On 22 Jul 2003 05:47:23 GMT, ospam (Larry Roll K3LT)
wrote in regards to mutual acquaintance K2RSK

Yes, indeed. I was one of the first to see the nifty HF antenna mount he
got made for his '94 Mercury Grand Marquis. I think we had breakfast the
day after it was done. I saw him last fall, and he still had that car!

Last time I saw him (this summer) he was driving it down I-290 East
just before the I-90 split, chatting with someone on the WNYDXA
repeater and wondering who he'd just passed with four antennas on top
of a van (which was me). :-)

I'll have to check that EchoLink thing out. All I know about it is how to
spell it. I occasionally E-mail to Pete, but he doesn't seem to read his
mail that often, or reply, for that matter.

John Taylor, K1RFD, created it. Its use is limited to licensed radio
amateurs only. You can download it, entirely for free, at the
following website:

http://www.echolink.org

Echolink uses voice-over-IP. You can use your computer and Internet
connection to get a repeater anywhere in the world if that repeater is
linked in via the Internet. Ham stations, including repeaters in
different parts of the world can be linked via Echolink as well. As an
example, I've talked to a ham in California using my 2m mobile rig
while driving downthe road here in New York. The repeater I was on was
connected to Echolink at the time, and so was the repeater in
California that the other ham was using.

You can also set up a link on your station at home (on a simplex
frequency) and use your handheld to access the link.

You might expect no-code Techs to gravitate to this as a means of
contacting DX without HF privileges - and they do - but many longtime
hams with HF privileges use it too, particularly guys that have
retired and moved away and use Echolink to keep in touch with the
locals from "back home" - especially true of guys who are now living
in condos down in Florida and aren't permitted to erect HF antennas.

Breakfast or lunch, it matters not to me! A Beef on Weck and a glass
of Genny would be a great way to enjoy some ham camaraderie.

I might opt for a soft drink instead of the Genny, but other than that
it sounds good to me. Be sure and let me know ahead of time next time
you plan to head up this way, and we'll plan a get-together.

(For those not familiar with Western new York culture, Genny is a
locally brewed beer that's quite popular in these here parts)

OK, great. Like I said before, my next visit to the WNY area will
most likely be over the Thanksgiving holiday, if I can manage to take
some personal days off.

Better yet! Gives me a perfect excuse to eat something besides turkey.
I like turkey, but usually have had more than enough of it by
Saturday.

I've pretty much given up on being home
for Christmas, due to the tendency to be forced to spend an
inordinate amount of time behind the snow blower!

Snow blower!? You ain't a "real" Western New Yorker! If you were,
you'd use a shovel like they used to do a hundred years ago. It's
still a perfectly efficient and viable means of snow removal. Anybody
who uses a snow blower is just plain lazy. :-)

If I were to
ever move again, I think I'd just go to various places and walk
around carrying a snow shovel. As soon as someone asked me,
"What the heck is THAT?" -- I'd stop!

Just make sure the guy who asks is a local resident and not some
tourist from somewhere in the Mojave Desert who's just visiting! Or
one of those lazy types who's just interested in clearing the driveway
and has never even owned a shovel like a "real" Western New Yorker.

73 DE John, KC2HMZ