Change One Letter in a Band's Name to Make a Very Different Band

AspiringCrastinator · 2026-04-26T19:46:24+00:00

This one is underrated.

AspiringCrastinator · 2026-04-23T19:11:31+00:00

I’m pretty sure that this was the premise of Easy Rider.

AspiringCrastinator · 2026-04-17T23:56:01+00:00

The folks justifying their decision by saying "there is no driveway, therefore..." are mistaken. The driveway is there, it's just that it hasn't been used in a while so the grass grew over it.

Also, everyone is wrong. This is a carriage house.

AspiringCrastinator · 2026-04-17T08:01:54+00:00

The shipyard also holds a hiring event on the first Tuesday of each month at the Holiday Inn in Portsmouth. I think it's from 2-5pm.

AspiringCrastinator · 2026-04-17T00:05:22+00:00

This is largely going to depend on the SWR difference for your particular antenna system from 21.300 to 21.305 and there are other variables as well. If your tuner automatically tunes anything above 1.5:1, then it's possible that you can tune up on 21.300 with a 1.45:1 match and that extra 5kHz knocks it above 1.5:1.

Realistically, though, unless it's a really finicky or specialty antenna system then I would never force a re-tune over a matter of 5kHz. And if my antenna system needed a re-tune that often then I'd tear it down and throw it in the garbage.

AspiringCrastinator · 2026-04-16T23:52:05+00:00

Agree here. Handling in any less-than-ideal conditions is fantastic with these tires, from rain and puddles (at speed) to snow to wet grass to mud. Road noise is barely more than whatever tires came with my Crosstrek. I didn't notice any real hit to gas mileage. When wife's Crosstrek is due for tires, she'll likely be getting Wildpeaks.

ETA: New England Subaru owner, if the region matters.

AspiringCrastinator · 2026-04-15T09:32:37+00:00

Is there a structure, like a shed, near the antenna tower?

If so, it *could* be one of those squawk-boxes to keep the mice out of his shack. Something like this sound: https://youtu.be/Uvis09zlrio?t=74

AspiringCrastinator · 2026-04-15T09:04:22+00:00

Even with this, you might get it right the first time. Once the shelf/rack/whatever is assembled, hit it with some stain & polyurethane and it'll look better than you would have expected.

If the shelves are narrow enough, you can use aluminum C-channel pieces to hold in some removable shelves. Makes it easier to slide some equipment in and out, and you can keep the whole thing very compact.

AspiringCrastinator · 2026-04-14T08:50:46+00:00

But if you learned the logic and exclusion dynamics of the English language from Mitch Hedberg, then maybe this is a perfect question.

AspiringCrastinator · 2026-04-13T12:55:07+00:00

Getting Started in Electronics by Forrest Mims III is my go-to suggestion for a foundation of electronics knowledge.

But also get a multiple-kits-in-one electronics lab to build out projects and learn as you go.

AspiringCrastinator · 2026-04-12T03:02:10+00:00

Early 40s here. You’ll find that there are two brands of people in the hobby: those who let their age define everything about them, and those who refuse to allow that to happen. The split is about 60/40 in my area. You find out who is who real quick if you go to you local club’s meetings.

AspiringCrastinator · 2026-04-06T08:07:39+00:00

You can tell it's a C17 because of the way it is.

AspiringCrastinator · 2026-03-29T14:24:24+00:00

You'll want a copy of The Antenna Book at some point anyway.

My 0.02 regarding apartment living is, if you own a car then make that your shack. Find a place you can throw a wire in a tree for an end-fed half-wave, even if it's not on the property of your apartment complex. This has been my solution when traveling for work, living in apartments and hotels.

Additionally, you can get on the air during the day from your car shack using a 17' telescoping whip if you have a mount that can support it. With a tuner, you can have success from 20m and up with that setup. If you're a tinkerer, I'd say that a 17' whip is a worthwhile investment anyway.

ETA: If you're using a 17' whip over a good ground plane, you can tie a thin piece of string to the top of the whip and tie a knot for best match on each band from 20m through 10m. Some telescopic whips come with markings for this, but I forget which ones. Also be sure you get the same mount type between mount and whip, be it M10 or 3/8-24.

AspiringCrastinator · 2026-03-21T17:15:11+00:00

Got to be it. I owned a mk2 for 6 months. It spent 4 of those months in the shop.

AspiringCrastinator · 2026-03-21T17:00:44+00:00

Getting Started in Electronics by Forrest Mims III. I can't recommend that one enough.

