Slipstream - June 2020

Coffee, Cars & Conversation
by Bill Kruder
photos provided by author
So needless to say, I talk to a lot
of people. Debi says I’ve never met
a stranger; the kids think I could be
Mayor. So I don’t always recall where
we first met, so I had to ask. Well of
course it was around cars. Matter of
fact we first met at the Classic BMW
C&C in Plano. Apparently I was
walking through the Porsche aisle, as
he was, and we connected to say hi.
As he remembers it, I didn’t have my
car there; I had driven our BMW for
“service” that day, which was code
for “you get to get there late and
park behind the service drive.” As
they say, be nice to those valet guys
and they will be nice to you. So
apparently we chat up about our
cars and he’s all in, having just
joined the club, and with that, our
friendship has grown.
So here is my first virtual zoom
interview and the next in my
series of “conversations” I would
like to share with you:
Peter Wen, member since 2016
Owner, 2011 Turbo S Cab
Bill Kruder: So where are you from?
Peter Wen: I was actually born
and raised in Taipei, Taiwan, and
didn’t move here until I was 14.
BK: And I understand there is a
story about why you moved here
when you were 14?
PW: Well kind of. I’m the number
five kid, and youngest, in my
family, as a matter of fact by like
some 20-25 years. In Taiwan it is felt
that if you have an American college
education you can get a better job.
So my dad decided that, better yet, if
you go to high school AND college,
you could really do well.
BK: So he just sent you here as a
14-year-old?
PW: (Laughing) Kind of, but I had three
older sisters here already, so it wasn’t
like I was going to be living alone in LA.
20 May
BK: So you move to LA at 14 but you
end up in Rochester, NY?
PW: Exactly. That’s kind of funny in
hindsight now. So when I got to LA I
didn’t speak much English if any, so
all the kids I started to hang around
with were Chinese. Well my dad
found out and he quickly told me
that he didn’t send me to America
to hang out with Chinese kids
(laughing). So about six months later
my dad had me move to Rochester,
New York, actually Pittsford, NY.
It’s a small town about 6-7 miles
southeast of Rochester, where I had
another sister living.
BK: So you went to high school there,
and what about college?
PW: For college I didn’t stray too far. I
attended University of Buffalo (State
University of New York) which is
only about 75-90 minutes east.
BK: What’s your degree in?
PW: My undergrad is Electrical
Engineering and my Masters is in
Mechanical Engineering.
BK: Once you had your degree did
you ever go back home to work?
PW: No, as a matter of fact I didn’t
leave the area. My first job out of
college was with NYNEX. I worked
on the telephone network for
residential and business customers. I
did that for about 3-½ years.
BK: I know you finally moved and
spent a good amount of years in
Detroit?
PW: I did, or I should say, we did, as
it was Kristen’s job that took us to
Detroit. She was promoted by GM.
She’s an Industrial Engineer and we
moved for her job, so I was the
trailing spouse. That’s when I
started with Ameritech, which
was SBC, and which is now
AT&T.
BK: So how did you get here to
DFW?
PW: Well after about 13 years in
Detroit I was offered a promotion
with what is now AT&T in
Dallas, so at that point Kristen
became the trailing spouse. As
luck would have it, GM allowed
her to continue working from
home, so in a way, that made it
kind of easy. So on July 4, 2013
we found ourselves living in
Frisco.
BK: Fair to say you and Kristen
come from far different places -
how did you meet?
PW: That’s an understatement
(laughing). Here I traveled some
8,000 miles to get there and she
really never had left Buffalo.
However, we met our junior year in
college. It was summer school and
we both were taking some random
math class. So, I see her and I ask her
to go for wings (yes, Buffalo wings).
She says “no.” Later I find out she’s
a vegetarian (laughing). Then I ask
her for ice cream and she says “no.”