SRR Colvin: Maddy's Blog - Posts From Maddy's World

Gopher Day 2012

2012-02-02T06:40:00.000-08:00

Gopher Day 2012 has been cancelled.

Digby has decided to "occupy" the couch and watchan Ice Age movie. So there will be no lofty prognostications from him on this3rd annual Gopher Day 2012. I suppose it's going to be more of a sloth day, but he's happy!

Maddy

USGS Earthquake Web Site

2011-09-18T13:52:00.000-07:00

Maddy here!

Everyone who knows anything at all about me knows that I love, LOVE, geology. Since I've been in California for the past month my geological focus has been on earthquakes and I'd like to share an excellent web resource for earthquake information.

The web site of the USGS (United States Geological Survey) shows data for past and current earthquakes. The menu on the left side of the above linked page offers different options for viewing earthquake data such as:

Real-Time - World (from the present time to seven days prior)
Past 8 - 30 days (recent history events)
Significant (large or intense events)
Lists and Maps (search by state, damage maps, etc.)

I visit this link frequently, Real-Time - USA, because it features real-time data for all earthquakes in the conterminous (sharing a common boundary) United States — since that's where I am.

That's all for now. I'm out!

Maddy

Angel's Perch

2011-02-28T10:12:00.000-08:00

Hello,

This blog is "written" by my main character, Madison Terrence. As the mere author of her story, I generally stay out of the way and let Maddy do the blogging. However, today I break character and come to you as Susan because I want to share a wonderful project that is coming to Cass, WV. It was the film's location and subject matter that hooked me.

Angel's Perch is an indie film set to begin production in the Fall of 2011. Much of it will be filmed in Cass, a scenic railroad town in the Allegheny Mountains of West Virginia. A more gorgeous backdrop I cannot imagine. As many of my blog followers and lurkers (go ahead and click to follow—I don't bite) may know, I was born and raised in Alleghany (with an "a") County, VA, just 24 miles from West Virginia. My parents took me and my brothers to ride the Cass Railroad some 35-40 years ago, and today it still steams passengers up to Bald Knob, the third highest point in West Virginia.

My paternal grandmother suffered from Alzheimer's as does a character in the Angel's Perch. I remember my grandmother would sit and regale me with vivid tales of her past, and yet, she didn't know who I was. Sometimes she would she my toddler and think it was me, still a youngster. Too many people have similar stories now.

"Set almost entirely in the small, historic logging town of Cass, WV, “Angel’s Perch” examines the delicate relationship between past and present, memory and loss."-source: http://angelsperch.com/synopsis/

Want to get involved with the project? Want to be a team member?
Click here!

SRR Colvin

Amazing Libraries

2011-02-24T10:04:00.000-08:00

Books and libraries! Need I say more?

Click to see some beautiful and amazing libraries around the world!

(Although I live south of Salt Lake City (#1 on the list), #2 is my personal favorite!)

Maddy

Gopher Day 2011

2011-02-02T13:53:00.000-08:00

As most of you know I started a new tradition last year called "Gopher Day" that occurs every year on the day after Groundhog Day. I call it Gopher Day since I have a gopher living in my house rather than a groundhog.

Digby, my odd and proud little gopher, has been with my family since before I was born, so there's no telling how old he is. He's from a beautiful world deep inside the earth called Krybos. While in his native Krybos Digby can speak like you or I do, albeit with an unsettling Sean Connery accent. Here in the surface world he is more gopher-like and tunnels through the neighborhood, tortures us all with non-stop stomach distress, and makes funny squeaking noises because he doesn't have speech capabilities. And although he can't talk here in the surface world, he more than makes up for it with street-smarts which, I guess, in his case would be tunnel-smarts.

On last year's inaugural Gopher Day, Digby established how he was going to prognosticate on the coming weather trends, making certain there was no similarity to how the lowly groundhog does it. (See Gopher Day 2010 post). I knew this year would be no different.

I woke up this morning when Digby jumped onto the bed then clawed his way up and over the edge, having not quite made the leap. I could feel the covers being clawed away a few inches at a time. I just laid there with the remaining corner of the top sheet pulled up to my nose and waited for the inevitable. When it didn't come, I took a breath and peeked out to see my furry friend sitting on his haunches with a DVD case clamped in his bite.

Now remember, last year Digs abandoned traditional rodent weather prognostication methods and made a deliberate selection of a DVD with a seasonal theme to indicate his decision. He chose National Lampoon's Vacation which is a warm, summer-themed movie. So, I wondered, what would this year be?

