THE PHANTOM SPECIMEN

One evening last week I was breaking down some rock and mineral material, collected over the weekend, in search of mineral specimens for mircromounts. This was fantastic material. Each time a new break was created, new micromount material was exposed. It was a bit like reading a good book that you just can not put down. Well before you know it the hour was getting late and I kept telling myself, " Just one more break and then I'll go to bed." Along about 1:00 in the morning it happened! I had decided to make one last break in the material and then go on to bed. So I made the break and the mother of all micromount specimens was exposed! Perfect light yellow gemmy epidote crystals perched chain fashion on perfect light green diopside crystals and the entire specimen sized just perfectly after the first break! "Oh my," I said. My heart beat faster and my hand trembled as I gently set the specimen in a small tray just behind the microscope. "I'll set this gem aside and mount it right way... don't want to lose this " I thought to myself. A few minutes later I went to mount the specimen and I could not find it. " I know I put it right here in the tray," I said to myself. Panic set in. I tore the bench apart, looked through all the trash, in every nook and cranny... the specimen was not to be found. I was heartbroken, the most beautiful specimen I had ever seen and it was gone!... Then it dawned on me... It was so late and I was so tired that I had fallen asleep at the microscope for just a few minutes and I had DREAMED the specimen! Truly the micromount equivalent to the "one that got away" fishing story. Of course there is a moral to this story ... when that little voice says, 'It's time to go to bed," go to bed, else beware the phantom specimen!