[Elecraft] Operating from a retirement home

[na5n at zianet.com]

About 20 years ago, I used to QSO a fella near Seattle in a nursing home on  
40M.  He'd call CQ 2300-2400 my local time.  He was using an SGC 2020 when  
they first came out, but forget what he was using as an antenna.  He had  
Parkinson's disease and was nearly blind and deaf and could no longer watch  
the news on TV.  So much of our QSO was filling him in on the day's news.   
Kinda fun for me, actually.  CW was about all he had left to communicate.   
There were times he had a small audience of nurses watching us "talk."  He  
was an old maritime radio op and in spite of his Parkinson's, worked his  
old bug at 25 wpm like a pro.  I looked forward to our 15-20 minute QSOs  
2-3 times a week, realizing CW and ham radio was his only life line to the  
world.  So kudos to the nursing home that accommodated his ham radio.

Sadly, one day his CQs stopped.

72, Paul NA5N