Holiday Greetings 2008

This would appear to be the 6th Christmas newsletter I have composed using the technology of the day, including links. Strictly speaking, once again, this is not a Christmas letter. Those are missives in a pleasant type face, on fancy holiday "paper", carefully folded and sent through snail-mail with something attached called a "postage stamp!"

This was a great year for us. In January, we flew to Wyomissing to visit Kate and Sal. They had a secret, but didn't tell us on that trip.

In March, Lyd spent Spring Break in MD, checking out the house we eventually purchased. We spent a week, following Spring Break, on vacation at Walt Disney World. This culminated in the CAC, which Tom has done for 11 years.

In April, As an agent of SACS-CASI, Tom chaired the committee that accredited Columbia High School in Lake City, Florida for 5 years.

In June, as retirement loomed, we spent a week at PAC.

After 30+ years for each of us, we retired from public service in education.

Having purchased a house in Salisbury, Maryland, following retirement, we moved. We took the Auto-Train from Sanford to Virginia and then drove out to the Eastern Shore.

Kate and Sal's secret was revealed, when Dominic, our grandson, was born September 14, 2008.

We sold mother's house in November, though our own has not yet sold. The foreclosures and short-sells have so seriously depressed the Jacksonville housing market that we can't get what our house is worth. We're going to pull the house off of the market until it gets stronger. Hey, where's our bailout?

The hardest part of the year was for Audrey, Tom's Mother. At 85 years of age, she has been losing the effective use of her arms and is increasingly unstable on her feet. In October, she broke her left femur. Audrey now resides at the Atrium, a rehabilitation facility in Jacksonville, and hates it. She is very depressed, and all of our efforts to change her life style have been fruitless. As soon as she is able, we'll move her to an assisted living facility in Salisbury.

December brings the holiday season, along with decorations in Maryland.
Well, that is 2008, approaching Christmas Day. Kate, Sal and Dominic arrived on Christmas Eve for a few days. Merry Christmas to all and may 2009 bring you happiness.

Tom and Lydia