Yes, I do recall there were several special interest groups with amateur radios. One reason I liked ten meters was because most of the time it was silent. When the DX opened up it was short lived but very exciting. In between those moments I would sit there and listen to the noise and announce a QRZ just in case anybody happened across me. On rare occasion I'd get a reply and we would talk about anything that was on our mind. The chit chat often attracted a couple other hams and we had a regular go around of local stations. One time a fellow chess player found us and we decided to play a game of chess every Friday night at a certain time. It involved meticulous notation of the moves but it was pretty amazing stuff. Sometimes people would drop in wondering what the heck we were talking about, K-KB4 for example. LOL It was a marvelous situation in that nobody liked ten meters and there was no QRM or commercial SWL broadcasting up on those frequencies. When I was not playing chess on ten meters I was fighting traffic on 40 meters. I sometimes tried 20 meters, but that was always an impossible task with the gear I had. Too much traffic and not enough filtering in my receiver.
The Internet crowd is not like the ham-sters and rag chewers. For one thing there is a generation or two gap in ages. Thus the topics open to discussion, if there is a discussion, vary widely between the two groups. Talking to a bunch of idealistic kids is way different than whining and moaning with a group of conservative old codgers. I'm glad I got to experience both.
Magnetic Core Memory
Re: Magnetic Core Memory
I was a member of Ten-Ten International, and 10X Radio Relay.
My old 5 element beam for 11 meters was easy to convert to 10 meters, It just took shifting the elements slightly, and making the elements about 3 inches longer on each end. On 11 meters, the elements were fairly close to equally spaced apart, but on 10 meters, the two longest radiators were close together, and the directors were tightened up a little closer at the far end of the beam. It was a Mosely 5 element beam, and had I known at the time, I could have bought a kit to covert it to 10 meters for under 10 bucks, with the spacing plans already worked out. But you know me, trial and error with an MFJ antenna analyzer, hi hi.
My relay point to repeat to was down in Bonne Terre, MO, and my receive point was off the back of my beams which was good enough considering we were fairly close. I could also hear some off the side of my beams, but couldn't talk back unless I swung my beams around to their direction then they were almost too loud at my end.
After I moved to Creve Coeur in 1981, I rebuilt that old beam I bought back in 1966, so it now covered 10, 12, and either 14 or 17 don't remember which. But above that on my tower was a smaller Yagi for 20 meters. However, my Dipole often worked better, hi hi.
I belonged to a few diversified chat rooms I found out about on UseNet, and I talked to one lady from California for many years. She was not a Ham, but did have the gift to gab, that much I can say for her. She was also excellent at telling long-winded stories, hi hi.
My old 5 element beam for 11 meters was easy to convert to 10 meters, It just took shifting the elements slightly, and making the elements about 3 inches longer on each end. On 11 meters, the elements were fairly close to equally spaced apart, but on 10 meters, the two longest radiators were close together, and the directors were tightened up a little closer at the far end of the beam. It was a Mosely 5 element beam, and had I known at the time, I could have bought a kit to covert it to 10 meters for under 10 bucks, with the spacing plans already worked out. But you know me, trial and error with an MFJ antenna analyzer, hi hi.
My relay point to repeat to was down in Bonne Terre, MO, and my receive point was off the back of my beams which was good enough considering we were fairly close. I could also hear some off the side of my beams, but couldn't talk back unless I swung my beams around to their direction then they were almost too loud at my end.
After I moved to Creve Coeur in 1981, I rebuilt that old beam I bought back in 1966, so it now covered 10, 12, and either 14 or 17 don't remember which. But above that on my tower was a smaller Yagi for 20 meters. However, my Dipole often worked better, hi hi.
I belonged to a few diversified chat rooms I found out about on UseNet, and I talked to one lady from California for many years. She was not a Ham, but did have the gift to gab, that much I can say for her. She was also excellent at telling long-winded stories, hi hi.
Re: Magnetic Core Memory
I never used a beam antenna because I never had a good place to mount such a monster. My buddy down the block from me in Chicago had a cubical quad and it covered about half the roof of their home. LOL I don't know how it compared to a beam but his antenna was ultra directional. I used to practice code with him before we got our licenses. It turns out we didn't go for the test together because he was a little quicker to pick things up than I was. Then, again, I almost married his sister, but that's another story all together.
I'm finding all kinds of ham radio bands that I never knew existed. Today I discovered a 6 cm band up in the 900 MHz zone. I don't have a clue what they do up there. It was nearly dead this morning but for two carriers solidly within the band. I could not demodulate those carriers and don't know what mode they were operating in. I have FM capability and suspect that is common on the VHF frequencies, but no audio nor coded carrier was to be heard.
Part of the problem with my SWL on a virtual machine is that there is a network of servers feeding a stream of data. Each server has a different radio attached and the frequency range varies greatly between them. Every one seems to be operated by an amateur server administrator, which is not unexpected since the company which sells the receivers also sells server software for them. I was a bit surprise th at the servers seem to all be running Windows 10, and there are dozens of them. There is Linux software available too but I have not yet found a server running it. Not even in Europe where I'd expect Windows to be less popular. The servers seem to work fine but each one is limited in the number of users at a given time. Thus many of them are busy and several are only available for a few hours each day. The cool part is that the RX box only needs to plug into a USB port, which I can easily do from my router directly. I would attempt to join the network as a source if I could figure out how to run the NAS as a streaming service for the RX box. Apparently this software can also be run from Raspberry Pi. It's all pretty interesting but I don't know how far I'm going to go with all this. The equipment costs would run around $300-$400 including software, which isn't too too expensive. But, I have not seen any tech support so that I'd be pretty much on my own if I were a source server. I'd hate to spend all that money and not be able to do anything with it. I could simply listen by myself, but that's what I'm doing now off the network.
I'm finding all kinds of ham radio bands that I never knew existed. Today I discovered a 6 cm band up in the 900 MHz zone. I don't have a clue what they do up there. It was nearly dead this morning but for two carriers solidly within the band. I could not demodulate those carriers and don't know what mode they were operating in. I have FM capability and suspect that is common on the VHF frequencies, but no audio nor coded carrier was to be heard.
Part of the problem with my SWL on a virtual machine is that there is a network of servers feeding a stream of data. Each server has a different radio attached and the frequency range varies greatly between them. Every one seems to be operated by an amateur server administrator, which is not unexpected since the company which sells the receivers also sells server software for them. I was a bit surprise th at the servers seem to all be running Windows 10, and there are dozens of them. There is Linux software available too but I have not yet found a server running it. Not even in Europe where I'd expect Windows to be less popular. The servers seem to work fine but each one is limited in the number of users at a given time. Thus many of them are busy and several are only available for a few hours each day. The cool part is that the RX box only needs to plug into a USB port, which I can easily do from my router directly. I would attempt to join the network as a source if I could figure out how to run the NAS as a streaming service for the RX box. Apparently this software can also be run from Raspberry Pi. It's all pretty interesting but I don't know how far I'm going to go with all this. The equipment costs would run around $300-$400 including software, which isn't too too expensive. But, I have not seen any tech support so that I'd be pretty much on my own if I were a source server. I'd hate to spend all that money and not be able to do anything with it. I could simply listen by myself, but that's what I'm doing now off the network.
