Table of Contents

• ‘Sushi Tug Saga’ by Herb Yeates 1–5
• All Good Things by Howie Green 6–9
• Collecting: An Urge That’s Hard to Resist by Shirley M. Mueller 10–11
• The Sledge Hammer and the Penny: Searching for Tugtupite in Greenland by Pat Hintz 12–14

‘Sushi Tug Saga’

By Herb Yeates · pp. 1–5

A 2004 field trip to Greenland’s Ilímaussaq complex led to the discovery of a distinctive pale-pink tugtupite vein on Mount Kvanefjeld, nicknamed “sushi tug” for its appearance. The account follows the team’s camp and collecting expeditions, the extraction of specimens, and a rare nighttime search under the midnight sun. It describes the tugtupite’s associated minerals and its vivid carmine-red shortwave UV response, while placing the find among the site-specific varieties of tugtupite found across the complex.

All Good Things

By Howie Green · pp. 6–9

The acquisition of the large “Big Boy” sushi-tugtupite specimens frames a reflection on anticipation, possession, and the meaning collectors attach to exceptional rocks. The column traces the specimens from their discovery at Kvanefjeld through years of changing ownership to their arrival with the author, and considers provenance, rarity, beauty, and the social bonds of collecting. It also connects the pleasure of wanting and having to the idea of stewardship: preserving a notable specimen as part of a continuing collecting legacy.

Collecting: An Urge That’s Hard to Resist

By Shirley M. Mueller · pp. 10–11

The psychology and neuroscience of collecting are examined through the brain’s reward system and the motivations that sustain collectors. Rarity and novelty can activate reward-related brain regions, while collecting may also offer intellectual satisfaction, social connection, pride, organizational pleasure, or a sense of history and legacy. The article distinguishes the anticipatory motivation of “wanting” from the pleasure of “having,” and explains how these processes, along with factors such as provenance and perceived value, help make collecting a persistent passion.

The Sledge Hammer and the Penny: Searching for Tugtupite in Greenland

By Pat Hintz · pp. 12–14

A small pink spot beside a pegmatite dike on Taseq East led to a substantial tugtupite find during a Greenland collecting trip. The discovery began while companions worked a large sodalite boulder with a 16-pound sledgehammer; the author instead noticed a penny-sized yellowish halo and exposed tugtupite with a hand tool. Specimens included white analcime and translucent aquamarine-colored natrolite, and the account follows later visits to the site, specimen distribution, and the lesson that collecting success depends on finding the right rock.