The Monitor

The club held it's annual Christmas party again this year at the Knights of Columbus Hall on Dec.19^th. There were 17 members in attendance along with some spouses rounding out the 26 people who sat down to a great dinner. The Hall staff certainly knows how to fill you up as the food was served "country-style". After eating, we were treated to some music by a 5-piece band. Some of our club members were playing and singing in the band! After singing a few Christmas songs, we were in the spirit for Santa's visit. Santa didn't show up on cue as he was detained a few minutes as you can imagine the pressures on his time at this time of year. Rumour has it that he got confused on the new part of Gretzky Parkway in the north end of town. In any event, Santa appeared and everyone went home with a little gift and a full tummy.
Thanks again to Paul VE3IUA for making the arrangements.

Late in December, the AO-40 satellite (formally known as Phase 3D) went silent and stunned AMSAT and the Amateur community. It is hoped that this loss of communication is just a temporary situation.

The recovery efforts of AO-40 continue, mainly centered around housekeeping tasks designed to improve and stabilize the systems onboard the satellite. In addition, new software routines were successfully loaded that restored all Battery Charge Regulator functions and have resulted in a positive power budget with happy batteries. The command team is also pleased to report that the AO-40 Flight Software is now completely re-loaded.

The good news is that the spacecraft is now fully under control. During the next several days additional software will be loaded and the various uplinks will be verified before a command is sent to turn on the 2-meter again.

This item held over until next issue.

Jean, NV: BioRem Area 3 ARC, AL7LS, 1400Z Jan 27 to 0200Z Jan 29, commemorating of the completion of Salt Lake City to Los Angeles Railroad in 1905. 3.990 7.290 7.091 14.103. Certificate. Bruce Rossi, 2127 Sierra Stone Lane, Las Vegas, NV 89119.

San Diego, CA: Challenger Middle School ARC, KI6YG, 1430 to 2400Z Jan 28, commemorating the 14th anniversary of the space shuttle Challenger tragedy. 14.250 21.350 28.350 146.52. QSL. Challenger Middle School ARC, 10810 Parkdale Ave, San Diego, CA 92126.

Punxsutawney, PA: Punxsutawney Area Amateur Radio Club, K3HWJ, 1400-2100Z Feb 3, for the Groundhog Day special event. Lower end of 40- and 20-meter phone bands. Certificate. Sham, W3QOS, PO Box 20, Big Run, PA 15715.

Saranac Lake, NY: Tri-Lakes Amateur Radio Club, W2TLR, 1500-2100Z Feb 3, 4, 10 and 11, celebrating nation's oldest (103rd) winter carnival and ice palace. 7.250 14.257 21.312 28.473. Certificate. Tri-lakes Amateur Radio Club, PO Box 95, Saranac Lake, NY 12983.

Brainerd, MN: Brainerd Area Amateur Radio Club (BAARC), W0UJ, 1500-2300Z Feb 10, during the Mid-Minnesota Sled Dog Race. 28.450 21.350 14.250 50.125. Certificate. BAARC, PO Box 801, Brainerd, MN 56401.

http://ariss.gsfc.nasa.gov/

This is the official site of ARISS. The objectives of having Amateur radio present on the space station are the following:
1. SERVE as an educational outreach tool,
2. BE an outreach to the amateur radio community and the general public,
3. ALLOW a method for crews to maintain contact with family and friends while on orbit (to improve crew psychological factors),
4. PROVIDE an experimental communications test bed,
5. OFFER a back up communications link for emergencies, and
6. PROVIDE public information to the grass-roots public.
At this site, the visitor can read any ARISS press releases and articles relating to ARISS in the media. The minutes of the meetings conducted by the Board are also available for viewing. A photo gallery showing photos of the space station and the Amateur radio gear aboard it can also be viewed. There is an overview of operating information such as callsigns, frequencies, and schedules, etc. If you are interested in this part of our hobby, this is certainly a good place to start.

North America CW QSO Party – 1800z 13 Jan to 0600z 14 Jan.
ARRL January VHF Sweepstakes – 1900z 20 Jan to 0400z 22 Jan.
School Club Roundup – 1300z 12 Feb to 0100z 17 Feb.

Hams in Alabama faced the deadliest tornado in the U.S. this year. Eleven people died and 50 were injured when a powerful F-4 twister slammed into Tuscaloosa December 16th.
The storm saw hams helping rescue victims from mangled wreckage and provided vital communications.
Many of the dead were killed when the storm plowed through a trailer park. Tuscaloosa's 146-point-82 MHz repeater was full of emergency traffic throughout the afternoon and evening. Amateurs worked closely with emergency management officials to help coordinate much of the rescue effort.
After the tornado threat ended, Tuscaloosa hams handled a new task of providing long hours of disaster relief communications. They had to do it amid plunging temperatures with wind chills dropping to below zero.