Re: Magnetic Core Memory
My 2-meter 16-element Yagi, was only 67 inches long. Although it was a beam, I didn't need a rotor for it, because I built it strictly for reaching KØPFX packet repeater, from my packet repeater.
I too had a 20-meter horizontal beam, just under the vertical 10-meter beam. When on 10-meters, that 20-meter beam added to the reflection which made everything a bit better. The only drawback of the horizontal beam was the amount of birds that liked to sit on it. One doesn't realize just how much birds weigh until dozens of them line up on one element. They were enough to kink and bend it downward. I had to replace the kinked element, and while I had the tower tilted down, I put a fiberglass rod inside of each of the elements to add strength.
Ironically, when I took down the 10-meter beam to move, mud dobbers had nearly filled the ends of the elements making their homes, hi hi. Only once did birds build a nest in the braces of my tower. While Jim of Fenton TV had an annual pilgrimage up his tower after all the baby birds vacated the nests. He usually had over ten nests up on his tower, even though he drenched the thing in a product called Tanglefoot, hi hi.
6-meters was not actually open when I was still active. But here is the calling frequencies.
6 Meter calling frequencies: SSB – 50.125 MHz. FM – 52.525 Mhz. FT8: 50.313 Mhz. Note: between 50.100 and 50.125 MHZ is the 6 meter “DX Window,” an area that is reserved for DX QSOs.
I'm not at all familiar with what has been going on in Ham Radio now for over 20 years, although I keep my license updated. In fact, it is due to be renewed at the end of this year.
I spent a goodly amount of money to set up a packet repeater with mailboxes for several hams to use. Thus the reason for the Yagi pointed at KØPFX the next repeater in the chain I was in. I picked up the packet feed from our local WØWDC repeater which I could pick up easily even on a rubber duckie antenna, hi hi.
I too had a 20-meter horizontal beam, just under the vertical 10-meter beam. When on 10-meters, that 20-meter beam added to the reflection which made everything a bit better. The only drawback of the horizontal beam was the amount of birds that liked to sit on it. One doesn't realize just how much birds weigh until dozens of them line up on one element. They were enough to kink and bend it downward. I had to replace the kinked element, and while I had the tower tilted down, I put a fiberglass rod inside of each of the elements to add strength.
Ironically, when I took down the 10-meter beam to move, mud dobbers had nearly filled the ends of the elements making their homes, hi hi. Only once did birds build a nest in the braces of my tower. While Jim of Fenton TV had an annual pilgrimage up his tower after all the baby birds vacated the nests. He usually had over ten nests up on his tower, even though he drenched the thing in a product called Tanglefoot, hi hi.
6-meters was not actually open when I was still active. But here is the calling frequencies.
6 Meter calling frequencies: SSB – 50.125 MHz. FM – 52.525 Mhz. FT8: 50.313 Mhz. Note: between 50.100 and 50.125 MHZ is the 6 meter “DX Window,” an area that is reserved for DX QSOs.
I'm not at all familiar with what has been going on in Ham Radio now for over 20 years, although I keep my license updated. In fact, it is due to be renewed at the end of this year.
I spent a goodly amount of money to set up a packet repeater with mailboxes for several hams to use. Thus the reason for the Yagi pointed at KØPFX the next repeater in the chain I was in. I picked up the packet feed from our local WØWDC repeater which I could pick up easily even on a rubber duckie antenna, hi hi.
Re: Magnetic Core Memory
I found the one and only SDR server in St Louis and tried to listen in on those frequencies you gave me. All I got was noise and not even enough carrier to quiet the FM detector. This didn't really surprise me because the effectiveness of any given server depends on how well the receiver box is set up with an external antenna. They sell several types of UHF and VHF antennae to go along with their RX boxes and there are pre-amps for certain frequencies as well. So, if the local server admin doesn't have all this connected, the RX box is effectively running without an antenna. The STL server claims to cover 24 MHz up to 1.2 GHz but that would require a remarkable antenna setup and probably a few pre-amps as well. I don't know how serious these guys are but it sure takes a lot of equipment and know how to efficiently run a server for SWL service. In any case I thank you for the heads up with the frequencies. I'll monitor them periodically from various locations. At some point I might hear some intelligence. There must be a lot of sun spot activity too because the VHF bands are noisy too today.
I've also tried listening to some of those commercial SW broadcasts with mixed results. I have a lot of graphs and fine tuning controls to be able to tune in dead center to the carrier, but even double side band doesn't come in as well as I recall my old portable RX box did many years ago. All I had on that thing was a spool of wire for an antenna that I stretched the length of the house. It worked quite well in fact but the tuner was very crude and hard to center on frequency.
I've also tried listening to some of those commercial SW broadcasts with mixed results. I have a lot of graphs and fine tuning controls to be able to tune in dead center to the carrier, but even double side band doesn't come in as well as I recall my old portable RX box did many years ago. All I had on that thing was a spool of wire for an antenna that I stretched the length of the house. It worked quite well in fact but the tuner was very crude and hard to center on frequency.
Last edited by yogi on 01 Feb 2023, 20:55, edited 1 time in total.
Re: Magnetic Core Memory
6-meters doesn't really have much range, only a little better than 2-meters, which is why there are so many 2-meter repeaters out there. Just to reach Fenton from Creve Coeur was always a hit and miss proposition. Worked best on heavily overcast days.
Then too, Hams with RC planes, boats, and cars are also using 6-meters, since their RC devices are never out of visual range.
When I was using 6-meters in my car, I had a 3-ring Halo Antenna, which was the best for mobile use. I also found it to be great for base use also, especially when talking to other hams using Halo antennas.
Antenna's need to be cut to the frequency almost to the point of being dead on the exact frequency you want to use.
But then too, you can have several antennas all fed from the same coax. A 40-meter half-wave antenna, is a full-wave on 20 meters, and 1/4 wave on 80-meters. Even then, it helps to have an antenna tuner to get the SWR as low as possible.
At one time I made a barrel antenna for 40-meters, which allows it to be shorter than a normal dipole. It is basically 8 wires (or sometimes only 6 wires), spaced 8 inches apart to form a long cylinder. RF on this type of antenna sees it as an 8 inch diameter pipe instead of 8 separate wires.
An antenna that is not in tune, has very poor reception, and you cannot transmit on it for sure without blowing your finals.
Then too, Hams with RC planes, boats, and cars are also using 6-meters, since their RC devices are never out of visual range.
