Ham Radios

Several months ago, my sister, Kelly, was approached by our church and they asked her to get her ham radio license so she could communicate with others during emergencies. Her community has a whole system of people and they regularly do emergency communications to get ready in case there is an actual emergency. She passed her test, and was so excited. She has a great support group to help her in her new hobby.

A few months ago, we had a situation with Allen, and we saw that there was really nothing in his life that he was really excited about. He didn't have anything to look forward to. As we talked through things, I found that he loved going to visit Kelly, and helping her to take care of all of her animals. I called to arrange to have him come and help her out for a few weeks. We discussed many details, and then came up with some tentative dates for him to go and stay with her.

Not long after we got off the phone, she called me back. Allen has always loved video games, and electronics. She asked me if I thought he would enjoy learning about ham radios. Since his birthday was coming up, he received his ham radio book, and a promise of a payment for when he actually took the test. He also got a ham radio.

I decided that as long as we had the book, and the radio, I was going to get my license also. I started studying, and I have to tell you, it was not easy. There were several sections that I had to have hubby explain to me. He actually got out his college textbooks, and showed me pictures to explain the different ideas and formulas that I needed to learn. I was very worried about Allen. I was concerned that the concepts would be much too difficult for him. He is really smart, and he actually understands the scientific concepts much better than I do. He also loves to rub that in.

I started listening in on the radio on a local repeater. (A repeater helps people reach further than they can with their little radios. It is kind of like a chat room. Many people use it, and you can listen in on their conversations.) One Wednesday, I was listening, and I heard some scouts working on getting their ham radio merit badge. They called out to find people who were listening (in "ham" language we call this "calling CQ") and there were a few different people who responded. One of the responders was a woman who explained her story. She was an 85 year old widow. Just before her husband died, he bought an RV. After he died, when life got tough, or when she would get depressed, she would hop in the RV, and take off. She wouldn't tell anyone, she would just leave. Her son was very concerned, and so he made her get her ham license so he could contact her when she disappeared. Another responder told his story. He had received his license just a few months before the big earthquake in San Francisco. He was not involved in the emergency efforts, but he saw how ham radio operators did help out. He is now very involved in emergency operations in our local cities, and he helps to train people. I had so much fun listening in, and I couldn't wait until I could talk with others as well.

The tests for licensing are only offered on certain days of the month. I finished studying for my test, and still had two weeks to wait before the next available testing date in my county. I was very impatient, so I got online, and I found a test that was about an hour away. I drove the hour, took the test, and passed. I had to wait 4 days to get my call sign, but I am finally official.

The first time I actually got on the air and spoke to others was scary, and thrilling. I talked to several people, and I am really enjoying it. Allen has been able to get on and talk to other hams (there are actually several young hams in the area) and he is really enjoying it. Hopefully it will inspire him to get to work and get his license. Hubby is also planning on getting his license.

Continuing the Yard Work

I'm almost afraid to post this blog. Last year I posted a blog about beginning yard work. We had had some issues with our yard, and so we decided to kill off our entire lawn, and begin again.

The blog entry marked our first real attempt to do anything with our yard. We ran into so many stumbling blocks, that very soon after that blog entry, all work on the yard stopped. I ended up looking at my ugly yard out my window for yet another year. My kids have not had a back yard to play in for two years now. Whenever they want to play outside, they never can because it is always covered in mud and dog poop.

Well this year we are really starting to move on the yard. I started by cleaning all of the dog poop out of the yard- Yuck!! That is definitely my worst spring cleaning chore. Then I raked all of the leaves that we had not raked last year. Under all of that, I found the piles of compost that we had taken back last year. I raked all of the compost out. My sister-in-law came over and helped me dig up the bushes in our backyard, and one of the rosebushes in the front yard, and get them into the dumpster. And then we had a delivery.

I called the equestrian park, and they delivered an enormous dump truck load of manure. This picture does not even come close to showing how enormous this pile of poop was (or how bad it smelled). I spent a couple of days wheelbarrowing (not a word, but you get the idea) the stuff all around the yard. My neighbors loved me!!

Every year for Christmas, we give homemade gifts, or gifts of service as our family gifts. This last year, we were lucky enough to have my brother and sister-in-law draw our names. For our present, they gave us a calendar and told us to mark the days that we needed them to come and help us with our yard. They have an enormous yard, and they have put a lot of time and money into gardening. They brought their new tiller over, and my brother tilled in all that nourishing junk we had put on our dirt. Hopefully we will have the healthiest lawn on the block!!

When we first moved into our house, my niece tried to climb our back fence, and one of the main supports snapped in two. We finally bought the wood to replace it last year, and it sat by the side of our house all winter long. The mess beside the wood is our new antenna that will hopefully be put up in the next few weeks.

Today, we finally fixed the fence. Here is my incredibly hot hubby working hard to put the main support in.

And here is my handiwork in progress. Our neighbors had Rottweilers, and they would jump against the fence regularly. They finally just nailed particleboard along all the fences. When the new owners moved in and took down the particleboard, it left gaping holes in our fence. I had to put up the new fence boards. The new boards were thinner than the old boards, so I had to put pieces of wood on the backs to make sure the new boards were flush with the old ones. I am not handy, but I was pretty pleased with the results when I finished.

We still have a little work to do on the fence, but we need to get into the neighbors yard to finish. Hopefully that will happen this week, and then the plan is to stain the fence next weekend. The weekend after that we plan to put in our sprinkler system, and then we get to level the ground and plant our yard. I am so excited. It is finally all coming together. I have all my little plants growing in pots, waiting to be put into my new garden.

Caucus

Last night, I went to a caucus meeting for the first time. I have joined the fight for a few different bills, and I received some e-mails encouraging me to become a delegate so that my voice can be heard in the upcoming election. I really had never considered myself to be very politically active. I really try to vote, and I try to make educated decisions when I do. I try to pick candidates that have the same value system that I do, and I try to pick people who will take the country in the direction I am comfortable with. Most of the time I end up picking "the lesser of two evils."

Last night, as I went to the caucus meeting, the school where the meeting was held was very packed! The District chairwoman who was conducting the meeting let us know that they had been told to plan for 150 to 200 people. The auditorium we were sitting in could seat 600, and it was standing room only in there. It was really a neat experience once we made it through the crowds.

One of the items of business last night was reading the Republican Statement for our area. It was amazing. I realized that I have given up on a lot of the ideals that I have for our country because I believe that they are impossible. When the statement was read last night, I realized that I was in a room filled with people who had the same concerns and goals for our country that I have, and they are willing to fight for them. There were many times during the reading when the people in the room broke out in spontaneous applause. I am really glad I went.

Last time I went to vote, I remember looking at the ballot, and wondering who on earth said these particular men were the ones to be on the ballot. Now I know. I was elected (by the 10 people who showed up from my precinct) to be one of the county delegates. We elected two county, and two state delegates. I am excited to be a part of this process, and to learn more about my state's legislature as I help choose whose name will go on the ballot.

Pi Day- 3/14

Our Pi Day Pictures.