Yup, yup - thats me, ole John, right there in the middle. Grimy stubble, sock feet, bib overalls - just the way you are all accustomed to seeing me. The scene of the grime is out in my back yard where we played Field Day one terribly hot weekend in June, 2000. Wondering if I am ever going to give them a chance to operate are old pals Steve K4SWE (left) and Gary AA4DO.
I was born (over a three day period in 1949 according to my Mother) and raised in Old Hickory, Tennessee, a 'company town' which was in effect a wholly-owned property of the DuPont Company. Life was good, and the typical 50s/60s small-town opportunities were there for the asking. Mowing lawns, delivering newspapers and working behind the soda fountain of the local drug store all helped to support my new-found hobby, 'ham' radio. Old Hickory was (and remains) a small town, and there is no recounting how many QSL cards I received that were addressed simply to "John, Old Hickory, Tennessee".
Little did I know that the set-up I had in the 1960s, would be one of the most satisfying I would ever own. The rig was a Hammarlund HQ-180 (one of the finest receivers that could be purchased in those days), and a Heathkit DX-20 that would not light a 25-watt lightbulb. It was, however, quite a versatile little transmitter, put out signals on several frequencies at the same time - and I got the paperwork to prove it!
For the first year after my 1967 graduation from high school, I accomplished nothing other than to fill my college transcript with a succession of Ds and Fs. I absolutely, positively hated school. Thus, is a fit of less-than-brilliant planning, I waited until Mom and Dad went on vacation, and then ran downtown and joined the U.S. Air Force. Keep in mind that this is 1968. TET offensive and all that. Cool move. But, hey, it got me out of school, right? Wrong! Two days before the end of basic training, the Air Force assigned me to go back to school at Syracuse University. One year, eight hours a day, five days a week, nothing but Russian language and grammar. My parents were as delighted as I was mortified. More school, except that I could not walk away from this one without being branded A.W.O.L.
After service in Berlin and Turkey, I rotated out of the Air Force on June 9, 1972, and married Patricia on June 11, 1972. (It was a busy weekend!) Enrolled at the University of Tennessee on June 12, 1972 (don't need no danged honeymoon!), and graduated with a degree in psychology (minor in Russian) in June of 1974. Started law school two days later, and received the Doctor of Jurisprudence degree in 1976. Yes, I was in a hurry. And I still didn't like school.
Except for my stint in the service of the nation, I have remained actively engaged in ham radio for almost 40 years now. I had a station up and running within a few weeks after returning stateside, and have had antennas at every apartment, high-rise dormitory and house that Patsy and I have occupied for the last 28 years.
I consider myself fortunate to have been involved in a hobby that I can enjoy just as much today as I did in junior high school. I am frequently involved in DX Hoggery and have over 330 DXCC countries confirmed. Now however, as a gentleman of some years (and now proudly signing W4SK), my abiding satisfaction with hamming comes from the use of CW, which I consider to be as much an artform as a means of communicating. Like most CW afficianados, I am highly partial to the wonderful machines produced by TEN-TEC (Tennessee born and bred, like me).
Speaking of wonderful machines (such as the TEN-TECs), another hobby that Patsy and I enjoy together is motorcycling. I've been riding one kind of scooter or another since 1962. Trips in recent years include Milwaukee, Green Bay, Duluth, Galveston, Asheville, Ft. Worth, Daytona, Key West, Kansas City, New Orleans, Rockingham, Springfield and DuQoin. There are some pics from the New Orleans stint on here somewhere, as well as our recent Upper Mississippi Loop.
We are blessed with two wonderful children who are doing quite well, despite all the wrong moves their Mother and I have made. Andy is Director of Admissions at Nashville's Baptist and St. Thomas Hospitals, and Amanda Kay is a Registered Nurse working in Oncology at Vanderbilt University Hospital in Nashville.
My 31-year private practice of law was largely devoted to general litigation and work in the field of child custody. After serving some 16 years as Municipal Judge in my hometown, I am now the County's Family Court Judge, hearing a variety of divorce, custody, paternity, probate and criminal matters.
So... this is my web page, presented with great pride, for the amusement and edification of my fellow hams, dear family and kind friends. Other visitors are welcome as well - just be careful and don't track mud in on Patsy's carpet! Please check back for updates from time to time. 73 - John W4SK (ex-NI4M, WA4BTK, WN4BVS)
CHECK IT OUT!  Doing The Trace - Me and Patsy! Intimate details! Nekkid Photos!
 This is my very good friend Greg K4KO operating as W4DIT on Field Day 2005. Greg was set up on his back porch with an Elecraft K1 (battery powered) and a low dipole. He is using a "Sip and Puff" keying device. Although medical restrictions limited him to only a few hours of operation Greg did great and had an enjoyable FD. Go Greg, Go!
You Really Ought To: Let me know that you've been here and what you think of this mess! MY GUESTBOOK
Sorry, due to childish malicious updates the guestbook has been removed.
 W4SK
Holy Smokes! I've had |
Pictures of my shack! 
At left we see a young, skinny, hirsute WN4BVS (my original callsign), circa 1965, in Old Hickory, Tennessee. The shack was set in the old 'servants quarters' attached to the free-standing garage, which the DuPont Company built into approximately 1 percent of the homes it constructed in 1919-1923. By 1965, the majority of the 'high ranking' company officers, for whom these houses were built, had long since moved to new subdivisions in Hendersonville. So when Mom and Dad bought this place, their first owned-home, I inherited the servant's room in the garage. Absolutely perfect for late-night radioing forays, as there were no sounds to awaken those persons who did not necessarily share my views about the beautiful sounds made by Morse code.
The photo shows me, as NI4M (my call until recently) operating a TEN-TEC Century 22 (Lord, I wish I still had that rig!) from a camper trailer circa 1988. We got the trailer as a family project, to take the kids outdoors. I would then lock the kids outdoors, while I stayed in the camper and operated CW. Of course. Say, where'd the hair go? (Recently found and acquired another Century 22. It has aged much more gracefully than I have.)