When I was using 6-meters in my car, I had a 3-ring Halo Antenna, which was the best for mobile use. I also found it to be great for base use also, especially when talking to other hams using Halo antennas.
Antenna's need to be cut to the frequency almost to the point of being dead on the exact frequency you want to use.
But then too, you can have several antennas all fed from the same coax. A 40-meter half-wave antenna, is a full-wave on 20 meters, and 1/4 wave on 80-meters. Even then, it helps to have an antenna tuner to get the SWR as low as possible.
At one time I made a barrel antenna for 40-meters, which allows it to be shorter than a normal dipole. It is basically 8 wires (or sometimes only 6 wires), spaced 8 inches apart to form a long cylinder. RF on this type of antenna sees it as an 8 inch diameter pipe instead of 8 separate wires.
An antenna that is not in tune, has very poor reception, and you cannot transmit on it for sure without blowing your finals.
Re: Magnetic Core Memory
The antenna is critical for transmission of RF but less critical on the receiving end. If you use a fixed frequency then it is best to cut things to the exact length, but I'm an SWL fan and all I need is some signal. It doesn't have to be tuned nor impedance matched. I agree that it would be best to have something cut to the proper length, but then again I'm essentially listening to everything from DC to 2 GHz. There is no single antenna that can be tuned for that kind of reception. In the SWL world any metal that is struck by RF radiation will do. Even rain gutters. LOL
This whole shortwave listening thing has always been of interest to me and I have looked into what they are selling for receivers these days. A good quality desktop receiver would be anywhere from $400 up to and beyond $1000. Then there are the accessories. I don't see myself going that route but the current network system of streaming has its drawbacks. First of all not all servers on the network cover the frequency range I am interested in. Then the servers are manned, or unmanned in most cases, by people who are SWL's and not computer administrators. That means a very limited number of connections are allowed on any given server and there is no guaranteed uptime. I've been kicked off servers several times already just because they shut down for unknown reasons. Then there is the problem I mentioned earlier where setting up the radio receiver is not as trivial as it first appears. Having my own equipment would give me more control, but at the moment I just can't justify the cost. I'd build me a new desktop computer first.
This whole shortwave listening thing has always been of interest to me and I have looked into what they are selling for receivers these days. A good quality desktop receiver would be anywhere from $400 up to and beyond $1000. Then there are the accessories. I don't see myself going that route but the current network system of streaming has its drawbacks. First of all not all servers on the network cover the frequency range I am interested in. Then the servers are manned, or unmanned in most cases, by people who are SWL's and not computer administrators. That means a very limited number of connections are allowed on any given server and there is no guaranteed uptime. I've been kicked off servers several times already just because they shut down for unknown reasons. Then there is the problem I mentioned earlier where setting up the radio receiver is not as trivial as it first appears. Having my own equipment would give me more control, but at the moment I just can't justify the cost. I'd build me a new desktop computer first.
Re: Magnetic Core Memory
You wouldn't believe how much stronger a received signal is if the antenna is tuned to that band.
I never change the antenna on my scanner, but I do have an old portable SW receiver.
When I was using it quite often I used an antenna analyzer and although it is one telescoping antenna, I made marks on it with a magic marker for each of the bands I could tune to.
One wouldn't think pushing the antenna smaller would make a difference, but it does if doing so lands you on the band of interest.
Then by the same token. Debi's dad had a scanner with a multi-element scanner antenna mounted outside his window, it was a nice antenna, but he didn't ground the radials. Well, they were grounded to the short mast he had, but the mast was screwed into wood, hi hi.
My next trip down from St. Louis (this was when I was first dating Debi), I brought a ten foot mast, since he had plenty of coax, and added it to his mast. I also brought a braided cable and 4 foot copper rod (I know, should be 8 foot), and drove that down in the ground at the corner of the house where a gutter emptied so I knew the ground would always be moist.
He now heard stations he never heard before. Including a few he had always hoped to get but never could.
All Ham and SWL gear has skyrocket in price. Part of the reason is there are fewer Hams to be buying equipment, and of course the cost of everything they are made from, and labor, has all gone up considerably too.
When I sold off all of my Heathkit gear I built myself from their kits. Most of it sold for more than it cost to buy factory assembled Heathkit gear, which was already four times more than the cost of the kits. Plus I had a couple of antique Hallicrafters receivers that sold for much more than I expected they would. And all of that was sold when I was doing the eBay thing. Nearly everything I sold on eBay fetched double what my minimum price would have been, so I was pleased.
I never change the antenna on my scanner, but I do have an old portable SW receiver.
When I was using it quite often I used an antenna analyzer and although it is one telescoping antenna, I made marks on it with a magic marker for each of the bands I could tune to.
One wouldn't think pushing the antenna smaller would make a difference, but it does if doing so lands you on the band of interest.
Then by the same token. Debi's dad had a scanner with a multi-element scanner antenna mounted outside his window, it was a nice antenna, but he didn't ground the radials. Well, they were grounded to the short mast he had, but the mast was screwed into wood, hi hi.
My next trip down from St. Louis (this was when I was first dating Debi), I brought a ten foot mast, since he had plenty of coax, and added it to his mast. I also brought a braided cable and 4 foot copper rod (I know, should be 8 foot), and drove that down in the ground at the corner of the house where a gutter emptied so I knew the ground would always be moist.
He now heard stations he never heard before. Including a few he had always hoped to get but never could.
All Ham and SWL gear has skyrocket in price. Part of the reason is there are fewer Hams to be buying equipment, and of course the cost of everything they are made from, and labor, has all gone up considerably too.
When I sold off all of my Heathkit gear I built myself from their kits. Most of it sold for more than it cost to buy factory assembled Heathkit gear, which was already four times more than the cost of the kits. Plus I had a couple of antique Hallicrafters receivers that sold for much more than I expected they would. And all of that was sold when I was doing the eBay thing. Nearly everything I sold on eBay fetched double what my minimum price would have been, so I was pleased.
Re: Magnetic Core Memory
I can't argue against a tuned antenna as the ideal situation both for transmitting and receiving. I too had a portable SWL rig with a telescopic antenna and knew form experience how reception could change depending on the length. I also had a spool of something like 24 gauge wire that I clipped onto the telescope and then unraveled the wired spool. Reception improved by magnitudes and I can assure you that the antenna was not tuned. It just had a lot of surface area.
Today's SWL story is a bit hard for me to believe. I was listening to 20 meters this morning and found one of those rag chewing networks that people like to join because the DX is crummy. The conversation wasn't particularly enlightening, but it was at least conversation and not a QSL amassing event. The strongest signal was remarkably clear. I'd say 5/9 +20 if I had an S-meter handy. I've been messing with IF filtering and Audio Filtering and discovered some of the intricacies of the software involved. It's all pretty fascinating and makes reception a lot better. Then, suddenly, the guy I was listening to was talking about LA police not being like Chicago cops. This station was in Chicago. Well that perked my interest a bit because I thought that would be too far away for such a strong ground signal.
