I have been licensed since 1972 and kept my call after moving to California. My current rig is a Kenwood TS-590S, an Elecraft KPA500, and a stealthy 40/30/20/15 meter dipole way up at 12 feet (!) I also have a Cushcraft MA5VA vertical on a short mast and a modified CB vertical that works amazingly well on 10 and 12m. For receiving, I also use a Wellbrook ALA1530 shielded loop, which removes a lot of local QRM such as plasma TV radiation. It sits out in the yard when I need it.

I enjoy operating CW and have finally achieved DXCC (150+) and WAS. I'm also a casual contester. To date, I have exactly 1 QSO on SSB; at least I know that the microphone works! Maybe more in the future. In the photo above, you can see me huddled over my tiny operating position that is dominated by the mighty HP 8568B spectrum analyzer. And yes, I'm dressed for cold weather because it's January and the shop is really cold! Try operating QRQ with gloves on some time. My website is:http://www.wb9jps.com

I'm an electronics engineer at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, and a graduate of the University of Illinois. My professional interests and experience are instrumentation, high-performance analog and interface circuit design, and physics diagnostics. I wrote two books, "LabVIEW Graphical Programming" and "LabVIEW Power Programming" and currently have nine patents in various fields. In my spare time, I enjoy fine woodworking, metalworking, bicyling, and hiking.

Here's my QSL card. That's a view of Mount Diablo during February, as seen from my front door.

Here is my mighty antenna farm. Hard to see? That's the idea. Paint your antenna with flat grey automotive primer, and it blends well with the sky and does not catch a glint in the sun. Unfortunately, this is as good as it gets. 200-foot tower full of Yagis? Smashing through the pileups? Only in my dreams.

My Three Keys. I made the straight key from Cocbolo with hardware turned from brass. The Vibroplex is new (to me) and I'm still practicing before turning myself loose on the world with my "Carolina swing" fist. I'm now using a Begali Sculpture as my main paddle but the Bencher will remain as a backup.

SKCC member number 8335. Happy to QRS!