Brian

Jul 02

ARRL Field Day 2012 With SLAARC

By Brian Amateur Radio, Brian, Kieran No Comments »

The fourth full weekend of June. Those words have special meaning to those with amateur radio licenses in the USA. It is always the weekend for ARRL Field Day. This annual event is sponsored by the American Radio Relay League, the national association for amateur radio. It is a combination of a contest, an emergency communication exercise, and a social gathering.

For those who don’t know it, I am a licensed amateur radio operator with the callsign K8MIO. Kieran and I participated in Field Day in 2008 and 2009 with the Arrow Communication Association in Ann Arbor. After skipping the last two years we wanted to get back to it. This year we accepted the invitation from the South Lyon Area Amateur Radio Club (SLAARC) to attend their Field Day. I used to be a member of the defunct Edison Radio Amateurs Association with Gary Morgan, WA8TJA, who is now the SLAARC president. I also knew that another former Edison member Bob Pratt, WD8AQX, would be attending the SLAARC event.

The SLAARC Field Day site is behind the Lyon Township municipal center. It’s a very good site because it’s high. The view is great in all directions. So the radio waves propagate quite well too. The site is on top of a former garbage dump along I-96 near Milford Road.

The members of the club setup a lot of the antennas on Friday. We weren’t able to help with that. However, we met the group at 8:00 am on Saturday morning for breakfast. Then we headed to the site with everyone else to complete the setup of the tents and radios. The on-air event starts at 2:00 pm and runs for 24 hours until the same time Sunday.

Gary had one of the old Edison club tents for use as an operating tent. He put Kieran and I in charge of setting that up, but he helped too. Those tents always used to give us grief back in the days of the old club. It got easier when we used multiple colors of electrical tape to color code the various pole pieces during the final Edison years. I was happy to see that the color coding was still on the poles. It didn’t take too long and it was up.

So after all the setup is done, what do you do at Field Day? Aside from socializing you spend as much time as possible on the radios. The goal is to contact as many other stations around the United States and Canada who are also taking part in Field Day. You exchange a specific set of information with each station. Once that is done you record it in your computer log program and move on to the next station. You can either tune around the radio bands looking for other stations to call or you can park yourself on a particular frequency and announce that you are waiting for others to call you. Kieran and I did some of both.

I spent most of my time operating a radio, and Kieran spent the time logging the contacts into the computer. We exchanged roles for a little while at one point, but he decided he liked logging better. That’s not unusual for somebody who hasn’t done much operating before. I’m sure as he does more, he’ll want to do more. The good news is he really wants to get his own license before Field Day 2013. I have my work cut out for me!

Here are some pictures of us in the 10/15/20 meter tent where we spent most of our time on the air. Thanks to Bob Pratt for providing these pictures.

This station had an excellent setup. The radio (Elecraft K3) and computer were connected which made logging even easier. We’re operating on a beam antenna so you see a rotator control box as well.

That’s a rather serious look on my face.

Looking through the window of the old Edison club tent.

A better view of the N1MM logging software. All of the stations on the site were linked together via Wifi so we could see the contacts the other stations made.

A beautiful sunset in the background while we keep on operating.

Kieran took this picture with my iPhone. I’m really glad he did. That’s Bob, WD8AQX, at the radio while I log. We had some disintegrating headphones and you can see the remnants all over my neck.

Here’s Gary, WA8TJA, operating and logging.

Now for some picture I took of the site.

The club banner that welcomes the public to the site.

You can almost see the entire Field Day operation in this picture. That little tent closest to the camera on the right is where Kieran and I spent a few hours sleeping overnight.

On the left is the 40 meter dual inverted-V antenna. On the right is the 10/15/20 meter beam that Kieran and I spent most of our time on.

The blue tent is the 40 meter station. The other tent is the one Gary brought. It was originally owned by the ERAA and used at Field Day by that club when it existed. The generators are behind the trailer on the right.

The vertical antenna that wouldn’t tune is in the middle. The white canopy is the grub tent. The red tent is the 80 meter station. The blue canopy is the public information area.

The antenna on the left is an 80 meter dual inverted-V. Beams for 6 and 2 meters are on the tower to the right. There are two off-center fed dipoles extending from that tower as well. You can see the baluns if you look closely.