Back when I was active in the ham radio arena it was my understanding that after EACH transmission you had to identify yourself with your call letters. Just saying "over" would not cut it if you followed the rules. Omitting your identity would be like CB chit chat. As it turns out, however, many of the conversations I've been listening to do not follow the standard protocol that i learned. They don't even say "over" when finished. It's just like talking on a simplex telephone to quite a few folks. But, there are those who do follow what I thought to be the rules. This guy I was listening to did identify himself from time to time, and his call letters were what gave me a shock. He identified as WA9SEF in Chicago. It's been more than 50 years since I was a brass pounder or rag chewer but the one station I recall from that distant past had those call letters ... W A 9 Sugar Easy Fox. I don't recall the guy's name but I did join the net he ran fairly often. There is a special reason why I recall this operator. Back in my novice days I became a QSL card addict. Thus after talking to this guy a few times I sent him my QSL card and hoped to get one back. PLS QSL Later on in the day one of the other network guys told me it's not likely that I would because WA9SEF was run by a blind operator. BLIND? Unbelievable. Well I did get a card back from him several weeks later. Apparently somebody helped him in that regard and it took a little longer than a normal response.
I do not know how old this blind guy was, but he had to be at least 20 years my senior judging by the sound of his voice. That means if who I heard today was the same guy, he is well into his 90's. I can say with some certainty that the voice I heard running the net this morning was not that of a nonagenarian. Could this person be a relative of the person I talked to 50 years ago? And, don't they retire call signs when they are not renewed? I didn't think they recycled them just for this reason. It could get confusing and people could be misidentified. Whatever the story is behind that ham station, it was a very interesting morning. Unfortunately, all I could do was listen.
Today's SWL story is a bit hard for me to believe. I was listening to 20 meters this morning and found one of those rag chewing networks that people like to join because the DX is crummy. The conversation wasn't particularly enlightening, but it was at least conversation and not a QSL amassing event. The strongest signal was remarkably clear. I'd say 5/9 +20 if I had an S-meter handy. I've been messing with IF filtering and Audio Filtering and discovered some of the intricacies of the software involved. It's all pretty fascinating and makes reception a lot better. Then, suddenly, the guy I was listening to was talking about LA police not being like Chicago cops. This station was in Chicago. Well that perked my interest a bit because I thought that would be too far away for such a strong ground signal.
Back when I was active in the ham radio arena it was my understanding that after EACH transmission you had to identify yourself with your call letters. Just saying "over" would not cut it if you followed the rules. Omitting your identity would be like CB chit chat. As it turns out, however, many of the conversations I've been listening to do not follow the standard protocol that i learned. They don't even say "over" when finished. It's just like talking on a simplex telephone to quite a few folks. But, there are those who do follow what I thought to be the rules. This guy I was listening to did identify himself from time to time, and his call letters were what gave me a shock. He identified as WA9SEF in Chicago. It's been more than 50 years since I was a brass pounder or rag chewer but the one station I recall from that distant past had those call letters ... W A 9 Sugar Easy Fox. I don't recall the guy's name but I did join the net he ran fairly often. There is a special reason why I recall this operator. Back in my novice days I became a QSL card addict. Thus after talking to this guy a few times I sent him my QSL card and hoped to get one back. PLS QSL Later on in the day one of the other network guys told me it's not likely that I would because WA9SEF was run by a blind operator. BLIND? Unbelievable. Well I did get a card back from him several weeks later. Apparently somebody helped him in that regard and it took a little longer than a normal response.
I do not know how old this blind guy was, but he had to be at least 20 years my senior judging by the sound of his voice. That means if who I heard today was the same guy, he is well into his 90's. I can say with some certainty that the voice I heard running the net this morning was not that of a nonagenarian. Could this person be a relative of the person I talked to 50 years ago? And, don't they retire call signs when they are not renewed? I didn't think they recycled them just for this reason. It could get confusing and people could be misidentified. Whatever the story is behind that ham station, it was a very interesting morning. Unfortunately, all I could do was listen.
Re: Magnetic Core Memory
Long wire antenna do pick up a lot without being in tune.
In the old days, up until around 2017 I think it was, you had to ID every ten minutes.
Since then, it is ID when you go on the air, then at least once every hour, and ID when you go off the air.
Repeaters still ID more often than that but it is not required anymore.
Call signs can be reissued 2 years after it has expired.
However, a relative can request the call sign of a deceased ham, and there are other things like a station assigned call sign can be passed down through club to who happens to be president of the club, and then it can be assigned to the last president if the club itself closes down or merges with another club.
Plus there are special cases about certain call signs which are permanently locked for one reason or another.
For example: The call sign of a former president of the U.S. will not be reassigned ever, as far as I know.
And some movie stars put their call sign in a trust to be automatically renewed before it expires.
Lulu Beaulieu is one such call sign. You would know her as Priscilla Ann (nee Wagner) Presley, hi hi.
Priscilla Ann (Lulu) Wagner's name was changed to simply Lulu Beaulieu when she was adopted.
Then when she married Elvis, she returned to her former name, but kept her Ham Radio license as Lulu Beaulieu, and she was quite active on the air, talked to her several times.
Actually, there are a lot of Blind folks who got into Ham Radio, and a few deaf ones as well.
Back before computers, the deaf ones had this tink/buzz box, that converted Morse Code from dit dah to tink buzz.
But later, after Microreaders came out, the code would be displayed as text on a screen, and a lot more deaf folks became Hams. Our radio club sponsored the cost of Microreaders for around 8 deaf folks who became Hams.
A whole lot of them moved over to Packet Radio which is text using a computer, after computers came out.
In the old days, up until around 2017 I think it was, you had to ID every ten minutes.
Since then, it is ID when you go on the air, then at least once every hour, and ID when you go off the air.
Repeaters still ID more often than that but it is not required anymore.
Call signs can be reissued 2 years after it has expired.
However, a relative can request the call sign of a deceased ham, and there are other things like a station assigned call sign can be passed down through club to who happens to be president of the club, and then it can be assigned to the last president if the club itself closes down or merges with another club.
Plus there are special cases about certain call signs which are permanently locked for one reason or another.
For example: The call sign of a former president of the U.S. will not be reassigned ever, as far as I know.
And some movie stars put their call sign in a trust to be automatically renewed before it expires.
Lulu Beaulieu is one such call sign. You would know her as Priscilla Ann (nee Wagner) Presley, hi hi.
Priscilla Ann (Lulu) Wagner's name was changed to simply Lulu Beaulieu when she was adopted.
Then when she married Elvis, she returned to her former name, but kept her Ham Radio license as Lulu Beaulieu, and she was quite active on the air, talked to her several times.
