Resolve to shape up in 2010.  Here’s how!

by John Colombo

Is your new year’s resolution to get in shape and loose some weight? January is generally when people join gyms. February is when they stop going. Belonging to a gym is a great way to get healthy and make new friends. It’s also the best way to stay youthful, and we do want to look good for all the parties and events don’t we?

I spoke with National Strength and Conditioning Associate Certified trainer Terra Brozowski, who has some has some advice on exercising and eating right. Terra lives in Shadyside and trains at the Fitness Factory on South Highland Ave. After receiving her degree in law, she turned to what she loves the most, fitness and leading a healthy lifestyle, and now teaches others how to capture this dream for themselves.

 According to Terra, start slow when training. If you need help, seek out a personal trainer—they are affordable and can make the difference whether you fail or succeed with your fitness goals. The reason most people stop exercising is they don’t see improvements quickly enough. Fitness is a journey, not a destination, it’s a lifelong choice. So go slow at the gym to start. Build up how many days a week you go and even if you only have 20 or 30 minutes, it’s better than not exercising at all. We all have different needs and goals; so find what you want to improve in and go for it. The go out and reward yourself with a pair of skinny jeans. You earned it. Terra on the web: www.terra-fitness.com.

Seen at 5801 celebrating her 51st birthday in style was none other than the infamous Vivian Semanick. Viv has been a staple at all the best bars, clubs and after-parties for the last 20some years. Accompanied by Miss TD and Patrick Grinan, the trio were having a great time. Semanick’s trade mark throughout the years has always been the poetry she makes up and recites at any given moment. Also seen out on his birthday at the Blue Moon in Lawrenceville was Escobar, who booked the entire backroom. One of Escobar’s presents included Dancer Nitro who performed a very special set just for the birthday boy.

Dance Central has been keeping busy with special events and parties. First up, Operation Sappho (a dyke/queer monthly dance party) has taken up temporary residence on the third Friday of every month. Sappho likes to move around and changes venues frequently so look them up on their MySpace or Facebook page. While focused on women, Operation Sappho loves gay men to attend as well. The party was rocking with music being spun by multiple DJs, including DJ Drop That, Mary Mack, DJ Equestrian, and Dana Bishop. The party featured a photo booth by Caldwell who took pictures of the guys and gals and posted them on Sappho flicker page. A safer sex table with information and safe sex supplies was provided by Youth Empowerment Project which is sponsored by Persad. And the music was fantastic—nothing like some groovy Dee-Light to put you in a dance mood. Seen: Rachel Lee, a recent transplant from Portland; Alex H.; Jen Cooney and Eli Kuti.

Next up at Dance Central was a country-and-western reunion party for the men and women who used to show up at Donny’s place in the early to mid ’90s to line dance faithfully every weekend. At one point the group had close to 200 members according to group founder Bill Julia. The dancers formed a strong friendship, and an offshoot social group was born called “Horse of a Different Color.” Eventually the resurgence of the genre came to end, and so this was the first time some of the dancers had seen each other in 15 years. The DJ that evening was Mattio-O and the crowd did a lot of two stepping on the dance floor. Urban cowboys (and girl) that evening: Harry Smith, Jim Page, Jim Beasley and Sandy Ballantyne.

And finally the pièce de résistance: an art show featuring the work of local artist Fred Bainbridge at Central. Fred, a painter and designer by trade has been spending the last two years making pieces of art for himself. This personal show (aptly named “Parts”) was a mix of oil paintings, water colors, photos and even a wooden sculpture Fred had fashioned from a tree root. Churches and cemeteries were featured prominently, and in Warholian fashion, several of the water colors were oxidized by Fred himself. Bainbridge had sold 13 pieces by evenings end. Connoisseurs that evening included: Jim Page, Brian Lincoln, Mike Masciantonio, Craig Melichar, Drew Morgan and Tamara knight.

The 22nd annual Lambda Ball, know this year as Bash, was held at the luxurious Grand Hall at the Priory on Pittsburgh’s North Shore. During the dinner, the distinguished service award was handed out to this year’s recipient, Scott Noxon. Billy Porter served as master of ceremonies, and music was provided by DJ Joseph Costa. The reboot of the event from formal to cocktail wear was the genius of Ann Bowman, Lambda’s executive director. At 9:30 the dance floor was opened and many more arrived to attend the dance. Seen at Bash: C.J. Dario, Chad Pysher, Rick Armstrong, Tom Watson, Roger Beatty, Tony Silvestre and the lovely Christine Ward.

The Gay & Lesbian Community Center held an open house during its grand opening at its new location, 210 Grant Street downtown. The new space boasts more usable square footage then the Center’s pervious home and a more central location. The new center include an expanded LGBT library—one of the largest in the county—that is headed up by Dan Iddings. According to Iddings more books have gone in and out of the library the last month than all of last year. Tours were hosted that evening of the building. Organizations with offices at the Center: Adagio, Dreams of Hope, GLENDA, GLSEN, PATF, PLGFS and Transpitt. Seen: Bruce Kraus, Lee Marcuzzi, Sharon Davis, Betty Hill, Mark Brown and Michael King.

AK Productions and The Red Thread Initiative hosted a fund raiser for Toys for Tots and The Greater Pittsburgh Food Bank. The event was held at Garfield Artworks on Penn Ave in the arts district. AK Productions is the partnership of Adam Huzyak and Ken Hunty, who plan on sponsoring more parties in the near future and are committed to the arts district and East End businesses. Red Thread raised $2,000 that night for both charities. DJ for the party was Trevor BenYack. Seen: Rodney Dececchis, Jeff Grainy, Shawn Miller, Florencio and Paul Ronevich.

Pegasus hosted it’s closing party Dec. 6 with a VIP reception from 5-6pm, then general admittance immediately afterwards. Farewell to an era, and we usher in 2010 with one less club. True, Pegasus has moved into the Eagle. It’s open Thursday through Sunday and will still feature 18 and older nights. In an odd coincidence, after sitting vacant for 2 1/2 years the former Holiday Bar in Oakland met with the bulldozer the same week that Pegasus closed.

A safe and Happy New Year to all!!!

Email invites, social events and rumors, or just say hi: john@outonline.com