is not really a big deal to me, particularly on a plane . . . and to say that airplane food was bad is like, well, like saying airplane food is bad, like saying the sky is blue . . . however, this food was not just bad, it was terrible, ghastly, inedible.
A 777 is one of those nice new planes that has personal video screens for everyone - even those of us who sit in the cheap seats. Yet the selection of entertainment choices provided by Delta was nothing short of pathetic. I did watch "Little Miss Sunshine", which was a wonderful movie - so not absolutely everything was terrible, but their selection falls far short of the selection offered by their competition.
I noticed they offered a few things from HBO like reruns of "Curb Your Enthusiasm". However, they had the nerve to charge $2 to view each selection from HBO. Larry David does make me laugh, but not that much.
I'm not a drinker, but they charged for mixed drinks and as far as I know, their competition does not.
If you plan to be flying across the south pacific, I would recommend either Air New Zealand or Qantas and that you skip Delta.
Even though some details of the trip here were not ideal, I am happy to be here and am looking forward to getting out to the mine and seeing what beautiful rocks that excavator will unearth.
A note on the excavator, unearthing and mining in general -
Without going off on too much of a preachy metaphysical ramble I wanted to share a few thoughts. (Keep in mind I am jet-lagged & dizzy, but not quite delirious - so these words may not flow as smoothly as they should) I believe we are all connected - to each other, to the earth, to the universe - the whole thing. . . everything is connected . . . (that's one of the reasons you should be good and do the right thing, because when you do something bad or hurt someone or something else you are also hurting yourself - I digress). In some cases it may seem like mining is raping and pillaging the earth. In some cases it is. I have a great deal of respect and gratitude for what mother nature has made available to me. To me it seems nature has placed some incredibly beautiful objects in my path - I am simply picking them up and sharing them with the world, not taking or robbing, but celebrating. Those are just a few thoughts. . . if you have any questions about more of the details, feel free to ask.
My eyes are killing me . . .
. . . more later when I get out to Cunnamulla
.
The eagle has landed. I just arrived in Brisbane. In 24 hours I'll be in Koroit.
I'll admit, I'm a bit jet-lagged, tired, dizzy and my eyes hurt. Due to my jet-lagged state my prose might not be as eloquent as usual . . .
I did want to mention a little bit of travel critic info . . .
Many of you may not realize Delta has just started flying to Australia. Due to the fact I had a pile of Delta frequent flyer miles, I decided to spend a mere 140,000 miles for a round trip on Delta. The 2 main cities one would arrive at from the USA are Sydney and Brisbane. I like to fly into Brisbane because from there I can catch a puddle-jumper flight to Cunnamulla, then drive to Koroit. At this time there is no flight from Sydney to Cunnamulla. Delta only flies into Sydney, so I needed to purchase a Sydney - Brisbane round trip on another carrier.
Yesterday my Delta connections became severly screwed-up within the USA, resulting in a bit of tension and over an hour on the phone and getting rerouted through Cincinnati . . . and barely making it to my flight in LA. The flight from LA to Sydney was on a Boeing 777, which is a wonderful airplane. However, Delta's service was rather poor. Food is not really a big deal to me, particularly on a plane . . . and to say that airplane food was bad is like, well, like saying airplane food is bad, like saying the sky is blue . . . however, this food was not just bad, it was terrible, ghastly, inedible.
A 777 is one of those nice new planes that has personal video screens for everyone - even those of us who sit in the cheap seats. Yet the selection of entertainment choices provided by Delta was nothing short of pathetic. I did watch "Little Miss Sunshine", which was a wonderful movie - so not absolutely everything was terrible, but their selection falls far short of the selection offered by their competition.
I noticed they offered a few things from HBO like reruns of "Curb Your Enthusiasm". However, they had the nerve to charge $2 to view each selection from HBO. Larry David does make me laugh, but not that much.
I'm not a drinker, but they charged for mixed drinks and as far as I know, their competition does not.
If you plan to be flying across the south pacific, I would recommend either Air New Zealand or Qantas and that you skip Delta.
Even though some details of the trip here were not ideal, I am happy to be here and am looking forward to getting out to the mine and seeing what beautiful rocks that excavator will unearth.
A note on the excavator, unearthing and mining in general -
Without going off on too much of a preachy metaphysical ramble I wanted to share a few thoughts. (Keep in mind I am jet-lagged & dizzy, but not quite delirious - so these words may not flow as smoothly as they should) I believe we are all connected - to each other, to the earth, to the universe - the whole thing. . . everything is connected . . . (that's one of the reasons you should be good and do the right thing, because when you do something bad or hurt someone or something else you are also hurting yourself - I digress). In some cases it may seem like mining is raping and pillaging the earth. In some cases it is. I have a great deal of respect and gratitude for what mother nature has made available to me. To me it seems nature has placed some incredibly beautiful objects in my path - I am simply picking them up and sharing them with the world, not taking or robbing, but celebrating. Those are just a few thoughts. . . if you have any questions about more of the details, feel free to ask.
My eyes are killing me . . .
. . . more later when I get out to Cunnamulla
.
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