As I sat up, Digby came forward and offered the dripping movie case which I took and swiped across my pajama top. "Interesting choice," I told him. "The cover says it all."

I placed "The Day After Tomorrow" DVD case on the nightstand then scooped my little buddy into my arms. Following the familiar sounds stirring above us, we climbed the spiral staircase to the fourth floor treasure room called Grandpa's Attic.

"I'm sure you know the groundhog didn't see his shadow yesterday," I said. "That means he's predicting an early Spring." Digby gave me his toothy smile as if to stand by his decision. "Right. Well, one thing's for certain. One of you is wrong."

Just because Digby is predicting six more weeks of winter weather doesn't mean we can expect it. I really think his prediction is based more on differentiating himself from the groundhog. After all, he's not a weather expert, he's a movie expert.

Until next time,

Maddie

Gopher Day 2011

2011-02-01T13:37:00.000-08:00

Maddie here.

Last February was my inaugural Gopher Day with Digby, my pet gopher, as the star of the show. Good grief. Click here to read how that fiasco turned out: Gopher Day 2010 .

I've decided to try it again this year. Come back to my blog on Thursday (February 3, 2011), the day after "Groundhog Day," to see what Digby's prediction is for the next six weeks of weather.

Till then,
Maddie

Dinosaurs in Castle Dale, UT!

2011-01-15T06:26:00.000-08:00

Maddy here!

I found several dinosaurs just down the street from where I'm staying in Utah.

The Museum of the San Rafael is home to several dinosaur skeletons including an Allosaurus.

"Allosaurus lived during the Late Jurassic Period around 140 million years ago. It is one of the largest and most fearsome predators to have ever lived on land.

Allosaurus had short arms, ending in sharp 10 long dagger-like claws, which it could use to tear into the flesh of its victims.

Sharp four inch long teeth were also used to tear apart the dead and dying victims that were unfortunate enough to have been hunted by Allosaurus.

Fossils found in Utah, North America suggest that Allosaurus may have lived and hunted in groups or packs."
Source: http://www.kidsdinos.com

While at the museum I also learned about the area's early culture. People of the Fremont Culture lived in the San Rafael area of Utah about a thousand years ago, then vanished. Besides implements of their daily life, they left behind rock art.

I went out to see their petroglyphs carved and chipped into a massive rock face a few miles outside of town. No one can be sure what the images mean since the artists are long gone.
There are also ancient pictographs from a previous culture painted onto the same bluff. It's an awesome sight that should be viewed when the rock face is shaded, as the painted images will seemingly disappear in direct sun and you can't see the details.

I'm off to explore the canyon lands. My next post will be on my favorite subject—GEOLOGY!

That's all for now,

Maddy

Caves and Crystals!

2010-10-10T05:16:00.000-07:00

Maddy here!

It's been a busy summer for me. I haven't even had time to blog about my favorite subject - caves. But now, National Geographic is airing a television special called "Into the Lost Crystal Caves." It will be on today (October 10th) at 8 PM. I - can't - wait!

Geologist Juan Manuel García-Ruiz said it's "the Sistine Chapel of crystals." He was talking about Cueva de los Cristales (Cave of Crystals) that was found a thousand feet beneath Naica Mountain in Mexico. The Cave of Crystals contains some of the largest naturally occuring crystals known in the world. Some are as long as 36 feet!

It's been said entering Mexico's Cave of Crystals is like walking inside a giant geode. Really? Well, I did that when I was in Krybos. Of course, the crystal cavern I was in didn't have the oppressive heat that this one in Mexico has. It is said that 30 minutes in that heat can kill a human. I think I'll stick with the looking at pictures of it. I know my best friend, Onyx, would be first in line to go inside. She's just a bit more adventurous than me.

Here is a web site with awesome pictures of the massive crystals: http://www.thatcrystalsite.com/caves.php

Here's something I want to try: Nat Geo's "rock candy" recipe.
http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/episode/into-the-lost-crystal-caves-4636/Overview39#tab-rock-candy

That's all for now!
Maddy

Another Great Review of TKS

2010-07-27T08:12:00.000-07:00

"Adventure and geology? Awesome!" - from Red House Books

Click here to read the review!

TKS Book Review

2010-06-16T05:35:00.000-07:00

Here's another great review of The Krybosian Stairpath.

Click to read the review

Book Recommendations

2010-05-24T14:45:00.000-07:00

Maddy here!

Everyone who knows me knows that I love to read. Naturally, I spend a lot of time reading and researching geology topics because I teach geology classes at the university here in Cavern City. I have to stay current in my field. I even keep a rock and mineral guide on my bedside table. Weird, I know, but it helps me sleep better.