The generators under their rain protection. The trailer on the left kept the engine noise from disturbing the radio operators.

Here’s a better view of the 80 meter tent. The blue tent on the left is the 6/2 meter station. The blue tent to the right is the GOTA tent. That’s short for Get On The Air. This station is for unlicensed or inactive people to give things a try.

The food area and Wifi network hub. None of the people at Field Day went hungry. The food was quite good all weekend.

Kieran and I had a great time with the SLAARC members at Field Day. We hope to do it again next year. Our thanks to the members of the SLAARC who made Field Day possible!

Tagged with: ARRL • Edison Radio Amateurs Association • ERAA • fb • Field Day • SLAARC • South Lyon Area Amateur Radio Club

Jun 30

A Visit To Saugatuck

By Brian Brian, Linda, Nature, Places No Comments »

Earlier this month Linda and I had a weekend away to celebrate her birthday. (Thanks, Beth!) We went to the little town of Saugatuck, Michigan. It’s the first time we have even been there.

We spent two nights at the Twin Gables Inn. The room was very nice and the people were friendly. It’s a bed and breakfast inn and the breakfast was good both days. We didn’t start our days hungry.

Saugatuck is known for it’s art. It’s a small town, but the amount of art is large. We checked out a lot of it. There were galleries dedicated to single artists, art co-ops with their local members work on display, larger stores with art from different areas of the country, and one that we decided was of the “starving artist” variety.

Downtown is meant for tourists. In addition to the art galleries there is an eclectic collection of shops. We had a look at a lot of them. Some of it was practical, some of it was not. Taking it all in made for a fun weekend together.

Do you know what a chain ferry is? I didn’t. According to the information we saw in town, the only operating chain ferry in the country is in Saugatuck. There’s a chain stretched across the Kalamazoo river in downtown. When the ferry is at either side, the chain is laying on the bottom of the river so boats can pass over it. When somebody turns the crank on the ferry, it is pulled long that chain to the other side of the river. We didn’t ride it, but it’s fun to watch. Especially when they are cranking fast and furious to try and get out of the way of busy river traffic.

We took our bikes along with us. Saturday morning we wanted to put them to use. So we rode around the lake and over the river to Mount Baldhead. Since this is Michigan, it isn’t really a mountain. It’s 282 wooden steps that you can climb to a very scenic spot overlooking town. The chain ferry would have gotten us their quicker, but we had bikes so we rode. Once you get to the top you can go down the sand dunes on the other side and arrive at Oval Beach on Lake Michigan. We didn’t want to do that because it would have involved going back up those dunes. They’re pretty steep. However, we found a hiking trail along the top and headed out along it. It ends at a very nice overlook on Oval Beach and the big lake. The lake breeze is always great.

Here are some pictures from our mountain adventure.

This is the 282 steps of Mt. Baldhead from the bottom.

Heading out along the hiking trail

See the snake we encountered along the trail?

After about a half-mile we came to the end of the trail and a beautiful view of Lake Michigan.

Smile!

This strange tree was along the trail.

Linda with Saugatuck behind her.

This is the view looking down the stairs. It’s a long way down.

This is what Mt. Baldhead looks like from across the river in town.

If you get the chance to visit Saugatuck, I’d recommend it. It’s perfect for a weekend trip.

Tagged with: Art • Bikes • Chain Ferry • fb • Hike • Mt. Baldhead • Saugatuck • Twin Gables Inn

Jun 29

Cub Scout Fun Day

By Brian Boy Scouts, Brian, Cub Scouts, Declan, Kieran, Nature, Owen No Comments »

Declan and Owen went to their first Cub Scout Fun Day last month. This is a day when Camp Munhacke is open to the Cubs and their families. There are lots of things for them to do. The usual shooting sports stations are open as well as crafts, sports, and Minute To Win It games!

The boys walking down the back road. Still early and a little chilly.

Owen’s already over and Declan is about to clear the hurdle on the obstacle course

They had to put their whole body through the hoops.

Climb the wall, and try to not fall down the other side!

They’re on their way to the next adventure. Can Dad keep up?

Their first try at archery using real bows and arrows. Neither of them were that impressed this time.

