All of you who know Buddy need no introduction to the following. For the rest of you, Mr. E.T. (Buddy) Preston is, to say the least, "unique". Buddy joined Zytron by selling his COM service brueau in Austin to Zytron and staying on as the "Branch Manager". Through many promotions and transfers, Buddy endeared himself to all coworkers dedicated to hard work, integrity and "having fun". As an example, because Buddy likes to cook (BBQ, smoke, etc.), listen to good music (blues, R&R, etc.), and the company of good friends, he is constantly looking for an excuse to throw a party. One such excuse happened in May of 1997 on "Derby Weekend". As a coincidence, this particular weekend is the anniversary of Buddy's reunion with "Buckwheet", his Paso Fino, boarded in Texas until Buddy could provide for him on the acerage he bought in Alpheretta. The following is just an example of the hospitality you can find at any time, should you be so blessed to visit Buddy at his home.

The "PARTY" actually started a couple of day's earlier with all of the cutting and marinating. We start with the early arrivals, offering "supervisory skills" to Buddy (far right) in his final preparations of Buddy's patented brisket.

Because Buddy's parties are world-renound, Mr. Bill ("The Monk") Neale, among others, found it hard to find a parking space. (No valet parking, but plenty of supervisors!)

Other early-arrivals took it upon themselves to console Buckwheat as he was banned from the "main party areas". (He's a terrible dancer, and can't hold up his end of a conversation!)

Check the flower bed (foreground) closely. Mr. Dan (Crawdaddy) Crawford provided us with a reminder of Buddy's "Roots".

While many enjoyed "swinging" to the live band Buddy provided ...

... others "chilled" (any way they could) in Buddy's game room, complete with pool table ...

... but most of us just enjoyed the good company of our mutual friends in the Atlanta springtime shade.

Like many of us, Buddy has gone on to other challenges. The latest update (12/27/99) is somewhat bitter-sweet. Developers have made Buddy an offer on this little spread in Alpheretta that he could not refuse. Buckwheat has already returned to Austin. In the mean time, Buddy will be leaving Alpheretta on1/20/00 and hanging out "South of the Border" for a couple of months. Returning to Austin at the end of March (2000) and then he will decide what to do next. ... Stay tuned for further developments!