via Newsline

Suffering recently from bronchitis and pneumonia, Jim Stewart, KK7VL, a homesteader in a secluded area near Bettas Pass, Washington, used his 2-meter hand-held to summon help. Stewart called his friend, Jim Flint, W7TXU, on the Kittitas County Repeater Association's repeater, advising him of his worsening condition and requesting assistance. Flint, a member of the Kittitas County Search and Rescue team, enlisted the help of Deputy Sheriff Robb Lipp. But, snowdrifts prevented them from reaching Stewart's home. A snowmobiler passing by took the rescuers to Stewart's house. Lipp then used his GPS and radio to guide a rescue helicopter to the scene, and Stewart was airlifted to a hospital in Yakima. "Many of our present rescue team members
are already hams," said Flint, "and as a result of this rescue being reported on local radio, several people have called and asked to join our team, and to learn more about Amateur Radio."--The Daily Record (Ellensburg, Washington)

via arrlletter

Did you participate? Every year at the end of December, RAC sponsors this contest. It's a busy time of the month for most people, but I was able to work the contest from my home QTH on Friday night for a while. On Saturday, I had to visit some family in Midland for a few days. My brother Ken VE3ELA was there with his QRP rig so we were able to operate as a multi-op for the balance of the contest. We didn't break any records but it was fun just to participate.
Richard VE3RLX

Big Event 23. Niagara Peninsula ARC fleamarket on February 3rd at the CAW Hall, St. Catharines.
4th Annual Spring Fleamarket. Sponsored by the Burlington ARC on February 17th at the Burlington Legion Hall.

A business was looking for office help. They put a sign in the window, stating the following:
A dog trotted up to the window, saw the sign and went inside. He looked at the receptionist and
wagged his tail, then walked over to the sign, looked at it and whined a bit.

Getting the idea, the receptionist got the office manager. The office manager looked at the dog
and was surprised, to say the least. However, the dog looked determined, so he led him into the
office. Inside, the dog jumped up on a chair and stared at the manager. The manager said "I can't
hire you. The sign says you have to be able to type."

The dog jumped down, went to the typewriter and proceeded to type out a perfect letter. He took
out the page and trotted over to the manager and gave it to him, then jumped back up on the
chair. The manager was stunned, but then told the dog, "The sign also says you have to be good
with a computer."

The dog jumped down again and went to the computer. The dog proceeded to enter and execute
a perfect spreadsheet that worked flawlessly the first time.

By this time, the manager was totally dumb-founded! He looked at the dog and said, "I realize
that you are a very intelligent dog and have some interesting abilities. However, I still can't give
you the job."

The dog jumped down and went over to a copy of the sign and put his paw on the sentence about
being an Equal Opportunity Employer.

The manager said "Yes, but the sign also says that you have to be bilingual." The dog looked at
that manager calmly and said, "Meow."

There once was a sheriff who, no matter what the situation, always said, "It could have been worse" after viewing the scene of the crime.
It drove his two deputies absolutely crazy. One day, the two deputies in the Sheriff's Office answered an emergency call at a farmhouse.
When they walked in, they found the nude bodies of a man and a woman in the bedroom. They both had been shot to death. When the deputies went to the living room, they found the body of a man with a gun
at his side.
"No doubt about it," one deputy said to the other. "This was a double murder and suicide. This guy came
home and found his wife in bed with somebody else and shot them both. Then he shot himself."
"You're right," the other deputy replied. "Double murder and suicide. But I'll bet you when the sheriff gets here, he's going to say 'It could have been worse' as he always does!" "No way. How could it be worse?
There are three people in the house, and all of them have been shot to death. It couldn't be worse. You're on." Said the first deputy.
About that time, the old sheriff arrived at the scene. He walked into the bedroom and saw the two nude bodies. He then walked into the living room and saw the man on the floor with the gun by his side. "No doubt about it," the sheriff said, shaking his head. "It was a double murder and suicide .This guy came home
and found his wife in bed with somebody else and shot them both. Then he shot himself." After hesitating for a moment, the old sheriff looked his deputies squarely in the eyes. "But, you know," he said, "it could have been worse."
The deputy who had lost the bet jumped up and shouted, "Sheriff, how could it have been worse?
There are three people in this farmhouse, and all three of them are dead. It couldn't have been worse!!"
"Yes it could," the sheriff retorted. "You see that guy there on the floor? If he had come home yesterday, that would be me in there in that bed!"

Upon entering a little country store, a stranger noticed a sign reading, "Danger! Beware of Dog" posted on the glass door. Inside, he noticed a harmless old hound dog asleep on the floor besides the cash register. He asked the store manager, "Is that the dog folks are supposed to beware of?" "Yep, that's him," he replied. The stranger couldn't help but be amused. "That certainly doesn't look like a dangerous dog to me. Why in the world would you post that sign?" "Because," the owner replied, "before I posted that sign, people kept tripping over him."

"If there are any idiots in the room, will they please stand up," said the sarcastic teacher. After a long silence, one freshman rose to his feet. "Now then mister, why do you consider yourself an idiot?" inquired the teacher with a sneer. "Well, actually I don't," said the student, "but I hate to see you standing up there all by yourself."

Electrician's breakfast -- ohmlettes -- Raymond D. Love