The Weather Was Good and So Was my Luck!

I really hate to bring up the weather this time of year because it always pisses off my friends back East, but the temps today were near 75, and the skies partly sunny.  As a result I got brave, decided to give the body a test, and get out for a little morning detecting. Surprisingly I felt pretty good. The knees weren’t as bad as before and  I was able to get up and down pretty well. Also on the plus side it took my lower back about two hours to start bothering me. Compared to the 30 minute expedition of a month ago,  that’s not too bad at all.  Likewise I came home with a couple of pieces of silver….

Was using the MXT Pro with the 5.3 coil, and the silver quarter depth reading was 8 inches. I was somewhat doubtful, but indeed it was a good eight inches. Love this machine and that small coil.

I decided to photograph the two crushed soda cans I dug today for a couple of reasons. First both were sticking out of the ground, sharp side up (dangerous)….I  then wondered, would these be considered archaeological material 100 years down the road?

Dangerous and Relics
100 years from now?

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DIALOGUE, CONVERSATION & DEBATE

Want to thank those of you who responded to my last post “If We Don’t Dig It, Who Will?”….

Some insightful thoughts and comments, and really appreciated archaeologist Lisa Hume MacIntyre (see her bio below) sharing her thoughts and opinions. She is a breath of fresh air,  and a “rare bird” amongst the typical archaeological ideologues.  I hope she will find time to follow SS, and comment whenever the spirit moves her.  Surely I will say  something that will get her up in arms.

Lisa’s suggestion about sitting down and talking out differences is a great idea, but I have no idea how something like that could happen and if so, on what  scale. Likewise, how many other “Lisa’s” are out there…those who would be agreeable to having an open mind, and yes, agreeable to lend some credence to what is we do.

Perhaps a place to start this back and forth would be a blog or website designed solely for dialogue, conversation and debate between the two sides. It would certainly  have to be a joint effort, and it would have to be strictly monitored to keep things civil (damn, I might be banned from the get go).  I know, I know, this is just another one  of my brain farts, but I thought I would throw it out there anyway….

Lastly, I post my updates on a few (and I mean very few) forums, and once in a while a good back and forth debate begins. Never on Stout Standards mind you,  but on the forum.  Sure wish those of you who found the topic worthy of liking or bitching about, would take the time to respond here where the topic was started.  Just sayin….

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LISA HUME MACINTYRE….A BIO

I asked Lisa is she wouldn’t mind sharing her backbround/bio, and she was more than happy to oblige. Thank you Lisa….

I was born in 1959 in a small town in Southern Indiana. My mother was a stay at home mom while my father was a high school science teacher. We lived on a dirt  road with our closet neighbor being a bicycle ride away. At a very early age my father taught me to love and respect nature and my dream was to become a scientist.

When I was nine years old we moved to South Florida. Life changed from country living to hanging out at the beach and malls. I graduated from Lake Worth High School  in 1977 and married my high school sweetheart. By the time I was 26 I had two children and my dream of being a scientist was put on hold. During this time I worked many  different jobs, mostly unskilled retail positions.

In 2003 I fell off a ladder and broke my neck. It took two years and a surgery to get my neck back to working condition. During this time of recuperation it hit  me like a brick that I never again wanted to work simply because I needed a job. I wanted a career in science. With my families backing I enrolled in night classes  at Florida State College in 2006.

I received my AA degree in 2010 from Florida State College with a focus in Geology and photography. I enrolled in every science class that they offered and graduated  in the top 5% of my class. During my time there I also discovered one important facet about myself. I was horrible at math! I struggled through every calculus, trig,  physics, and chemistry class that would be required for a biology degree.  I found, however, that my anthropology class was fascinating. I made an important decision  that I would switch to anthropology with a focus in archaeology.

Lisa Hume MacIntyre

The change was made for two important reasons. One, we must all recognize our limitations. Mine is math. Two, archaeology, although hotly debated in some circles,  IS A SCIENCE! And a fascinating science at that! With the background I had acquired in the hard sciences I felt I could bring a lot to the table in the field of archaeology.

I graduated Suma Cum Lade from the University of North Florida (UNF) in 2012 with a degree in anthropology and a focus in archaeology.  I have a triple minor  in history, geography, and photography. My history focus is Native American Indians of Northeast Florida, namely the Timucuans and Guale. My geography minor is focused  in GIS mapping which has proved invaluable in my field. My photography skills are used in photographing excavations, artifacts and features.

I have participated in two field schools with UNF in 2011 and 2012 on Black Hammock Island in which we have uncovered the Visita, Vera Cruz which was part of the  Mission System in Northeast Florida and Southeast Georgia. I have worked on excavations at Kinsey Knoll in 2011 and 2012. This is a unique mound complex in Jacksonville,  FL. Dating to 900 AD. I have been involved for three years in the ongoing project of the search for the lost Fort Caroline, a French fort first erected by René Goulaine  Laudinniére in 1564. In 2010 I worked on an excavation in Fernandina beach FL that contained Orange Fiber pottery dating to 2300-500 BCE.

Presently I am working on  two projects that make use of GIS/Arcmap in mapping sites from GPS points and incorporating into Google Earth. I am also using SPSS and Excel software to project patterns  of distribution at these sites to gain a better understanding of the dynamics of the people who once inhabited this land. I have been accepted into the GIS Masters program  at Penn State. However, finances will dictate when I attend.

I am a volunteer for Florida Public Archaeology Network (FPAN) which is a public outreach program involved in numerous projects to involve the public in archaeology  projects.  For FPAN I have worked on several digs involving the public. I am a volunteer at the Museum of Science and History in Jacksonville, FL. in the Children’s Outreach Program. I also volunteered for 10 years for the Sea Turtle Nesting Patrol, both in West Palm Beach and in Jacksonville, FL.

At present, a colleague and I are forming a Northeast Chapter of the Florida Archaeological Society and hope to it fully functional this year….

“When one tugs at a single thing in nature, he finds it attached to the rest of the world. ~John Muir”

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LOVE YOU MOM

Tomorrow is the second anniversary of my Mom’s passing, and just wanted to say I love you and miss you Mom!

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HAPPY ST. PATRICKS DAY!

And lastly, let me wish all my Irish friends out there a Happy St. Paticks Day!  Here in Dallas it’s a wild one with a big parade and a day long effort by  many to see how much they can drink (and puke)….they manage to do a pretty good job, and not all are Irish!

 

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