Issue 88 — JULY 2000
Monthly Newsletter of the Southern Oregon Amateur Radio Club
SOARC, P.O. BOX 1164, GRANTS PASS, OREGON 97528
VISIT THE SOARC WEBSITE AT: http://www.qsl.net/soar/SOARC/
EDITOR: MIKE WRIGHT, N7GEI, 432 GRANDVIEW AVE., G. P., OR 97527
PHONE: 541-471-0440 E-MAIL:
The President's Corner
It's July? right!?! Wow! This is getting scary! I have a list of things to do and it is getting bigger instead of smaller. I hope all of you are having a good summer. We have had lots of ham radio lately--Field Day, some ARES activity and lots of antenna building. The July meeting will be filled with updates and some good stuff about antennae. I will be looking forward to having an eyeball with you then.
CUL, Jim, WA6OTP
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2000 SOARC Officers and Board
| President: Jim McNutt, WA6OTP, 479-5630 |
Vice President: Bill Tyner, WX7U, 476-2703 |
| Secretary: Sean Smithers, N7ZWU, 476-7964 |
Treasurer: Ann Randall, KB7TGO 476-2456 |
| Board of Directors: | |
| Mike Wright, N7GEI, 471-0440 |
Will Calvert, N7KS, 660-2193 |
| Elmer Seutter, W6IGK, 955-5240 |
Cy Potts, W7MQL, 471-0522 |
| Gary Ingram, KB7FCI, 474-7974 |
Gary Williams, KC7TYQ, 479-4313 |
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Welcome From Your Editor
This has been a memorable week! My first grandson, Brendan Michael Baker, was born at 8:30 AM, July 8th, at Providence Medford Medical Center. Brendan weighed seven pounds and 11 ounces and was 20 and a half inches long. The proud parents are Wendy (Wright) and Mike Baker of Medford. Many of you will remember my son-in-law's parents, Clarence and Laura Baker, now residing in Medford. Clarence was the principal of GPHS when the kids were in high school and later served as superintendent of the Central Point School District before retiring from education a few years ago. You WILL be seeing some pictures, of course.
Another big event! My wife decided we didn't need two guest bedrooms, so she has permitted me to convert one of them into a combination office/computer room/radio shack! She and I have spent most of this week moving furniture, running a new telephone line, assembling a new computer desk, etc., to make the necessary changes. It's great to have everything in one place to play!
We had another great crowd at the last meeting! We have been averaging 50 attendees each month this year! We added three new members and had several visitors at last month's meeting. Please remain alert to new members and visitors and make them feel welcome to our merry band.
If you have anything to submit for publication in the Gnus, see the contact information below the masthead.
73, Mike, N7GEI
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NEXT CLUB MEETING
TUESDAY, 18 JULY
1900
SENIOR CENTER
3RD & B STREETS
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Coming Attractions
The July SOARC meeting will feature an overview of last Field Day's operation. This is your chance to voice your opinion of what you would like to see happen at next year's Field Day. It's never too early to start planning for the next one.
Also, we will have more show-and-tells featuring antenna projects. These have been a great source of ideas for all of us.
73, Cy, W7MQL
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Calling All Ladies
Western Belles is a women's ham radio chat group that meets at 7:30 PM on the 1st and 3rd Thursdays of every month on the 147.300 repeater. Please check in!
The ladies will be getting together for a luncheon at 11:30 AM on August 5th at the Royal Barge Thai Cuisine Restaurant, 120 SW H Street, Grants Pass. All female hams are invited to attend.
73, Wilma, W1LMA, and Anita, KC7MGH
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Rebuilt Battery Packs
Interstate Batteries, 116 SE M Street, Grants Pass, telephone 476-0703, will rebuild radio battery packs. I had them rebuild a handheld and a scanner battery pack and they charged about what you would pay for a new one, except without the postage and handling charges. Also, if you have a problem with anything they've done, you can deal with them face-to-face, instead of over the phone and by mail.
73, Jim McEwan, KC7JJF
(Editor's note: Is anyone aware of others in the area that do similar work? Let us know what your experience has been with battery pack rebuilding.)
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CLASSIFIED ADS
FOR SALE--ICOM 2M HT, about eight years old, AC & DC chargers, extra battery, case, and instruction manual. $100.00. Chirp Johnson, N7ZWV, 479-1332.
WANTED--Factory or after-market .25 kHz eight-pole crystal-lattice filter for a Drake R-4C. Bill Tyner, WX7U, 476-2703, styner@budget.net.
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Morse Demise
It makes me unhappy, sad enough to cry,
To see a wonderful hobby just up and die.
The joy it created by letting people meet,
Those that you would never otherwise greet.
Speaking to strangers in those far-off lands,
In a tongue created by just using your hands.
