Voice of Bruck News Service

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Thursday, July 19, 2007

Vintage Bruck - Radio Stories

Faithful readers: My old computer died a little while back, so I bought a new one - pretty isn't it? I found it on Craig's List. Fortunately the old computer's demise was gradual enough that I was able to back up its contents. In the process of copying the old files to the new computer, I came across this little gem, which I think was for publication in my local ham radio club's newsletter in 2001. Either that or it was part of one of my earlier ventures into blogging, which at that time entailed spamming the radio club's mailing list with my drivel. At any rate, I think there's something here even for you muggles to enjoy, so without further ado...

Bruck's Travelogue

One frequently hears sirens from emergency vehicles wailing through the streets of Naples, Florida. On such an occasion this past January, young David turned to me and said, "You know what that means, don't you?"

"Hmm?"

"Another condo on the market!"

Having spent a short vacation in Naples each winter for the past three years, David knows the ropes. It doesn't take long to become inured to the local culture. The rapid turnover of the aging population of wealthy retirees produces a certain transient flavor in the city life. But frugal shoppers can turn this phenomenon to their advantage by availing themselves of the abundance of semi-used and reasonably-priced merchandise at the second-hand stores and consignment shops that have sprung up throughout the city to subsume the earthly belongings of those who "can't take it with them."

At one such shop, in addition to an inexpensive pair of computer speakers, I found two working handheld CB radios for $1 each. One had crystals for two channels (14 and 35, with an open socket for a third), and the other had a VFO to cover all 40. They each have a low and high power setting, and sockets for external antennas. On the downside, they each require 11 AA batteries, which I fortunately found on sale at the local Costco for $11 for a 48-pack. We haven't fully tested the range of these fantastic little radios, but we know that they work for at least a few blocks.

There are also some wonderful flea markets in southwest Florida, at one of which I procured a pair of tin snips (somebody borrowed mine - if it's you, I still want them back), a 10x loupe (magnifier for use in working on miniature electronics such as the diodes that prevent out-of-band transmissions), two wallets for $3 each, and a couple of 18" masonry bits. It occurred to me later that 18" wood bits would have been more useful. If you need to drill a hole in I-696, I think I can help you out. Young David bought a big rubber mallet for $5.

Okay, I know this isn't exactly ham radio, but I did want to share with you my brief forays into cheapskate nirvana. So, how is the ham radio scene in southwest Florida, you ask? If the activity on 2 meter FM phone is any indication, pretty dead. According to the ARRL repeater guide, there are four 2 meter repeaters in Naples, and I had no trouble accessing three of them with my 5W handheld with just the rubber duck antenna. Talking to "Paul," whose call escapes me, I learned that these three are clustered about a mile from my parents' condo, my main operating location. Paul is a retired radio engineer from the Naples area. Paul is an elmer to "Karen," or "Judy," whose name and call I also can't quite remember. I'll never forget those brief but meaningful moments spent chatting with Paul and Karen or Judy. I put out my callsign on the local repeaters on several other occasions, with no response. There was a repeater at 147.51 (!), but I could not determine the input frequency nor the PL tone, which it seemed to require. There was quite a lot of conversation on this repeater, some of it profane, and all of it devoid of callsigns. Perhaps some local CBers got ahold of some 2 meter equipment from Radio Shack. In any event, they didn't seem to be crowding any legitimate users off the band.

So, Bruck, what about your trip to the axis countries? Not much radio-related news to report there. I didn't bring any transmitters, and only had limited time to listen with my Grundig YB400, with which I always travel. There is an enormous electronics district in Osaka, but I could find nothing even remotely ham radio-related there, and despite the strong dollar, no real bargains, except the $2000 electric toilet seats. From Conrad's, my favorite electronics store in Cologne, Germany, I purchased a small SW/MW/LW/FM receiver for 20 DM (~$9 US). With its exceptionally broad selectivity, about 15-20Khz in my estimation, allowing me to listen to two or three SW stations simultaneously, I'd say I definitely got my money's worth.

Aside from the fact that it's still winter, it's good to be home.


Wednesday, July 11, 2007

e-Bay, the Other White Meat

True confessions time - let’s see a show of hands. How many of you have done this? Who has helped increase the price of a friend’s item on e-Bay by bidding it up without the intention of actually buying it, or had someone else do this for you? That’s what I thought! They frown on that, you know. They would probably also frown on another game I have stumbled upon, which I’ll call e-Bay Chicken. What I have greatly enjoyed doing lately, for reasons I will attempt to explain, is bidding up the price of items I don’t necessarily even want, being sold by people I don’t know.

One peculiar aspect of e-Bay that I’ve noticed is that people will bid prices to above retail, even for used items. I noticed this soon after I started using e-Bay in the late 90’s, but figured people would get smart and quit doing it, particularly now when you can buy just about anything online, and usually for better than retail prices. Not so. People still do it all the time. Maybe some clever psychologist can do a Ph.D. thesis on this.