I also read quite a bit of fiction. I've found a web site that brilliantly categorizes and recommends both fiction and non-fiction books. It makes the search for the next good read a snap. Now I spend less time figuring out what I want to read and more time actually reading.

The site is called Flashlight Worthy and they make book recommendations. ←Click and you will find 4,940 great books in 53 different categories and 383 unique lists.

Here are two lists I like:

"5 Great Books for Strong, Adventurous, Smart Young Girls" http://www.flashlightworthybooks.com/Great-Books-for-Strong-Adventurous-Smart-Young-Girls/608
(Of course I like those books!)

"Good Books for Strong Girls in 3rd, 4th or 5th Grade"
http://www.flashlightworthybooks.com/Good-Books-for-Girls-3rd-4th-5th-Grade/406
(Remember - I'm still a 5th grader by day, geology professor evenings and weekends.)

That's all for now!

Maddy

May Apples in Spring!

2010-05-19T13:48:00.000-07:00

Maddy here!

It's the time of year for May Apples, being May and all. This year the mountains of Virginia are thick with them. Here are two pictures I took yesterday of what I call a May Apple Meadow, sheltered beneath a forest canopy not far from my house (Douthat State Park).

These May Apples (Podophyllum peltatum) erupted from the forest floor in April, bloomed their single white flower in May, and now their tiny fruit (see bottom picture) will steadily grow and ripen through the summer.

You can see that the plant has a single base stem from which a pair of umbrella-like leaves branch and rise up to shelter the fruit that forms at the leaf junction. Some plants in the picture above only have a single stem and leaf. These are first year plants and won't produce any flowers or fruit. No junction, no fruit. Cool, huh?

Supposedly, the fruit has a lemon flavor, but there is no way I'm going to taste test it. I've read that the May Apple fruit is edible and that some people eat them, but it is also reported that it is toxic in quantity. I choose to appreciate the plant only for its physical beauty and avoid ingesting any part of it.

Why? It's just a simple a safe rule for me. Since parts of the plant (leaves, stem and root) are definitely considered toxic, I avoid ALL of it. That's seems a logical approach for me since it's easy to do, and so far it's worked. No toxin issues with me.

My little brother, Mica, is safe because Mom can't even get him to eat a real apple. The Apple iPod is the only apple he knows anything about. Me, I'm a Granny Smith kind of girl. Tart and juicy!

This past summer when I was in Krybos, I nearly flipped when I saw my pet gopher, Digby, eating May Apples as fast as he could cram them in. I tried to stop him but he quickly pointed out, speaking in a Scottish accent, no less, that Krybos May Apples are not toxic at all. I was so stunned that he could speak English, I forgot all else. Still, I prefer to be guaranteed safe rather than hurling my guts up, or worse! And besides, Digs is a native of Krybos. Maybe he's just immune to any ill effects.

Below, I've included links to two great sites on May Apples.

That's all for now!
Maddy

http://www.briartech.com/earlyspring/mayapple/may.htm
http://www.altnature.com/gallery/mandrake.htm
"May Apple was once called the witches umbrella and thought to be employed by them as a poison, which may not be untrue! The English version of this plant has much lore told of it, being called Manroot (mandrake) believed to be alive and its screams when pulled from the ground would render a man permanently insane."

TKS Book Review

2010-05-16T12:51:00.000-07:00

Here's a wonderful review of The Krybosian Stairpath (TKS):

Click here to read the review!

☺

Warm Weather, Finally

2010-04-05T16:15:00.000-07:00

Maddy here.

Wow! It was warm outside today. I slathered on my 70+ sunscreen with Helioplex, donned my Serengeti shades, then went outside to read a new book. Bliss!!

I love to feel the warmth of the sun radiating across the surface of my skin and down to my very core. If I close my eyes, I can almost hear the soothing sounds of Caribbean steel drums not far off, and the cool waves lapping at the hot sandy beach. I can feel the . . . what? . . . rain?

Of course, the islanders had pirates to deal with, right? Now, I don't actually have murderous and thieving pirates skulking about, but I've got my little brother, Mica, running amok with a water hose!

Below is a link to someone else who likes to read outside:
The Joys of Reading Outside: "Today’s post is, quite simply, an ode to the loveliness of being ..."

That's all for now,
Maddy

Happy A F Day!

2010-04-01T11:54:00.000-07:00

Every year I step out into the world on April 1st with my guard up and my senses on red alert, determined not to fall victim to another silly April Fool's joke. This year my confidence was high. Throughout the school day I moved cautiously from classroom to classroom, checking my seat for gum and the usual stupidness. I was ever vigilant as I opened my locker, and as I ventured into the hallways and the lunchroom. So far, so good, I kept telling myself.

