The two big ones for me are fencing, which has been a major part of my life for 17 years now, and urban exploration, which pairs itself nicely with photography!
Which weapon?
I gave up at about 31 when I broke my ankle and rapidly put on too much weight to fit into my jacket (bought when I was 16).
Preferred weapons: foil (Italian grip) and epée. I always wanted to try (academic) broadsword... Bur NEVER electric, if I could avoid it.
Cheers,
R.
Aikido, japanese martial art (well, not much recently, due to non-aikido injury).
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More recently I took up (recreational) cycling. It matches quite well with photography, the world looks different compared to the usual view from a car.
Reading and taking naps. (I'm 77)
It's a beautiful instrument and it just sits wonderfully in my hands. I had several other guitars but none felt right like this one does. I love the birds on the fret board too 🙂^^ I always wanted a PRS. Something about the head-stock, neck, and body proportions, along with the design minimalism and apparent electronics simplicity just seems so balanced and beautiful. Enjoy!
Hey Ray....quick question for you... what are you using to study for the Amateur Ham Technicians license? Love this stuff....hope to have this license/cert done by the end of August.Photography and...
And, right now, I am studying for my Amateur Ham Technician's License here in the states. My immediate goal is to have the ability to communicate on the 2m/70cm bands during emergencies (lots of Amateur Ham clubs and repeaters in my area) and delve a little deeper into the hobby (and perhaps upgrade to a General's license for more privileges).
- Music (listening to most genres)
- Playing Guitar (less so these days)
- practicing traditional Okinawan Karate-Do (Uechi-Ryu)
- practicing Yang-Style T'ai Chi Ch'uan - Tung Family Slow Set (Long Form)
- traveling - especially to Europe
I also find it stimulating to study this stuff and exercise my brain as I age. There’s so much to learn on the analog side and lots in the digital side as well.
Right now, I have programmed some local police/fire and other public service channels and repeaters into my radios: hand-held transceivers or HT’s - (Yaseu FT-60R and Baofeng UV-5R using CHIRP and RT Systems software) - and am enjoying listening for now.
We recently had some severe thunderstorms and Tornado warnings in my area and these radios gave me a sense of security as I was listening in to what was happening locally: downed tress, local flash floods, medical emergencies etc. and of course the automated weather channels.
I also look at it as a hedge in case of loss of power and downed cellular networks. At least I can stay informed and communicate with battery backup.
What is limiting me a bit in getting a nice base station set-up is HOA limitations on antennas (one of the most important aspects for ham radio). I am thinking of creative ways I can install several in my attic area 🙂
For now, I'll limit it to hand-held transceivers and see how things go. The new technology now on ham base transceivers is a bit mind-boggling. Example:
IC-7300 — A Game Changer – Icom America Inc.
blog.icomamerica.com
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Not sure if there are other Hams on RFF. I didn't see any reference in this thread. 73's 🙂
Thank you for that link.^^ Yes, I was going to mention them 🕊️ as they are so symbolic to the design.
Lovely story about them here:
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The Story of the PRS Bird Inlays
The PRS bird inlays are one of the most recognizable trademarks of our brand, but you may be wondering, why birds? We chatted with Paul Reed Smith about…prsguitars.com
Hi @markbono, I bought the ARRL spiral book (ARRL Ham Radio License Manual 5th Edition for the Technician's License) but found it incredibly confusing.Hey Ray....quick question for you... what are you using to study for the Amateur Ham Technicians license? Love this stuff....hope to have this license/cert done by the end of August.
Best,
Mark
Hi @markbono, I bought the ARRL spiral book (ARRL Ham Radio License Manual 5th Edition for the Technician's License) but found it incredibly confusing.
So, on a recommendation from an experienced ham operator who I met in late-June during a local Ham-fest Field Day, he recommended the books by Gordon West. Here's his book and it is great (Amazon link)! His teaching style is right up my alley.
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Once I finished Gordon's book, I went back to the ARRL spiral book and went through all 411 pool questions in the back and got them mostly all right. The only ones I have trouble with are in Subelement T5 - Electrical Principles: mainly, the math formulas, so I will boning up on those. Gordon has some great hints about those in his book (p. 148).
I have been practicing online and found the feedback very valuable (flash cards and practice exams) at:
Best of luck! Enjoy!!