If you came into Aquila while folks were working, you might conclude that fusers are talkative people, while torchers are quiet people.  This is not necessarily so.  It's simply that torchers need to really focus...hot glass sags and bags if not constantly turned.  Fusers, on the other hand, can look up or walk away from their work at any point, and nothing happens to it. 

Most torchers are making beads or critters or some such.  But Tom....Tom is something else!  He uses glass rods to create his...er...creations.  In the time that I've known him, he's made a bridge, a bi-plane (with a prop that spins), a ferris wheel (that actually turns), and now this box that opens and closes.

Tom really IS quiet.  He's soft-spoken and a total gentleman.  But we still like him.