Pete's Expert Summary
My human has acquired a box of fancy, lumpy rocks. These are apparently from the "National Geographic" institution, a group I primarily associate with noisy documentaries that interrupt my afternoon sunbathing. The premise, as far as I can gather from the loud noises and my human's focused grunts, involves the highly uncivilized act of smashing these orbs with a hammer to find sparkly bits inside. While the promise of a tennis-ball-sized object to bat across the hardwood floors is mildly intriguing, and the resulting shiny fragments might be worth a passing sniff, the entire affair seems fraught with disruptive clamor and human effort. Frankly, the cardboard box it arrived in holds far more immediate and practical appeal for a cat of my refined sensibilities.
Key Features
- DISCOVER CRYSTAL TREASURE - Break open these rocks to reveal amazing crystals inside! Geology doesn’t get more exciting than breaking open rocks and finding crystal treasures. This great STEM activity makes an excellent gift for girls and boys!
- COLORFUL VARIETY – Geodes can form with a wide variety of crystals inside. These geodes have been hand-selected to bring you the best variety available.
- 100% NATURAL GEODES – These real specimens may be as big as a tennis ball, or as small as a ping-pong ball. Kids will love the thrill of cracking them open to see the natural beauty inside. This STEM activity emphasizes fun and discovery!
- 16 PAGE FULL-COLOR LEARNING GUIDE – You’ll learn all about the fascinating science behind how geodes are formed in the detailed, full-color Learning Guide. National Geographic educational toys make science and learning fun, and are the perfect STEM gifts for boys and girls!
- HIGH-QUALITY EDUCATIONAL TOYS - We're proud to make the highest quality hands-on science toys, and all our products are backed by exceptional service. If your experience is less than stellar, let us know and we'll make things right!
A Tale from Pete the Cat
The ritual began with an offense: a sharp, percussive *CRACK* that shattered the afternoon's sacred silence. I lifted my head from the velvet cushion, one gray ear swiveling in profound irritation. The Human was crouched on the floor, shrouded in a protective sheet and wearing absurdly large goggles, looking like a giant, clumsy fly. In one hand, a hammer. In the other, the two halves of a mundane gray rock. But from within the rock's corpse spilled a light, a cold, crystalline fire that pulsed with a strange energy. My curiosity, a beast I usually keep on a very short leash, tugged at its restraints. I flowed from the armchair, a silent river of gray fur, and padded over to the scene of the desecration. The Human was cooing over the fractured stone, holding it up to the light. It wasn't just a stone; it was a captured nebula, a pocket of frozen starlight the color of deep twilight. They placed the two halves onto one of the small, black plastic thrones included in the box, as if presenting an offering. This, I realized, was not mere destruction. It was a summoning. The humans, with their primitive senses, saw only a pretty geological specimen. They read their little booklet and chattered about "amethyst" and "formation." I saw the truth. The jagged points clearly mapped the treacherous path from the sofa to the kitchen counter where the forbidden butter dish resides. The deeper, shadowy crevices foretold the precise hour of the evening meal, and a cluster of smaller crystals in the corner was an unmistakable omen of a future sunbeam in the living room. I sat before the newly enshrined geode, my tail giving a slow, thoughtful thump-thump-thump against the floor. This was not a toy. This was an oracle. The humans could keep their silly goggles and their paper guide; their role was to be the brute force, the cosmic hammer that revealed destiny for my interpretation. I gave the crystal a single, approving blink. The noisy ritual was forgiven. After all, one must occasionally tolerate the crude methods of the staff when they produce results of such cosmic significance.