It's a skill that can give a sort of inner joy,
That can be done by all, be they girl or boy.
No uniforms to buy, or ever leaving your home,
No costs are involved, far cheaper than a phone.
Sneakers are not needed, you can be thin or fat.
Best of all, no need for a glove, ball, or bat.
Folks spend vast sums in learning a new skill,
Where monthly they'll end up paying a new bill.
Mostly they will do it to impress their friends,
Cause being like others is one of today's trends.
I know the reason that the hobby is disappearing,
The problem that our government has been fearing.
It's really sad, but easy and simple to explain,
The literacy rate has been going down the drain.
It could be blamed upon the tube or the schools,
That are creating a nation of asses and fools.
Because the three R's have now become a mystery,
It's almost impossible to learn to use a cw key.
And so another hobby passes away into the past,
And obviously gladly, for few wanted it to last.
Who today remembers Samuel Morse or even Marconi,
For today's students it's just a bunch of baloney.
Things will always change with the passage of time,
And much is seen as stupid which once was sublime.
The one-time romantic pony express and the magic key,
Have faded from our memory, and now are just history.
Ried, W2HU
(Submitted by Gary Ingram, KB7FCI)
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Bumper Stickers
- He who laughs last, thinks slowest.
- Everyone has a photographic memory. Some don't have film.
- A day without sunshine is like, well, night.
- On the other hand, you have different fingers.
- Change is inevitable, except from a vending machine.
- I just got lost in thought. It was unfamiliar territory.
- When the chips are down, the buffalo is empty.
- Seen it all, done it all, can't remember most of it.
- Those who live by the sword get shot by those who don't.
- I feel like I'm diagonally parked in a parallel universe.
- He's not dead, he's electroencephalographically challenged.
- You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say will be misquoted, then used against you.
- I wonder how much deeper the ocean would be without sponges.
- Honk if you love peace and quiet.
- Despite the cost of living, have you noticed how it remains so popular?
- Nothing is foolproof to a sufficiently talented fool.
- It is hard to understand how a cemetery raised its burial cost and blamed it on the cost of living.
- Just remember, if the world didn't suck, we'd all fall off.
- The 50-50-90 rule: Anytime you have a 50-50 chance of getting something right, there's a 90% probability you'll get it wrong.
- It is said that if you line up all the cars in the world end to end, someone would be stupid enough to try and pass them.
- You can't have everything, where would you put it?
- Latest survey shows that 3 out of 4 people make up 75% of the world's population.
- The things that come to those that wait may be the things left by those who got there first.
- A fine is a tax for doing wrong. A tax is a fine for doing well.
- It was recently discovered that research causes cancer in rats.
- Everybody lies, but it doesn't matter since nobody listens.
- I wished the buck stopped here, as I could use a few.
- I started out with nothing, and I still have most of it.
- Light travels faster than sound. This is why some people appear bright until you hear them speak
(Submitted by Bill Tyner, WX7U)
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If I Had My Life To Live Over
By Erma Bombeck
(Written after she found out she was dying from cancer.)
I would have gone to bed when I was sick instead of pretending the earth would go into a holding pattern if I weren't there for the day.
I would have burned the pink candle, sculpted like a rose, before it melted in storage.
I would have talked less and listened more.
I would have invited friends over to dinner even if the carpet was stained or the sofa faded.
I would have eaten the popcorn in the 'good' living room and worried much less about the dirt when someone wanted to light a fire in the fireplace.
I would have taken the time to listen to my grandfather ramble about his youth.
I would never have insisted the car windows be rolled up on a summer day because my hair had just been teased and sprayed.
I would have sat on the lawn with my children and not worried about grass stains.
I would have cried and laughed less while watching television and more while watching life.
I would never have bought anything just because it was practical, wouldn't show soil, or was guaranteed to last a lifetime.
Instead of wishing away nine months of pregnancy, I would have cherished every moment, and realized that the wonderment growing inside me was the only chance in life to assist God in a miracle.
When my kids kissed me impetuously, I would never have said, "Later. Now go get washed up for dinner".
There would have been more "I love yous; more "I'm sorrys".
But mostly, given another shot at life, I would seize every minute, look at it, and really see it, live it, and never give it back.
Stop sweating the small stuff. Don't worry about who doesn't like you, who has more, or who's doing what. Instead, let's cherish the relationships we have with those who do love us.
Let's think about what God HAS blessed us with. And what we are doing each day to promote ourselves mentally, physically, emotionally, as well as spiritually. Life is too short to let it pass you by.
We only have one shot at this, and then it's gone.
I hope you have a blessed day.
May serenity dwell where you do!
(Submitted by Gary Ingram, KB7FCI)
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