This was going to be a banner year for me! Only a few more hours to go, and I'd be safely back home where I had planned to finish the day sorting and slicing specimens from my box of Moroccan geodes.

That's right. A banner year.

Well when I got home, I went straight up to Grandpa's Attic where I kept my box of geodes. These particular geodes were from Morocco and said to have very good crystalline structure inside, even better than the geodes from Mexico.

Needless to say, I was excited to get started.

I grabbed my safety goggles and gloves, then hefted my box of rocks onto the work bench that Grandpa had set up for the messier jobs like this one I was about to start. I pulled the box flaps back and stared in horror at what lay at the bottom.

My box of beautiful Moroccan geodes had been reduced to a lumpy pile of brown dust littered with disintegrated white crystal crumbles. They looked like they had been through a meat grinder. Anger began to build and I knew if I didn't get control of it, blood would shoot out of my eyes. I knew what I had to do, and I knew where to find him.

I pulled my gloves on, stretching and snapping each finger into place. Then, I seated the safety goggles over my eyes and walked purposefully across the expanse of Grandpa's Attic to the spiral stairs. I usually ride the elevator, but Mica knows this. It was time to change my usual MO.

I found Mica in the backyard cavern. He and Digby were sitting, legs dangling, on the wall of the elevated stone pool in the center of our cavern. Perfect, I thought. I can pay him back for trashing my geodes and teach him a valuable lesson at the same time.

Mica is forbidden to be near the pool without either an adult with him, or me. But, there he was all the same. I sneaked in and came around behind the pool, staying low and out of sight. I could see that Mica was showing Digby something, a rock. No, it was a geode. A Moroccan geode!

I dropped down and leaned back against the pool wall. It was over three feet high, so I remained hidden while my anger intensified.

Finally, I rose up and reached across the pool to drag Mica in. Just as I grabbed the neck of his shirt, Grandpa shouted my name. I turned toward his voice and drew my hand back, crashing face first into the pool, generating a soaking Free Willy-style splash. The cave averages 54ºF year-round, but the water always seems warmer. Not geothermal warm, but still warmer than the air. Thank goodness.

I bobbed to the surface, pushing strands of hair from my face and was greeted by Grandpa and Mica laughing hysterically at me, and Digby polishing his dripping fur. That's when I noticed in Grandpa's arms, a cardboard box. Digby hopped on top of the box and disappeared beneath the loose flaps. When he emerged, he held beautiful Moroccan geodes in each paw! My geodes.

"April Fool's!" and "You're all wet," echoed throughout the cavern as Mica jumped in the pool with me for a swim.

That's all for now,
Maddy

Book Review: The Secret of the Sacred Scarab

2010-03-22T05:19:00.000-07:00

Hi, everybody!

Maddy here. Everyone who knows me knows that I LOVE to read. I just finished reading a great work of fiction titled The Secret of the Sacred Scarab. It was awesome!

Egypt is a rich setting perfect for an adventure with cousins Justin and Adam. I hope to go there myself - some day! There are long-forgotten tombs and lost treasures, mummies, camels, a kidnapping, a boat trip down the Nile, and so much more!

After a street peddler secretly slips a sacred relic into one of the boys' pockets, danger stalks them at every turn and makes for an exciting story.

I recommend this book for middle-grade readers, teens, and adults. Once you've read it, you'll be wanting to start the next great adventure with Justin and Adam.

In the meantime, I've got a box full of Moroccan geodes that I need to carefully break open so I can see what they hold inside. If I don't get an early start, Mica will have them all cracked up, and will have moved on to his next destructive activity.

That's all for now,
Maddy

Magnetic Reversals

2010-02-24T02:43:00.000-08:00

Maddy here!

When my brother, Mica, and I ended up in Krybos last summer trying to outwit an interior world madman, concerns over disruptions in the earth's magnetic field came up. Mica wanted to know what dangers, if any, could occur from this field getting reversed. So, what did I do? I did what any self-respecting big sister would do. I lied to him. Well, I guess "lie" is kind of a strong word for it. I was really just pulling his chain by choosing what to say. Mica asked me if a magnetic reversal would affect us, and I told him no one knew the answer to that since humans had never been around during one.

Technically, it's all a matter of perspective. There are those who say that all creation and man only appeared roughly 6,000 years ago. Then there are those who point to the fossil record that dates Homo sapiens' appearance on the planet back about a half million years ago, and modern Homo sapiens to only 100,000+ years ago. But the fossil record also indicates that humans "in some form" have been around for about two million years, and a number of pole reversals have occurred during this time. And yet, life is still here.