Owen enjoyed the BB Guns. He hit the pie plate target a couple of times!

Declan also hit the target a couple of times. A very successful first attempt!

Kieran and the other Boy Scouts from Troop 240 were running the Minute To Win It game station during fun day. We finally got there by mid-day. Stick the Landing involves tossing a half full plastic water bottle and trying to get it to land upright on the table.

This Minute To Win It game involved stacking five apples on top of each other. All in one minute. Without them falling.

Declan’s favorite station of the day was the wrist rockets. He shot a whole lot of dog food!

Owen is really pulling that slingshot back.

It was a very fun day. My compliments to the volunteers who made Cub Scout Fun Day happen. My boys and I really appreciate how much effort you put into making our day memorable.

Tagged with: Archery • BB Guns • Camp Munhacke • Cub Scout Fun Day • fb • Minute To Win It • Obstacle Course • Wrist Rocket

Aug 09

Visit from a Turtle

By Brian Brian, Declan, Kieran, Linda, Nature, Owen No Comments »

Linda returned home on July 15th and noticed this turtle walking on our driveway. So the whole family had to check it out. After we all had a look we put him in a box and walked him over to the pond across the street. When we released him there he scurried into the water pretty quickly.

When most of us saw him he was partway under the car in the driveway.

He looks a little disgusted doesn't he?

Tagged with: fb • Turtle

May 28

Scout Campout – May 14-16, 2011

By Brian Boy Scouts, Brian, Kieran No Comments »

Linda and I used to live fairly close to Lower Huron Metropark. We had picnics in the park. What I didn’t know was that it has a pretty nice group camping area. It’s specially for youth groups so the Boy Scouts fit right in. On the weekend of May 14-16 Troop 240 headed over there for a tent campout. We used the Troop’s tents. These are the tents from last year’s National Jamboree. We have 10 of them that we bought after Jambo was over.

We got to the campsite by about 6:00 on Friday evening. We got our camp setup and cooked dinner. The three patrols rotated cooking and cleaning duty. Kieran’s patrol had cooking duty for Friday dinner. They did a good job on the soft tacos. The evening was cut short by rain. The guys were ready to stop fighting the weather and retired to their tents early.

Kieran, Kyle, Jason, and Matthew paused for a picture

Saturday we got up at 7:00 am. French toast and scrambled eggs were prepared for breakfast. After the cleanup there was some scout skill sessions that helped our newer guys learn some of what they need to advance to higher ranks.

One of the Scout Skills stations was fire starting

Kieran and Christian are really getting into their fire starting

We had intended to roast hotdogs for our lunchtime chili dogs over the fire. However, it was raining again so we resorted to the camp stoves for lunch. We did get a fire going later and had some really good pork chops grilled over the fire for dinner.

Our tents were all lined up along the tree line. Gear and grub areas down there at the end.

Kieran and Jason are in the background going over anime art techniques while pork chops cook over the fire for dinner.

Here are the Scoutmasters waiting for those chops to be done

This drain was a popular place for this gang to hang out

We had a nice time around the campfire Saturday night. Lots of conversation and the cracker-barrel. Since Friday’s cracker-barrel was rained out we doubled it up on Saturday. We had crackers and a cheeseball plus s’mores.

Unfortunately, the rain came back during the night while we were sleeping. It didn’t let up at all Sunday morning. We prepared breakfast. We had perogi, beef sticks, and fruit cups. The group that was using the pavillion was nice enough to let us cook and eat breakfast under it. That made it much easier with the rain. After breakfast was cleaned up it was time to break camp. We had to put everything away wet. So the tents and other Troop gear went home with the various leaders to get setup and dried out over the next couple of days.

Everybody said they had a good time on this campout. I know Kieran and I did!

Tagged with: Campout • fb • Lower Huron Metropark • Troop 240

May 25

Easter 2011

By Brian Brian, Declan, Family, Holidays, Kieran, Linda, Owen No Comments »

Easter was not a huge to do this year. Just a very nice meal enjoyed by a happy family. That’s enough isn’t it?

Owen appears to be very happy about the dinner Mom made for Easter

Here’s the centerpiece Linda created for the dining room.

