Teaching an old dog new tricks

[siteseer]

I hear you, Darktooth.  I'm well into my 50's now.  My advice is to eat better and exercise more because the previous 50 years of sitting around too much and eating too much junk food starts to catch up to you (eat more salad and fruit).  Ten years ago, I started walking a couple of miles 3 times a week and then I'd fall off the wagon for a month or two (sometimes because I was out-of-town for work) and then I'd get back on.  A sore foot kicked me off the schedule last year but I'm back on now.

 

When I started collecting fossils 30 years ago, I wanted a little of everything from different ages and then I got into ammonites for a short time before really getting into shark teeth.  However, if I get a chance to collect fossils, I don't care what it is.  Let's go!  I have found shells, sand dollars, sea urchins, crab impressions, trilobites, and some worm tube thing that had to be explained to me.  However, I have reached the point where I feel like I don't need to bring home a bunch of fossils anymore.  I've bought more books than fossils in recent years though finding a bargain on a shark or ray fossil I don't have makes me recall the early days of being excited about an upcoming show or collecting trip. 

 

Taking a good look at yourself is also good exercise.  That may be the start of wisdom - something not found by staring at a phone or computer screen all day.  By the time you reach fifty, you've probably lost some good friends and relatives and you think of things you didn't think about when you were twenty.  Sometimes, it's hard not to be a jerk.  Harry is right about making that effort to take the high road because that old joke about there being less traffic is correct.  My favorite quote is now "Patience is bitter but it's fruit is sweet."  It applies to fossil collecting, fossil prepping, and life in general.

 

Fossils are fun but I've learned the most fun you can ever have is watching babies grow.

 

Jess

[Darktooth]

On 4/28/2017 at 4:55 AM, siteseer said:

I hear you, Darktooth.  I'm well into my 50's now.  My advice is to eat better and exercise more because the previous 50 years of sitting around too much and eating too much junk food starts to catch up to you (eat more salad and fruit).  Ten years ago, I started walking a couple of miles 3 times a week and then I'd fall off the wagon for a month or two (sometimes because I was out-of-town for work) and then I'd get back on.  A sore foot kicked me off the schedule last year but I'm back on now.

 

When I started collecting fossils 30 years ago, I wanted a little of everything from different ages and then I got into ammonites for a short time before really getting into shark teeth.  However, if I get a chance to collect fossils, I don't care what it is.  Let's go!  I have found shells, sand dollars, sea urchins, crab impressions, trilobites, and some worm tube thing that had to be explained to me.  However, I have reached the point where I feel like I don't need to bring home a bunch of fossils anymore.  I've bought more books than fossils in recent years though finding a bargain on a shark or ray fossil I don't have makes me recall the early days of being excited about an upcoming show or collecting trip. 

 

Taking a good look at yourself is also good exercise.  That may be the start of wisdom - something not found by staring at a phone or computer screen all day.  By the time you reach fifty, you've probably lost some good friends and relatives and you think of things you didn't think about when you were twenty.  Sometimes, it's hard not to be a jerk.  Harry is right about making that effort to take the high road because that old joke about there being less traffic is correct.  My favorite quote is now "Patience is bitter but it's fruit is sweet."  It applies to fossil collecting, fossil prepping, and life in general.

 

Fossils are fun but I've learned the most fun you can ever have is watching babies grow.

 

Jess

Man , EVERYTHING you said is so true!

Thanks for your response. Actually thank -you to everyone for your kind words.

[Darktooth]

Ok so I have missed a couple days. I am going to add a new one that I did not quite learn on my own. I found out the id on this one thanks to minnbuckeye's recent post. Here is a Hyolith from Deep Springs Road. Devonian

[Wrangellian]

Nice one! Seems to be complete, Interesting texture too.

[Fossildude19]

On 4/29/2017 at 4:20 PM, Darktooth said:

Ok so I have missed a couple days. I am going to add a new one that I did not quite learn on my own. I found out the id on this one thanks to minnbuckeye's recent post. Here is a Hyolith from Deep Springs Road. Devonian

 

 

Dave, 

This is a really great example of one!  It looks like it has shell material still in place (doesn't happen often.) and the bulbous end is something I have not seen on Hyoliths from DSR. 

