What was the last piece of jewelry you purchased? / LJWorld.com

Asked at Massachusetts Street on July 18, 2011

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“Earrings. These earrings actually.”

— Stephanie Crawford, graphic designer, Olathe

“I can’t remember what I bought last.”

— Christina Howell, E-commerce business analyst, Shawnee

“My nose ring.”

— Amelia Meath, musician, Boston

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Ron Holzwarth 6 years, 11 months ago

A ring for C., a girlfriend, for a Christmas present. Although none of the stones were large, it was very pretty with a diamond in the middle, surrounded by a circle of rubies. All of them were natural stones.

By the following Christmas, we had broken up. And then on January 19, 1986, she abandoned our biological son, Baby John Doe, across the street from my home and left a note on my front door telling me about it.

How sweet.

That was the very last piece of jewelry I ever gave to a woman.

Ron Holzwarth 6 years, 11 months ago

ku_law, maybe you were wise. I certainly wasted my money. Not only on that ring, but on unending expenses because she was what is referred to as "high maintence". Bankrupted me, actually.

Ron Holzwarth 6 years, 11 months ago

Oh wow. Thinking about her and that event upset me so much that I misspelled "maintenance".

riverdrifter 6 years, 11 months ago

I lost a nice Celtic cross at work on the very day I bought it. A very fine & handsome girl, much younger than me by the the name of Shannon (and-you-can-insert-her-last-name-here) found it -and she was certain that it was a good omen. Sometimes you just let it go...

Bill Lee 6 years, 11 months ago

Earrings for my ex-wife shortly before we split.

RoeDapple 6 years, 11 months ago

A stainless steel hog nose ring from Tractor Supply and a short chain to be led by. It goes well with my shock collar.

RoeDapple 6 years, 11 months ago

Today is the kid's birthday. I might possibly give an answer later.

RoeDapple 6 years, 11 months ago

Have you ever installed your own hog nose ring? Boy Howdy !! Talk about bringing tears to your eyes ! But I got 'er done, like the obedient little boy toy that I am. . .

LadyJ 6 years, 11 months ago

LOL. Some years back my hubby and some of his drinking buddies were at the house. After all of them had way too much to drink, one of them decided he wanted to have an ear pierced. My husband obliged with an ice cube and a large sterilized sewing needle. Years later when I mentioned it he insisted that never happened, but my son also vividly remembers it. If I remember correctly, this was a guy that usually never hung out with them and hubby didn't really care for him. Might have been the motive for volunteering to do it for him.

GreenEyedBlues 6 years, 11 months ago

LOL

RoeDapple 6 years, 11 months ago

Purchasing jewelry for someone else is an exercise in futility. Your spouse/girlfriend/significant other is bombardededed with commercials showing multi-carat diamonds, gold, silver or platinum chains only a chiropractor can appreciate all on seven foot models that weigh 97 pounds. She opens the tiny felt covered box and exclaims "Oh . . . that's . . it?" Have you seen what a couple of C-notes can buy at your local jewelry store? Maybe a synthetic diamond chip on a silver chain that looks more like single strand spider web. Gold at $1500/oz. and diamond prices controlled by De Beers keeps this old boy far from the good graces of the little Mrs when the birthday or anniversary rolls around.

LadyJ 6 years, 11 months ago

My husband is lucky, I really don't wear jewelry. Even the wedding ring only comes out on special occasions. Instead of a wedding ring I always wear a necklace he paid for one anniversary. I say paid for because he just gave me the money and told me to buy myself something from the jewelry store.. He did get me a really nice ring one year when his company let him pick out something from a catalog for working for them for so long. That was really sweet since he passed up the fishing boat in the catalog, and the company logo on the ring is hardly noticeable.

Ron Holzwarth 6 years, 11 months ago

"Purchasing jewelry for someone else is an exercise in futility."

That's very true. Diamonds, rubies, and emeralds weren't enough for C., even though every single one of them was a natural stone. Also, eating out all the time. That's pretty expensive when you drive to Kansas City to eat out a couple nights a week at Nichols Plaza in Kansas City. We ate out at every single restaurant there many times, except for The Hibachi. We only went there once, and Surprise! Her father paid for that one!

