I am a mining engineer and geologist by education, I started collecting minerals at a very early age. My father was a petroleum geologist and my brothers and I spent lots of time "in the field". Consequently we collected rocks, fossils and minerals as a family activity. Whenever we would move to a new town (which was quite often) we would leave a large pile of rocks behind, some of which I would love to have now. We lived in Wyoming, western Colorado, Utah and in California before I went to college. We collected in some classic locations like Gilman, Ouray (Camp Bird), Rico and Creede in Colorado; while the mines were still operating in the late 1950's. While we lived in California my brothers and I collected on the dumps of the pegmatite mines at Pala before they reopened. I found some nice thumbnail specimens of tourmaline, kunzite, lepitolite and quartz there. My high school friends would head for the beach on weekends I headed to the desert or the mountains to look for minerals. After I graudated from high school (1970) I went to New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology (New Mexico School of Mines or New Mexico Tech as it is now called)to major in geology and mining engineering. Socorro, New Mexico, where the school is located, is in the middle of an area that includes many great mineral collecting locations. Two of the better known of these locations are the Magdalena (Kelly) district, famous for blue smithsonite, and the Hansonburg (Bingham) district known for fluorite, copper, and lead minerals. While I was in school I spent many a night and weekend underground at Kelly or out collecting at one of the other locations. I most recently was Mine Technical Services Manager for Nyrstar Tennessee Mines where I was responsible for the geology and engineering departments for six underground zinc mines which included the Elmwood, Gordonsville and Cumberland mines in middle Tennessee. Unfortunately got caught up in the politics of management and am now looking for employment back in Colorado where my sons and my mining claims are.