Google is responsible for me finally getting a ham ticket. A bump on my news feed was tickling my fancy about this new programmable radio. I decided to buy it, a Beofeng BF-F8HP. Once it arrived, I discovered it to be a ham radio, requiring a license to use legally. I have had a citizens band for most of my adult life. The notion of moving on to ham appealed to me but I never mustered the motivation. With a new radio in hand and time provided by covid-19, I embarked on a venture to get my ham license. I am 67 years old, at the time of this writing, and haven't had to take a test in decades. I have to say it's an enjoyable experience. Learning is good! I have a technicians and upgraded to a general. I am currently working on my extra. I confess to being the proverbial appliance with a ticket. I doubt I will ever rank as an Elmer - but I will try to do my best to listen and learn!

I live in a confusing little town called Westmont, which is part of Haddon Township. The post office insists that I'm in Haddonfield, so please don't send anything to Westmont, they get very upset about that. We are located about seven miles from Philadelphia, Pa. and about 95 miles from New York City. It's a very densely populated area. I don't have issues with a HOA but the town does restrict how I can put up antennas - stealth is best. My house is a one story rancher so getting antenna height is an issue. I do have some fairly tall trees that I've been utilizing for a dipole. I love the idea of being able to build an antenna and get it working. I use an Ultimax 100 Multi-band EFHW and am loving it
I have a Yaesu FT-991 as well as the BF-F8HP. I have a Yaesu FTM-400XDR for the car. I've been kit building too. I have a few QRP-Labs, a QDX and an Ultimate 3S. I built a uBitx V6 - it works! I am very interested in QRP, POTA, cw and the likes. I love all things geek. I have two volt meters, one digital one analog, and three soldering irons... That should give you a general idea. Every day my collection grows. I am a computer tech, I speak Microsoft, Mac, nix and android. Raspberry Pi is awesome, I use them wherever I can.
My xyl had something called a non-survivable grade 5 subarachnoid hemorrhage in 2013. With the help of God and amazing doctors, she survived and is actually recovering miraculously. I am her 24/7/365 caregiver. This creates a widely varied availability to be on the bands and a limitation on how much time I can afford to the art of amateur radio. I look forward to rag chewing with you soon.
73 Bob KD2UG