I could've just told Mica that nothing would likely happen and left it at that, but I do thoroughly enjoy messing with him! All he'd have to do is pick up a book from time to time, and he might already have known the answer. It doesn't hurt Mica one bit to sweat about it anyway. If he gets curious enough, he can do some research.

Speaking of research, since school's been out a lot because of the snow I've been reading up on 2012 lore and the Mayan long count calendar bak'tuns. It's all pretty interesting stuff. I also read where a group of people actually thinks a magnetic pole reversal in 2012 will cause the end of life on earth. Others says a "pole shift" will be the culprit. When I say "pole shift," I mean when the earth wobbles on its axis. It's certainly happened before, and will likely happen again, but I don't think we'll croak over it. I'll delve into that shift in a separate blog post. For now, I would like to offer some thoughts on magnetic pole reversals.

Earth has a magnetic field that is generated by its rotating core. Actually, it's a dual core. There is a solid iron inner core and a liquid outer core. Anyway, it's when this magnetic field is disrupted that a magnetic pole reversal occurs. The north pole becomes the south pole, and vice versa. The last time it happened was about 780,000 years ago., and since humans (in some form) were on the planet, and humans are still here, that would lead me to believe it's a survivable event! The image at the right is a graphic representation of the field.

We know how frequently these reversals occur by studying the magnetic anomalies of the sea floor on either side of the mid-Atlantic ridge. The paleo-magnetic evidence is found in the mineral alignment in this iron rich rock. When the rock is laid down during sea floor spreading, the minerals orient according to the earth's magnetic field at that time. When the north pole is on top of the earth, the minerals align in one direction, and when the south pole is on top, the minerals align in the other direction. Pretty simple stuff there.

We also know from the rock that magnetic reversals occur at irregular intervals, but the typical period between reversals has been averaged at 250,000. Using that number, it could be said that we are overdue for one. But reversals take hundreds, even thousands of years to take place. So, we're not going to wake up one morning and discover that our compasses point south, although that would be pretty weird. It's a gradual process, and no single person will see one occur from its beginning to its end.

The paleo-magnetic record also indicates earth's magnetic field intensity during the time that the rock was laid down. This is important because, historically, it shows that reversals occur when the magnetic field is at its weakest. And currently, the global magnetic field is in decline. Snap! I forgot to mention that to Mica. He would absolutely freak out! And again, he could "grab a book, get an answer." However, in and of itself, this decline is really no big deal because the paleo-magnetic record also shows us that some fluctuations are always occurring. The field may weaken, but then it'll come right back.

So what's my take on this being an issue for mankind in 2012? NOT. I think the solar flares and sun spots will probably get us before then.

That's all for now.
Maddy

(Here is a link with an excellent graphic of reversals dating back over 150 million years: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/magnetic/timeline.html)

Digby's First Gopher Day

2010-02-03T06:37:00.000-08:00

Today is Gopher Day 2010. School was canceled due to yesterday's snow, and the day started out with below freezing temperatures. Sounds like it would be a great day for the first official Gopher Day, right?

Early this morning, I sent Digby from Grandpa's Attic, through the vent shaft and out onto the mountain top where he would prognosticate about the weather to come. Simple enough, wouldn't you think?

Then, I stepped outside and looked at the cliff above the house, fully expecting to see a pot-bellied gopher trampling around in the snow looking for his shadow. I was all goose-bumpy with excitement to see what he would do, and to get year one of my Gopher Day record-keeping logged.

I figured since Punxsutawney Phil is right only 39% of the time, surely, Digs could do better.

And what did I see high on the cliff? Nothing! Digby was nowhere to be found. My favorite tunnel-digger had shirked his duties and must have high-tailed it (literally) off that mountain top, like a firewalker who suddenly realized he could feel the heat of the coals. What a waste of a perfectly good morning.

Now you see, this is exactly why I prefer the scientific method to unproven, untenable, rodent observation as a means of forecasting coming weather trends. (Like I didn't know where this was going when I thought it up.)

I guessed Digby was protesting our little "exercise." I'm sure he felt that no self-respecting gopher would allow himself to be reduced to emulating a groundhog, of all things. Digs can be overly dramatic sometimes, but I suppose he has to make up for not being able to speak. So, I'm good with that.

I returned to the house and found the little fur ball hiding out with Grandpa and watching, of course, The Weather Channel. There sat Digby, perched snuggly on the headrest of Grandpa's recliner, as settled in as if he'd been there all night. The furry pockets of his cheeks were bulging with popcorn, perfectly framing Digby's big Cheshire gopher grin.

