RIP GINO

YOU might be wondering why I haven’t been active for a while but below happened. So tonight I’m cherishing all the unforgettable moments we shared together with your family that you welcomed me into.

“I’m near you! …sort of. Merry Christmas! xx Gino.” We talked on Tuesday the week before it all happened. You were also in Costa Rica to celebrate Christmas. We were so close to meet up but yet it turned out that we were still miles away from each other. The roads are pretty bumpy over there and doesn’t always connect… If I only would have known it be our last time, I would have made it happen. Gosh this hurts. I actually don’t know where to start? The message reach me when I was walking out of the subway. I started to cry on the street, in the winter darkness. There was just a big whole inside of me. “How? When? Why?”, where natural questions that started to pop up in my head. I know you where struggling but I just wouldn’t believe it.

You were always full of energy and life. LIFE. Gino was the true definition of life, joy and happiness. But you were still so down to earth, so true, so warm and so much fun. “Did he make everyone feel this special, needed and loved?” I ask myself. Yes, I genuinely think so.

Gino was one of my closer friends in New York, and when I moved there he introduced me to two of my closet friends Meggie and Jessica and many more meaningful people in my life. It’s funny because it’s not often you meet your best girl friends through a guy. Gino was one of them that only wanted the best out of you and for you. One evening when he was hosting one of his legendary parties at his lavish apartment on 8th Ave, he grabbed me and said: “You need to hang out with this girl, you two would make good friends” and one hour later Meggie took my number and we continued to party away at Soho House. Well, the rest is history.

Besides finding friends for me, he was also my friend. Whenever I was down or when I moved from NYC (against my will), he always host a party for me when I was back in town. Who does that? Not even friends I know since childhood would. His heart was just so BIG and maybe too good. This is one of the first time I lose someone close and it just hurts so much. I don’t think anything else for the moment makes sense.

What I’m impeccably happy over is all these amazing memories we have to cherish together 2009-2016. Thank you for letting me part of your family. I love you Gino Gareza

Below some of my favorite moments together with you and your family.

NI undrar säkert varför jag inte skrivit på ett tag, men när en nära vän oväntat går bort slutar världen på något vis att snurra. Många saker blir obetydliga och du zoonar ut, gräver ner dig i jobb tills det inte går mer. Jag har inte världens ork i natt att översätta min engelska text och jag hoppas att det är ok. Som ni säkert förstår är det min magiska vän Gino Gareza från New York som har gått bort.

Jag är så oerhört tacksam över att fått lära känna denna otroliga man och att jag fick vara del av hans familj 2009-2016.

Nedan kommer ett blandband av min favoritstunder med honom och vår familj.

xNW

WIG PARTY AT MY PLACE AT WEST 4TH AND MACDOUGAL, JANUARY 2010

AFTERWORK AT GINO’S, MARCH 2010
aw at gino's

TGIF AT GINO’S CRIB, JUNE 2010

HOUSE COOLING PARTY AT MEGGIE’S, JULY 2010

Photo credit: Gino Gareza – We love you man (me and my bro)
DINNER IN EAST VILLAGE, MARCH 2013
New York March 2013