Topband: End of the Season (Sigh!)

[EP Swynar]

Good Day All,

Well, that fateful moment that I've been dreading all along is upon me here: yes, it's time to roll up the radials, bag them separately by specific antenna & tuning capacitor enclosure, ID each, and set them away in an unused corner of the garage until it's (literally) "trick or treat" time again in the autumn...!

Summer is nigh upon us yet again here in southern "VE3"-land, and that means the grass is getting greener by the hour, the rake & the wheelbarrow come out, & the riding lawnmower gets groomed for the upcoming season's work...

Still, in all, it was a VERY good time on the band here, despite often "spotty" conditions: I elevated my 160 DXCC countries total up by a VERY good percentage, and had fun with new antennas --- both the receiving-type, as well as the transmitting variety. Along the way I not only (finally) logged a "JA" station, I actually made about a half dozen QSOs in that direction! 

All in all, it was a good ride...

I did notice one anomoly(sp?) with my set-up as I commenced "de-construction" yesterday: one of the Folger's-brand coffee containers housing the western "L's" tuning capacitor had all of the moisture-absorbing rice that I put in there last fall MISSING --- right down to the last grain! It appears that an especially clever & enterprising field mouse had somehow confirmed its presence inside, & managed to get inside  to eat it all...

I recall a day last January when I noticed that the lid had popped off of the enclosure, for whatever reason...I quickly replaced it before any snow could inside. I never did think to re-check for the presence of rice --- or mice! --- at the time!

I'll still be on the band "...for the duration", but limited to but a single inverted "L", fortuitously located in the brush off to one side of the groomed area of the front lawn...perhaps with all of the usual expected summertime QRN, it won't make much difference anyway...

My thanks to all who contributed to a fun time here in 2006-2007 --- here's to bigger & better things in 2007-2008!

~73~ Eddy VE3CUI - VE3XZ