Actually, there are a lot of Blind folks who got into Ham Radio, and a few deaf ones as well.
Back before computers, the deaf ones had this tink/buzz box, that converted Morse Code from dit dah to tink buzz.
But later, after Microreaders came out, the code would be displayed as text on a screen, and a lot more deaf folks became Hams. Our radio club sponsored the cost of Microreaders for around 8 deaf folks who became Hams.
A whole lot of them moved over to Packet Radio which is text using a computer, after computers came out.
Re: Magnetic Core Memory
Thank you for enlightening me about ham radio station licensing. I might have known all about it back in the day, but it's been at least 50 years since I was on the air. Everything I did was below 30 MHz, and while 20 meters was very popular I didn't favor it all that much. Just about all my CW time was on 40 meters and ten meters when the DX opened up. 20 meters was just too crowded for the gear I had at the time. However, I did take an interest in the network that WA9SEF curated. It became even more interesting when I found out the OM was blind. I spent a lot of time tuning up my transmitter for the various bands and the RX had plenty of dials to pick out a signal from 3db above the noise floor. LOL I simply could not imagine how a blind guy did all that. I suppose he could have had a crystal for that 20 meter channel and maybe somebody helped to do the final tuning of the TX. After that there would be no need to move from the same TX frequency forever.
If the network I heard the other day was in fact the same one I joined 6 decades ago, then it could make sense for the call letters to be handed down to succeeding sys ops. I simply didn't realize the FCC would do such a thing. Elvis was a ground breaker with his shakey singing style so that getting married to a lady who was also an amateur radio operator would be no surprise. Lisa Marie was the only child for Elvis and she died just about a month ago.
If the network I heard the other day was in fact the same one I joined 6 decades ago, then it could make sense for the call letters to be handed down to succeeding sys ops. I simply didn't realize the FCC would do such a thing. Elvis was a ground breaker with his shakey singing style so that getting married to a lady who was also an amateur radio operator would be no surprise. Lisa Marie was the only child for Elvis and she died just about a month ago.
Re: Magnetic Core Memory
50 years ago, the transmitters did not have all the fancy self-aligning features they do today. So YES he probably did have another ham there to set the transmitter for him, and probably more than one worked out of his shack.
I once built a very simple 40/80 meter transmitter, it used crystals, but you still had to tune it for the dip.
I had to quit using it because it had a few too many spurious images being radiated after more than 10 years of usage.
Today, most of the blind folks stick to fixed frequency rigs like 2-meters 220 and 440 handy talkies or small base radios.
Once they are set up for the transmit frequency and receive frequency on those bands, it's just a matter of flipping a knob to the one you want to hear, and talk on.
The girls all swooned over Elvis, some still do, hi hi.
But I always saw him in a different light.
Truck Driver makes good in the record industry, becomes KING, and dies on the Throne while reigning over his kingdom, hi hi.
Lulu sent me a QSL card after we had talked a few times over a 2 year time span.
Most folks didn't know she was Priscilla Presley, but a few did, and one of those guys I talked to, about 5 years after I got the card from her, he offered to pay me 500 bucks for it, but only if she signed it, which she did, I turned him down at the time.
About 3 months later we cross paths again, and he said he would double the original offer. I told him, I would think about it.
I wanted to check to see what a card with her signature on it might be worth. Turned out, not much, so I figured the next time we crossed paths I would go ahead and sell it to him. It was maybe 5 months later and he was going to be passing through St. Louis with a group following the old original Route-66. When I told him I was born and raised on Route-66, he then definitely wanted him and the group he was with to stop and talk to me. At that time I had plenty of pictures I went and had copied to give him of places up and down my stomping grounds.
I was living in my late grandparents large house at the time, so had plenty of room in the living room for the whole gang to visit, ask questions, a million of them, hi hi, and we had lunch together, delivered by The Village Bar a few doors down.
He paid me in cash for the QSL card, but wrote a check to cover the cost of the pictures I made for him, plus lunch. Which I though was nice of him. The sad thing is, I no longer remember his name or call sign. I had it all written down, but most of that was lost in the floods while I lived in Creve Coeur. Lost my first 20 years of log books also.
The call sign for a radio club never changes. Not even after they merge with another club. Our Suburban Radio Club, one of the oldest in the state. They merged with Saint Louis Repeater Club. But our call sign WØDCW never changed, and the president has changed many times. Heck, I was secretary for a couple of years myself.
I once built a very simple 40/80 meter transmitter, it used crystals, but you still had to tune it for the dip.
I had to quit using it because it had a few too many spurious images being radiated after more than 10 years of usage.
Today, most of the blind folks stick to fixed frequency rigs like 2-meters 220 and 440 handy talkies or small base radios.
Once they are set up for the transmit frequency and receive frequency on those bands, it's just a matter of flipping a knob to the one you want to hear, and talk on.
The girls all swooned over Elvis, some still do, hi hi.
But I always saw him in a different light.
Truck Driver makes good in the record industry, becomes KING, and dies on the Throne while reigning over his kingdom, hi hi.
Lulu sent me a QSL card after we had talked a few times over a 2 year time span.
Most folks didn't know she was Priscilla Presley, but a few did, and one of those guys I talked to, about 5 years after I got the card from her, he offered to pay me 500 bucks for it, but only if she signed it, which she did, I turned him down at the time.
About 3 months later we cross paths again, and he said he would double the original offer. I told him, I would think about it.
I wanted to check to see what a card with her signature on it might be worth. Turned out, not much, so I figured the next time we crossed paths I would go ahead and sell it to him. It was maybe 5 months later and he was going to be passing through St. Louis with a group following the old original Route-66. When I told him I was born and raised on Route-66, he then definitely wanted him and the group he was with to stop and talk to me. At that time I had plenty of pictures I went and had copied to give him of places up and down my stomping grounds.
I was living in my late grandparents large house at the time, so had plenty of room in the living room for the whole gang to visit, ask questions, a million of them, hi hi, and we had lunch together, delivered by The Village Bar a few doors down.
He paid me in cash for the QSL card, but wrote a check to cover the cost of the pictures I made for him, plus lunch. Which I though was nice of him. The sad thing is, I no longer remember his name or call sign. I had it all written down, but most of that was lost in the floods while I lived in Creve Coeur. Lost my first 20 years of log books also.
The call sign for a radio club never changes. Not even after they merge with another club. Our Suburban Radio Club, one of the oldest in the state. They merged with Saint Louis Repeater Club. But our call sign WØDCW never changed, and the president has changed many times. Heck, I was secretary for a couple of years myself.
Re: Magnetic Core Memory
I can see the logic to keeping the same call sign for a legitimate club of ham operators. I don't know exactly what a club is, however. I got the impression that the blind person I heard was running the network on his own and therefore he was the one holding the license, not the club. Back then I participated in a few networks and one was dedicated to providing phone patches. I was called upon to connect somebody in Guantanamo Bay (I believe) with his family in some place like Hinsdale, IL. In retrospect a phone patch seems way more elaborate than is necessary in today's world, but there was a network dedicated to it and I have no doubt it was also a licensed club.
