New Year's Resolve

Among many other "going to do better this year" resolutions, I'm going to put in three:

(1) The electrical noise around my house just plain ruins everything radio related.  When the weather is nice there is some awful arcing RFI noise blasting everything from the boldest broadcast AM signal to the weakest HF ham signals into the dirt.  Even worse, it's intermittent and random, so it's impossible to tune a noise canceler phase box.  I've hunted for the source for four years now, to no avail.  On the up side, rain somehow makes this problem go away.  So, flip this one around: Why would I want to be inside playing radio when the weather is good?  And when the weather's too nasty to go out and play, I've got something to do indoors.  Problem solved.

(2) Reading this article over at KB6NU's web site, Make ham radio a habit, there is a list of hints on how to make time for hobbies and side activities.  One of them is "make it easy to practice the habit of ham radio."  Well, if I'm going out into the great outdoors to say go camping or mountain biking, it'd be really great to have a grab-and-go kit for radio.  Turns out, a regular .50 cal ammo can perfectly holds a Yaesu FT-817nd and all accouterments (LiFePO4 battery, tuner, wire antenna, etc.), and a fat .50 plus a tote bag does the same for an FT-857d.  There's a bit more for the 857, with the coax and beefier antennas, hence the tote bag, but that's easy to grab too.  Again, problem solved.

Heat-reflective white paint with obnoxiously large call sign stenciled on.  Ready for grab-and-go adventure.

(3) Just apply #2 to everything practical – bikes, camping gear, etc.  Get it ready again after coming home from the latest use.  Oh, sure, it doesn't have to be done immediately, but say before the next weekend.  Keep it packed and ready to go, insofar as possible.  Sometimes bike tires need to be aired just before a weekend, but the rest of the gear can be made ready and sit in that state for months.  Camping gear?  Same deal.  It makes getting out the door that much easier, puts excuses to rest.

I already knew all this.  Why haven't I been practicing it lately?  Time to move on into a new year.