I was very uncertain if I should show myself in this thread, or if that would be rather negatively perceived, but ... yes, I should.
Gul, you have been a comrade, in the best sense of the word. I may not have always been the greatest fan of your manners, but you've been someone to go through thick and thin with. We've never been BFF, we rarely shared long private conversations, but we've been similarly obsessed with things, and that alone, I think, allowed us to understand each other better than anyone else at times. I can't think of an example now, but I remember more than once thinking "yep, he's being an ass, but what he just said is so true!". And if all this sounds like roses with spikes - well, it is; I'm not going to paint you a saint because you quit, I'm going to say you've been a great pal despite not being a saint. And I'm never going to forget out Balrog 6-man kill, the two evenings of trial and error, and everyone helping out (in short and long term), and then we did it, we dropped it, we deafened Essy with our celebratory screams, and then we learned that you are, in fact, a big, cuddly teddy-bear inside, a fact kept secret until Essy revealed it in this thread
And if it means anything to you: you, and a particular thing you said about tanking, have, more than anything or anyone else, inspired me to go into tanking myself - a choice I'm very much enjoying right now.
So, keep your head above the water, and your shield in front of your .. soft parts. They say paths always cross twice in life. Who knows, one day we might cross again!
/salute