Monday, February 2, 2009

My Husband, the Jewel Thief?

A few years ago, I (along with several others) had the honor of receiving an award for my teaching. The award ceremony was broadcast on local television; it was kind of a big deal. (On the big day, award recipients were even picked up in a stretch limo and driven to the venue!) I had my own cheering section, of course...
I bought a formal gown for the occasion, and I was stoked to learn that that year, a well-respected, upscale, local jeweler was going to deck each of us out in some finery.

Here, I must divert you to a little background on my jewelry personality. I am not a big jewelry freak. Though I do admire it, I don't need to have a lot. Except for my wedding ring (my only ring), all of my jewelry is costume, because I have a bad habit of losing earrings, and I just don't have the time to be monkeying around with bracelets, etc. I do love Lia Sophia jewelry, because I think it's beautiful, and because it's not that expensive; I'm not horror-stricken when I lose an earring. When this story takes place, there are three blue boxes of Lia Sophia jewelry on the kitchen table.

The day before the big event, I went to choose my bling. This particular jeweler is definitely an upscale jeweler. They sell many one-of-a-kind pieces, as well as jewelry designed by master craftsmen. I was in over my head in that store, and uncharacteristically, I allowed them to choose the jewelry for me. WOW. My jewels included a necklace and earrings pairing by designer, Charles Krypell, valued at about $13,000.00. Yup. (Here's a pic of me wearing them next night. Wish I had a closer shot; it doesn't do them justice, so you'll have to trust me--they were stunning.)

Of course, they didn't trust me to take the jewelry home that day; they promised to have it for me the next night, at the awards ceremony.

So, the big night came and went, we had a fabuous time, blah, blah, blah. For some weird reason, the jewelry store owner trusted us to go home with our jems, as long as we promised to return them the next day. As anyone who knows me (especially Mr.4444) would understand, I was a nervous wreck about having responsibility for those valuables. I mean, I seriously lose my keys on a daily basis; I did not trust myself to take them to school with me the next day and then keep track of them long enough to run them after work! So, I decided to leave them in Mr.4444's capable hands (he's the level-headed one.) He said he'd return them for me in the morning.

The next morning, before leaving for work, I left the jewels in the bright red boxes they came in, sitting on the island in the kitchen. Mr.4444 called me around 8am to ask where they were, and I told him, "They're right there, on the island, in their boxes, all ready for you."

So, Mr.4444 grabs the jewelry boxes off the kitchen table and runs them to the jeweler. When he got there, he recognized a long-ago friend working there, so he handed the boxes to a lady who appeared to be waiting and went over to catch up. After a couple of minutes, the the woman approached him and politely said (smiling), "Sir, I think you may have made a mistake." Huh? Of course, Mr.4444 had not seen the boxes containing the $13,000.00 in jewels on the island and had instead brought the $60 worth of Lia Sophia baubles.

He turned a little red.

How hard do you think they laughed after he rushed out the door to go back and get the right boxes?

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