# Fluffy\_PickleSniffer, Rockhound Extraordinare

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fluffy-picklesniffer-rockhound-extraordinare/968676>\
**Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\
**Created:** [July 28, 2022, 12:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fluffy-picklesniffer-rockhound-extraordinare/968676 "2022-07-28T00:31:34Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 15\
**Page:** 1

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![JaneDoe42](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/janedoe42/32/14104_2.png) [@JaneDoe42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JaneDoe42)\
**Post date:** [July 28, 2022, 12:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fluffy-picklesniffer-rockhound-extraordinare/968676/1 "2022-07-28T00:31:34Z")

</div>

Months ago, @Fluffy_PickleSniffer noticed that I like shiny and contacted me offering to share some of her ever expanding collection with me. Of course I said yes and gave her my address. At the time, she had mentioned health problems and issues with driving so when the shiny rocks didn’t arrive, I pretty much forgot about it.

Imagine my delight to receive a box of rocks in the mail today. She not only collects, but polishes and thoughtfully put names to almost everything. What an amazing surprise, thank you again Fluffy!

[rocks1 | Jane Doe42 | Flickr](https://www.flickr.com/photos/191587192@N04/52246327114/in/dateposted-public/)

[rocks2 | Jane Doe42 | Flickr](https://www.flickr.com/photos/191587192@N04/52246536020/in/dateposted-public/)

[rocks 3 | Jane Doe42 | Flickr](https://www.flickr.com/photos/191587192@N04/52246328359/in/dateposted-public/)

[rocks 4 | Jane Doe42 | Flickr](https://www.flickr.com/photos/191587192@N04/52246043356/in/dateposted-public/)

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Johnny\_Bravo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_bravo/32/493_2.png) [@Johnny\_Bravo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Bravo)\
**Post date:** [July 28, 2022, 1:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fluffy-picklesniffer-rockhound-extraordinare/968676/2 "2022-07-28T01:04:58Z")

</div>

Wonderful!

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![StGermain](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stgermain/32/2868_2.png) [@StGermain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StGermain)\
**Post date:** [July 28, 2022, 1:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fluffy-picklesniffer-rockhound-extraordinare/968676/3 "2022-07-28T01:56:55Z")

</div>

That’s very thoughtful! How nice.

StG

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Fluffy\_PickleSniffer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/77aa72/32.png) [@Fluffy\_PickleSniffer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fluffy_PickleSniffer)\
**Post date:** [July 28, 2022, 11:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fluffy-picklesniffer-rockhound-extraordinare/968676/4 "2022-07-28T11:06:52Z")

</div>

Glad you’re enjoying them! I guess we can call this Christmas in July since I didn’t get them to you by last Christmas, like I planned.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\
**Post date:** [July 28, 2022, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fluffy-picklesniffer-rockhound-extraordinare/968676/5 "2022-07-28T18:03:23Z")

</div>

Beautiful! I like that tiger-striped whatzit.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Aspenglow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspenglow/32/76_2.png) [@Aspenglow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspenglow)\
**Post date:** [July 28, 2022, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fluffy-picklesniffer-rockhound-extraordinare/968676/6 "2022-07-28T18:13:34Z")

</div>

As if the user name wasn’t enough reason to love her. 🙂

Nicely done, @Fluffy_PickleSniffer!

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\
**Post date:** [July 28, 2022, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fluffy-picklesniffer-rockhound-extraordinare/968676/7 "2022-07-28T20:17:41Z")

</div>

Forget the rocks. Click through to the cat pics.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\
**Post date:** [July 28, 2022, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fluffy-picklesniffer-rockhound-extraordinare/968676/8 "2022-07-28T20:53:07Z")

</div>

Wow! Beautiful rocks!

How thoughtful of you 🙂

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![carnut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnut/32/3531_2.png) [@carnut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnut)\
**Post date:** [July 28, 2022, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fluffy-picklesniffer-rockhound-extraordinare/968676/9 "2022-07-28T22:38:16Z")

</div>

These are gorgeous rocks.

My uncle turned a washing machine into a stone tumbler to polish all the agates he found on his farm. They were a wonderful feature of visits there as a child. From there, I advanced to other rocks too. Now, there’s YouTube and I can watch geodes and other stones being cut and polished to my heart’s content.