Grandpa said Digby had scampered into the house and pawed through the DVD rack until he found what he was looking for. Grandpa held up a copy of National Lampoon's Vacation that Digby had dragged over to him. "Looks like Digby is predicting early spring and summer," he said.

Sure, I thought. Or, he wants to go to an amusement park. Gosh, even the groundhog was more scientific than that!

I've decided it's better to stick to science. I think we should start "Weather Channel Day." And we can make it occur every day! I'll take a Jim Cantore one-week forecast over a furry ground rodent's six-week prediction anytime. For me, science rules!

But, for the record, Digby's first official Gopher Day prognostication is for an early spring.

We shall see . .

Maddy

Groundhog Day 2010

2010-02-02T09:04:00.000-08:00

Well, today is Groundhog Day. Some folks say the little Pennsylvania guy can predict if we'll have six more weeks of winter weather, or early spring weather. Supposedly, he comes out of his simulated tree stump and either sees, or doesn't see, his shadow. But you know me, I prefer a more scientific approach to everything.

I read this morning on the Internet that the beast has already emerged and seen his shadow. That means there is supposed to be six more weeks of winter weather. Maybe he's right. After all, there are approximately six weeks of winter left before the Vernal Equinox on March 20, 2010. And although I do love snow, sledding, and ice skating, I'm more than ready for warmer weather.

Therefore, I've decided that a second opinion is warranted. If we are to depend on furry rodents to prognosticate, then I'm sending Digby out tomorrow morning, February 3, for the first official "Gopher Day." I don't know what he'll see, and there's no telling what he'll be looking for, since Digby's genuinely a crazy little gopher.

Actually, he's not little at all. He's pretty big for a gopher. He's every bit as big as the average groundhog, which is considerably larger than the average gopher. And, of course, groundhogs hibernate — gophers do not. Digs would never check out for months at a time when there is so much mischief waiting for him to get into here in the surface world.

Digby is from the interior world of Krybos, where impossibilities are the norm. When in his native Krybos, Digby can talk. I discovered this when I ended up in his world, and he started conversing in a thick, suave Sean Connery meter and tone. Snap! Who knew?

Anyway, up here in the surface world, our world, Digby doesn't speak. He only makes typical gopher noises, with the occasional, and unfortunate, rumble and crack of stomach distress blended in.

With Digby's help, tomorrow will be the first official "Gopher Day."

He'll tunnel out of Grandpa's Attic first thing in the morning and then . . .

Until tomorrow,
Maddy

One of VA's Great Caverns

2010-01-16T05:41:00.000-08:00

Luray Caverns is in western Virginia not far from I-81's New Market exit. I've been there and it's quite awesome.

The caverns have some spectacular formations including the world's largest musical instrument called the "Great Stalacpipe Organ." There is an underground lake and some enormous chambers with ceilings as high as 10 stories. The image in the upper left of this post is the Great Hall.

If you can't get there to see these caverns in person, you can view some of the grandeur online. Luray has an excellent web site with lots of information on the science of cave formation. On their kids' activities page you can download coloring pages and mazes, and there is even an interactive CAVE QUIZ you can take.

Maddy

Book Trailer

2009-12-14T15:37:00.000-08:00

The Santa Train (Southwest VA, KY, and TN)

2009-12-04T07:23:00.000-08:00

Here's a look at a wonderful tradition that occurs every year in the hills and hollows of southwest Virginia. Thank you to CXS and other sponsors!

I'll write more later,
Maddy

Fluorite in the Treasure Room

2009-11-24T11:29:00.000-08:00

Hello from Grandpa's Attic!

Our school is already out for Thanksgiving break, so I got up extra early today and rode the elevator down to the kitchen to grab a frozen waffle, then I hopped back in and rode up to the fourth floor where Grandpa has his fabulous collection. My little brother, Mica, is still asleep and the last thing I want to do is wake him up so he can ruin my absolutely perfect morning. He annoys me to death all the time. OMG, he's soooo immature!

I love it up here in Grandpa's Attic, aka the Treasure Room! It's a room on top of our underground house that is carved up into the mountain. A few years ago Grandpa had to paint the natural stone ceiling to keep the moisture out of here. So, I asked for a night sky mural. And Mica, with the only good idea he's ever had, thought we should paint the stars with glow-in-the-dark paint. It's pretty cool, although I won't be in here in the dark, alone. If Grandpa, or Mom and Dad aren't up here, I'm not turning off a perfectly good light! There are just a few too many creepy stones and artifacts in here mixed in with the rocks, minerals, and fossils.

