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Post by dgriffin on Sept 26, 2008 17:56:32 GMT -5
I understand about the floozies and people not listening. It's just that I think I took her sister out a few years ago. Hoo Wah! I think K4LV helped me out one of the days at the Erie Canal Village during their Civil War Reenactment this year. I see him now and then. Are you doing the Diabetes Walk tomorrow morning? We're working through the NH Police Dept (Lt. O'neill) and I believe the new club, CNYARA, has set it up. 8:00am at the NH town park. Ask for Kelly. Look for me. Expect a handshake (but I won't buy you Scotch n' Soda that early. KC2GQR Kit, I've only worked the BM so far. Just this past year. But I plan to do it again in 2009. I'm a distant member of UARC, if it's still called that. I've got my card around here, somewhere. I'm about 45 miles south of Albany in the Catskills, about 130 miles from Utica on the Thruway. K4LV was my elmer when the two of us were in high school. He's a year older than me, ancient. When I got my novice ticket (wv2snb) in 1960, he could give me the code test, but my Mom had to give me the written test, because it had to be administered by a person 21 or older. The code person had to be a ham, the written test giver didn't. I more often come up to fish the West Canada's trophy section.
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Post by kit on Sept 28, 2008 9:03:07 GMT -5
Dave, Got your Novice in 1960 sounds like my line. I was WV2PLN (Poor Little Novice). The license was only good for a year back then. I pounded a lot of brass, then got my draft notice. Joined the Navy Reserve. After a car accident, I got out and went into music full time for a while and wasn't very interested in ham radio for all those years until 2000. Somewhere along the way I got married, had 3 beautiful daughters, tried to make a living, then got my Technician (KC2GQR) met Rich and am very active with ham helping people fwith walks, runs, bike rides, the Shrine Circus, Erie Canal Village, etc. We did the "Step Out for Diabetes" in the NH Town Park yesterday morning (in the rain of course) for the NH Police Dept. You may know Tony Paolozzi (KB2BEJ) originally from Utica but now somewhere in the Albany area. He comes back once in a while to help out.
As the Boilermaker gets nearer next year let me know and maybe we can get together (perhaps with Rich) for a long chat. Kit
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Post by kit on Sept 28, 2008 9:13:11 GMT -5
First. I'm doon okay for an old fart.
Second. "The Frogg." SCUBA diving came first. Equipment came next. It lookes so silly and weird, the dance was a natural. Everybody couldn't do the dance unless you told people how to do it so I wrote the lyrics explaining the dance. You never know... it could have caught on like the Hand Jive, The Stroll, etc. and I'd be a millionaire like Eric Thorngren (I remember when he'd just had his teeth ground down and capped, but that's another story)
Busy weekend. Have lots to do and I’m trying to make a living (bwahahaha!)
You say you haven’t met Kim yet? She’s a sweetie indeed but I wish she’d do something about those couple of big brown moles she has on her chin. The ones with the little black hairs sticking out of them. And she could stand to lose a few pounds. At 235 lbs. she weighs in a touch on the heavy side, and I won’t even mention the missing leg. Thank God her next door neighbor, you know, the good looking one, has loaned her some pictures to use. But other than that, she’s very lovable. Same with Mary. Now Dan? Well Dan’s another story altogether as well. I’m sure Kim would agree. (Of course I’m going to pay for this... dearly!)
I think I’ve met Jim’s sister. Is she the one whose son Kenn is an actor (at least he was)? I know the last name but don’t want to use it here. I saw Jim back when he was working at the jewelry store in Georgia. Surprised the ‘you know what’ out of him, too. It had been many years since I’d seen him. Too bad about his hearing. But drummers can expect deafness. I’m a drummer and play in a couple of concert bands here in the Utica area and most of the time I wear ear plugs. It gets a bit noisy in the back.
Not sure when you were in the Utica area last, but it’s changed somewhat. A little bit here and a little bit there we don’t notice so much. But when someone has been away for a while then comes back, they really notice it. It’s like our children. They’re little kids, then you turn around a few times and like magic they’re all grown up with either pimples or a significant other and kids of their own. Where did life go? (There! That’s my philosophical schtick for the day)
As I mentioned to Kim, being I’m still not sure how to work ths website very well, there are a few things I don’t know how to do. She assured me I’d eventually get the hang of it, and since she’s smarter than I am, she’s probably right.
