Happy Birthday to Bailey!

Happy Birthday Bailey! Little Miss Bailey Albrant from Ketchikan, Alaska turned two years old yesterday. Photo is from Bill's website.

She's getting more adorable everyday, and we're sure she had a nice day with her Mom, Dad and sister Bristol. Big birthday kisses from Grandma and Grandpa!

Don't you just love that smile?

Thanksgiving in Fallbrook...

Pictured above are Mikey, Matthew and Robbin at Thanksgiving dinner hosted by Carrie Ann and Kelly in Fallbrook yesterday. In the other photo, Carrie Ann, Robbin, son-in-law Chris and grandson Kristopher take time out to pose for a picture.

BBQ turkey with all the trimmings, plus all kinds of pre-dinner treats and deserts, made for a wonderful evening.

We are very thankful to Carrie and Kelly for being such great hosts!

"Elmers"...

Jerry Skaife, W7ULC

"Elmers"...

"Elmer" is a ham radio term for people who help others become "hams" with their knowledge and experience. Pictured above is Jerry, W7ULC, one of my Elmers. Here are some of the "Elmers" in my life:

W7FXZ (sk) - "Charlie". A janitor by trade, he educated dozens of high school kids on ham radio, including me.

W7ULC (sk) - Jerry worked more DX with "finesse" than he did with high power.

N6AW - Jan is the ultimate contester and antenna guru. An inspiration on what can be done.

W7AZK (sk) - Gave me my first transmitter -- an ARC-5 -- and was my first qso. A lesson on giving to others was learned.

Wally & Marcy - The nicest people I've ever worked for. They showed me I wasn't too old to learn new tricks.

My Family - Last and certainly not least, I learn everyday from my family, including my children. And especially my wife Robbin, who has literally been the "better half" for nearly 30 years!

Chloe Goes Trick or Treating...

Last night granddaughter Chloe came up for Halloween in the neighborhood. She had loads of fun collecting goodies. This was her first time Trick or Treating!

She's pictured above with daddy Kelly after a particularly good treat.

Chloe and her mom Carrie Ann spent the evening with us and had pancakes for breakfast.

Click on the picture for a larger image.

DX Contest Award...

Today I received a nice award from the 2007 CQWW CW Contest. This award was for the Single Operator, Low Power category on 20 meters. I was the #1 station in California.

With my small station set-up, I don't win many awards these days!

Hamming From Fallbrook...

Last night (Saturday, Oct. 18) xyl Robbin and I spent the night at our daughter's home, Carrie Ann, in Fallbrook.

This gave me an opportunity to test out my portable, battery operated station. Made contacts with Washington, Utah, California, Canada and and JA1NUT, located in Japan, on 40m cw. Equipment consisted of a 1970's era Heathkit HW-8 transceiver running 4 watts into a Hamstick mobile whip antenna. Power was a small gel-cell battery and solar panel.

Four watts of power is about the same as a night light!

The antenna can barely be seen in the picture below. It's about 6 feet tall on a tripod. You can click on the pictures for a larger view.

Night time in the backyard...

No special reason for this posting, other than I just thought this shot of our backyard at night was kinda neat with the lights shining on the trees.