I was not proud of being a serial cheater but that is what I became. I was always searching for that perfect Bette person and the sensational feelings we shared. I never knew if I would find it in a man or a woman but eventually I faced the fact that with her it was a once in a lifetime experience. The realization however, never stopped me from seeking the impossible dream.

It was also in 1994 when we, Mr. and Mrs. Howard Schmidt received an engraved invitation to attend the Bette Porter Art Gallery Grand Opening, on October 1st, featuring an Eclectic Evolution theme. The actual invitation itself was very regal. It was so Bette Porter, suggesting upper class and sophistication. We were invited to a special champagne gala to celebrate the official event. Howie agreed to go and even bought a new dark suit and tie for the occasion. I too, purchased a new dress with accessories at a very elegant shop.

Bette was smart. She knew how to use the press. I found several articles in our two major Los Angeles newspapers – the Post and the Times, as well as the Orange County Register, announcing the opening of her gallery complete with pictures of Bette. Besides the private show, Eclectic Evolutions would be open to the public until the end of the year. She also ran an ad with a photograph of herself, looking very professional, standing next to a wall of paintings. Her hair was different. It was shorter and straighter, pulled toward her face on both sides, almost like wings. When I saw the pictures for the first time I just stared at them. First one, then another and another and then the ad She was still extraordinarily beautiful, in fact, perhaps more so than even I remembered.

Silly me. I cut the publicity notices and ads out and saved them in, of all places, my underwear drawer. Or, in retrospect, perhaps it was an appropriate place, after all.

It was with great anticipation then, that Howie and I – dressed to the nines – appeared at the opening of the Bette Porter Art Gallery on October l, 1994, in West Los Angeles. As we walked in the door, my heart was pounding in my chest because this woman who still possessed my heart and soul, and I were about to see each other after an eight-year separation..