Hello, my name is Brighton Alfred, I am a rockhound, learning mineralogist, micromounter, and mineral photographer. My love for minerals started when i was around 10 after a school field trip to the Geological Institute of America in California, something about the specimens on display and the information supplied to me sparked a passion in me, and since then, I have collected, studied, and mined minerals. My first ever actual collecting spot was Calavera Quarry, located in Cerro de la Calavera, a local hiking spot near my home in Carlsbad, California. Being the uneducated beginner I was, I collected many specimens while not knowing what they were. Now however, I still own these specimens, and I realize they are specimens of Stellerite, Calcite, and Stilbite. My favorite mineral of all time is Cacoxenite.