Garth

Garth is my sweetie. We met online at Gay.com, and then in person when a group of Eastside guys got together one night just so we could meet each other and chat live.

The basics of the story are that we were both online and someone, maybe even one of us, proposed that the group get together to meet in person. Garth specifically asked me if I was going and I said yes. So we met, we hit it off, and we've been together ever since.

Now as Garth would tell it, I was rather aloof during chat. He would say something like "Nice pic" and I would only tersly reply "Thanks". He asked if I would go, and I said, allegedly aloofly, "Sure". He said with some excitement "I'm looking forward to meeting you" and I responded blandly "me, too".

Now as I tell it, the story goes like this: I was laid off, hating men, hating the world, wondering where the next job would be, and I got online to be social in a half hearted attempt to have some fun with way too much free time. I was chatting with the whole group, and Garth says things, and I responded. When the idea of getting together came along, I thought, that could be fun... tomorrow. If we did it right that minute , it meant i'd have to get up, and shower and get dressed and driiiiiiiiiive. It was a hassle, but I didn't have anything better to do with my free time, and I did say to him that I would go. Apparently while I was mulling over these thoughts, there was conversation that I missed and that I responded to in an absent minded way.

But I made the effort to get out of the house, we met, we chatted, we hit it off, and we have been together ever since.

Garth is an avid opera lover and knows more about it than anyone else I have ever met. He knows recordings, performances, who every character is, and seems to know all the trivia. He's taken me to see a number of productions of the Seattle Opera, and I've come to really enjoy ballet as we've gone to see the Nutcracker every Christmas performed by the Pacific Northwest Ballet and saw Swan Lake in London. I've always enjoyed the Symphony but I've had more motivation to go now that I'm with Garth.

Mirella Freni is his favorite opera singer, and he is already planning a trip to Washington D.C. in March 2005 to hear her sing at the age of 70. How many people would just like to make it to 70, let alone still be able to do what they love? Mirella is a pisces, just like Garth and myself, born February 27, 1935. Her debut role in 1955 was as Mica�la in "Carmen", and when she had a daughter the following year with husband/teacher Leone Magiera, she gave her the same name. Mirella later divorced, and married the famous bass Nicolai Ghiaurov. She has written her autobiography in collaboration with Giuseppe Gherpelli, called "Mio Caro Teatro", which seems to be only available in Italian.

Beverly Sills is another one of Garth's favorite singers. born Belle Miriam Silverman on May 25, 1929, in Brooklyn, New York, to Shirley and Morris Silverman, this lady with red hair is not your stereotypical prima donna - delicate and snobby - she�s one tough-as-nails lady. At the height of her singing career in the �60s and �70s, she was dubbed "America�s Queen of Opera." A coloratura soprano who drew millions to the New York City Opera, she was also one who didn�t take herself too seriously. As National Chair of the March of Dimes' Mothers' March on Birth Defects, Sills has helped to raise over $70 million in ten years. Her children, Muffy and Peter, have birth defects. Muffy suffers from profound hearing loss and Peter has been diagnosed as mentally retarded.

Sills' contact information is:
Beverly Sills
c/o Edgar Vincent
157 West 57th Street
New York NY 10019
USA



One more opera story - When we were touring Rome in November, 2003, we had stopped for lunch and were sitting outside at one of the few tables. It was cool, partly sunny; we could still see part of the Vatican, and with a bottle of wine handy, we patiently waited for our food to arrive.

All of a sudden, Garth bursts out "Oh my god! Do you know who that is? It's... Uh... OH...." and then he lept up from our tiny table, almost knocking everything to the ground, and proceeded to run down the street, shouting something at some lady. I suppose I had my usual, calm, non-plussed reaction. After making sure the wine didn't spill and the table wasn't going to tip over, I just watched him run away, knowing that it must have been something important, and eventually he would come back. Lunch might be cold by then, but...

So, he's running down the street after this slightly older lady shouting "Madama Scotto! Madama Scotto!" , and finally, this pleasant and most gracious woman turns around, and it was Renata Scotto - known for her numerous opera performances around the world. Since the early 1950s, she has performed in more than 45 different operas by 18 different composers and has appeared with the world's most acclaimed singers. She was teaching in 2003 at one of the local colleges, and was in fact on her way to class. Garth had a chance to talk with her for about ten minutes before she had to be on her way to teach. Too bad they weren't closer, I could have gotten a picture.

She was born on February 24, 1934 and made her operatic debut in her home town of Savona, Italy, on Christmas Eve of 1952 at the age of 18 in front of a sold-out house as Violetta in Verdi's La Traviata. By the late 1950's, Scotto had become a celebrity and on June 2, 1960, Scotto married Lorenzo Anselmi. The couple has two children, Laura (born 5/31/69) and Filippo (born 6/21/72). She has taught a number of classes and continues to be active in her life both in Italy and New York City.

Garth and I laugh and tease, and we have a good time together. XBox became one of our favorite leisure activities after we played one at a friend's house and then he bought us one for our combined birthday gifts. For months, it seemed like every decent sized block of free time was spent playing Halo or Gotham City Racing or Amped. Neither one of us were really video game players, at least not since Atari 2600 or some computer games, but Xbox got us hooked.

Garth is also quite the professional ice skating fan, he can name every jump and spin and can critique a performance with the best of them. I find it interesting to watch on occassion, but it is made much more fun with his commentary and reviews. One of his favorites is Olympic medalist Michelle Kwan.

Born on July 7, 1980 in Torrance, California, Michelle is a 5-time World Champion, 7-time National Champion, 2-time Olympic Medalist, and Sullivan Award Winner. Off ice, she is a UCLA student and is involved with charities such the Children's Miracle Network.

Michelle's contact info:
Michelle Kwan
c/o Proper Marketing Associates
39555 Orchard Hill Place, Ste., 150
Novi, Michigan 48375



Traveling to Europe is one of his favorite and most passionate activities, and one he has done fairly regularly, going at least once a year. I had never quite made it to Europe, ever, until Garth enticed me to go in 2002, and we had a great time. For him, it's like returning home to his roots, and with his ability to speak French and Italian, we've been able to get by on our travels quite well.



Mirella Freni
Mirella Freni bio
Beverly Sills article
Sills fan page
JVL - Sills bio
France Honors Sills
Renata Scotto
Renata Scotto Masterclass

Opera Italiana

Seattle Opera
Pacific Northwest Ballet
Seattle Symphony

Ice Skating Links page
Michelle Kwan fan page
Michelle Kwan Forum
MK Fanatics
The MK Site
MK Fans
US Figure Skating Association

Expedia
Hotels.com






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This page lasted updated on January 9, 2004
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