I was looking at some of my old threads and came across a response from Gary. He was giving some sage advice about my grandfather's shave brush. In typical GD style here is the last part of his response. Definitely miss this guy. And I don't think there is any official word on what happened to him. "You ask my professional opinion which comes from the six numbered bullet points and you asked my personal opinion which is the preceding paragraph. Tad, what ever decision you make, make it the right decision with knowledge on your side. I hope I have provided solid knowledge for you. Luck of the Squirrel to ye and lastly, If your considering a brush, that has falling hair and such, if you want a knot redo, my man it is all up to you, Burma Shave"
A hot topic happened here and he did not like the way it was concluded. I believe he overreacted just a bit by reading it the wrong way, but I fully understood and respected his views and so understood his reason for leaving. I do miss his presence as well.
Oh wow. I had no clue. While that's too bad, I'm actually relieved. I'd thought he had passed away or something. I almost don't want to ask what the topic was.
I still swear by his Vintage Williams Project thread. https://theshaveden.com/forums/threads/the-vintage-williams-project.45842/
Gary was a friend and we had a lot of fun playing with synthetic brushes back in the H.I.S brush days. He is missed and was a walking encyclopedia of brushes and fibers.
I won a brush restore from him in a PIF in 2014 or 15 I think. It is still one of my favorites...actually it is the one I've been using for the past week or so. It's actually part of what got me thinking about him.
I think the takeaway from this is to remind us that this is just a silly forum and nothing stated here is so serious to get offended enough to "rage quit".
What angered him...well, let's just say he definitely had a point. It's not fair to characterize it as a spur of the moment rage quit, common on forums. It was very well reasoned. I still have the giant Omega boar that he gave me several years ago. It's my only brush.
I have left Fora for a much-needed break after being harassed and demeaned. I completely understand. Life is too short to put up with trolls. Disclaimer: I do NOT know what Gary's reasons were for leaving and I am NOT suggesting that there are trolls here at TSD.
I liked Gary. I thought he had an issue with his hands and left when he could no longer use a safety razor or something of that nature. Learn something new every day.
That's a good way to keep the brain cells working. The Gentleman left TSD before I joined so I've only had the pleasure of reading his posts as history. Does anyone know if he's on any other forums?
TSD, like Twitter, Facebook, and others, is a form of social media. Things are said that cannot be taken back. Once we press send button, the comment is on the cloud for ever. No time-out; no Kings X. I am guilty, as is all of us, of pressing the send button without understanding the possible consequences. One thing I learned a long time age is to "sleep on it" before responding. The situation most likely will take on a different tone. Key is to have the discipline to walk away from it and not respond when emotions may be high. Just a thought.
I also miss Gary, but do understand why he departed. Given that he will get great traditional shaves for the rest of his life, I would say his time here was very well spent. Much more so because of all the informative, useful and entertaining posts he made. Pretty much everyone moves on sooner or later, so I am just glad he stayed here as long as he did.
Gary was/is a very special cat...His contribution here in uncalculable... And his brush refurbs were/are legendary. He forgot more about brushes than most of us will ever know...and his short story writting and posting music to go with shaves, and brush and razor reviews.. and a thesis on DE Blades worthy of a Masters Thesis. Here is the link: https://sites.google.com/site/gdcarrington1/home/de-blade-challenge-ii I'm lucky enough to have a set of brushes he gifted me of matching vintage Stag handles with badger....one larger and one travel size.. I shaved with the travel one today: Yep...this place is not the same without him! Sent from my SM-N950U using Tapatalk
