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02-17-2024 - It's Saturday and that means contests will be scattered about the Amateur (ham) Radio bands. I'm not sure how much time I'll spend wading through contests to find some Parks on the Air® stations to work. I know, there's not much difference between the typical contest and a POTA operation, but I just don't do the contest thing. Speaking of contests, I hear a Japanese station on 40 meters CW (Morse code) looking for action!

02-17-2024 - NWS forecast - Today: Mostly sunny, with a high near 42. North wind 10 to 16 mph, with gusts as high as 23 mph. Tonight: Mostly cloudy, then gradually becoming clear, with a low around 27. North wind 5 to 9 mph becoming light and variable.

02-17-2024 - Good Morning! Since it's 6:30 AM and my Folgers Black Silk coffee is ready. That reminds me; if you're in line at Starbucks at Kemp & Kell in Wichita Falls, leave now and drive across the street to Frank & Joe's Coffee in Parker Square. You can go to Starbucks tomorrow! On the schedule today is a trip to the 8th & Austin location of the Farmers Market to replenish my supply of Salsa from The Salsa Guy.

02-16-2024 - The afternoon/evening was spent watching "Einstein and the Bomb" on Netflix and "Oppenheimer" on Peacock. Einstein was a short and enjoyable 75 minutes. Oppenheimer was a long, detailed, serious, educational, and enjoyable 3 hours. Oppenheimer is not a movie I would watch twice, but I'm glad I watched it once.

02-16-2024 - I made contact with W0SK in Gooch Wildlife Management Area (US-3940) in Tennessee on 20 meters (14 MHz) CW (Morse code) with the Parks on the Air® program.

02-16-2024 - I made contact with K2JVB in Valley Stream State Park (US-2153) in New York on 20 meters (14 MHz) CW (Morse code) with the Parks on the Air® program.

02-16-2024 - There are many opportunities throughout the year in the Wichita Falls area to take the Amateur (ham) Radio license test. There's no need to drive to Dallas - like I did - to take the test. The Morse code requirement was eliminated in 2007 so you don't have to worry about that, either. All you need is a study guide and two or three weeks of evenings to study, and you've got it made!

02-16-2024 - There are over 7,300 state and national parks in the United States and I've worked 37 of them so far. All but the first one, in 2022, have been on CW (Morse code). That first park was on 20-meters (14 MHz) voice (SSB or single sideband) according to my POTA hunter log, but I don't think I made that contact. I think someone entered my call sign in error. My hunter log is populated for me by the stations in the parks. Anyway, with over 7,300 parks to go I have my work cut out for me. Since I only work one of two a day, the projected finish time is way beyond my life expectancy. So, I'll just have fun until "that" time.

02-16-2024 - NWS forecast - Today: Partly sunny, with a high near 54. South southwest wind 9 to 14 mph becoming north 17 to 22 mph in the morning. Winds could gust as high as 31 mph. Tonight: Mostly cloudy, then gradually becoming clear, with a low around 30. North northeast wind 13 to 17 mph, with gusts as high as 24 mph.

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02-16-2024 - It's Friday, and my Folgers Black Silk coffee is ready. What more could I ask for? Some of you might say "Starbucks." I say imagine the sound of a "wrong answer" buzzer. Seriously, I'm sure Starbucks is fantastic stuff. I'll just never find out. It's a game I'm playing. I'm taking a break from the group on 1947 kHz for a while. At 5:30 AM the Allred Unit is busy on 153.815 MHz. I just caught the tail-end of an unknown incident. Not to worry, though. There will be many more Allred incidents revealed by my trusty scanner radio!

02-15-2024 - At an agency that shall remain un-named, someone had a stuck microphone. The dispatcher said "Someone has an open mic. Please check your mics." Guess what? That person can't hear you! If the stuck-mic person was around other radio users, that would work but they would already be checking their mics.

02-15-2024 - I made contact with KE5AKL in Valles Caldera Preserve National Conservation Area (US-0678) in New Mexico on 20 meters (14 MHz) CW (Morse code) in the Amateur (ham) Radio Parks on the Air® program.

02-15-2024 - At the Multi-Purpose Events Center tonight, it's Leanne Morgan: Just Getting Started. Then, on the 16th & 17th, it's Leanne Morgan: Just Getting Started and the Hot Tub & Swim Spa Blowout Expo. I guess Leanne will be staying at our fantastic Delta Hotel and Convention Center.

02-15-2024 - It's 6:20 AM and shift change is in progress at the James V. Allred Unit. Listen to Allred action on your scanner radio at 153.815 MHz.

02-15-2024 - International Space Station over Wichita Falls - Time: Fri Feb 16 6:01 AM, Visible: 5 min, Max Height: 73°, Appears: 24° above SW, Disappears: 10° above NE. Listen on 145.800 & 437.800 MHz for possible Amateur (ham) Radio communications.

02-15-2024 - At 8 AM, I heard, then I saw, three Robinson helicopters fly overhead on the way to Sheppard AFB/Wichita Falls Regional Airport. They were coming from the northwest. I wasn't scanning any "air band" frequencies at the time, so I don't have any more information. UPDATE: At about 1:45 PM, the Robinsons departed town to the southwest.

02-15-2024 - NWS Forecast - Today: Mostly sunny, with a high near 68. West northwest wind 5 to 9 mph becoming east northeast in the afternoon. Tonight: Mostly cloudy, with a low around 50. East wind 5 to 9 mph becoming south southwest after midnight.

02-15-2024 - Good Morning! No coffee for me this morning because of yearly lab work later. Some "experts" say coffee has little or no effect. Some say otherwise. Why take a chance? I'll have plenty of time for coffee later. I've noticed an increase in early-morning radio traffic from a nearby school on 151.940 MHz. Some students take a while to settle down, causing increased teacher interaction.

02-14-2024 - I was listening to the James V. Allred Unit on the scanner radio (153.815 MHz) when I thought I heard someone say "QSL" in response to a question or instruction. I'm hoping such a travesty did not happen. More monitoring is required.