Most Important Day

In the Spring of 1996 my friend John was looking to replace the crazy-assed bass player that quit his band. Though the original members of the band had met as detainees of the Quakertown school district, John decided to place an ad for a new bass player in the Philadelphia City Paper. Mark answered that ad. John called me to tell me he was going to be in Philly meeting with the new guy and asked if I wanted to come and give him my opinion. I met them at the bar at Upstairs at Nicks. It didn’t take long to gather that Mark was smart, handsome and TALL. I liked him immediately. Soon I was spending a lot more time with the band as they planned to get serious, work on an album and “make it.” I jumped at the chance to drop the last dregs of my college career, get away from my insane roommate and move to the DC area with the band in the hopes of starting an independent record label. Crazy pipe dreams it seems, but it was nice to be dreamers for awhile. I figured if it didn’t work out at least I would be able to say I lived with a rock band. And obviously it was going to be amazingly fun living with a band – I pictured hot rock guys constantly coming and going from the house, an endless string of shows and parties. Wrong. I had moved in with possibly the most anti-social rock band ever. John and Jay spent most of the time locked in their respective bedrooms moping and feeling sorry for themselves. As a result Mark and I became fast friends – we were both new to the group and new to the area so we had only each other for companionship. We went to dinner, to movies, to rock shows and spent long hours chatting. I developed a hard core crush pretty quickly. How could I not? Mark is just so funny, so smart, so thoughtful and handsome. He had become my best friend in a heartbeat and the person with whom I enjoyed spending all my time. I won’t get into the shady year that it took to completely transition our friendship to a full-on romance (far different story) but I will say that I pursued him because I thought we had the potential for something real, something lasting. I knew shortly after meeting Mark that he was the guy for me. I could tell he was going to be a wonderful boyfriend, husband, father. That I didn’t want to be without his dry wit, shy smile, and unquenchable thirst for knowledge. Choosing Mark is the smartest thing I ever did and a decision that pays off every day. And now Noah is a living, breathing, smiling embodiment of all my love for him.

I love you Mark. Happy Birthday.