Hotter Than a Pepper Sprout

and I miss my mom, due to the fact that, she is dead. That may sound a little harsh, but that sentence actually makes me laugh. It combines two of my mom's favorite sayings. Whenever she made a "business" call, mom always started it with "Say, This is Colleen Luedtke." My older sister, Jenn, and I used to love to listen in on these calls and giggle away while we imagined the person on the other end repeating, "This is Colleen Luedtke." We don't know how or why mom picked up this verbal quirk, but just thinking about it still makes me smile. "Due to the fact that" was a favorite of Colleen's for written communication. Whenever I had missed school because I was sick (or pretending to be sick) the note my mom would write was a variation of "Amy missed school yesterday due to the fact that, she was ill." Again, thinking of that one little (yet mysterious and completely unnecessary phrase) captures so much of my mom's spi...

After the librarian conference wrapped up today, I had a chance to do a little exploring in Indianapolis and wandered into the Rhythm Discover Center . I was a little dubious about going: would it just be a million kids banging wildly away? Not that I'm opposed to wild banging (um, interpret that as you will) but I don't need those cute little munchkins stealing my thunder. But I overcame my doubts and stopped in, and am so glad I did. It was a small but lovingly-crafted museum with only a few loud young drummers. The main exhibit was about the history of the drum set and included information on Ludwig drum sets, and the label copy posed this question: "What stories or memories do you have when you see Ludwig kits like these?"  My senior picture with my Ludwig drum set. Really.  Stories?! Do I have stories! My drum set is in fact a Ludwig that I have had since the summer of 1987. I think my mom wanted to get me a drum set from the first day I started playing, b...

I have a well deserved reputation for making a big deal out of my birthday. The natural excitement most children feel about their birthday just never went away for me. Plus, it's no secret that I like attention. A holiday that is just for me, all about me? I'm definitely in. And, even more so as I get older, I love the opportunity to be able to gather friends together. If birthdays are the excuse we need to make the time to have dinner/drinks/karaoke and spend time with friends that we are usually too busy to hang with, then again, I'm in. As much as I am a fan of birthdays, birthdays are scary. Let's take a moment to stop and say "Hi" to the elephant in the room: birthdays are signifiers of our mortality. Every birthday brings us closer to our last birthday. Intertwined with my fear of life's final closing time (yes, I will use a bar metaphor) is a deep gratitude for all the blessing I've received so far. Most notably you (yes YOU, I assume no one i...