NS7X

I had a grand time today working with middle school and high school students. (Good God! Was I ever THAT young?) I was with a group of amateur radio operators who had set up a demonstration for the kids who attended one of Albuquerque's charter schools. Our ham group had everything from talking to the International Space Station, to packet radio, to communicating around the world.

I, of course, was there amongst all the fancy high-tech radio stuff with my good, old-fashioned, low tech, Morse code key. Suffice it to say, I was not the most popular exhibit, but I think I did hold my own. And I met a few incredible kids with a natural knack for CW (Morse code).

Many of the kids had some pretty profound questions and comments. ("Hey, lady, I've been really hungry for a good doughnut lately.") We talked about the history of Morse code, and why it's still used today. ("Hey, lady, I can't remember the last time I ate a good doughnut.") I explained that CW is simply texting that you can hear. ("Hey, lady, I really love a good doughnut.")

The doughnut kid had apparently noticed (smelled?) a box from Dunkin' Doughnuts which had been stored under my table. I had no idea who brought the doughnuts, that is - whose doughnuts they were - so I opted to ignore the doughnut kid, and his not-so-subtle hints.

I taught several of the kids how to send their name in Morse code. Man, they really loved that! ("Hey, lady, I sure could use a doughnut about now.") There was this one young girl, beautiful girl, named Olivia who took to learning the code like a fish learns to swim. She couldn't get enough of it. ("Hey, lady, did you know that there is a box of doughnuts under your table?")

Well, to make a long story short, there were several kids who really seemed to enjoy learning about modern ham radio communications, including Morse code, and one kid who eventually found the owner of the doughnut box under my table and, according to him, got permission to pick out a doughnut, which made that kid very happy.

It was a long day for me, and at the end of the day I packed up my gear anxious to get home and take a nice long nap. But, I had one final encounter with one of the students. "Hey, lady, mind if I give my girlfriend a doughnut?"

For the "Rumors" file:  ("Do you have a rumor about new gear, new regulations, new laws... feel free to post them here!")

I have heard that the FCC has suspended initial license applications on this date (April 26, 2023) indefinitely as a result of questionable VE activity in the testing of new (excluding upgrades) amateur radio license applications.  It is my understanding that an FCC investigation is active at this time.  I have attempted to track this rumor down without success.  Has anyone heard about this?  Does anyone have any information about the veracity of this rumor?  

Happy World Amateur Radio Day! 

This is the 98th anniversary of the establishment of the IARU! 

Saturday marked the first anniversary of the day my OM, Bob, died.  It was an anniversary I was dreading.  Yet, so many things seemed to come together this last week as if that awful first anniversary was in itself a nexus.  For example,  I got word that my beloved husband's tombstone had been completed and was ready to be installed.  Saturday, the 81 st anniversary of the Fall of Bataan was commemorated here in Albuquerque - an event that Bob was an integral part of the planning of.  And I don't know why, but I chose this week to finally report to the FCC that Bob was a silent key.  Suffice it to say that it's been a tough week.

I noticed today that QRZ.com lists Bob as a silent key.  So I guess it's a done deal, and his call will now be up for grabs.  He loved his call dearly, and was awfully proud of it.  And, yes, it was a vanity call.

You see, Bob was a big fan of Buddy Holly.  As far as Bob was concerned, the day Buddy was killed in that tragic plane crash in Iowa was truly "the day the music died."  

When Bob upgraded from tech to general, he began looking for a new call.  When he learned that the callsign K5PSG was available he jumped on it, and got it!  You see, K5PSG was originally the call of Peggy Sue Gerron (PSG)who was not just a ham, but was the girlfriend of one of the Crickets - Buddy Holly's band.  Not only that but she was THE "Peggy Sue" made famous by the Buddy Holly song.  So, suffice it to say, Bob not only loved being a ham, but he also loved his unique tribute to the great Buddy Holly.

