Dumb as a Rock
Stupid things I do April 1st, 2008One of the places I went to as a kid on a class trip was Ringing Rocks Park in Upper Black Eddy, Pennsylvania. The park features a huge boulder field made up of rocks that, when tapped lightly with a hammer, will emit a pleasant ring.
It doesn’t seem that geologists have determined exactly what makes the rocks ring, but kids don’t care. They just want to take a hammer to them and play rock music!
Here’s a short sample of how it sounds. Cool, huh?
All I needed to do for the trip was remember to bring a hammer. There wasn’t much to do if you didn’t have a hammer. We all talked about our hammers before taking the trip. Which hammer would we bring? A big, heavy hammer or a little hammer? Teachers told us it didn’t matter. Any hammer would do. Just bring a hammer.
I forgot my hammer.
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Check out Humor-Blogs.com for people without rocks in their heads.
Stumble it!
April 1st, 2008 at 7:59 pm
And I was expecting an April Fools Joke.
Here is a little more “rock music” from Red Rocks, Colorado:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yu_moia-oVI
April 1st, 2008 at 8:16 pm
This reminds me of the time my friend Johnny forgot his parachute on our infamous “jump out of an airplane” class trip in 2nd grade.
Johnny was going to be a space cowboy.
So sad…
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April 1st, 2008 at 8:33 pm
Oh how could you ! That must’ve felt like forgetting to bring meat for the BBQ
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April 1st, 2008 at 9:01 pm
Maybe it was subconscious. Kathy, you’re a lover, not a fighter. I think you just didn’t want to hit those poor rocks.
April 1st, 2008 at 9:38 pm
Ha ha ha! How sa-a-ad are you? Did somebody lend you one – I hope so ;O)
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April 2nd, 2008 at 7:18 am
Wow, that is COOL! Singing rocks! I’ve never heard of such craziness. I bet you were bummed. Did you just sit there, glowering, while your classmates merrily sprang from rock to rock, hammering away?
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April 2nd, 2008 at 7:19 am
Yeah, I could see that one coming from the second to last paragraph. Fortunately for me, I can substitute my head for a hammer.
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April 2nd, 2008 at 8:41 am
Did anyone sing “If I had a Hammer”?
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April 2nd, 2008 at 8:42 am
I used to lay awake the night before a field trip with anxiety over the possibility that I might forget or somehow lose my permission slip. I’d imagine the bus pulling away and never getting to see The Tyler Arboretum or the Franklin Institute or Longwood Gardens ever again.
There’s a haunted hotel in Upper Black Eddy. Would have been a cooler trip.
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April 2nd, 2008 at 10:37 am
DUH!!!!
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April 2nd, 2008 at 11:20 am
When I forget my hammer, I use my head.
April 2nd, 2008 at 11:20 am
How do you remember these things? If I remembered all the dumb things I ever did as a kid I’d be a tormented person today. Fortunately my brain has an excellent purge valve.
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April 2nd, 2008 at 11:55 am
Rattln Along — I have been singing that song in my head since this morning. It will be there for the rest of the week, I’m sure. Can I send you the bill for my therapy?
kev — Thankfully, kicking coffee hasn’t affected your sense of humor. As you’ve stated in your blog, quitting can make you stupid, but it better not mess with your funny.
Jaffer — How could I? I’m me. You know me. Me does stuff like this.
FerdC — I’ll go with that.
babs (Simplycats) — I spent the day borrowing other kids’ hammers, or just watching/listening to them do the hammering. People have been known to use small rocks instead, but it was way cooler to use a hammer. That I didn’t have. Are you crying yet? It’s very sad. Except why do I keep laughing when I think about it?
JD — The rocks are very cool. Maybe I should go back for old time’s sake. Bring a big hammer and YouTube it. I’ll put it on my “Things to do before I die” list. I was totally bummed, embarrassed, sad and angry. Yea, good times.
the frogster — There’s using your noggin. I mean, what good is it having a skull if you can’t bang it against stuff?
KFJ — Almost used that as this post’s title. It just fit, didn’t it?
Shieldmaiden96 — I did, too. Massive paranoia. Catholic school did that to me. Always worried about following the rules! Dave and I were to Longwood Gardens last year. I have the best pictures I’ve ever taken in my life (outside of Paris)from there. Want to get there in December for the Christmastime displays. Heard they’re fantastic, which doesn’t surprise me. The place is gorgeous.
Bruce — TOTALLY!
Mike — Oh, boy. Between you and frogster, I’m impressed.
Jeff — How? They’re etched into my subconscious, along with all the other horrors of grade school. Unfortunately, (or fortunately for the blog?) I have no purge valve.
April 2nd, 2008 at 1:57 pm
Oh my gosh, Kathy, I went there on a field trip myself! I totally forgot about this! I was raised in New Jersey, so this wasn’t a bad trek for us. Thanks for the reminder– how fun is that.
PS- who knew we had a rock star in our midst all this time? 🙂
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April 2nd, 2008 at 2:25 pm
pppppfffffffttttttttthahahhahahahhahahahahhahhanhahahaha
I’m right there with ya girl. Ever tell you about the time I left church (back in my Jerry Falwell days) and waved at my son as I passed the nursery? Yeah…I forgot him.