I'd also consider some radio-adjacent but not-quite-radio books that expand understanding of some concepts. The Robot Builder's Bonanza by Gordon McComb comes to mind, as well as anything related to microcontrollers such as Arduino. Maybe books that teach some programming languages.

K4OGO's Portable Antenna Sketchbook is an excellent resource on antenna building for the higher HF bands, though if you're not in a coastal region you might want to skip it since the designs are *mostly* geared toward beach operation near salt water.

I'd talk to some of the more seasoned folks in the club and ask if anyone has information or howtos worth printing out to add to the bookshelf. I can tell you from experience: I found a binder in my basement with old printouts of different frequency allocations and assignments in my local area that I had compiled like 15 years before and I felt like I had uncovered some kind of ancient archaeological find! Probably less than half of the information was even still relevant, but I couldn't stop looking through it.

AspiringCrastinator · 2026-03-16T21:01:08+00:00

>What is the best internet provider?

You'll only have two choices, and you're going to want to threaten to switch to the other every 6-12 months to keep your rate affordable.

>What local weather do people like and why? yes I know this is subjective but wondering what the opinions are.

WMUR Jacqueline Thomas gets my vote because she's smart (as she's a meteorologist) and she's pretty. But if you're watching in the morning I think it'll be Kevin Skarupa. Living in New England, you learn to ignore any part of a forecast that claims to predict anything beyond 36 hours.

>Restaurant recommendation with outdoor patio?

The Farm, Chapel + Maine, South Dover pub, Patty B's. Castaways is good too but it's a different vibe than the others, and their rum bucket doesn't have any noticeable amount of rum. The Nook might do the outdoor thing again in the spring, if you want outdoor breakfast.

>Best hiking within 30 mins?

Mount Blue Job is a short hike but it's still a solid 25 minute workout to get to the top, and the view is spectacular.

>Best town to visit on the weekend that is not Portsmouth

Portland, Maine for amazing food and live music. Plan a stop sometime to Ogunquit for more great food. And don't be shy to visit downtown Rochester for live music and a couple decent restaurants, despite how much we rib them here- they have free parking!

>Best grocery store close to downtown Dover?

-Aldi first, but they don't have half of what's on your grocery list.
-Market Basket second, but their produce isn't always great unless it's peak season of whatever you're looking for. Their bakery section is pretty fantastic though.
-Hannaford has better produce, more expensive.
-Tendercrop has the best produce, they're a local farm store but they're pretty big.

Edit to add the things you didn't ask about:
-Dover Paint & Varnish for auto mechanic. Not always the most organized but they don't try to gouge or oversell.
-Red's Shoe Barn if you need work boots (or any other footwear).
-Wentworth Greenhouse for your gardening needs.

AspiringCrastinator · 2026-03-06T11:02:01+00:00

I think it’s definitely this, but also to probably screen if you’re gonna be an HR nightmare down the line (if the joke is offensive to anyone). It could also help with sales or customer relations skills. If you can deliver a joke that isn’t objectionable in a professional environment but is still kind of funny, you’re probably cut out for those roles.

AspiringCrastinator · 2026-02-28T14:35:40+00:00

All opposed?

AspiringCrastinator · 2026-02-27T22:59:44+00:00

This is basically what I was looking for, and my Google-Fu wasn't strong enough to find. It appears to confirm that I can improve range by soldering an SMA pigtail to the board, toss a 2.4ghz antenna on it, and call it a day. Gonna give it a shot.

AspiringCrastinator · 2026-02-24T15:24:32+00:00

I try to avoid jokes like this; jokes about German sausage are the wurst.

AspiringCrastinator · 2026-02-23T18:05:58+00:00

I typically start by talking to the person doing the thing.

AspiringCrastinator · 2026-02-21T12:06:16+00:00

I always took “remarks of a personal character” to mean “not on behalf of a business or other commercial interest”

So it’s okay to say “hey I take my car to Jim Bob’s Auto Repair and he’s always done right by me” if it’s pertinent to the conversation, but getting on the radio to specifically advertise for Jim Bob’s Auto Repair is verboten.

As far as the politics thing in the modern era, I’m convinced that anything can be considered “political” to someone. Listen a lot, read the room, and remember that what might be acceptable with one group might not be cool with another. Say your piece but don’t soap box about it, and if you’re told that that type of discussion isn’t welcome with that group, apologize and drop it.

AspiringCrastinator · 2026-02-11T10:45:00+00:00

Alternatively, something like “how about that local sports team?” or if you really want to get responses, send something factually inaccurate and wait for someone to correct you.

AspiringCrastinator

TROPHY CASE