Lucy in the Sky

10 Facts and Commentary about Transparent Crystals of Tetrahedrally Bonded Carbon Atoms.

1. Diamonds are the hardest natural material on earth. They score a 10 on Mohs' scale of mineral hardness! In some ways, I have found our engagement to be the hardest (and simultaneously beautiful and sparkly) time of my life. If that Mohs' scale went all the way up to eleven, then I could measure it properly.

2. It takes a temperature of 1325°C and a pressure of 50,000 kg/cm2 to make diamond underground. That's like having the Eiffel Tower dropped on your foot, on a 2417 degree day in France.

3. Diamonds have been around for a long time. The first recorded description of a diamond is in a 296 BC Sanskrit text. I do not know the Sanskrit word for "diamond," so I will have to trust Panini on that.

4. Some people believe that diamonds have magical powers. The Romans believed that diamonds would protect them against poison and plague, or that diamonds could cure enchantment. There's two ways to think about that. Either it means that kisses don't do anything, but engagement rings have the power to turn frogs into princes...or it means that the impending reality of marriage "cures" any enchantment in young lovers' hearts.

5. Diamonds can be deadly. Catherine de Medici, the Queen of France in 1560, used to poison her rivals by spiking their drinks with diamond dust. On a side note, she also made a rule that women had to wear corsets, so she gets Two Thumbs Down.

6. A diamonds repels water but attracts fat. This must be why I like to eat bacon but don't like to wear a swimming suit.

7. Diamond is a good conductor of heat. When it is not in contact with a source of heat, a diamond always feels cold. Me too. Fortunately, my fiance is like a furnace.

8. Most diamonds radiate visible light when exposed to ultraviolet light. This means if you are Ross Gellar, you shouldn't wear too much bling on your improbable second date with the girl with the black light.

9. Marilyn Monroe's song about diamonds (sung by Nicole Kidman in Moulin Rouge) has a catchy title, but is actually about the glass ceiling, the stock market, budgeting and the aging process; it uses adjectives like liasonic and continental; and includes the tongue-twister "better bets if little pets get big baggettes." I can see why it's such a hit!

10. Diamonds are not actually this girl's best friend, but I'm blessed to wear an oh-so-sparkly transparent crystal of tetrahedrally bonded carbon atoms as a sign of a precious promise from the man I love.