Patty, is there room in the SUV to sleep comfortably on your rockhound excursions? Or will you tent camp or convert the trailer to a habitable space (that sounds so odd to ask, so I suspect the answer is "no.")

The dramatic weather moved (west to east) past (to the north and south) without actually raining here at all. We listened to thunder around midnight but no hail or rain or even much wind.

There will be a guest in town next week, staying with her daughter but visiting here at some point. Her family is deciding to go in on a house; now she lives with her son five hours to the west, and the oldest daughter lives alone locally, so they'll buy a larger house here with bedrooms and baths for all. I had better start picking up so the house looks good for company.