on our way from lake tahoe to fresno, we stopped in a tiny mining town called angels camp for a bathroom break and to give mazy a chance to stretch her hairy legs. on our first pass, not much caught my attention; a couple of curio shops, a thrift store, a christian bookstore.

but then we stumbled across this place. at first, i thought it was going to be another tourist-oriented jewelry and gemstone shop and was fairly nonplussed. when tim suggested that we go in, my first response was, meh. lucky for me, i squelched my negativity.

entering stories in stone was like walking into a store on diagon alley. it stretched on and on and on; crystal after fossil after geode after agate after gemstone. beyond that we encountered a complete fossilized skeleton of a cave bear. beyond that, a sprawling warehouse space overloaded with thousands upon thousands of precious stones. and beyond the warehouse was a huge, cluttered, fluorescently lit classroom that would have been completely at home at hogwart’s.

we eventually met pam, one of the owners of this magical place, and when i asked her about its history, she casually mentioned that her husband russ began his career as a rock hound in the gravel pits around niles, michigan. yup. that’s right, the niles, michigan that sits about 8 miles from the town where i grew up. pam informed russ that a fellow michigander was wandering around the store and after dealing with a few customers in the warehouse, russ came and found me.

this audio clip is about 20 minutes long. the photos that follow — and so much more — are referenced and explained in the course of this conversation.

Download: 111599

honestly, this place is one of the coolest places i’ve ever been. if you ever ever find yourself near angels falls, ca, absolutely stop by and give witness. stories in stones is an amazing labor of love and a powerful testament to the idea of following your bliss. thank you pam and russ for creating this unique, surprising, and wondrous place.

Posted by Wordmobi