If you’re an experienced e-Bay user you probably already know this, so you can skip this paragraph. e-Bay is not like an in-person auction where an auctioneer takes bids serially from you and your fellow bidders that you can see in person, until the highest bidder prevails. Instead, you enter the maximum amount you’re willing to bid, and the price ratchets up to the next increment above the next higher bidder’s max. For example, if you are bidding on a Richard Simmons Sweatin’ to the Oldies DVD and you enter a maximum bid of $200, and the next highest bidder’s max is $150, then you are the winning bidder at $151. If no more bids are entered, you’ll win the auction and pay $151 (plus s/h). (Before I realized how this works, I used to wonder, “how did I get outbid so quickly?”). If someone else were to come along and bid $160, then you’d still be the winning bidder, but the purchase price would be raised to $161. Get it? If someone else really really wants the DVD, he’ll keep bidding until he’s the winning bidder, which occurs when his max bid exceeds $200.

An economic theory of mine is that the reason we in the US enjoy a strong economy and high standard of living is that we buy lots of things we don’t need, and pay too much for them. On the other hand, my personal economic philosophy is a combination of non- or even anti-materialism, and responsible spending; I’m not avowing asceticism, but I always keeping a close eye on what I buy and own, and always look for the best deal on anything that costs more than $20.

I’ve long held that if everybody thought the way I did, our economy would quickly grind to a halt. Of course I’m aware of the subtle hypocrisy here, how I depend on others being spendthrifts in order to live well and still feed my inner cheapskate. This conflict is what I believe motivates my enjoyment of e-Bay Chicken:

I start by looking at items on e-Bay that I wouldn’t mind owning (because I just might), such as certain tools or sporting goods. I then look at the bid history and other parameters. If there is some time left in the auction, and it looks like there is active bidding on the item, I’ll throw my hat in the ring and bid just higher than the current highest bidder. Small success is when I can raise the bid to the next increment without making myself the highest bidder. Real success is when I can get the current winning bid over e-tail prices without owning it. The risk of course is becoming the high bidder, and having to wait on pins and needles for someone else to come and outbid me. Failure is remaining the high bidder at the end of the auction and having to buy the item that I don’t really want at a price I’ve personally inflated.

So… does anybody else play this little game, or am I, once again, out here on my own little limb?

Thursday, July 05, 2007

Expansion of the Bruck Empire

Although I do not intend to impose any immediate changes in government, either its form or representation, nor do I intend to change any laws regarding taxation, zoning, property rights, nor for that matter civil or criminal code in the fair state of Georgia, I would like to announce to the residents of that state that they are now living in the sovereign territory of Bruck (see this recent column for explanation the basis of my claim).

A young relative recently got married in a suburb of Atlanta, and I stepped away from the rehearsal dinner party late last Friday evening, under the guise of making a phone call. I staked my claim during a dry thunderstorm, which was a little unnerving, as I was repeatedly being exposed, as it were, by frequent “flashes” of lightning.

I suspect that Ted Turner will be a tiny bit miffed at my laying claim to the state that he thought he owned, and so I would like to offer an olive branch. As I mentioned above, I do not have any plans for the foreseeable future to alter the legal or economic makeup of the state, therefore he should encounter no resistance to his plans for using Atlanta as a beachhead for world domination; I only have one dictum, and I really think this is a small thing to ask, and that is to alter slightly the state symbol of a peach to include a portrait of Bruck. And carve it into Stone Mountain.

Really, Georgians should be thankful. After laying claim to Minnesota two months ago, I have changed the University of Minnesota’s new mascot from the Golden Gophers (I’m sure they’re all grateful to be relieved of that ridiculous sobriquet) to the Brown Brucks, preserving the alliteration and adding a degree of sophistication. Oh, and Duluth’s new name is Bruluck.

I’m really on a roll of late: as of this weekend I also have both Carolinas in my back pocket, and of course my claim to Virginia is renewed on at least a weekly basis, so along with Florida, I now own, along with key portions of the midwest and southwest, the entire southern portion of the eastern seaboard.

You might well wonder, how long is my claim going to last, with plenty of others similarly endowed and disposed to make their own claim on my territory? I have considered that, and would like first to clarify the “claim” business, and secondly to propose a confederation.

1) To be valid, a claim must be accompanied by commitment and intent. Blithely spilling one’s fluid offal in a back alley in the garment district does not automatically anoint one to occupy the desk of the Mayor of New York; the claimant must consciously intend to make the claim, and must be willing to honor the commitments pertaining to ownership and government of said claim.

2) The stickier issue is that of competing legitimate claims. Unlike the Homestead Act and the San Francisco gold rush, it’s the most recent claim that’s enforceable, not the first. Therefore, you could go claim Minnesota or Georgia or any other component of Bruck’s portfolio of sovereign territories, and then I’d have to come back and re-claim, a process whose logical conclusion is exhaustion and failed kidneys - a fool’s game at best! Let me propose this instead: if you are inclined to claim territory for yourself, and by all means I encourage this, instead of canceling each others’ claims, why don’t we share them, sort of like a modern-day Caesar’s triumvirate? Of course we’ll have to work out some details later, but do we have a deal? Great!

Okay, I know what you’re thinking, those of you not blessed with Y chromosomes… This little game is stacked in favor of men, who are more adequately equipped for convenient claiming of territory, putting women at a substantial disadvantage. To that I reply, tough bananas. Seriously, you already have near complete control over me as it is! Now you want me to gather my pants about my ankles, squat down, and balance on my heels while enlarging my realm? Forget it!