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12-10-2023 - Good Morning! It's 0530 hours, coffee time, and I'm listening to a local group of Amateur (ham) Radio operators on 1947 kHz. That's just above the AM broadcast radio band. You'll need an Amateur (ham) Radio rig or a shortwave radio to tune that frequency. Also, efficient antennas are quite large or long for that band. The antenna I'm using is too short for that band but I'm able to hear these guys because they're fairly close, or they're running a lot of power.

12-09-2023 - Why in Wichita Falls, and other cities, do you have to "pull" a permit do do certain types of construction work? Did we have to pull a Driver License? Yes, folks, Texas has a Driver License, not a Driver's License. I don't remember having to pull an Amateur Radio license. Nor did I have to pull a commercial pilot certificate. This "pull" thing sounds like it was created by someone who never made it past the 5th grade.

12-09-2023 - The latest rumor is that MFJ Enterprises, owned by Martin F. Jue, is up for sale. Quoting Wikipedia: "MFJ Enterprises, founded in 1972 by Martin F. Jue, is a manufacturer of a broad range of products for the amateur radio market. They specialize in station accessories, such as antenna tuners and antenna switching equipment. MFJ now manufactures more amateur radio products than any other company in the world." MFJ also owns Ameritron HF Amplifiers, Hy-Gain Antennas and Rotators, Mirage VHF/UHF Amplifiers, Vectronics, and Cushcraft Amateur Antennas. The fact that the company was founded in 1972 tells me that Martin has earned the right to retire!

12-09-2023 - From the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission - Sourceone Ventures Recalls Windsor Queen Xtrabed™ Due to Injury and Tip Over Hazards; Sold Exclusively at Wayfair - Name of Product: Windsor Queen Xtrabed Mobile Murphy Beds - Hazard: The outer case or cabinet on the front, or smaller side, of the Xtrabed can break and fall when opening the bed from the front, posing an injury hazard. Further, the Xtrabed can tip over if not anchored to the wall, posing tip-over and entrapment hazards. Remedy: Refund Repair Recall Date: December 07, 2023 Units: About 12,000 (275 were sold in Canada)

12-09-2023 - I hear a local entity - I won't identify them - using 4-digit unit ID numbers. I can state with certainty that they don't have 1,000 units. That being the case, why complicate things? I'm sure 2-digit IDs would get the job done. The Allred Unit used to have a similar problem before they came to their senses.

12-09-2023 - I think the hunters are out hunting on 151.820 MHz again. This is a frequency in the license-free, Multi-Use Radio Service. Tune in with your scanner.

12-09-2023 - News reports say burglars raided the home of Keanu Reeves. The big question is, "Did they kill his dog?"

12-09-2023 - From my law enforcement consultant - No one answered the door, so he took this as an "all clear" to do his thing. That thing was to first use an industrial-size screwdriver to pry open a window on the side of the house. He was doing just that when he, mid-pry, heard a loud noise, felt a "shooting" pain in his arm, and fell to the ground, screwdriver still sticking out of the window frame. The 80-year-old woman inside felt no need to answer the door, no need to let the man enter her home through a window, no need to be the one seen on the evening news being loaded into an ambulance or coroner's van, and no need to not send a .38 caliber bullet through the window. Mr. Scewdriver made his way to the hospital where he was arrested. The "res gestae" statement "I'm not going to do any more burglarizing" gave the case a boost.

12-09-2023 - Good Morning! The Air Evac Lifeteam Helicopter flew over the house at about 0610 this morning. I could have tuned in to 159.900 MHz to see what it was all about, but I wasn't going to get out of bed to do so. As I work on my first cup of coffee I'm reminded of the time several decades ago when I heard a rhythmic "pop pop pop" sound in the shack (radio room). I located the source and it was the end of a coaxial cable leading to an unused antenna on my tower. The spark was jumping from the center pin of the PL 259 connector to the collar. There was a steady, high wind outside. Was this a hint that I needed to improve my grounding system?

12-08-2023 - Let it be known and let it be written that the condition of 10th Street, between Scott Avenue and Indiana Avenue in downtown Wichita Falls, is a crime against humanity and front-end alignment.

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12-08-2023 - From the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission - Primark Recalls Baby Rattles Due to Risk of Choking and Ingestion Hazards - Name of Product: “Wooden Music Shaker” and “DTR M&M Maracas” Baby Rattles Hazard: The bottom portion of the recalled baby rattles can detach, posing choking and/or ingestion hazards. Remedy: Refund Recall Date: December 07, 2023 Units: About 1,380

12-08-2023 - From the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission - XpressGoods Recalls High-Powered Magnetic Balls Due to Ingestion Hazard; Failure to Meet Federal Safety Regulation for Toy Magnet Sets - Name of Product: Colorful Metal Neodymium Magic Magnetic Balls - 8 color, 5mm Hazard: CPSC testing determined the magnetic ball sets do not comply with the requirements of the mandatory federal toy regulation because they contain one or more magnets that fit within CPSC’s small parts cylinder and the magnets are stronger than permitted. When high-powered magnets are swallowed, the ingested magnets can attract each other, or another metal object, and become lodged in the digestive system. This can result in perforations, twisting and/or blockage of the intestines, infection, blood poisoning and death. Remedy: Refund Recall Date: December 07, 2023 Units: About 728

12-08-2023 - From the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics - Total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 199,000 in November, and the unemployment rate edged down to 3.7 percent, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Job gains occurred in health care and government. Employment also increased in manufacturing, reflecting the return of workers from a strike. Employment in retail trade declined.

12-08-2023 - Good Morning! It's coffee time again. Yesterday, on a new walking route, I found a great spot in a small city park for a radio operation/picnic. The park has a covered picnic area and BBQ grill, but this spot is 100 yards away under a big shade tree. I'll keep you posted should anything develop. John Lennon was murdered on this date in 1980.

12-07-2023 - Back in the 1980s, a local Amateur (ham) Radio operator, and his wife, owned a liquor store located at Southwest Parkway and Fairway. Between customers, they could play on the radio if they were so inclined. I don't know when that operation started or ended, but it's gone now.

12-07-2023 - From my corrections consultant - The James V. Allred Unit has been quite busy on the radio (153.815 MHz) the last few days. With the Allred Unit having a larger population (3,700 +- offenders) than many Texas Cities, you can expect that there will be a variety of issues to contend with daily. Tune in to daily operations with your scanner.

12-07-2023 - I was thinking back to my Icom IC 25A, my first Amateur (ham) Radio VHF transceiver. I put it in the car, slapped on a mag-mount mobile antenna, set the power to its full 25-watt output, and I was ready for business. I had no mentor back then. I had no one to tell me that 5 watts into any local repeater would have been sufficient. I had no idea what my SWR might be. I had an SWR meter for HF but not one for VHF. I guess I put my trust in the antenna manufacturer. No smoke ever came out of the radio. I sometimes think about the things I would do differently if I had it to do all over again. I discovered local Amateur Radio repeater activity by putting my Bearcat 220 scanner on "band scan". I never heard any simplex (direct) activity, but I was using only an inside antenna. If I went back in time, I'm sure I would have become a "simplex only" operator. In some spots in Wichita Falls you can see from one side of town to the other. Operators with antennas just 20 feet off the ground should be able to communicate with each other no matter where they are located in town. This is one reason I think Wichita Falls is perfect for the Multi-Use Radio Service That's my opinion, anyway.

12-07-2023 - Good Morning! It's coffee time as well as Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day. I've got a fireplace video going on the big screen TV and Morse code on the radio. Both are relaxing.