Be thankful for what you got

Can it be almost 50 years since I was first licensed? I sat my Radio Amateur Examination in 1974.

Ah, 1974. Simpler times. My revision notes consisted of one book someone gave me when I bought a receiver. And that was before they invented propagation, so no need to learn about that. But more on the days before propagation in a later post. Perhaps.

1974 had a warm Summer and "Be Thankful For What You Got" by William DeVaughn. What a great record for a hot Summer. Long and slow, with an insistent bass line and tight percussion. They don't make them like that any more.

"Keepin' up with Mr Jones? You don't need a loan!"

Despite William's advice I was later to borrow the money to buy an FT-101. Not exactly keeping up with Mr Jones, I told myself, just trying to hear and be heard.

Deary me. I still just want to hear and be heard. Yet, I get flustered when my station does not seem to be performing. I seem to have forgotten Billy's mantra about not to pushing on. I should be more thankful for what I have.

I also get frustrated about propagation which seems to have become "a thing" in the intervening five decades.

And so I was complaining about 6m propagation on this blog as recently as 9 days ago here

"That gap into North America looks very glaring"

but I also said 

"I have in the past worked in that direction into mid-August. There is still a chance."

Does complaining work?

Next day there was an opening and I worked 18 stations in the US and Canada over the space of 50 minutes starting at 13:09. I then had to wait four days until the next opening at 12:10 when in 26 minutes I worked 22 stations across the Atlantic. And two days after that I found the band open at 21:07 when I worked 9 stations in 23 minutes, and the activity only stopped when I realised that I was falling asleep.

US and Canadian stations worked on 50MHz at GM4FVM from 24 to 30 July 2023.

Total opening time was 99 minutes for 49 stations, which on FT8 means being pretty busy. All three openings met my standard for a pile-up, in other words I was not calling CQ but people were calling me and a queue formed to work me.

Perhaps I should complain less and be thankful for what I have got.

I heard somewhere that patience is a virtue. Maybe I should become more virtuous. 

Not so sure about that one. 

"Be Thankful For What You Got" sleeve. Image: Wikemedia Commons

73 

Jim GM4FVM