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Several people* asked to see more pictures of my pet rock, whose potential removal I wrote about Tuesday. With all the talk about a possible zen garden transformation, the idea of keeping the rock was growing on me. Then I took some pictures and zoomed in.
These photos are skeeving me out.
Future gypsy moths! From each yellowish egg mass, 500-800 caterpillars will hatch. How cute!
If I take Paul’s advice and put the rock up on eBay, I’ll need to find more glamorous photos, and add a few clever marketing phrases. “Pre-larvae-stage caterpillar habitat, no extra charge! Transformer-like pets for the kids!”
*OK, one guy.
Comments (12)
Comment
In The Magazine
Rule 1: in the outdoors, stuff grows and/or lives on other stuff.
Rule 2: if Rule 1 is unacceptable, please move indoors.
Seriously though, remove the rock and this stuff will just find somewhere else to go, i.e. your deck, your window sill . . .
posted by EV on 7-26-2007 at 9:49 am
Oh, that is STILL the coolest rock. (I’d get rid of the egg cases, tho). I wish you could e-mail it to me because I’d love it for my rock garden.
posted by lleachie on 7-26-2007 at 10:02 am
Hmm… the depression makes me think of an acorn grinding rock, but the hole looks too big for that.
posted by Jason! on 7-26-2007 at 10:08 am
Have you considered gently power-washing the rock at a low setting to clean it out/off and then proceed with the zen garden or planter ideas? There are people out there paying big money for big rocks to decoratively place in yards and gardens. Clean yours and you can enjoy it for free!
posted by khm on 7-26-2007 at 10:19 am
If you do sell that rock on E-bay, be careful. Transporting living organisms (moths) could be banned (depending on the length of the travel). USDA works hard to keep one area’s native species (even beneficials) from going to new areas where they are not natural. Think of Kudzu and the effects it has had.
I’m not saying don’t, I’m just stating be careful, and check with your local agricultural extension office to make sure you won’t do something banned/illegal.
posted by Thaylok on 7-26-2007 at 10:52 am
Comparing today’s pictures to the one you showed us yesterday, it appears to have risen out of the ground to some degree by itself. Maybe it knows you don’t like it, and wants to get away.
posted by Betsy on 7-26-2007 at 11:18 am
I still say scrub it - and turn it into an outdoor water source for the pup.
spray the bug pouches with Windex before scrubbing them off. It should help kill whatever is growing inside. (there is something in it that kills bugs. Even the unstoppable roach)
posted by Janet on 7-26-2007 at 11:25 am
Whoa, I didn’t realize the back end was that tall. It forms a 90 degree angle with the top, so if you tip it toward the fence, it’ll make a great backdrop & potential waterfall for a neat little water feature installed in the resulting crater. Plus, you will fing amazing ant farms and pillbug baracks beneath.
I still think there is some mystical significance to this monolith, however, so if you move it, beware of djinni.
posted by Tom on 7-26-2007 at 12:48 pm
That is a damn fine rock.
Why don’t you call up the company that people buy rocks from for landscaping in your area, and see if they’ll buy it from you, or at least come fetch it and sell it. Maybe if you give it to them, they’ll take it away.
I still think you should keep it, though. It’s a damn fine rock.
posted by Amy on 7-26-2007 at 1:25 pm
Thanks for the photos!
I guess if it were in my yard, the brackish water would be bothersome too. But the first thing that I’d try is tipping it on a side that would keep water from collecting. From the looks of it, it should be possible to tip it using a couple of 2×4’s, some rope and a couple of friends (preferably of the geeky physics major type). Heck, Ed Leedskalnin built the whole Coral Castle by himself; you ought to be able to move one rock!
And who knows; there might be treasure buried under that stone! If nothing else, make sure your kids are around (if you have kids) because there’ll surely be some cool bugs scurrying around when it’s tipped up!
posted by * one guy on 7-26-2007 at 1:31 pm
Actually I kind of like your boulder (too big to be a rock). Personally I would clean it up (good suggestions posted) put some potting soil in the depression and get a Zen bonzai thing going. Or you could have someone paint a tiny little cityscape all over it - buildings, forests and let the peak be your Mt. Hood or Rainier! Have fun with it.
posted by JaneM on 7-26-2007 at 7:10 pm
Another thought; spiff it up a little to make it reasonably presentable — add the bonzai or whatever — then do as some friends of mine once did… They had the most hideous couch in the world, and any time they would have someone over for dinner or whatever, they took a photo of said guest(s) on the couch and signed their guest book. The photos ended up in the guest book with the signature, and it’s still a great conversation piece, even though the couch is long gone.
posted by Dave on 7-26-2007 at 8:29 pm