I'm coming home

[Pete]

Wanted to let everyone know that after 25+ years in Southern California, I am in the process of moving back to my beloved OKC.

I've wanted to do this for a while and the timing was finally right.

In addition to kicking OKCTalk up a notch or two, I am now partnering with Jeff Bezdek to help grow and expand Vox Audio Visual (Vox Public Audio). Vox has landed a bunch of great clients (OU, LIFT, Pump Bar, Lisbon Lofts, and a bunch of high-end smart home projects in SoSA) and we see great potential for growth. More on this later.

I have already rented a place in SoSA Heights and partially moved in when I was in town last week. It's a beautiful renovation with stunning views and I'm excited to be downtown, within walking distance of the Vox offices on Automobile Alley and tons of other great places.



I'm still in California wrapping up the final move and the sale of my house. But I'll be heading to OKC by the end of the month.

Very excited about all this! Looking forward to being much more active in the community and getting to meet many more of you.

[Martin]

congrats! -M

[FighttheGoodFight]

Welcome oklaHOMA. Punny I know.

[AP]

I called it in another thread. Congrats! Excited to have you here full time!

[Pete]

I called it in another thread. Congrats! Excited to have you here full time!

Yeah, been lots of hints in various threads but didn't want to say anything until things were pretty nailed down.

Now, I have about 3 weeks of hell in terms of getting rid of things, closing on my house sale, moving, etc.


It was fun to stay in my new place for 8 days and get the feel of actually living downtown. I walked my arse off and did tons of urban exploring. Everything looks so much different when you are actually living there and walking around.

[David]

Awesome!

[AP]

Looks like you'll be able to join the gunners watch parties at Skinny's now.

[Pete]

Looks like you'll be able to join the gunners watch parties at Skinny's now.

Yep!

Oddly, there have been watch parties here in SoCal for a long time but after going to a couple, it was just too much hassle. Now, I can just ride my bike over.

[Teo9969]

Woo Hoo!!!!!

[shawnw]

This is awesome news. We should have recurring OKCTalk gatherings like retrometro does.

[Jim Kyle]

Great news! I did the same thing back in 1962, leaving Santa Susana (which was still not part of LA) to return. I do still miss driving the old SH118 route home and back on my lunch half-hour through the pass -- but not a whole lot!

[zookeeper]

This is great news! I guess I missed the hints, I knew you had made a nice trip here and posted some great pix, but I didn't see this coming. Welcome Home and best of luck with Jeff in your new (ad)venture!

[baralheia]

Wow, congratulations, and welcome home!

[DoctorTaco]

Congratulations!

[dcsooner]

Big Congratulation Pete!

[gopokes88]

Great! Welcome home!

[shawnw]

p.s. when is the housewarming party?

[Celebrator]

And all seems right with the world, now.

[Bellaboo]

'Bout damn time !

Great news for the board.

[ChaseDweller]

Glad to hear it Pete! Welcome home.

[jerrywall]

Congrats!

[Pete]

p.s. when is the housewarming party?

I'm sure I'll have one.

The way the building is configured, two units share the top level rear deck and two the middle-level deck. My new neighbors and I have already discussed doing some sort of joint party where we let people wander between the places and decks with different offerings at each stop.

Even from the ground level green space in the back, the views of the skyline are stunning.

[dankrutka]

Fantastic news for OKC! I know we compliment you here and there, but you've really raised the profile of civic activities -- and ways to participate -- through OKCTalk. Your expertise, attention to detail, in depth knowledge, and leadership are what distringuish this message board from other online spaces. It's easy for outsiders to complain about negative posts or threads -- and often overgeneralize those posts as representative of the entire site -- but, on the whole, this site does far, far more good than bad.

I don't live in OKC, but because of OKCTalk I often update my friends on civic issues and encourage them to get involved. I have also applied a lot of lessons learned on the site to the city I live in now. I am sure being in OKC in person will only help you continue your great work. Thanks for your work and congrats on your move. Welcome home.

[bradh]

Welcome back Pete!

[Stew]

Quite a get for the OKC area. In your face Tulsa!