A lovely collection, @Fluffy_PickleSniffer.

What is the “dalmatian” looking stone? That’s the only one I’m not familiar with. Ah, Google tells me it is actually called “dalmatian jasper” even though it’s not a jasper. Fun!

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![carrps](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carrps/32/2957_2.png) [@carrps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carrps)\
**Post date:** [July 28, 2022, 10:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fluffy-picklesniffer-rockhound-extraordinare/968676/10 "2022-07-28T22:54:08Z")

</div>

Yeah, everything speckly or spotted seems to be called jasper, even when it’s not.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Fluffy\_PickleSniffer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/77aa72/32.png) [@Fluffy\_PickleSniffer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fluffy_PickleSniffer)\
**Post date:** [July 29, 2022, 2:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fluffy-picklesniffer-rockhound-extraordinare/968676/11 "2022-07-29T02:18:08Z")

</div>

The Dalmatian looking stone is actually called Dalmatian stone or Dalmatian Jasper. I find tons of it around here in northern WI.  
On a slightly odd, but not completely unrelated tangent, I had a sewer drain backup in my basement yesterday. (lovely). The guy came to clean the pipes out and as he was cleaning up afterwards, he noticed my rock tumbler rumbling away on the kitchen counter. “Hey!” he said, “I used to tumble rocks for years! I forgot all about that, I wonder what I did with my machine?” so then of course I had to give him a tour of my rocks, which are scattered all over bookshelves and things. I handed him one huge monster that I found and fell in love with, even though I can’t tumble it, and said that I had no idea what it was, but thought there was mica in it. He looked at it, weighed it in his hand and snapped his fingers, “No, no, it’s a rock with an F at the beginning… ahhh, what is it?” and I said, “Not feldspar?” “YEAH! That’s it!” “Really? I have FELDSPAR in my house? COOOOOL!” and yeah, the whole conversation was like that. I’m a weirdo - and so happy when I find other weirdos like me. 🙂

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Die\_Capacitrix](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/die_capacitrix/32/9_2.png) [@Die\_Capacitrix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Die_Capacitrix)\
**Post date:** [July 29, 2022, 2:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fluffy-picklesniffer-rockhound-extraordinare/968676/12 "2022-07-29T14:45:06Z")

</div>

Shiny!

And it’s interesting to see I’m not the only one captivated by the Dalmatian jasper.

My dad had a rock tumbler, which we used many times when I was in elementary and middle school. No idea if he still has it. Rocks are pretty.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![carnut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnut/32/3531_2.png) [@carnut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnut)\
**Post date:** [July 29, 2022, 11:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fluffy-picklesniffer-rockhound-extraordinare/968676/13 "2022-07-29T23:04:22Z")

</div>

> [@Fluffy\_PickleSniffer](#):
>
> around here in northern WI

Yes, I’ve seen it at the shore of Lake Superior. I never kept any because I didn’t have a tumbler. I thought it would make lovely jewelry.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![JaneDoe42](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/janedoe42/32/14104_2.png) [@JaneDoe42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JaneDoe42)\
**Post date:** [July 30, 2022, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fluffy-picklesniffer-rockhound-extraordinare/968676/14 "2022-07-30T01:00:48Z")

</div>

Sorry for not coming back for so !onv, I’been traveling and only have a tablet to work with, poor me!

I am glad everyone is enjoying the pics. They do not do the beautiful rocks justice, the actual gems are so much prettier!

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![GaryM](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/garym/32/241_2.png) [@GaryM](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GaryM)\
**Post date:** [July 30, 2022, 12:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fluffy-picklesniffer-rockhound-extraordinare/968676/15 "2022-07-30T12:53:19Z")

</div>

Years back the aerospace company I worked for had clubs for the employees. Bass fishing, bicycle etc. One was a rock hound club. I never joined, but some friends were members and I went with them to a geode hunt on a farm in north east Missouri.

We came back with a bout 8 or 9. So the next project was to break or cut them open to see what the inside looked like.Some were full of crystals, while one or two were pretty solid all the way through. I don’t know why though.

It’s been 40 years and I think I still have one or two around.