What stings me the most though, of course besides losing my son, was the time I discovered that she had pawned her mother's diamond ring at a pawn shop here in Lawrence. It was a rather plain ring, but the diamond was rather large. I looked at the paperwork, and I could hardly believe that she was willingly paying 1,200% annual interest on a rather small loan. I checked my finances, and with a bit of economy for the rest of the month, I could get her mother's ring out of hock. So, I went to my bank, withdrew the money, retrieved the ring, and gave it to her. She was very happy.

And then, after her happiness at getting her mother's diamond ring out of hock had faded a bit, I told her there was something I needed to tell her. I quietly told her that getting it out had been a bit of a stretch for me, and that for the rest of the month we would need to tone down the spending a bit. But once I got my next paycheck in two weeks or so, things would be all right.

She got all pissed off! And loudly and firmly stated, "That wasn't my fault! You did that of your own free will!" Then she said, "All right then, I'll pay for everything and keep track, until it's paid back."

The next time we went out, she told the waiter she would take the ticket, smugly looked at me, and then asked for a receipt. That was the only time she paid for anything, ever.

Don't color me "stupid". Color me "exponentially beyond a doubt, very stupid".

C. J. C., oh I mean, C.J.C.-C. Oh wait, now it's C.J.J., I sure hope you read this someday. You know it's all true.

I feel very sorry for Mr. S.M.J. Man, did he get a Duesy.

And aren't you glad I didn't call the police and have you thrown in prison.

Oh, one more thing, C.J.J., remember hou you wanted to be a writer? There's something you should know. I've had three magazine articles published. Seems no one's ever heard of you.

Ron Holzwarth 6 years, 11 months ago

P.S. C.J.J., I got a phone call, and so I was very sorry to hear about your brother P.D.C. I thought about attending the funeral, but I thought, naw, better not.

Ron Holzwarth 6 years, 11 months ago

Correction: The annual interest rate at the pawn shop was 120%, not the stated amount. I realized that a few days later.

kernal 6 years, 11 months ago

A thin gold chain in the '70's. It paled in comparison to a NYC client who wore at least fifteen of them with varying designs of links and a few precious stones. Like a subtle and elegant early form of bling bling.

Ron Holzwarth 6 years, 11 months ago

That only worked for a few minutes, in my experience.

Kontum1972 6 years, 11 months ago

a meat hook....

Terry Sexton 6 years, 11 months ago

back in february, down in NM, i bought a band-type ring inlaid with gaspeite.

http://www.bing.com/images/search?q=gaspeite+jewelry&FORM=BIFD#x0y0

my lovely bride declined the chance to purchase any jewelry. She did, however, acquire a sombrero-wearing snowman who seems to be sporting some sort of lapel pin.

Armored_One 6 years, 11 months ago

While I spoil the other half, most of the time I make my own jewelry, either for gifts or to sell in various places.

Ron Holzwarth 6 years, 11 months ago

You are so correct.

A friend of mine used to work in a jewelry store, and told me about the wholesale price of diamonds in any kind of quantity. I was rather shocked, it's less than 1/10 of the retail price in a store.

And, I worked temporarily helping a friend in his pawn shop for a couple weeks while he was out of town.

What an eye opener!

beatrice 6 years, 11 months ago

Dang, those photos are terrible. Unless it really is foggy everywhere in Lawrence these days, someone needs to figure out how the new camera works already.

Ron Holzwarth 6 years, 11 months ago

The answer? Cubic Zirconia.

There are countless women who are wearing Cubic Zirconia rings who have no idea,,,

These days, for any natural stone there is a synthetic stone. Only an expert with a jeweler's loupe can discern the difference.

One thing I learned is that there is only one way a jeweler can tell the difference between a synthetic emerald and a natural stone.

A natural stone emerald has occlusions, that is, imperfections embedded within it. A flawless emerald would have no value, because anyone who inspected it would declare it to be synthetic.

Paul R Getto 6 years, 11 months ago

Diamonds are interesting. They are only carbon and have no real value; and the prices are manipulated. As an industrial material, they have great value, but their sentimental value is totally artificial. And there are, of course, 'blood diamonds.'

Ron Holzwarth 6 years, 11 months ago

There is an eye opener of a use for diamonds, and a high quality one is not required.

It was a very unobtrusive usage for a diamond in the Middle Ages when our modern technology pretty much rendered it obsolete.

I don't want to be the one to talk about that. So, if you want to know what that purpose is I will refer you to the autobiography of Benvenuto Cellini.

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