This Christmas I pulled off what I never thought I'd be able to do. I bought my wife a piece of jewelry that surprised her and wowed her. On our honeymoon a few years ago, we stopped into the Maui Tiffany & Co. and she tried on a gorgeous pave set platinum diamond ring. We laughed at how beautiful it was and that "someday" she'd be able to have it.

I had that ring on my mind for the last 2 years and was finally in a position to purchase it. Not being a jewelry expert, all I could do was describe it to the Maui salesperson over the phone and hope that she could identify it for me. She then faxed me Xeroxed pictures of rings she actually placed on a copier machine to make sure I knew what I was talking about. I wasn't prepared to buy the ring without seeing it in person, so she called the Seattle Tiffany & Co. to see if they had the ring, and they did. I live in Portland, OR, so asked the Seattle store to hold the ring until I was able to get up there. They held it for several weeks without a single complaint.

When I got to the store, I was treated with the utmost respect and civility. There was no pressure to buy, just a caring attitude of people who knew a young man was trying to decide if he should part with a lot of money. (If you live in the NW, go to the Tiffany in Pacific Place and ask for Patricia -- she is excellent.)

When I left the store with the exquisitely wrapped ring in that famous blue/green bag, you should have seen the warm looks I got from women in Pacific Place. They all smiled at me, knowing I was going to make someone very happy. Needless to say, Christmas morning was a very special time for my wife and me. She is so proud to own the ring and I'm so proud to have gotten it for her.

And, with the Tiffany name comes the Tiffany quality. I know the ring will last many lifetimes and that my great, great granddaughter many, many years from now will be wearing this same ring.