Here's to Peggy Sue, and Bob Cornett - both of them made the call K5PSG pretty darn cool.

 

My harmonic and his XYL just had their harmonic yesterday (Feb.12th).  Guess you could say the baby is my second harmonic - although she is my third grandchild. 

It's a happy, happy day!

It's been a mere 16,438 days.  Or, if you prefer, 540 months.  Over that time, my heart has beaten approximately 2,012,011,200 times.  We'll just call it an even 45 years plus one day since I opened an envelope from Gettysburg, PA which contained my novice amateur radio license.  About 2,400 heart beats later (that would be approximately 20 minutes later (my adrenaline was running high, as was my heart rate)), I was engaged in my very first QSO.  It was on 15 meters, and my first contact was with WB1FSB. 

Being as how this was my first QSO made it pretty darn cool.  What made it cooler was that WB1FSB (Marian Anderson) was another YL!  But what made it even cooler was that WB1FSB's QTH was Newington, CT - the home of Hiram Percy Maxim!  And even cooler that that, WB1FSB worked at W1AW, the ARRL headquarters!

I like to think I got a "red carpet" welcome to ham radio.  And things only got better from there. 

It's been a fun 45 years.  Yet, I think the best is yet to come.  

Hello, Hiro!  It's very nice to meet you!
Please pardon my pathetic Japanese but:

Domo arigato gozaimasu

K5PSG is a silent key.  His name was Bob.  He was not only a ham, but he was also my OM - the love of my life, my better half, my soul mate, my bestest friend ever.  

He and his writing partner, Kevin Randle, authored over 40 novels.  Some were science fiction, many of them a series about the Vietnam War.  Even though the Vietnam books were originally published in the 1980's, they are still available and are being re-read by old fans and are being discovered by a whole new generation of readers.  And that is pretty darn cool.  

He and I first met decades ago when we were both paramedics.  I guess you could say we drove fast and pushed drugs together.  We were partners both as paramedics, and then as husband and wife.  For some years, we were never separated.  We worked for a county wide ambulance service, and then, when we finished our shift, we'd be "on call" for the volunteer rescue squad for our small town.  Those were the days we learned to trust and respect each other completely.  We relied on each others' strengths, and took up the slack when it came to each others' weaknesses.  We made one helluva team.  Which we continued when we became EMS instructors and taught others how to work our craft.

Luckily for me, when we first met, one of the things that attracted him to me was the fact that I was an extra class ham.  You see, he had been enthralled with amateur radio since his Boy Scout days but had never found the time, or the opportunity, to get a license.  Had I not been a ham, I probably wouldn't have appeared on his radar at all.  It took a while (you know how life, the universe, and other things get in the way), but he did eventually did get his tech, and then his general.  It turns out, he was the ideal ham-mate for me.  He trusted my judgement in all things radio ("Bob, I think we really do need to get this HF radio...")

Bob left this life with a huge legacy.  Through his creativity, tenacity, and strength of character, his small corner of the world is a better place for having known him.  My heart is broken, but I find comfort in knowing that, as a writer, he told the stories which needed to be told.  As a paramedic, he saved lives.  As an EMS instructor, he taught others to save lives.  As a ham, he understood the frustrations and limitations prospective hams must overcome, and he was the first in line to offer encouragement, assistance, a loan of equipment, or just some sage advice.

K5PSG is a silent key.  For me, that silence is deafening.

 
 

For American hams, effective April 19th the FCC will begin collecting a $35 application fee for Amateur Radio licenses.

https://www.arrl.org/fcc-application-fee

Hi, Wesley!  And welcome to Ham Community!

Anybody planning on participating in the CQ World Wide WPX contest this weekend? 

https://cqwpx.com/

Hi, Barry, and welcome to Ham Community!

Hi, Jim ---

Welcome to Ham Community!  Hope you enjoy this site as much as I do!

73,
MaryAnn, NS7X