Some of them I have yet to figure out. I teach geology classes at the local university so I know a thing or two about rocks and minerals. But Grandpa has some freaky stuff up here, I mean, things that probably shouldn't even exist. Whenever I ask him about them, he just says they were acquired during his youth. Okay, fine, but do you think maybe he could tell me where he acquired them?? For some reason, he never has much to say when I try to find out about the odd pieces of the collection. It's like he knows — but he's not talking. But then, grown-ups are weird.

I brought a tray of fluorite crystals over here to the desk so I could look for one to have made into a necklace. I really need a new necklace. Fluorite is the crystalline form of calcium fluoride. Interestingly, it is also the Illinois state mineral. Its name comes from the Latin fluere which means "to flow." Now, I know what you're thinking - crystals don't flow. But fluorite melts easily, hence the name. The mineral comes in many colors depending on which other elements are formed with it. My favorite fluorite color is purple, I guess, because it looks so much like another one of my favorites, amethyst (which is actually a variety of quartz).

Here is a link to more info on fluorite: http://geology.com/minerals/fluorite.shtml

Oh, snap! I hear the wooden staircase creaking ever so slightly. I already know it's Mica for three reasons:
1) the creaking is slight, so the person is light
2) the person on the staircase is trying to be sneaky like a brat, and is tip-toeing
3) Mica prefers the spiral stairs to the elevator

Anyway, it was fun while it lasted. I'm logging off of here and heading down into the cavern - on the elevator!

Maddy

Maddy's Conducting a Cavern Tour

2009-11-20T13:17:00.000-08:00

I'm giving a tour of our backyard cavern this coming weekend, and I was just making some notes on the talk I'll be giving during the tour. Here is a link to one of the resources I've found for great cave information: http://www.nps.gov/archive/wica/Speleothems.htm

I have several major topics on my cave tour. The most important one is cave safety, but the most fun one is speleothems. Speleothems are the different types of formations found in caves. I try to include information on the science behind how speleothems are formed. Also, I remind everyone on the tour not to touch the formations because the oils in our skin create a barrier on the formations and prevent them from growing.

We have lots of awesome speleothems down in our family's backyard cavern. My very favorite one of all is called "cave popcorn." Check out the link below for a great picture of cave popcorn. http://www.nps.gov/wica/naturescience/speleothems-cave-popcorn.htm

Maddy

Amazon.com Releases Free Kindle for PC Software

2009-11-19T16:07:00.001-08:00

Amazon.com Releases Free Kindle for PC Software

Posted using ShareThis

We had a blast!

2009-11-15T12:17:00.000-08:00

Halloween was a blast!

Grandpa Rocky had a haunted party planned down at the abandoned rock quarry he used to operate on the edge of town. And crazier yet, my mom and dad were able to keep it a secret from me and my brother. They had decorated the place with moving, colored spotlights that were shining onto the quarry 's rock walls and making the minerals sparkle like glitter. I could see the light beams shooting into the sky and reflecting off of the clouds while I was in town and I thought aliens had landed.

No one in Cavern City knew anything about the party until just before dark when signs started turning up all over town on store fronts and lamp posts telling of the party. There was a map and everything! By the time Mica and I got down there, the place was really rocking. There was a lot of food and pop, a big screen tv with video games to play, good music, and a dance floor where my pet gopher, Digby, was actually trying to dance. He's a crazy little fur ball!!

I guess my parents are pretty okay for old people. They're in their thirties, you know.

And the best part of it all? Jacin was nowhere to be seen. I guess having to read the map and follow instructions was too much of a challenge for him. Part of me wants to feel sorry for him, but then I remember how mean he is and the feeling quickly goes away.

Maddy

Halloween

2009-10-29T07:47:00.000-07:00

Galloping grape groundhogs! It's Halloween time in Cavern City.

I like trick-or-treating, but not for the candy. I like it because when I'm wearing a costume, I can walk all over town and nobody knows it's me—not even Jacin.

Jacin Means is a terror who just happens to be in the fifth grade with me. He pesters me constantly at school and everywhere else for that matter. At least on Halloween night, I can walk right past him and he'll never know it's me. I wish I could do that every day.

The only problem is Mom will insist I drag Mica around with me on Halloween night. Having him with me is a dead give-away. Mica is particularly short for his age, and even if he's in costume, most people here in Cavern City will know it's him. A thinking person would realize that I am probably the one with Mica, but I'm counting on Jacin not being a thinking person. He rarely thinks.

I'll let you know how it goes . . .