Very, very cool. 

 

 

           

 

Thanks for posting it.  

Regards,

[Darktooth]

@Fossildude19 Thanks Tim! Yeah I am pretty happy with it. I liked it before I even knew what it was.

[Darktooth]

Time for more learning.

1st-Orthonata undulata

2nd-Grammysioida alveata

[Darktooth]

Spyroceras crotalum

[Darktooth]

Fenestella emaciata-Bryzoa

[BobWill]

I think you've hit on a pretty common theme among avocational paleontologists. It all starts out find of slowly and builds into a passion that compels us to learn more over time. Like Jess I find myself buying more reference books and geo maps, even paleo history books.

 

Two other things have enhanced my journey quite a lot. One is taking online courses. Some are free and I have no need for the credits some offer but since my career was in electronics so this has filled in a lot of the blanks of my knowledge of geology and ancient life.

 

The other thing that helped me is joining the Dallas Paleontological Society. I always thought it would be mostly professionals but those only represent a small part of the group and there were always members who knew even less that I about fossils. They are always glad to help and know all the best locations for collecting. There is probably one near you. I recommend it for everyone who isn't already in one.

[Darktooth]

 

23 minutes ago, BobWill said:

I think you've hit on a pretty common theme among avocational paleontologists. It all starts out find of slowly and builds into a passion that compels us to learn more over time. Like Jess I find myself buying more reference books and geo maps, even paleo history books.

 

Two other things have enhanced my journey quite a lot. One is taking online courses. Some are free and I have no need for the credits some offer but since my career was in electronics so this has filled in a lot of the blanks of my knowledge of geology and ancient life.

 

The other thing that helped me is joining the Dallas Paleontological Society. I always thought it would be mostly professionals but those only represent a small part of the group and there were always members who knew even less that I about fossils. They are always glad to help and know all the best locations for collecting. There is probably one near you. I recommend it for everyone who isn't already in one.

I joined my local club in 2001 and I met a lot of great people. But I have not been an active member for the past few years  for personal reasons.

[Fossildude19]

23 hours ago, Darktooth said:

1st-Orthonata undulata

 

Dave, 

I agree with your other ID's - Well done.

However, ... I think your bivalve here is actually  Modiomorpha concentrica. 

(Page 143)

 

[Darktooth]

I have to disagree  @Fossildude19. Here is a photo of my specimen and the pic in the book. Notice the line that travels down the center. Orthonata has this feature while Modiomorpha does not.

[Jeffrey P]

It's a little hard to tell because of the lighting, but I'm thinking it might be Cimitaria recurva, very similar to one I just posted in my Middle Devonian gallery also from DSR.

[Darktooth]

@Jeffrey P how do I find your gallery?

[Darktooth]

@Jeffrey P found it. They do look similar.

[Jeffrey P]

The easiest way is to go to my page with my profile and hit the albums icon. All of my galleries will come up and you can choose which one you wish to view. Or you can hit gallery at the top of this page and the hit member galleries in the top left corner and when the galleries come up scroll down till you come to mine.

[Wrangellian]

Nice stuff, I do like Paleozoic bivalves (like anything else from that era), they may be overlooked but it's interesting for me to see the early forms of what became a dominant group, as bivalves are much more abundant than brachs in the Cretaceous that I collect. Love that bryozoan too!

[Darktooth]

I know that I stated before that I was not that interested in brach and bivalves, but i guess that was probably a poor choice of words. I do like them but I tend to be very picky about what I keep. I usually only keep specimens that pop out of the matrix whole and they have to be in decent condition. The sites I visit do have quite a diversity of species. I think I will start bringing more home and I can use them from trades and auctions.

[Darktooth]

And for learning!

[Fossildude19]

2 hours ago, Darktooth said:

I have to disagree  @Fossildude19. Here is a photo of my specimen and the pic in the book. Notice the line that travels down the center. Orthonata has this feature while Modiomorpha does not.

 

 

 

Dave, 

I agree with Jeffrey.  Sorry, when I looked at the picture, it looked like it was broken. 

I brightened it and resized it a bit - now I can see it looks more like Cimitaria recurva.

 

 

 

 

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