My Very First QSO

[NS7X]

Nervous?  Boy!  Was I nervous!  I had had my ticket for all of ten minutes when I answered a CQ using a very shaky fist on my straight key.  And when I heard my call being sent back to me, it took all the courage I had to stay put and not run screaming out of the room.  Fortunately for me, the station I had contacted, WB1FSB, was kind and patient, and acted as if we were engaged in a typical novice QSO.  Which we were, after all.  And when I figured that out, I got my breathing under control, and actually began to enjoy myself.

That's when things got fun!  You see, it turns out that WB1FSB, Marian was another YL!  What are the odds?  Especially 40 some odd years ago! 

Then the QSO got really cool!  Marian's QTH was Newington, CT.  Yes, that Newington, CT.  The home of Hiram Percy Maxim, WIAW himself.  You see, Marian worked for the ARRL.  When I met her on the air, she was putting on the finishing touches of the ARRL Antenna Anthology, a book she was editng. 

It's true.  Most first QSO's are pretty memorable.  But I like to think mine was especially so.
 

[K3MRI]

OMG, such a lovely memory. And yes, what are the odds?