Candles, flowers, and eggs - the colored and the peanut butter kind

It’s not often that all of us guys put on something that isn’t a t-shirt. So when it happens there must be a picture.

Family photo from Easter 2011

Thanks to this picture I finally replaced the old banner image for this site. This one is much better. Hope you had a nice Easter.

Tagged with: Easter Dinner • Eggs • Family Photos • fb

Oct 02

Ludington Labor Day

By Brian Brian, Declan, Kieran, Linda, Owen, Vacations 1 Comment »

We took a little vacation to Ludington over the Labor Day weekend. Linda and I used to visit Ludington quite a bit. Even after Kieran was born we went a number of times. We even camped in the state park back then. However, we haven’t been back to Ludington for a stay since we became a family of five. It was nice to be back!

We surrounded our one night in Ludington with nights in Reed City. So we headed up to Reed City on Friday night. We had dinner at home and then hit the road. We thought maybe Declan and Owen would sleep in the car if we got a later start. That didn’t work all that well, but it was worth a try. Saturday we got ourselves over to Wrights Bake Shop for breakfast. We got enough to take with us for the next day too. It’s always great to visit Wrights!

We made the hour drive to Ludington and got there around lunch time. What to do for lunch?! Linda got a brilliant idea. She suggested we got to Bortell’s. If you ever go to Ludington during the Summer you must eat at Bortells. We were introduced to it by the proprietors of Bed and Breakfast at Ludington where we used to stay. It’s a little way out of town, but quite popular. They do seafood. You pick what you want from their display case, then they take it out and fry it up right in front of you. Oh it is good!

Bortells is on South Lakeshore Drive along Lake Michigan outside Ludington. There isn't much parking in the lot.

Because Bortells is so popular, there are usually cars parked along the road.

There is no inside seating at Bortells. If you want to sit down and eat, there are picnic tables outside.

We got two orders of whitefish, an order of shrimp, an order of fried mushrooms, and an order of fries. Yum!

Something's fishy

Since there are five of us these days, our favorite B&B isn’t as good an option any more. So we opted to rent a cottage for the night. The Lakeview Cottages owners were nice enough to rent to us for a single night at the last minute. It was the end of the season so they helped us out. Our cottage (#3) was nice. It doesn’t look like much from the outside, but inside it’s good. The kids weren’t sure about the lack of TV, but that’s just fine for Linda and I. It does have Wifi which works for the two of us.

Our cottage was actually the back portion of this corner building.

Here are the boys outside our cottage door.

After we got our stuff unloaded we walked a couple of blocks down to Stearns Park. That’s the city’s lakefront park. The wind was pretty strong, and it had been for a while. It had blown lots of sand off the beach across the parking lot into the grassy part of the park. It was also causing big waves that were crashing up over the north breakwater. We thought it was crazy that there were actually people out on the breakwater while those waves were present. Our common sense was right. On Monday, after we’d returned home, a tourist was out on the breakwater and a big wave swept him right off into the lake and he drowned. You should never underestimate the power of the lake!

Waves Over the Ludington North Breakwater

The waves are crashing over the breakwater and common sense is apparently absent.

I thought the sky was amazing.

Just a small sample of the sand blown off the beach. The city spent the next week putting it back.

After we walked the length of the park we were at Ludington Avenue. So we headed up the street and checked out some of the shops. It didn’t take long for the kids to get bored with that. We had dinner at the Jamesport Brewing Company. A walk in the dark back to our cottage was fun. When the kids weren’t being raucous we could hear Lake Michigan a couple of blocks away.

Sunday was Big Sable Point day. We had the Wrights goodies that we brought with us for breakfast, picked up some lunch at Subway, and then drove out to Ludington State Park. We parked at the Lake Michigan beach and started our walk to the Big Sable Point Lighthouse. To get to the light you either have to walk along the beach or a state park road. You cannot drive out to it. The walk along the beach is much more fun so we do that. On the way out there was much “I cannot walk one more step” heard from the children. It got better once we walked far enough for the top of the lighthouse to come into view.

Kieran and Mom had lots to talk about on the way to the lighthouse. You can just see the top of it over the grass.

A little further down the beach, now it looks like a lighthouse.

