I grew up in the rock and lapidary business. Before I was born my grandfather started collecting. The farmers in the township were on the lookout for unusual rocks and my grandfather, with his deep interest in science, was able to identify those specimens, and explain the geological forces, especially the glaciers that dragged them into Minnesota. By the time I was two years old, he had acquired tumblers, grinders and polishers, organized a rock club, and was moving full speed ahead in his new enterprize. He made enthusiasts out of neighbors and family members. One of my uncles became a geologist/glaciologist.

One day my grandpa set up a little building on his property, put out a road sign and in minutes the yard was full of tourists.

Local people had spent years cussing the rocks they picked from the fields each spring. The idea that someone could sell rocks made some of them jealous. They very pointedly referred to my grandfather's shop as a "just a hobby". The same thing happened to my parents when they started another rock shop a few years later. I remember that these shops were bonafide seasonal businesses. My grandfather sometimes grossed one hundred dollars per day. In those days and to a little kid, that seemed like all the money in the world.

Rock collecting took a downturn for a few years but with the advent of new age thinking, it has rebounded with vigor. I am not sure what my elders would have thought of metaphysics or healing with crystals. Or the internet. Rockhounding was about connecting and sharing knowledge and friendly sites like qflea.com make all the difference in the world.

There still aren't many old fashioned rock shops like mine. On a trip to the west coast, I noticed that most rock shops nowadays stock other items such as arts and crafts and used paperbacks. I am a desktop publisher and I sell the books I write and print on my computer, along with CDs and items I paint on gourds and wood. It gives me a sense of history and continuity to be working with a fifty plus year old family collection and running Hoffs Rock Shop