You know what the saying is, "Beauty is in the eye of the beholder" which applies to the value of postcards too. The person who offered you $1000 for Priscilla's signature thought it was worth that much and that is all that was needed to establish its value. I probably passed by your house when I was 16 years old. That is the year a neighbor of ours took me with him on a road trip to California. We took Route 66 all the way. I experienced a few once in a lifetime events on that trip, and just traveling down Rt 66 was one of those things. I saw the Milky Way from a desert in Arizona and was totally astonished by it all. The memory of that moment still awes me. We could not stop for a picture, but I recall crossing the Continental Divide as well. I don't recall getting sick at that altitude, but we were driving a Buick 700 miles a day so that it was all the same to me. LOL In any case, I also recall seeing St Louis without an Arch. Hard to believe there was such a time.
You know what the saying is, "Beauty is in the eye of the beholder" which applies to the value of postcards too. The person who offered you $1000 for Priscilla's signature thought it was worth that much and that is all that was needed to establish its value. I probably passed by your house when I was 16 years old. That is the year a neighbor of ours took me with him on a road trip to California. We took Route 66 all the way. I experienced a few once in a lifetime events on that trip, and just traveling down Rt 66 was one of those things. I saw the Milky Way from a desert in Arizona and was totally astonished by it all. The memory of that moment still awes me. We could not stop for a picture, but I recall crossing the Continental Divide as well. I don't recall getting sick at that altitude, but we were driving a Buick 700 miles a day so that it was all the same to me. LOL In any case, I also recall seeing St Louis without an Arch. Hard to believe there was such a time.
Re: Magnetic Core Memory
Before I had a phone patch unit, or cradle actually, I had to do it the hard way. Hold the mike up to the earpiece and the speaker in front of the mouthpiece, and had to press the mike key for the person I called to talk, hi hi.
Using the cradle was so much simpler, provided the static level was not to high, and the squelch was tight enough. If not then I still had to press the talk button on the cradle for them.
My grandmother D. had a letter signed by one of the early presidents, somewhere between 1910 and 1920. And another letter from 1955 or 1956 by another president. The first was addressed to grandpa, but the second was addressed to her. After grandma passed away, one of our aunts sold both of them, one fetched a fairly large amount of money.
If you came down the original Route-66 down Market Street and Manchester Road, you would have went through Des Peres and passed our florist, grandma and grandpas house, and my dad and uncles houses as well. Plus a few other older relatives who lived along the main drag.
I watched the Arch being built when I worked at Sverdrup & Parcell. Amazing thing to see while being constructed.
Using the cradle was so much simpler, provided the static level was not to high, and the squelch was tight enough. If not then I still had to press the talk button on the cradle for them.
My grandmother D. had a letter signed by one of the early presidents, somewhere between 1910 and 1920. And another letter from 1955 or 1956 by another president. The first was addressed to grandpa, but the second was addressed to her. After grandma passed away, one of our aunts sold both of them, one fetched a fairly large amount of money.
If you came down the original Route-66 down Market Street and Manchester Road, you would have went through Des Peres and passed our florist, grandma and grandpas house, and my dad and uncles houses as well. Plus a few other older relatives who lived along the main drag.
I watched the Arch being built when I worked at Sverdrup & Parcell. Amazing thing to see while being constructed.
Re: Magnetic Core Memory
If I recall correctly the phone patch apparatus I had was a Heathkit that I built personally. It had a few black knobs on the box and a meter, but that's about all i remember of it right now. I don't think I had to actuate the mic for the conversation to take place, but I did monitor it some way. I don't think I patched any more than that one call, but I was part of the network just in case. 
Well, all I know today is that we took the original Rt 66 from somewhere south of Chicago all the way to Los Angeles, or Anaheim to be exact. Oddly enough we did not go to Disneyland. I guess it was too expensive and our time there was limited. We did go to Knott's Berry Farm which was almost as good. Actually, I was disappointed. I traveled all that distance expecting to experience Disneyland, but then I wasn't paying for any of it. My memories of Knott's are very limited. I think we got some jelly and saw some of the attractions. I don't recall much about St Louis other than the view approaching it. Why that sticks in my mind is a mystery. We did drive through the city and I also recall being very relieved exiting it. We were really anxious to get to the west coast. LOL I don't recall seeing any florists or greenhouses, but it is very possible that we did pass by them all.
Well, all I know today is that we took the original Rt 66 from somewhere south of Chicago all the way to Los Angeles, or Anaheim to be exact. Oddly enough we did not go to Disneyland. I guess it was too expensive and our time there was limited. We did go to Knott's Berry Farm which was almost as good. Actually, I was disappointed. I traveled all that distance expecting to experience Disneyland, but then I wasn't paying for any of it. My memories of Knott's are very limited. I think we got some jelly and saw some of the attractions. I don't recall much about St Louis other than the view approaching it. Why that sticks in my mind is a mystery. We did drive through the city and I also recall being very relieved exiting it. We were really anxious to get to the west coast. LOL I don't recall seeing any florists or greenhouses, but it is very possible that we did pass by them all.
Re: Magnetic Core Memory
Interesting, my very first one was a Heathkit also!
I'm thinking you probably had the newer slim design with the meter on the left, then the on/off, rcv and tnx gain knobs.
If I recall, this model also had a cheap red reset button on the top.
The one I had first, had a humongous meter in the top middle, a mike plug on the left, then the tnx and rcv gain knobs, and the on/off knob on the right. Instead of mike, it had a switch that connected to the mike for the purpose of switching from tnx to rcv if there was too much noise on the line, even with the gain turned down low on the rcv knob.
Years later I got the nicer model like you probably had. It worked much better too!
My cousin Larry and I used to follow some roads from beginning to end also, usually numbered highways. Ended up going through many states and saw some amazing sights along the way.
In later years, my Cousin Duke would go on scenic drives and take me with him, often on the roads marked OTHER on maps, hi hi. We did this again only a few years ago and had a ball. He never did get over 35 mph much on those old back roads.
If you were on Route-66, you would have missed a couple of things, like the humongous Budweiser sign on Hwy 40. Back then it was lit with thousands of incandescent light bulbs. They renovated it a few times over the years, changed to neon lighting.
I heard now it is was redone using all LED lamps, and an LED screen for the Eagle, not as awesome as the original.
One time we followed the Lewis and Clark trail for a whole week, with lots of backtracking. There were several roads marked as being a part of the Lewis and Clark trail, and a couple of times the original trail was actually between two roads, and you could park and get out and walk on part of it for about 1/4 mile or more.
Had lot's of phun back in the good ole daze!