Now the color bands are more visible. The kids were getting more excited at this point.

The fog signal is visible on the left now.

Keepers quarters starting to rise out of the grass.

This view gives quite a different perspective. I didn't realize somebody was looking down at me until after I took the picture.

We paid the keepers and climbed those stairs to the top of the tower.

Hold on to your hats! It's windy up at the top of the lighthouse.

Looking toward the lake from the top of the lighthouse. The replica fog signal structure doesn't actually have a fog signal in it.

This is the view behind the lighthouse from up top.

Looking down at the Keepers Quarters from the top of the lighthouse.

Looking Back Where We Came From Atop Lighthouse

This is the view back in the direction we came from.

Ludington State Park Beach Near Lighthouse

Looking down the beach we walk to get to the lighthouse.

We sat down for lunch in the shadow of the tower, but the shadow moved.

From the shadow of the tower the sun cast a bright glow from behind the top of the tower.

There's no bathroom in the Keeper's Quarters, but there is a very fancy outhouse.

This huge tree stump is between the lighthouse and the outhouse

As we started to walk back from Big Sable Lighthouse I spotted this out on the lake.

On the way back from the lighthouse everybody eventually removed their shoes and walked close along the water.

Just can't resist the sand.

One of us was holding this kite for our walk out and back to the lighthouse. There's no better place to fly a kite.

It was a beautiful day to walk along the water. The sun was shining and it wasn’t too hot or cold.

We made it back to Reed City for dinner with Grandma and Grandpa who came up that day. After a nice evening with them the kids slept well. The fresh air and walking helps with that. Monday it was time to head home. It was a short vacation, but a great end to the Summer.

Tagged with: Big Sable Point Lighthouse • Bortells • fb • Lakeview Cottages • Ludington • Reed City • Wrights Bake Shop

Sep 13

Visiting Grandpa Harrie

By Brian Brian, Declan, Kieran, Linda, Owen, Vacations No Comments »

Our big Summer vacation was a trip down to Tennessee to spend a week with Grandpa Harrie. It was the first time in Tennessee for Declan and Owen. Everybody had a great time. Amazingly, nothing got broken in Grandpa’s house!

We made sure to get a picture with Grandpa before the week was over. Amazing that everybody smiled!

Owen and Declan spent a lot of time doing dances like this. They were having fun!

We didn’t go on the trip with any plans as to what we would do while we were there. That’s pretty typical for us. Trying to stick to a schedule just seems like work. Where’s the vacation in that?

Grandpa’s house is a short walk away from a place called the Custard Cabin. It’s pretty good stuff. Since the weather was extremely hot while we were there we thought it would be great to walk up there in the evening when it started to cool off.

There's a big valley followed by a big hill in the road out of the neighborhood.

Walk up the big hill, turn left, and just a short way up the main road is that big cone calling you toward it.

They have a table just the right size for Declan and Owen out on the porch.

Kieran sat with us at the porch counter.

One day we stopped at a road side stand selling peaches. The peaches were very good, but the reason I mention it is that the woman running the stand asked us “Have you been to the tree house?” Huh? What tree house? She told us there was a local minister that was building a huge tree house because God told him to. She said it’s open for people to climb though for no charge. When we got back to Grandpa’s house we looked it up on the Internet. It looked really impressive so we decided to check it out the next day. It’s called The Minister’s Tree House. Here are some pictures.

There's a chapel inside where they hold church services some Sundays.

Minister's Tree House - The Main Stairway

This is the main stairway that spirals all the way up to the top. That's 10 levels up. Other stairs are located on various levels.

Most of the structure has walkways around the various levels like this one.

Minister's Tree House - Looking Down at Owen & Mom

Declan and I were not all the way to the top, but we were looking down at Owen and his Mom.

Minister's Tree House - Family at the Top

If you look real close you can see Linda, Kieran, Declan, and Owen looking out from the top floor window.

Minister's Tree House - Closeup on Family at the Top

Add a little zoom and you can see them all looking down at me.

Minister's Tree House - View Through the Trees

I tried to capture the whole thing, but it's hard to see it through the trees from this side.

Minister's Tree House - View From The Front

When you go around to the front (or is it the back) you can stand back and really get blown away by the size of this tree house.

