One time we were sending a bunch of CRT's back to the manufacturer for
proof-of- replacement one time, and my wife was labelling them. She
was wearing a knitted sweater, and the sleeve brushed against the 2nd
anode. She wasn't pleased with the result. The CRT had been sitting
for weeks to months...

Tom

A CRT that's not connected to the HV lead won't have any path to ground to
bleed the charge off, it'll pick up static from the air over time.