I'm thinking you probably had the newer slim design with the meter on the left, then the on/off, rcv and tnx gain knobs.
If I recall, this model also had a cheap red reset button on the top.
The one I had first, had a humongous meter in the top middle, a mike plug on the left, then the tnx and rcv gain knobs, and the on/off knob on the right. Instead of mike, it had a switch that connected to the mike for the purpose of switching from tnx to rcv if there was too much noise on the line, even with the gain turned down low on the rcv knob.
Years later I got the nicer model like you probably had. It worked much better too!
My cousin Larry and I used to follow some roads from beginning to end also, usually numbered highways. Ended up going through many states and saw some amazing sights along the way.
In later years, my Cousin Duke would go on scenic drives and take me with him, often on the roads marked OTHER on maps, hi hi. We did this again only a few years ago and had a ball. He never did get over 35 mph much on those old back roads.
If you were on Route-66, you would have missed a couple of things, like the humongous Budweiser sign on Hwy 40. Back then it was lit with thousands of incandescent light bulbs. They renovated it a few times over the years, changed to neon lighting.
I heard now it is was redone using all LED lamps, and an LED screen for the Eagle, not as awesome as the original.
One time we followed the Lewis and Clark trail for a whole week, with lots of backtracking. There were several roads marked as being a part of the Lewis and Clark trail, and a couple of times the original trail was actually between two roads, and you could park and get out and walk on part of it for about 1/4 mile or more.
Had lot's of phun back in the good ole daze!
Re: Magnetic Core Memory
Those lonely country back roads can be awesome if you happen to be on the right one. Back a few months ago when my youngest granddaughter got married up near Chicago wife and I drove down some Illinois country roads. All my life I heard that the Prairie State was known for it's wheat crops, but we saw nothing but corn. For miles and miles. It was astonishing in some ways because of the quantity. What do they do with all that corn? I suppose they make alcohol now and days, but they used to ship it to foreign countries. Made the same kind of trip in Iowa which is well known for its corn crops. There we saw a lot of soy beans mixed in with the corn crops. Also while on a fishing trip with the wife's dad we would frequently travel back roads to get to the lake. One time going to a new lake we ran across a Green Giant corn farm. They had a stack of corn 15 feet high which they were selling for $1/bag. We could not pass up that kind of bargain. LOL
It's possible I saw the Budweiser sign of which you speak, but I don't recall it. As I mentioned above entering and leaving St Louis were the highlights. We were not on the road for touring sights. The driver had a mission to accomplish in California and all he wanted was a driving companion. I just happened to be available.
You know ... it's possible that I have that phone patch in a box down in the basement. I know my semi automatic code keyer (bug) is down there with a couple other small items. If I ever get to looking through the boxes of stuff I'll take a picture of what's remaining of my ham gear. I think I still have the tuning coils I used on my dipole too. I've been listening to some CW transmissions recently and it amazes me that I can recognize some of the characters. It seems the faster transmissions are easier to decipher, which is probably due to the fact I ended my career at or about 35 wpm. It's all pretty interesting but I don't think I could ever go back. I'd never pass the license test for one thing.
It's possible I saw the Budweiser sign of which you speak, but I don't recall it. As I mentioned above entering and leaving St Louis were the highlights. We were not on the road for touring sights. The driver had a mission to accomplish in California and all he wanted was a driving companion. I just happened to be available.
You know ... it's possible that I have that phone patch in a box down in the basement. I know my semi automatic code keyer (bug) is down there with a couple other small items. If I ever get to looking through the boxes of stuff I'll take a picture of what's remaining of my ham gear. I think I still have the tuning coils I used on my dipole too. I've been listening to some CW transmissions recently and it amazes me that I can recognize some of the characters. It seems the faster transmissions are easier to decipher, which is probably due to the fact I ended my career at or about 35 wpm. It's all pretty interesting but I don't think I could ever go back. I'd never pass the license test for one thing.
Re: Magnetic Core Memory
When I was driving OTR, there were many side roads I had to take to get to my delivery points. I would pass tractors with wagons hauling harvests to wherever they were taking them. But most of my stops were not farms, just small business areas with several small stores. Some of my delivery instructions were interesting also. I was just to stop in a parking lot, not by the store, but in the middle of the parking lot. My first time doing this, I thought I was being raided by a mob, hi hi.
Since I didn't load the truck, I thought everything was for a particular address and thought it odd to park in the middle of a parking lot. But after I opened the truck up, I then saw the store names on all the pallets of boxes. The store owners came out with large flat carts, a pick-up truck, and some just had a few kids with shopping carts. I had no pallet jack to move the stuff to the back of the truck. One of the store owners told me how they do it. Go to the first couple of pallets and call out the store name. They all pitched in like a chain gang and passed the stuff out to whichever store got it.
Ironically, it took them less time to unload that truck than most of my dock stops with fork lifts.
Each store owner signed the receipts showing they got X number of boxes. When I got back to the terminal, I told the guys how that stop was. One of the other drivers said they had a stop like that a few months back.
The only bad thing about that was, I had a trailer with empty flats and lots of tie-straps to unload myself when I got back. They didn't have shrink wrap or plastic ties back then, the ties were all made like the wick material in a kerosene lamp.
But going down those side roads to these little shopping areas you never thought existed was exciting. Especially if they had a small diner to eat at.
I had my brother move all the boxes of my Ham Gear to my living room, over two months ago now, and still have not been able to go through them and take pictures or organize the ham gear from the test equipment to the old stereo and other office things I see mixed in the stacks of boxes, and there are still boxes up in my office to bring down.
Since I didn't load the truck, I thought everything was for a particular address and thought it odd to park in the middle of a parking lot. But after I opened the truck up, I then saw the store names on all the pallets of boxes. The store owners came out with large flat carts, a pick-up truck, and some just had a few kids with shopping carts. I had no pallet jack to move the stuff to the back of the truck. One of the store owners told me how they do it. Go to the first couple of pallets and call out the store name. They all pitched in like a chain gang and passed the stuff out to whichever store got it.
Ironically, it took them less time to unload that truck than most of my dock stops with fork lifts.
Each store owner signed the receipts showing they got X number of boxes. When I got back to the terminal, I told the guys how that stop was. One of the other drivers said they had a stop like that a few months back.
The only bad thing about that was, I had a trailer with empty flats and lots of tie-straps to unload myself when I got back. They didn't have shrink wrap or plastic ties back then, the ties were all made like the wick material in a kerosene lamp.
But going down those side roads to these little shopping areas you never thought existed was exciting. Especially if they had a small diner to eat at.
I had my brother move all the boxes of my Ham Gear to my living room, over two months ago now, and still have not been able to go through them and take pictures or organize the ham gear from the test equipment to the old stereo and other office things I see mixed in the stacks of boxes, and there are still boxes up in my office to bring down.
