[Jewelry making - Article 00845] - Re: [Orchid] Are they rubies?

[Lumenea]

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Karen Goeller writes 

>      ...But you can't really tell if it's baking soda or cocaine until
>     you do further tests.

    Yes, Ma'am! This reminded me of a friend's non-jewelry related but
    very funny experience, and makes the point that even experts can be
    duped: 

    My friend was in Mexico on a research project, collecting bird skins
    for the NC Museum of Natural History. In order to temporarily
    preserve their specimens, my friend and his associate carried with
    them a substantial quantity of boric acid power. When the time came
    for them to cross the border back into the USA, the old blue panel
    truck they were driving and their somewhat Bohemian appearances
    caused the border guards to take special note of them and resulted
    in their truck being searched. Needless to say, the guards thought
    they'd encountered the cocaine stash of the century when they found
    large plastic bags of suspicious white power. 

    My friend presented his documents and did his best to explain to the
    officers what it was they had "discovered", but the dutiful border
    guard was determined to check the material for himself and despite
    my friend's vociferous protests, insisted on inhaling a pinch of the
    white powder to "test" the stash he believed he'd found.  As you can
    imagine, a snoot full of boric acid power is not a pleasant
    experience and the guard was a very unhappy individual. His nose was
    on fire and his big bust was history, so my friend, his associate
    and their specimens were released from custody to continue on their
    way. 

    The moral is: things aren't always what they look like and a wise
    individual tests carefully to be sure! 

Walk In Beauty,
Susannah Ravenswing
Jewels of the Spirit
Winston-Salem NC 

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