“The City of Hoschton is a small community and a wonderful place to call home.” Pronounced Hoosh-ton, and still utterly unbelievable to us, Lori and I decided to see if their chamber of commerce puffery proves true. After “looking around” for years, with an effectively empty nest, and a recurring attraction to this place called Reunion, we took the plunge and moved in December 2nd! As you read this, we’re still unpacking and will be for quite some time. If you’re in the neighborhood, and in need of a moving experience, come see us! I put up some pictures at theluders.us.

Brandon finished up his Masters work (Aero/Astro) at MIT in August. He was set to finish in June, but ran into a programming snag and decided to give it the time necessary to get it the way he wanted it. He’ll walk for his diploma in June and will stay for his PhD and a targeted finish in 2011. He also relocated over the summer, back on campus to a brand new graduate housing facility (Ashdown House—ashdown.mit.edu) with 500 other young adults. It’s an incredible facility with tons of amenities and a homogeneous community of motivated individuals. It’s just a few minutes walking distance from his lab and they even have a bar on site! If someone would design and build a similar facility for people my age, please sign me up!

You’ll be seeing a lot less of Lori...literally. She took it upon herself, early in the year, to go back to Weight Watchers and at this point has lost over 55 pounds! In my own words, SHE’S HOT and is feeling great. She cares for her mom in assisted living, who continues down that long road called Alzheimer's, and we pray that the journey retains a quality of life. ([email protected])

I settled in at my company’s new office building (lpbatlanta.com) and it has turned out to be a great move. I found a park to continue riding, bought a new bike, and have even dropped a few pounds myself. For a guy who doesn’t like change, 2008 has been a doozy! ([email protected])