The Gazette Readers Party 2007 brought the Gazette Staff face-to-face with our readers. It has been two years since the last Readers party. Everyone had a good time, so I will try to have another one - hopefully not two years from now. Our first public party was in January of 2005. The weather was terrible, with snow and ice. I decided to move this party into March for warmer weather. Of course, this year we had sunny days in the 60's in January. The closer we got to the party date, the more it snowed. We even had snow the night before the party. Luckily, the sun came out and we were able to clear the Legion parking lot in time for the party. A huge thank you goes to American Legion Post #3 at 64th and College Avenue, as this is the second time they have opened their doors to us for our party. Several members of the post came to the party and even helped us set up and clean up afterwards.

Almost all the Gazette staff made it to the event: C.W. Pruitt, II, from Poetic Thoughts; Ashley Plummer, who is both our feature writer and associate editor; Lisa Battiston, from Beats From A Broad Ripple Rat; Nora Spitznogle, from Buzzing Around Town; Tammy Lieber, (see Tammy, I can spell it correctly!) from Tammy's Take; Bob Schmidt, who is our photographer and runs www.images-indiana.com; Bob Kawaguchi, from the meat side of the Ripple Restaurant SBS Review; Tim Rasmussen, from Life's Ripples; Cortellini, from Green Broad Ripple; Paul Walker, from The History of Broad Ripple; Sarah Davis, from the vegetarian side of the Ripple Restaurant SBS Review; Brandt Carter, from Right In My Own Backyard; Elizabeth Hague, who is a feature writer, photographer, proofreader, and delivery person; Candance Lasco, who is a feature writer and photographer; Merryn Gluys, who is our copy editor; Douglas Carpenter, from Recipes: Then and Now; Heidi Huff, from Coffee Corner; Jill A. Ditmire, from The Wine Scene; and Alan Hague, who is our delivery boy and says he "got no tips at the party".

We were entertained again this year by the Central Indiana Folk Music and Mountain Dulcimer Society. There were 20 members of the society performing; they played dulcimers, mandolin, auto-harp, fiddles, and more. Paul and Carrie Walker danced up a storm. The society was supposed to play for an hour, but everyone was having such a good time that they played for an extra half hour - until they realized the party was about over and the food was disappearing. Check out the Society's website at www.indianafolkmusic.org to see their schedule of upcoming meetings and performances. The meetings are held monthly just down the street from Broad Ripple at 52nd and Central Avenue.

Many of our readers came to the party. One couple came because of interesting circumstances. Mr. and Mrs. Fred Dietz were talking on the phone to their son Scott, who lives in California. Scott is a manager for the sets for the TV shows "The Class" and "Two and a Half Men". Prior to that, he was a manager for the sets for the "Friends" series. His parents mail the Gazette to him every two weeks. During the call, Scott realized that it was 2 P.M. Sunday and remembered seeing the ads for the Gazette party from 2 to 4 P.M.. He asked his parents why they weren't at the party. They asked "what party?" Scott told them to look at page 4 to see the details of the party they were missing. They hung up and headed right over to the Legion. Thanks Scott!

This year we had about three times the food choices. All of it was fabulous, not because it was free, but because each restaurant brought one of their specialties. Shalimar brought Chicken Tikka Masala. That is one of my favorites and it quickly disappeared. We had our last private Gazette party there. Dave Allee served The Jazz Kitchen's grilled shrimp cocktail. Joe Vuskovich brought gumbo and Mardi Gras beads from Yats. Heidi (our Coffee Corner writer) brought coffee from Hubbard & Cravens Coffee Company. French Meadow Bakery & Cafe, located inside Sunflower Market, provided hemp brownies and other treats. The party got pretty wild, but I don't think we got messed up on the hemp! Maybe you would have to smoke the brownies? Anyway, they were yummy. Your Neighbor's Garden from the Broad Ripple Farmer's Market provided dozens of apples. I was very impressed by our party attendees - they ate apples like crazy! What a healthy bunch. Albert from Rene's Bakery brought lots of his signature treats like almond croissants, ginger cookies, and macaroons. Remember to keep an eagle eye out for errors in the Gazette: Albert sponsors the Mistakes Can Be Sweet program. My EE professor recently found one of my errors - he has always been good at that, especially on my exams. I don't think I ever got higher that a 90 on one of his tests. Union Jack Pub brought a large stack of hot pizzas. Kim, Molly, and Mike of Perk Up brought scone bites and coffee. Ken and Susan of Ripple Bagel and Deli brought sandwiches and rice crispie treats. This reminds me that the fifth pin in the Broad Ripple collector pin series will be out very soon. I will let you know when it is "time" for you to rush to the stores to get it. That's all I will say. I had bagel move on now. . . .I mean. . . better move on now. Susanna of Scholar's Inn Bakehouse brought trays of breads and treats. Danny and Heather of Hoghead's BBQ served ribs and their new summer salad.

Thanks to all the restaurants. I received lots of praise from the party attendees for the food. These restaurants all donated the food for our readers. That means a lot to us. They do that for love of the Village. Love. . . . That leads me to the next subject. . . .

I heard a sermon recently that said the world doesn't focus on love enough, but instead looks at things like money and politics. While I was listening to that I started thinking about the Gazette, because the Gazette is all about love. Stick with me, this isn't some sticky, gooey, lovebunny rant. The Gazette exists because of love. First, me. If you read my "What Alan Loves About Broad Ripple" a few issues ago, then you know what I love. That is what keeps me going, every two weeks, publishing this paper. (I am not complaining, but it is a lot of work, and there are easier things I could be doing.) I love the Village and feel compelled to keep the paper going. Next, the Gazette staff. We have a tremendous staff of about 20 volunteers that work for us because they love it. Their love comes through in their articles, columns, and photos. (They are not complaining, but I know how hard it is to write a column for months and months on deadline.) Then we have you, the readers. I get grabbed in stores and on the street frequently by readers who tell me they love the paper. Next, we have about 180 stores, restaurants, and other places that distribute the paper for us. They also add to the love by proudly displaying a stack of Gazettes for their customers. Finally, there are the advertisers. Admittedly, there are businesses that advertise just to increase their visibility with our readers, but many support us because they love what we are doing and how we are doing it. Okay, enough love. Back to work. I have a paper to get out. It doesn't write itself.