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April 2nd, 2008 at 3:03 pm
Aw, that stinks. You could of used the head of somone you didn’t like!
April 2nd, 2008 at 3:19 pm
I’ve been there — great place. It just occurred to me though — could you imagine letting kids bring hammers on a school bus trip nowadays? They’d be kicked out for brandishing lethal weapons!! Sad, huh?
April 2nd, 2008 at 4:05 pm
After that many reminders, if I had forgotten my hammer I would have used my head. It obviously wouldn’t have hurt anything. 🙂
April 2nd, 2008 at 5:20 pm
Jenn Thorson — I’m glad someone here knew about Ringing Rocks. I actually would like to get back sometime. They have beautiful falls there, also. Trust me, I’ll bring a hammer this time.
Lori — I almost spit out my drink when I read that. I know it’s true. You kill me.
Regan — I love the way you think. That’s so creative and it preserves MY skull!
Peg @ Lehigh — Totally! I can just hear “OK, children. Put all your bludgeoning tools in this box and we’ll hand them back out when we get there!”
Lee — Well, I should have just used my head. Seems I needed to knock some sense back into myself.
April 2nd, 2008 at 7:35 pm
I got an icon thingie!! Yay!
April 2nd, 2008 at 7:43 pm
Regan — Oh my God. Would those be delicious cupcakes?!?! If they’re not, you know where my head is. Way to go on your gravatar! Now, can you show your Mom how to do it? Everyone wants to know what Ann of the Shampoo Bag looks like.
April 2nd, 2008 at 7:44 pm
that’s kinda neat it would be fun to play around there for an hour or two..sorry about your hammer…:)
April 3rd, 2008 at 12:31 am
Kathy:
Very weird sound. I know I’ve heard it before, but my bad case of CRS prevents me from recalling exactly when or where. Maybe it’s when I walk around the kitchen banging a fork and spoon on the sugar cannisters, the stove top, the faucet and the glasses.
You’re too funny Kathy. Love the post.
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April 3rd, 2008 at 12:41 pm
robert bourne — It actually is. A co-worker who reads my blog told me today that she and her family go there every year. I wonder if they mind if I join them next time? I’d like to get back!
Swubird — I love the sound, even though you know I have trouble with many noises. I find it very pleasant. You sound like a one-man-band in your kitchen! Do you take requests?
April 3rd, 2008 at 1:07 pm
just imagine how silly they looked with their hammers tapping on a rock, just to hear ring. (did you borrow one?)
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April 3rd, 2008 at 2:27 pm
I don’t get it… why? That doesn’t sound like much fun. I’m sure taking a hammer and tapping on just about anything would make a noise. I think between the density of the rock, along with the metal on the hammer head, it would make a sound…bigger rocks, smaller rocks, all make a different noise. Bet it wouldn’t work with a rubber mallot! 😉 would make more of a “thud” sound.
April 3rd, 2008 at 2:51 pm
Natural — I mostly watched others do the hammering. I borrowed one every now and then, but I hated to bother other kids, since they weren’t dumb enough to forget theirs.
Mandy — It is really cool, actually. The ding sound is really unique, as rocks go. The fun part is that not all the rocks do it, so you’re on a hunt to find the ones with the best ring (trust me, it’s fun!)
April 3rd, 2008 at 5:10 pm
How does one discover that hitting the rocks with a hammer does that, in the first place? Hmmm… It is neat though!
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April 3rd, 2008 at 6:19 pm
I can’t believe only one comment referencing the folk song “If I had a hammer”. Hard times for folk….
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April 3rd, 2008 at 6:52 pm
How about Korvsakov’s Flight of the Bumblebee?
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April 4th, 2008 at 5:07 am
Corrina — Got me. Lots of people use other (smaller) rocks to do the tapping. I, of course, didn’t want to use a rock because all my classmates had hammers. Sigh.
VE — Maybe I should have used that as the title. I wonder how old one needs to be to know the reference?
Swubird — That might kill a person. I once saw a video of someone playing that on an accordion. I’m thinking it was doctored. It’s impossible to move that fast!
April 5th, 2008 at 11:09 pm
What a strange thing that is!
It would be really cool if the blue men went there and did a big performance!
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April 6th, 2008 at 6:33 am
Forest Parks — Totally! Of course, they’d have to mark the rocks that make a noise first. No all of them do, which is part of the fun — tap, tap, tapping until you find one!
April 8th, 2008 at 11:04 pm
Ha that’s funny, especially because I would totally have forgotten my hammer too. 🙂
April 9th, 2008 at 6:27 pm
Michele — If I ever get back, I’ll be sure to bring my hammer and tape it. In fact, I’ll bring three hammers, just in case.
September 8th, 2008 at 5:05 pm
I say we all get our hammers and go there and forget about our problems and hit rocks for a day. It would probably save us about a thousand dollars in therpy, besides it might be fun.
September 9th, 2008 at 6:55 pm
Adrian Rama — That is a wonderful idea. For the day I’ve had, I think I could crack a few of those rocks right down the middle!