Maddy

Book Availability

2009-10-10T09:16:00.000-07:00

The Krybosian Stairpath is available in the bookstore at: http://www.iuniverse.com/Bookstore/BookDetail.aspx?BookId=SKU-000129650

You can also find it at:
http://www.amazon.com/
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/
http://www.abebooks.com/
http://www.alibris.com/
http://www.booksamillion.com/
and other online retailers.

The Kindle version is available in the Kindle store at www.amazon.com .

You can also order online by clicking the picture at the top right. That's me and my little brother and Onyx on our way down the stairpath that appeared in my family's cavern.

More to come . . .

2009-10-01T16:40:00.000-07:00

Due to some galavanting around the globe, posts here have been delayed. More to come soon . . .

Mystery to Solve

2009-08-30T13:13:00.000-07:00

Ugh! Does anyone else endure the endless torment of an eight-year-old brother constantly prowling around? Good grief! Mica is driving me nuts. What really annoys me is that he enjoys doing it so much.

I decided to come down here to the public library to spend some uninterrupted research time online, since I know my little brother wouldn't dream of stepping foot in here. He never gets past the video arcade anyhow.

I've got several big mysteries to solve, and one of them is here in my hand. I sure wish you could see this rock. I got it from the super-awesome treasure room that we call Grandpa's Attic. It's an odd looking piece of a crystal called chalcedony, also known as bloodstone. This one is mostly green with red flecks scattered about. One edge is jagged like it's been broken, but I don't care. I fell in love with it when I first noticed it last summer—so, I begged Grandpa to put it on a necklace for me. At first, he got really weird about it. Eventually, he agreed and I've been wearing it ever since.

I know this sounds a little crazy, but sometimes the bloodstone heats up. For no reason, it just starts getting warmer and warmer. One day after school, I was walking down the sidewalk to the town library when I felt it starting to heat up. I thought it was going to burn a hole in my neck! But then, just as quickly as it had gotten hot, it returned to normal.

I'm still trying to figure it out. I hate not knowing something. And this just doesn't make sense. I don't have a lot of demands and expectations for this world, but I do expect for things to make sense! As Caverns City's youngest geology professor, I'm familiar with all of the minerals on earth, including chalcedony. But, not this piece of chalcedony. I knew it was special when I first saw it. It's like it called out to me . . .

Here is a link I found to a picture of a chalcedony bloodstone. http://www.worldofstock.com/closeups/PAB1849.php

Maddy

Hey! It's me, Madison!

2009-08-25T12:27:00.000-07:00

Hey, guys! My name is Madison Terrence, but my friends call me Maddy. Sometimes I even let Mica, my irritating little brother, call me Maddy. We live in a cool underground house that my Grandpa Rocky built in western Virginia. You can't tell it from the street, but it's a four-story mansion. I like that it's hidden. Sometimes I wish I was hidden. Whether it's the mysterious weirdness down at Grandpa's old rock quarry, or my personal curse, being able to remember everything I've ever seen or read, there is always someone in Cavern City ragging on me about it.

Anyway, back to my house. It's built into the side of a mountain, so all you can see from the street is the flat front of a rock-sided house appearing to only have an upstairs and a downstairs. Everything else is hidden underground, with the fourth floor carved up into the rock, and the bottom floor dug down into the earth. You probably think, with my house being built into a mountain, that I don't have a back yard to hang out in. Not true. I have the best backyard in town!

It's a huge-mongous limestone cavern that is four stories tall, just like our house. And it's from the top floor of the house where you can get the best view of The Grand Hall and it's wonderful speleothems. Mica hates when I use the proper term for cave formation, but speleothems is what they are. I would know, since I teach geology classes at the nearby university. But that's only on the weekends. Since I'm 11-years-old, I still have to deal with the fifth grade during the week.

The entire top floor of the house is Grandpa's Attic, a treasure room filled from floor to ceiling with some pretty wild stuff that he's collected since he was young. That's a lot of collecting! I spend a lot of time up there exploring the cabinets, racks, and shelves of rocks, minerals, fossils, and some really weird artifacts that I still haven't figured out yet.

More about the treasure room next time . . . gotta run . . . my obnoxious brother just pushed his way in here . . .

Maddy

The Krybosian Stairpath

2009-08-24T09:05:00.000-07:00

My first novel, The Krybosian Stairpath, will be published this fall. It is the first in a series of middle-grade novels featuring a brilliant young heroine named Madison Terrence. She is a fifth-grader during the week, and teaches college geology classes on the weekends.

Madison will be posting updates here on her life, her world, and the world of Krybos.