June 4, 2026 – We had a lively discussion today spanning a broad range of topics. As usual, we discussed bears including the one which recently opened a van door in Ashville, NC to steal a lunch bag. It’s just a matter of time until a bruin steals the whole car. Mike – KI4TWBB let us know that Hell, MI is for sale. It seems the price is just north of $600K. John – N4KN confirmed that Smoky Mountain Knife Works is still alive and well in Sevierville, TN. We all know this company for its wide offering of cutlery, but John says they handle much more nowadays. Dale made a brief meteor scatter contact during our meeting. You never know when these will occur! We all lamented the college sports NIL deals that are being made now. The consensus is that this is out of control and without structure. Nick Saban was asked to come and be interviewed by some members of the U.S. Congress this week so it is likely he made some good points.

May 21, 2026 – Bob – KA4PKB introduced us to Musco Sports Lighting which manufactures its products in Muscatine, Iowa. Musco is one of the best knows provider of lighting for sports venues. John – NK4N described how black bears in the National Park are tracked. This wildlife GPS tracking technology provides detailed information that is used by biologists and others to monitor the movements of bears and other wildlife. John was sporting a background picture of a Model A Ford on the Zoom call and we found out from him the image was from Uruguay. It seems that vintage cars, and particularly Model A’s, are quite popular there. Bob – KA4PKB reports that corn is about three inches high now in Iowa. Since our group is so genteel, we often talk about euphemisms. Today the euphemism word of the day is “companionship.”

May 14, 2026 – Bob – KD4PK mentioned that he recently dined with his family at the War Eagle Supper Club atop the new Hilton Graduate Hotel in Auburn. Bob gave us a good report on this experience. We spoke briefly about the bears in The Great Smoky Mountains and Yellowstone. Apparently, Japan has a new solution to their own bear problem with the advent of the Monster Wolf Robot with is reported to scare aware bears. John – NK4N says that bears are definitely sensitive to electric fences which several of our members have experience with. Finally, we remembered the old click-clack telegraph key and American Code used in the old days by railroads.

May 7, 2026 – A couple of the folks were on the road today but made it into the Zoom call anyway. Good show! We briefly discussed the grizzly incident at Yellowstone. Two hikers were attached on a well-traveled trail and severely injured. Both will survive, but this illustrates the danger, particularly this time of year. Welcome rains have finally come to the south. There was 3.27 inches in Loachapoka last night. We also talked about the license renewal process. While it is still possible to renew one’s license on the FCC site, the use of the W5YI service is growing. The cost through W5YI is $80 and requires very little time on one’s part.

April 30, 2026 – John – NK4N let us know that Union Pacific’s Big Boy locomotive (No. 4014) is scheduled to make a swing in the eastern part of our country soon. The schedule can be found at this link: BIG BOY SCHEDULE. Dale – WA4CQG mentioned that he has been doing some FT2 and FT4 recently, but that Logbook Of The World is not yet accepting FT2 contacts. We hope this is resolved soon. We remembered the old carbide miners lamps for some reason. We find that carbide is still available too but we don’t know what the uses would be. Bob – KD4PK showed us a small light that is powered by a button battery that his son uses frequently. It seems convenient. We agreed that the recent rainfall in our area was valued and appreciated. Nevertheless, drought restrictions start soon. John – NK4N reported that the drought has caused a shortage of food for the bears in his area and that some of them have been particularly mischievous as a result.

April 23, 2026 – We had perfect attendance by our most frequent attendees today. John – NK4N introduced us to Skultuna Brass Works. Skultuna is a Swedish manufacturer of brass and brass products founded in 1607. It is one of the oldest companies in the World. Our group was interested in the POTA FEST 2026 which took place in the Auburn area on April 22nd (POTA FEST 2026 FLYER and POTA FEST 2026 ARTICLE). John also reported two serious bear incidents in the Park. Dale – WA4CQG reported on his recent attendance of the Southeastern VHF Society Conference in Macon, Georgia. Finally, we briefly discussed the Craters of the Moon National Park in Arco, Idaho.

April 16, 2026 – John – NK4N provided a bear report from the park. He encountered a bear jam this past week which he stopped and cleared up. Also, at his personal home, his suet feeder arrangement was destroyed by a bruin. John plans to install a metal version now to see if it will survive bear incursions. Gail – KB4JAA reported much rain in their area. At this point, farmers are waiting for fair weather to plant. Of course we have had almost no rain recently in our area of Alabama. Bob – KD4PK described the Project Orion to us. It seems that this proposal contemplated using the shock waves from atomic bombs to propel spacecraft through space. Apparently, this never “got off the ground.” Richard – WA4IWD mentioned the speed at which quantum entanglement propagates. The theory is that this is instantaneous.  This is now subject to some other theories.  Several odd foods were discussed such as scrapple, pickled herring, limburger cheese, and surströmming. Recent outbreaks of measles became a topic. It seems that there are several types of measles including Standard Measles (Rubeola), German Measles (Rubella), Atypical Measles, and Hemorrhagic Measles. Notably, we discussed Simultaneous Interpreters. These skilled professionals are able to translate one language into a target language with almost no delay. They are employed to participate in high-stake meetings for example. There is an organization for them too which seems to be well structured.

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