The Story of the Geology Gala
A maritime legend, sort of.
The Geology Gala began in 1987 when Carla Pemberton, a former Princess Cruises entertainer with a degree she never finished in mineralogy, found a really weird rock on the beach in Cabo San Lucas.
She showed it to a passenger. The passenger said, “What is it?” Carla, who had never been one to admit she didn't know something, declared it “a stunning piece of basalt” with the confidence of a woman who had once hosted a karaoke night for 1,200 retirees.
Word spread. Passengers began bringing rocks to her. She made up names. People bought the names. By 1992 she had her own segment on the cruise itinerary called Carla's Geology Gala, and by 1998 she was telling people that you needed exactly seven rocks for a proper identification, because that's what fit on her clipboard.
The S.S. Sediment was retired in 2007. Carla, undeterred, took her show online. We are merely the humble developers who help her interface with the modern world.
— Welcome aboard.