Interim Short Wave Radio Report

Hello, Everyone: 
Below is an update on the Shortwave Radio Project which will serve as my report 
should the ongoing status of projects be placed on the agenda for this month's 
meeting. It's easier doing it this way than having people type it out for me, and 
not so time-consuming. I know your fingers will thank me, Prez! 

Packet Radio: I did not get to the meeting of our radio club's packet section. 
this was partly because we weren't really prepared, since I didn't know if my 
husband was going to go bowling this year, and Tuesday would have been his bowling 
night. V and I have no idea how to get there ourselves, and even if we did, the 
transport in this city is totally abysmal, and what is a 20-minute journey by car 
could be a two-hour nightmare by bus. The other reason we did not get there is 
because that was the day of the tragedy in the States, and we were all so upset 
that we did nothing. Gary did not even go bowling and we couldn't bring ourselves 
to go to the packet meeting. I don't think this is all as bad as it sounds,
because I have looked at my club's web page, and it appears they are looking for a 
leader, someone to set up the packet experiment, so I don't know how far they have 
really gotten. Next month, however, we are going to get to that, and also the 
meeting of the emergency preparation section of the club, which meeting always 
takes place on the third Monday of each month. I have no idea how much good any 
of this will do me, but will plug along, making other arrangements if all else 
fails. the good news, from my point of view, is that Gary has decided not to go 
bowling this year, so I will be able to get to all the meetings. 

Radio Contact: Here again, Jan and I have to report failure. We picked our 
frequency and I tried calling Jan, but we could get no contact whatsoever. During 
a subsequent phone conversation, it was agreed by both of us that one of us - and 
it will probably have to be Jan--must get an international tower, and more 
equipment suitable for sending and receiving over long distances. Until this 
happens, it seems that communication between us is impossible. I know that Europe 
can be reached from my location, and that my location can be reached from some 
European countries; but it appears that our respective positions in the world 
prevent this from happening for Jan and myself right now. We both have good 
radios, though, and are sure that a tower will help in this regard. We did manage 
to converse by phone, however, which was wonderful. I always feel good when I can 
communicate verbally with one of our group. 

Although it looks like the project so far is a failure, I want you all to keep in 
mind that there is a bright side. With all the training that we are planning to 
undertake re emergency radio preparation, packet radio communication, etc., by the 
time all of this falls into place, and by the time others have their licences, our 
radio network will be set to go, and we won't be fumbling in the dark, so to 
speak. I wouldn't in any case say the project has failed; it is just experiencing 
some minor setbacks right now. We are disappointed, of course, that we can't 
communicate; but we also know that one day, in the not-too-distant future, it is 
going to happen. 

Best regards, 
Shirley