Diamonds Diamonds Diamonds

Don't be jealous ladies. I have a new diamond. And I found it just laying in a stream bed.
No some one didn't lose it, I found it. It's mine.

Ok, Tiffany and Co doesn't have to worry. It's just a Clearlake Diamond.
Clearlake is located about 2 hrs from Sacramento and is the largest freshwater lake located entirely in California. We camped there a couple of weeks ago and went hunting for Clearlake Diamonds.
The diamonds, also known as Moon Drops, are found in gravel in streambeds at the southern end of the lake. They are unfacited clear quartz crystals that resemble broken glass.
We went hunting in a streambed that runs under Morgan Valley Road in Lower Lake. I found the location for diamond hunting on a U Tube video.
It hadn't rained for a while so the water was really low and it was really a cold hike. We found thick chunks of ice some one had broken out of the water. They were certainly much larger than the 3 crystals I found. I can say diamonds, diamonds, diamonds because I found 3. Two already washed down the drain because they were so small. Above is the largest next to my hangnail pinkie.  It was the first one I found. My honey thinks it's just a piece of glass. I think he said that the last time he actually bought me a diamond.
So it's rained since our last visit and we are planning another trip to the area in February. Maybe a larger diamond for Valentine's Day. The price is right.

Old School 49'er Football

Our family has fond memories of the great 49'er teams. Many a Sunday afternoon was spent at Grandma and Grandpa Van's watching Montana, Rice, the immaculate reception and Super Bowl Games. My mom will tell you her cousin Dave Wilcox played for the Niners in the 70's.
After the dry spell, it's so darn much fun to root for the team again.
We'd planned to go camping over the MLK three day weekend to Clear Lake. Lo and behold, the Niners are playing a playoff game. Couldn't miss the game. First thought, we'll find a bar. Oh wait, we hve a dog, can't have a dog in the bar and don't know how close the closet bar will be.
Plan B take the TV, cable hook up is available at the campsite. We'll sit in theDutchman and watch the game. No go. Can't get the station.
We're down to the AF/FM radio. So we built a fire, turned the radio as loud as we could, no problem since no one else was in the campground, sat by the fire and had a couple of beers, made some soup and listened to the game.
The announcers did not have to be neutral. They were screaming and laughing when Smith scored. It was infectious. We were laughing and screaming with them. We jumped up just like we would have in front of a big screen HDTV, we yelled just as loud. The 49'ers won. We were left to our imaginations and announcers descriptions as to how plays were diagrammed. We visualized the red zone just like it was painted in front of us.  We had a great time. We survived.
We would still like to see more of the game than the bits and pieces on sports broadcasts. I suspect we can catch up when we watch the Sunday pre-game.  You bet we will be in front of our big screen HDTV this week, drinking beer, sitting by a fire in the fireplace and something cooking in the kitchen.

Go Niners!