Where Did He Go?

Thought for the day:  The more we learn about the people around the world, the smaller and friendlier the world becomes.

[THEME: Amateur radio]

I like UZBEKISTAN.

Can't say that I knew much about it before I got into amateur radio, but my experiences on the air have taught me more about world geography than I ever learned in school.

But my reasons for liking Uzbekistan in particular?

 Story time.



My husband and I often operated on the air at the same time. Not that big a deal, really. He'd be on one side of the room,  I'd be on the other, and we simply didn't operate on the same part of the radio spectrum at the same time.

But we DID use antennas that were mounted on the same tower.

HIS tower. Matter of fact, HIS antennas, too.

So, one day, I was at my station operating 20 meters, (great for worldwide contacts) and my hubby was on the other side of the room at his station operating 6 meters. (AKA "the magic band" because of its unpredictable behavior) I was chatting with a gentleman in Uzbekistan, and copying down his information, when all of a sudden, the signal disappeared. Just, BOOM! Now ya hear him, now ya don't.

You see, even though we were using two different antennas, they were both controlled by a single rotator. Which my husband happened to rotate. So, he was able to tune in the station he was chasing, but I lost mine.

But it was HIS tower. HIS antennas. HIS rotator.

So I was outta luck. Not happy about it, but I couldn't very well complain. (Did I mention it was HIS tower?)

AHEM...

This is MY tower, and MY antennas, which my sweet husband put up soon after that incident.








                                  So, yes ...  I'm rather fond of good ol' Uzbekistan.

Lighting an Educational Fire

Thought for the day:  Enthusiasm is even more contagious than influenza.

[THEME: Amateur radio]

Have you ever had an instructor who was so good ... so bubbling with enthusiasm about the subject matter ... that you enjoyed that course and learned far more than you ever expected? Maybe so much so that the class actually influenced what you ended up pursuing as a career?

If you're a teacher ...  have you ever been so enthusiastic about a subject you were teaching that your enthusiasm spilled over and infected your students? Inspired them to want to learn more?

The TEACHERS INSTITUTE is designed to instill just that kind of enthusiasm, both in teachers and their students. Specifically, it is about teaching wireless technology, and about providing teachers from elementary to university level with the tools they need to excite students about things like basic electronics, radio, space technology, satellite communications, weather sciences, microprocessors, and basic robotics.

This intense four-day seminar is sponsored by the American Radio Relay League, our national association for amateur radio, and thanks to grants, most participant expenses are covered ... transportation, hotel, and a modest per diem for food ... PLUS teachers take home a wealth of materials and books.

Think this program might benefit you or a teacher you know? This year's seminars will be held in California and Connecticut, and the deadline for application is May 15. Go to the ARRL's website and if you do a website search on teachers institute 2012, you'll find all the nitty gritty details.

Here's a short video showing the robots teachers put together during one of these seminars:

Sounds to me like those teachers were having FUN!

[I've been having a blast with our friends since last Friday, and will be back to the ol' grindstone computer tomorrow. And depending on how far behind I am on responding to comments, I may catch up by 2013. But hey! Don't let that stop you! I LOVE your comments, and will get back to you asap.]

Well, Isn't That Special?

Thought for the day: Absolute zero is really cool.

[THEME: Amateur radio]

There are lots of cool things about amateur radio. Today, we're gonna talk about one that encompasses a wide range of possibilities: SPECIAL EVENT STATIONS.


By now, it should be no secret that we amateur radio operators enjoy making on-the-air contacts with other amateurs. We also enjoy running or making contacts with specifically designated special event stations, which operate for a limited period of time in conjunction with a particular event, location, person, historical happening, anniversary, or a whole slew of other things. Like the Olympics, the Super Bowl, and the World Series. Groups wishing to put one of these stations on the air can apply for a special callsign, too, which is issued for use during  a designated period of no more than two weeks at a clip.

What kinds of excuses reasons do we use to support a special event? All kinds of stuff. The only thing that limits us is our imagination. Some of the certificates I have for working special event stations include things like

• operations from numerous museum ships
• various anniversaries of military battles and disasters
• to mark the first flight of the F-22
• from Kennedy Space Center in conjunction with a launch
• from Calaveras County in honor of the famous jumping frog
• Nude Awareness Celebrations (Now, they were some funny conversations!)
• operations from numerous lighthouses

Matter of fact, my husband and I joined a group of other Atlanta hams to operate a special event station multiple times from one of South Georgia's lighthouses.

Yup, that's me with the mike. Not sure who the fella is NOT operating. Probably one of the locals. It took us crazy Atlanta folks to get the Tybee Island lighthouse on the air for the first time. The locals know August is too bloody hot for outdoors operations, so mostly some of them stopped in for an early morning visit before retreating to the air conditioning. We went down there for several years, though, and had a blast.

And that's the QSL card we used one year. We issued both cards and certificates. See?

                            Special.







Interested in reading more about one of my all-time favorite Special Event Stations? WW2LST was the call sign used by am amazing team of grizzly veterans who went to Greece, worked their buns off to make an old WWII LST seaworthy, and then brought her back to the U.S. Those guys are REALLY special.

[My hubby and I are catching up with old friends this weekend, so as you're reading this, I'm nowhere near my computer. (Thank goodness for auto-posting!) So I won't be visiting your blogs for a while. Sorry. But I always love the super duper comments you guys and gals always leave here, and promise I'll respond to every one of them asap. Happy weekend, y'all!]