In the early eighties when the Cane family was living in Utah, Amy was about 8 years of age. She was inquisitive and was determined to be an archeologist when she grew up. Since learning to read and perhaps before, she showed a remarkable aptitude for things prehistoric.
She knew the names of all the dinosaurs and the proper pronunciation of each. She loved correcting adults who would mispronounce Brontosaurus or perhaps Triceratops or my favorite, the Diplodocus.
We gave her books, the grandparents gave her books, when we chose a present for Papa-2, her grandfather, she chose a Brontosaurus tie for him. We lived and breathed pre-history in the Cane household.
Life changed for Amy near Vernal, Utah. We visited the Dinosaur Quarry at the Dinosaur National Monument. This visit may have been a mistake or perhaps a wonderful piece of serendipity. Amy’s appetite for Dinosaur Bones was insatiable and I almost mean it literally!
The Dinosaur Quarry is a marvelous place where scientists and students work year round under cover of a beautiful glass building digging Dinosaur paraphernalia out of a rock face. Undaunted by sleet, snow, rain and hail the archeologists can dig to their hearts content year round.
During our tour, we ventured onto a catwalk above the face of the rock and a college student dressed in the required garb of khaki shirt, shorts and worn leather hiking boots began to tell us their exploits. To his right was a worker on her knees with a tray full of useful tools like brushes, small chisels, small files, tooth picks, and of course, an assortment of nail files. She was working on a bone about four feet long, and our tour guide explained the meticulous work ongoing.
The guide said that the work on this bone had been ongoing for about nine months and that it was expected that it would take upwards of another year to extract the bone that Amy pulled on my pant leg and asked to leave. She had determined that she was not going to be a boring archeologist after all!
This was excerpted from my book written a while ago called “Travels with Taffy and Other Tales”
See https://www.nps.gov/dino/index.htm
Still available at Amazon for those interested in learning more about the Cane family and its travels.
See https://amjo.co/Travels_With_Taffy if you’re so inclined
See https://www.dinoland.com/ for information on the Museum.
