Ever buy one of those glass insulators on eBay that the seller says is "black"? I just did.

I didn't have a CD 259 in my collection yet, so I thought this was a good candidate. Why? I guess because as long as I didn't pay much more than the value of a $15 aqua piece, I would have the delight of soaking the soot off and seeing what's underneath. To me it's like unwrapping a gift at Christmas. Thinking all along, though, that it would most likely be the standard aqua version. That's fine - I just wanted a 259. So, I won the auction at $18.50 + $7 shipping. I guess I paid the $15 value of an aqua insulator and about $10 extra just for the experience of "unwrapping" it.

When I got it on Monday and held it up to the sun, a small percentage of the light was showing through and it looked like green. I didn't let myself get excited - I've seen soot add a slight yellow cast to the appearance of the glass, which would make aqua look green.

I took it out of the acid today when I got home from work. Wow! It really was like Christmas! A nice emerald green Christmas!

I could tell from the black auction photos that it was in pretty good shape, but I'm telling you, I can't find even a fleabite on this thing! It's got some bubbles in the base that don't break the surface, some straw marks and a couple of small pot stone pieces for character.

SWEET!