Bye Bye Nate We hardly knew ya

From PNJ

Well this is awkward.

I’m terrible at saying goodbye, especially to a friend. And yet, here I am.

I’ve accepted a reporting position at the Florida Times-Union in Jacksonville, where I’ll cover city government. This is my last column, if not quite my last story.

Like all good friendships, we’ve had some ups and downs, Pensacola and I.

There were the late-night meetings, watching county commissioners and city council members fumble and bumble and bicker.

The angry emails and sniping bloggers. Sour newsroom coffee. The recalcitrant civic leaders and public officials who like to complain we’re not “good community partners” (usually when they find themselves on the wrong end of an unflattering headline).

Cynicism comes easy to a government reporter.

And so, I was tempted to use my last column to poke a few folks that deserve it — a certain thin-skinned sheriff, for starters — and to recount just a few of our myriad municipal embarrassments (I was shocked to remember the YMCA implosion happened only in late March).

But then I started thinking about East Hill, which I’ve been lucky enough to call home, and its stately oaks and shaded streets. And Ozone Pizza Pub and Bayview Park.

Downtown’s beautiful historic district. The University of West Florida’s sprawling, wooded campus.

The best beaches in the country, hands down.

And the most inviting and friendly folks around.

This is a beautiful, frustrating and complicated place, and fortunately, it’s larger than its sorry Panhandle politics.

I hope we’ve been able to shed a little light on the community (especially the Greater Pensacola Chamber), spurred some folks to action and effected some change for the better, however modest it may have been.

Even though I’m headed for Jacksonville and the Times-Union — which has built a reputation for the kind of watchdog reporting I love — I’ll still be rooting for Pensacola.

The Pensacola News Journal still will need your tips, comments and criticism.

Keep them coming.

My friends and colleagues in the newsroom work tremendously hard every day. Here be dragons for anyone thinking of pulling a fast one.

I will miss you all. I hope the sun will always shine bright on Pensacola.

Thanks for reading.

Mr Ichi wrote:From PNJ

Well this is awkward.

I’m terrible at saying goodbye, especially to a friend. And yet, here I am.

I’ve accepted a reporting position at the Florida Times-Union in Jacksonville, where I’ll cover city government. This is my last column, if not quite my last story.

Like all good friendships, we’ve had some ups and downs, Pensacola and I.

There were the late-night meetings, watching county commissioners and city council members fumble and bumble and bicker.

The angry emails and sniping bloggers. Sour newsroom coffee. The recalcitrant civic leaders and public officials who like to complain we’re not “good community partners” (usually when they find themselves on the wrong end of an unflattering headline).

Cynicism comes easy to a government reporter.

And so, I was tempted to use my last column to poke a few folks that deserve it — a certain thin-skinned sheriff, for starters — and to recount just a few of our myriad municipal embarrassments (I was shocked to remember the YMCA implosion happened only in late March).

But then I started thinking about East Hill, which I’ve been lucky enough to call home, and its stately oaks and shaded streets. And Ozone Pizza Pub and Bayview Park.

Downtown’s beautiful historic district. The University of West Florida’s sprawling, wooded campus.

The best beaches in the country, hands down.

And the most inviting and friendly folks around.

This is a beautiful, frustrating and complicated place, and fortunately, it’s larger than its sorry Panhandle politics.

I hope we’ve been able to shed a little light on the community (especially the Greater Pensacola Chamber), spurred some folks to action and effected some change for the better, however modest it may have been.

Even though I’m headed for Jacksonville and the Times-Union — which has built a reputation for the kind of watchdog reporting I love — I’ll still be rooting for Pensacola.

The Pensacola News Journal still will need your tips, comments and criticism.

Keep them coming.

My friends and colleagues in the newsroom work tremendously hard every day. Here be dragons for anyone thinking of pulling a fast one.

I will miss you all. I hope the sun will always shine bright on Pensacola.

Thanks for reading.

Lol......Pensacola doesn't like investigative journalism. Gee, I wonder why?

I'm not familiar with him but I'll watch for him in the Times Union.  Jax has a bunch of problems of its own...he should be busy here.