If you get the chance to visit Crossville, it’s worth a stop at the tree house. You’ll be impressed.

They recently opened a brand new public library in Crossville. We like libraries so, of course, we had to check it out. It’s a really nice place.

The new Crossville Public Library

You can sit out on that balcony and read in a rocking chair. At least if it’s cooler than it was when we were there. The children’s department has a round area where they’ve setup former carousel animals and carts and things that the kids thought was great.

Declan on the carousel pig

Owen on the carousel horse

Cumberland Mountain State Park isn’t too far from Grandpa’s house so we decided to go hiking one day.

Cumberland Mountain State Park Byrd Lake

This is the lake created by the bridge/dam in the park.

This is the bridge/dam that creates the lake.

Cumberland Mountain State Park - Hiking 1

Setting out on our hike.

Cumberland Mountain State Park - Hiking 2

The boys stopping at the stream on the trail.

Cumberland Mountain State Park - Hiking Cable Bridge

There's a cable bridge at the far end of the trail that we hiked. The twins were a little freaked out by this.

Cumberland Mountain State Park - Hiking Rock Outcropping

There were several of these large overhanging rock formations along the trail. The Tennessee rocks are just amazing.

We have cousins that live closer to Nashville and we decided that we needed to get over to visit them on this trip. We spent the day with them and their new baby. It’s the third girl for them.

Visiting Sarah and Justin - Linda and Makenzie

Linda got her baby fix with Makenzie

Visiting Sarah and Justin - Kieran and Makenzie

Kieran wanted to hold Makenzie as much as possible

Visiting Sarah and Justin - Proud Parents

Had to get a shot of the proud parents with the new little one

We had a lot of fun on our trip. The drive there and back got a little long at times, but everybody survived. Grandpa was happy to have us and it sure was nice getting to see him for an extended time. Hopefully t won’t be so long before the next trip!

Tagged with: Crossville • Crossville Public LIbrary • Cumberland Mountain State Park • Custard Cabin • fb • Grandpa Harrie • Minister's Tree House • Tennessee

Aug 21

Mountain Dew Taste Test

By Brian Brian, Declan, Kieran, Owen No Comments »

Going through the checkout lane today we spotted individual 20 ounce bottles of Mountain Dew Throwback. When the inevitable “Can we get some?!” was uttered, I decided it might be fun to do a little taste test. So we got a bottle of the throwback formula and a bottle of the current day formula.

Original Recipe Throwback on the left. Current day recipe on the right.

The label on the throwback bottle is certainly more interesting than the new one. The main difference between the two drinks is how they’re sweetened. The current day recipe uses high fructose corn syrup, the ubiquitous, highly processed goo that seems to be everywhere today. The throwback recipe uses sugar. Imagine that!

All three boys took part in the test along with me. Everybody got a couple of ounces of each of the drinks placed in front of them. I probably shouldn’t have told them which was which, but they knew. In the picture the throwback is in the red cup. The modern formula is in whatever the other cup is.

Owen, Declan, and Kieran are ready for the taste test

Everybody drank the throwback first. The feeling among the boys was that the throwback was sweeter. It was their unanimous choice. I really couldn’t tell the difference between the two. After the first couple of drinks I just sensed no difference. After another try of each I finally noticed a subtle difference. For me, as soon as I swallowed the current formula the flavor was pretty much done. With the throwback formula it seemed that the flavor stayed with me longer. The sugar must do a better job of coating the tongue. That’s my theory.

Can you tell which Mountain Dew is which?

So there you have it. The four of us all felt that Mountain Dew Throwback is better than the modern formula. However, I still prefer Diet Mountain Dew to both of them.

Tagged with: fb • Goo • Mountain Dew • Sugar • Taste Test

Jun 24

Dexter Day

By Brian Brian, Declan, Holidays, Kieran, Linda, Owen, Work No Comments »

Last Saturday, the day before Father’s Day, Linda worked all day. So the boys and I went into Dexter to visit her in the late afternoon. We finally got a chance to visit Warrior Creek Park which is right behind the Dexter District Library. After that we went to the Dexter Pub for a Father’s Day dinner, just a little early. A nice day in a nice place with the family!