It took my husband, Charles (WB5IZD), 27 years to convince me to get my ham license. Now I am sorry I didn’t get this license years ago, but better late than never. I did pass my Extra exam in 2005. My rig is an Elecraft K2 Transceiver which I assembled myself. It has a 100-watt power amplifier and an antenna tuner, which I also assembled from a kit.

We are living on 40 acres of native brush and prickly pears seven miles south of Kingsville, TX., just two miles east of Ricardo, TX. I am using a G5RV which is up 35 feet and an 80 meter loop up 15 feet as an NVIS antenna. For 2 meters I have a simple, homemade J-pole mounted up about 36 feet.

The last couple years I have been learning about traffic handling. I enjoy the NTS and the folks who participate in that. I love QSL cards.

This last couple years I have been trying very hard to get my CW speed going at least a little faster. I have joined FISTS and have a FISTS number, 12066. So far I have been pretty chicken about talking to people on CW. If you hear a very slow CW station fumbling around, take pity and be patient, it could be me. I am a member of the Wild Horse Desert Hams ARC.

I also enjoy amateur astronomy. For decades I have claimed that I am a gardener, but old age makes me admit that I really just murder and mutilate innocent flowers and vegetable plants. See y’all down the log. 73’s Pat (KD5TXD)