FSSSHHH! (That was just me getting out of here)
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Post by Clipper on Sept 28, 2008 9:15:04 GMT -5
I have a rather silly question. I have seen the ham operators during the boilermaker, but never paid much attention. What purpose do you guys serve? Do you report progress to a central point at the finish line and track the race as it progresses? Are you there for emergency communications? I know that when I walked in the cancer walk at Proctor once when I worked at the OD, there was hams there also. I never made any connection, or had any reason to wonder what their function was until now. I was always going to try and get a license, but never found the time over the years.
I always connected Ham operators with emergency communications when there was disaster and telephones and other means of communicating were down. I remember a guy that worked for me at the base went to Watertown for a while, and worked mobile for the big ice storm a few years ago. the base had closed, and he was working for a trucking company west of Syracuse at the time. He took a week of his own vacation time to volunteer. I think he was at the Walmart in Watertown, and had several other operators working with him to provide emergency sustanance items to those in need, such as the elderly and the sick. I remember him speaking of arranging generators for folks with oxygen accumulators and other electrical medical equipment.
I was driving a truck out of the Walmart DC in Marcy at the time. I made one trip up there with Honda generators. We were escorted by the state police and the national guard. We had chains on both the tractor and the trailer, and there was ice several inches thick on I-81. We traveled at about 15-20 miles and hour and slower from just North of Pulaski to the Watertown store. I will never in my life forget the devastation. We actually loaded our trailers coming back with returns from the store. There was a problem with some of the generators and they had to be replaced on warranty and returned to Honda. Hell of time to discover a problem with the fuel lines vapor locking when run for a long period of time in the cold weather.
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Post by dgriffin on Sept 28, 2008 11:34:07 GMT -5
Well, giving the Boilermaker as an example, what hams do is called "health and welfare" traffic. It's the non-emergency stuff (usually) and it relieves the traffic on the emergency frequencies ... police, fire, rescue, ambulance. Lost kids and adults, runner's down or leaving the race, broadcast of timings, etc. When I saw a BM runner leave the race near my post, I got their number and called it in, because each runner was kept track of so that someone didn't fall over in a ditch and get lost. Or feel sickly, walk to their car and be in worse trouble. When real emergencies occur, you'd be surprised how quickly the telephone systems get clogged. A friend who worked for the telephone company once told me that only 10 % of telephone customers can pick up their phones at the same time and expect to get a dial tone, and that's without lines down. Cell phone systems are worse, some say much worse. Hams stay in practice to pass both emergency and non emergency communications by participating in nets and drills. Our civil emergency unit down here meets on the air every week for this purpose. Field Day weekends get us outside on emergency power and living conditions. About 15 years ago, I spent a weekend in a pup tent with battery operated radios up on the side of Overlook Mountain in the September VHF Contest. More at: .http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amateur_radio_emergency_communications
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Post by Clipper on Sept 28, 2008 11:42:39 GMT -5
Wow, thanks for the explanation Dave. I knew that they served a useful purose, and just never really stopped to think or ask what that purpose was. Thanks for providing the services that amateur radio folks provide in time of need.
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Post by dgriffin on Sept 28, 2008 13:38:48 GMT -5
I'm not that much involved anymore in civil emergencies and such. My hat goes off to Kit, who is much more active on the emergency side of the hobby.
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Post by kim on Sept 28, 2008 14:01:07 GMT -5
Ok, Kit, yeah...I will get you for that. You wont' know when, but rest assured...it's coming! ;-)
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Post by dan on Sept 28, 2008 14:07:28 GMT -5
Ok, Kit, yeah...I will get you for that. You wont' know when, but rest assured...it's coming! ;-)
(This is Kim, taking over the role formerly occupied by Bobbbiez......)
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Post by kim on Sept 28, 2008 14:10:45 GMT -5
;D
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Post by Clipper on Sept 28, 2008 14:14:17 GMT -5
Only temporarily Dan. Bobbbiez will be back shortly. Keep that titanium cup handy.
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Post by dan on Sept 28, 2008 15:17:31 GMT -5
Red Wings/Rangers, together again!!!!!!!!!
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Post by Clipper on Sept 28, 2008 15:23:00 GMT -5
when does that season start again?
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Post by dan on Sept 28, 2008 17:45:47 GMT -5
They're already playing exhibition games. Dunno the exact start date.
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Post by Ralph on Sept 29, 2008 1:04:12 GMT -5
Welcome Kit!!!
Wow....talk about a small world. I have known Tony (WB2BEJ) for what seems to be a lifetime.......wait.....it is!!!!
I was on the CB years ago and went by the handle The Warden. I ran into Tony a few years ago at a Citizen Corps conference down in Albany. I never did get my ticket, but managed to stay in the volunteer sector for a considerable amount of time.
Glad to have you aboard!
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