Re: Magnetic Core Memory
Your OTR experience where you were instructed to deliver in the middle of the parking lot is pretty interesting. It surely was the most efficient way to deliver the goods. Even more interesting is the fact that all those stores got their supplies from a single distribution center. I guess that's the best way to do it out in the rural areas. I just never gave it much thought before.
The country life is a good life and they have pretty much the same kind of things we do in the more populated areas. I recall one trip to Iowa that involved dinner at the country club. This club was part of a golf course much in the same style as I've seen around the city courses. The surprise was where it was located. We drove down some of those long lonely desolate country roads that crosshatch the corn fields. Then there was a gravel road, or something on that order, onto which we turned and drove about a mile to see a golf course and its accompanying club house. They not only served food but also had a large dance area which was very popular on weekends. The craziest thing was the number of people attending dinner in that club house. There were many more than I thought lived in the entire county. So there we were, literally in the middle of nowhere, at a country club on a golf course. The food was great as I remember. I just never expected to see such a thing out in the farmlands of Iowa.
The country life is a good life and they have pretty much the same kind of things we do in the more populated areas. I recall one trip to Iowa that involved dinner at the country club. This club was part of a golf course much in the same style as I've seen around the city courses. The surprise was where it was located. We drove down some of those long lonely desolate country roads that crosshatch the corn fields. Then there was a gravel road, or something on that order, onto which we turned and drove about a mile to see a golf course and its accompanying club house. They not only served food but also had a large dance area which was very popular on weekends. The craziest thing was the number of people attending dinner in that club house. There were many more than I thought lived in the entire county. So there we were, literally in the middle of nowhere, at a country club on a golf course. The food was great as I remember. I just never expected to see such a thing out in the farmlands of Iowa.
Re: Magnetic Core Memory
I had four, maybe five, pick-up points, all for that one destination. But none of those were really that much out of the way.
My first stop was at a ConAgra cannery, the next two were at major food distributors, and I had to hit two different buildings in the Kellogg's complex of warehouses. Seems like there was one other pick-up stop along the way, like at a CoOp close to where my drop-off point was.
On another weird trip, I had to hit like four different hobby shop suppliers, and a couple of them were way out of my way. But they all went to one central distribution house who specialized in crafts.
My worst ever trip, one I opted to take for the higher pay, was to Lafayette Radio and Electronics on Syasset Long Island. I quickly learned why no one pulled that stop off the board. It took ten times longer to get to it, which is why the higher pay.
After I left Long Island with a full load, I only had two stops, both at major electronics distribution warehouses.
I couldn't begin to explain the difference in small towns back before all the chain stores cropped up everywhere. When I first started driving, every single town was unique and different. But after about 5 years, all the towns were the same. You couldn't find any town that didn't have a McDonald's hamburger stand, and a few other chain fast food joints. And many of the big department stores were popping up all over also. Almost all the rural grocery stores were AG, until IGA's began building everywhere.
In the early years of driving, there were still Mercantile and General Stores in many small towns, and of course taverns and bars where everywhere. But that's one group of businesses I never once had to deliver to. Albeit I did have deliveries to the breweries, mostly bagged grain products, and a few boxes I had no idea what was in them.
NOT when I was driving OTR, but when I was just out and about with the family going to rural areas for sightseeing purposes, we've hit a few very interesting places to eat. I think I mentioned one to you a couple of years ago. We went in and sat down, and the lady who ran the place made us get up and move over to a long table where other people were already seated. She never took our order, just told us to go wash our hands, hi hi. Then she came out with all kinds of plates of food and lined them up on the table. Since our table was full, as other folks came in, they all sat at the next table behind us, and patiently waited for others to come until the table was nearly full. Then she started loading up their table. The surprising thing is when we went to leave, she only asks for 5 bucks from each person, and no tipping. I guess she did a good enough business there it covered everything well enough. This was back when a burger at a restaurant was still only around a buck to a buck fifty and at fast food joints around 35 cents.
And once, with my Grandpa G. I ate from a real chuck wagon, outside the old Red Barn Auction house. I was quite young at the time, and wanted a green fan blade for some project I was doing, but they only sold it by the whole case. After the auction, I went to the guy who bought the whole case and asked if he would sell me just one. He asked what I wanted it for, and after I told him, he just gave it to me for free. I don't remember what grandpa bought, but it had to do with horses, and he bragged about getting it for the price he did.
My first stop was at a ConAgra cannery, the next two were at major food distributors, and I had to hit two different buildings in the Kellogg's complex of warehouses. Seems like there was one other pick-up stop along the way, like at a CoOp close to where my drop-off point was.
On another weird trip, I had to hit like four different hobby shop suppliers, and a couple of them were way out of my way. But they all went to one central distribution house who specialized in crafts.
My worst ever trip, one I opted to take for the higher pay, was to Lafayette Radio and Electronics on Syasset Long Island. I quickly learned why no one pulled that stop off the board. It took ten times longer to get to it, which is why the higher pay.
After I left Long Island with a full load, I only had two stops, both at major electronics distribution warehouses.
I couldn't begin to explain the difference in small towns back before all the chain stores cropped up everywhere. When I first started driving, every single town was unique and different. But after about 5 years, all the towns were the same. You couldn't find any town that didn't have a McDonald's hamburger stand, and a few other chain fast food joints. And many of the big department stores were popping up all over also. Almost all the rural grocery stores were AG, until IGA's began building everywhere.
In the early years of driving, there were still Mercantile and General Stores in many small towns, and of course taverns and bars where everywhere. But that's one group of businesses I never once had to deliver to. Albeit I did have deliveries to the breweries, mostly bagged grain products, and a few boxes I had no idea what was in them.
NOT when I was driving OTR, but when I was just out and about with the family going to rural areas for sightseeing purposes, we've hit a few very interesting places to eat. I think I mentioned one to you a couple of years ago. We went in and sat down, and the lady who ran the place made us get up and move over to a long table where other people were already seated. She never took our order, just told us to go wash our hands, hi hi. Then she came out with all kinds of plates of food and lined them up on the table. Since our table was full, as other folks came in, they all sat at the next table behind us, and patiently waited for others to come until the table was nearly full. Then she started loading up their table. The surprising thing is when we went to leave, she only asks for 5 bucks from each person, and no tipping. I guess she did a good enough business there it covered everything well enough. This was back when a burger at a restaurant was still only around a buck to a buck fifty and at fast food joints around 35 cents.
And once, with my Grandpa G. I ate from a real chuck wagon, outside the old Red Barn Auction house. I was quite young at the time, and wanted a green fan blade for some project I was doing, but they only sold it by the whole case. After the auction, I went to the guy who bought the whole case and asked if he would sell me just one. He asked what I wanted it for, and after I told him, he just gave it to me for free. I don't remember what grandpa bought, but it had to do with horses, and he bragged about getting it for the price he did.