20th Century Tales Forum

The Golden Olde

I stumbled upon his website, thegoldenolde.com, quite by mistake. This guy is just amazing. He has story after story about beach hunting. Some of it is quite technical but so informative. I was with him as he traveled down the road with his sweet wife in their newly-acquired motor home. Much traveling and many beaches makes for some very, very interesting stories. I became like a sponge, returning to the site every chance I got. I'd kick in to the home page and immediately go to the "stories" tab and read as long as I could. This guy is just a prolific writer. I could wait to see what he pulled from the sand next.

Theres even a photo of our favorite moderator in the site! Hmmmm. What about this guy, Mr. Royal? I know you will be able to add much to this little piece.

As the days passed on, I found myself glued to Norms writings even more. It was a narcotic prose and I found myself going further and further into this couples meanderings. He was living the American dream, after retiring from NASA. I could identify because that is exactly what I want to do!

Once, I even wrote him an email but he never returned it. I figured he was just busy or maybe out of range in some remote place with his motor home set up on some beautiful beach in the back country, busily digging the signals his detector reported.

Finally I got to the end of his rather expansive site--finally. He said in his intro about the author that his time was spent building this site and metal detecting. He wasnt lying. He had been building it for five years and boy did it show.

As I explored the final little nooks and corners of the site I found something disturbing. The last update in "new updates" was done on 10/20/2000. No! NO! He had retired in 1995. Surely he wasnt ill. Then I read on the home page that This site is frozen due to illness. I still had hope but a sense of trepidation came over meand then the killer. I found his final entry and it stated that he had been diagnosed with a train tumor and was scheduled for surgery the following Wednesdaythat he "...may possibly may never be able to post to the site againthat our prayers would be appreciated."

I felt as though I was losing a friend. God! His writing is so colorful, so very articulateI really would like to talk to this guyto get to know him a little better.

In his biography he states his name as only Norm. I went back to his home page today and, it had been there all along, I just didnt connect the dots. A statement said simply, In memory of Norman Garnush. For some reason I thought before that Norman was a friend. I just didnt get it. I got it todayjust today.

This guy was a special treasure seeker. He knew the true treasure was not just in the sand, although he and his wife found a BUNCH of loot. His loot he couldnt take with him, but his real treasure he could. He has given each and every reader a special gifta wealth of information intertwined within his numerous stories of beach hunting all over the place.

So, if you get some time, and you have not been there before, tap into Norms world. Go to thegoldenolde.com and you will be the better for it. It is an outstanding web site and written by a really special persona persona friend that I never met, never spoke to but just the same a friend the never knew how he could impact others so much. Such a legacy, raising the bar so highthe mentor I never met.

Your comments about his stories and the site would be appreciated. And Royal, if you knew him, how about enlightening us on this passionate man and his hobby?

This story is exactly why I am not waiting until I am 65 or 70 to retire. I just want more than FIVE YEARS! This is exactly why I am retiring, should I live so long, at 60 years and 8 months. This is exactly why I am not going to wait until my kids all finish college.

Am I selfish? Probably. But I want more than 8 months like my Daddy had. I want more than five years. I want to be a pain in the ass to the Corps of Engineers and to the Army and draw a bunch of retirement checks from them. Life does not have to be fair, but I can decide when I retire. I'm sure Norm would have retired earlier, hind sight being twenty-twenty. The real treasure, as Norm said, is NOT in the sand.

Thanks for comin along. Now, go with Norm for a little while and tell me what you think. <><

Arkie John

I have not been there for a long time. Royal knew him... I only knew him from the site when it was active.

I still have it on my bookmarks though. Probably time for a re-visiting.

Thank you for the prompt.

Fair winds

Mikie

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"A dog is better than me, for she has love and does not judge"

"Surfing is not a matter of life and death...... it is much more important than that"

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i happened upon detecting sites,bob bailey i think in arizona,and a few others,one site use to have a bunch of information on whites detectors,then i came upon the golden olde,i think he was sick when i found his site,i think he was partial to fishers,but i don't remember him bad mouthing any.

excellent site for in formation, he was a gifted hunter and wealth of information, thanks AJ!

I have often thought to myself, we should merge the two forums!

http://www.findmall.com/read.php?52,552529,552529#msg-552529

And I credit Norm with much of what I have learned about the hobby.Like you,I considered him to be a friend I never met and was saddened by his passing.His advise is as fitting today as it was when he wrote it and should be required reading for all who swing a coil.

I will retire the very moment I can see the way clear to do so.My wife and I have worked hard for many years preparing for retirement and we are getting close.....I have always said that I work to live....not live to work

and detected the Galveston Beaches with him and his wife. He was a little guy but full of energy and information. I first ran into him on the Tnet and then the Christian Forum. It was a great loss when he passed.

Norm was honest and forthcoming about our hobby and about his life. I wish I'd known him but he was already gone by the time I discovered his site. Every Newbie that asks questions on the Beach and Water Detecting Forum gets directed to the Goldenolde.com, it is a plethora of valuable information and a treasure to all treasure hunters.

Rest In Peace Pirate Norm,

Eric

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had been to Norm's sight, and Royal even knew him? I have visited it a few times since you gave me the website months back, but I too, did not see the "In Memory" of. I was saddened by this, because he was a very smart man and talented writer!

I'm sorry WE did not get to meet him, but as shown, his stories live on!

Your post was really good, and I'm sure Norm would have loved talking to you too! ILY,

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I have all of Norm's pages saved to CD and regularly throw it into the CD drive and then all of a sudden 3 hours have passed and I'm still reading.......I think it's not just detectorists that could gain so much from his writings as much of it can be applied to so many aspects in life. I've just turned 40 and do all I can to get out to the beach and water for some serious detecting. When I retire, hopefully I will have had 30 years of detecting already behind me. I work hard but I always play harder. I've now got all of the information on a USB drive so if I'm having a bad time at work then.....well you know the rest !

Happy hunting to everyone,
Tony,
Perth, Australia

One of the best treasures I ever found was Mr. Norm's Golden Olde site! The old guy really had it together didn't he? He approached detecting from a scientific point of view to the point of spinning my head. However, he truly knew that the REAL treasure was not found in the sand but in the Lord!

That is a good idea about putting his stuff on a separate drive. I never thought of that. I copied every story and put them in document protectors and have a good, thick, packed 1" binder just FULL of good reading.

He was certainly one of a kind and I miss him. I will be retiring in 14 months and 21 days (but who's counting) and plan to switch to another gear. Most of my detecting will be water detecting in freshwater lakes here in Arkansas USA. Occasionally I hope to venture to the Treasure Coast or somewhere along the salt waters.

Good to read your post. Hope to hear from you more. You really live in the land of Treasure, down under.

aj

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