#having fun with ham radio

[hillbillyoracle]

When cell phones and internet go down...

If you're in one of a myriad of marginalized groups who know they can't count on the government to help them, then this post is for you.

I feel like I'm cramming messages into bottles from my fairly niche interest (radio, emergency comms) and chucking them into the sea of Tumble in the hopes it reaches people it can help. What happened in Spain and Portugal recently and some of the cell outages we've seen in recent years - they're is a great example of why back up communication methods aren't just for doomsday preppers.

If cell phones and internet (and possibly power) went out, how would you communicate in an emergency?

Note: this is geared toward the US. It's where I am and it's all I know.

If I only had ~$25

I'd grab a Beofeng UV-5R ($18-$25) if I thought I might study to get my ham license eventually ($15-$25 test fee + $35 FCC fee),

OR

If I knew I didn't want to test for a ham license and thought I might pay $35 for a GMRS license eventually, I'd pay a little extra up front and get a Beofeng UV-5G plus GMRS radio (~$35)

While this would not allow me to transmit usually, this would allow me to:

call for help in an emergency - the license requirement for transmission is lifted in the event of a genuine emergency

listen to weather frequencies - it will not turn on and give you the alert but if you know bad weather is coming, you can turn it on and listen for alerts as they come in. Weather stations give alerts for a fairly broad area so you'll be able to hear about any significant storms as the move into and through your area.

listen to local repeaters - repeaters, in my experience, are kind of a combination of a megaphone and an internet chat room. You set the frequency and the PL tones (password sounds your radio sends) for the repeater and then you can hear people from much further away. This is one, just fun to listen to on a given day but two, a great way to find out information if your area is experiencing an event but you don't require help. Some even have EAS weather alerts (thought this still won't turn your radio on if it's off in an emergency). Use repeaterbook to look for repeaters in your area and use CHIRP to program them into your radio - tutorials abound.

For ~$15 more you can upgrade the UV-5R to a bigger battery and USB-C charging (UV-5G comes with USB-C charging).

This can be thrown in a go bag if you need to evacuate or your housing is unstable. You can have your handheld radio monitoring a local repeater while you have a car or portable radio listening to commercial or public stations for updates.

If I only had ~$100

I would get a GMRS license ($35) and a Beofeng UV-5G plus (~$35) and a single Meshtastic node (~$25).

If I had a little extra, I'd grab a second Meshtastic node for a roommate, partner, family member or nearby friend.

This would get me the ability to not only monitor frequencies but the ability to talk on them in non-emergency times which would be helpful practice. Some GMRS repeaters have regular "nets" - it's basically a meeting on air where someone invited folks to tell them/radio in their call sign (radio license ID basically) and then they confirm they heard you. This gives you a chance to test your equipment.

The GMRS license covers your family so they can pick up a radio as well and then you'd be able to communicate with them as well (as long as they're close enough; 1-5 miles but varies by terrain, more range if using a repeater). It's not a phone so the conversation would be heard by other people but this is great for wellness checks or a quick check up.

Meshtastics add the ability to text people and share GPS coordinates with people near by - encrypted if you so desire. The range is much less (I've only tested it to about a mile currently though with tweaking more is possible). This adds an important link in your communication plan - asynchronous communication. As long as the device is on and paired and in range, you'll most likely receive a message. It does drop occasionally but that's pretty rare. My nesting partner and I often have to rely on them because the internet and cell signal is so poor up here but they serve us incredibly well for that. Beyond the Emergency Comms use, it's just nice for morale to be able to text during an event. Best part is, if you're in an area were other people have them too, you can bounce your signal further for no additional power.

Past this amount of money, I'd still get my GMRS license and encourage my friends and neighbors who didn't want to study for the ham license to get theirs. Then I'd get my ham license and buy the best handheld I could afford - probably one of the value Yaesu models - so I have several ways to both coordinate among my loved ones and get any needs to a net in the area during a disaster.I'd get and pass out several meshtastic devices to people who were within range that I might want to commincate with. I'd look into back up power for recharging (I like my Jackerys).

Amateur radio is a deep well and this barely touches on it of it. Don't let how vast it is keep you thinking it's too complicated for you. I promise it's not. I'm very much a noob myself but I'm happy answer any questions that I can.

This is part of self care - ensuring you can care for yourself during chaotic events and emergencies to the best of your ability. Even a little bit of preparation can keep something like storm outbreak or power outage from turning harmful or even deadly. Learn what you can. You've got this!

[pannman]

Fix it

Platonic Alastor x tech savy/graphic designer reader

He didn't quite understand you

In fact people never expected you to be friends, and it certainly didn't start put that way

You started out working at Voxtech, you spent hours designing advertisements and editing commercials but when Vox told you to start working for Valentino and editing his porn videos you refused. Vox gave you an ultimatum: work for Valentino or be fired. So with no job you decided to try your hand at redemption

You didn't count on Vox's greatest enemy being the facility manager

At first Alastor threatened you. Suspecting you might be a spy since you were associated with Vox but Charlie convinced him to give you a chance

So he mostly ignored you. Keeping conversations short. Especially since it seemed you guys had absolutely nothing in common

Charlie wanted to find away to put your skills to use for the good of the hotel. You suggested creating a website

Charlie loved that idea so you got to it. You designed and developed it. You made it simple but eye catchy. And you decided to regularly upload edited videos of the shenanigans going on the hotel to attract new patrons (and to give yourself some fun).

Charlie being the person that she is wanted Alastor and you to get along better so she came up with the brilliant idea for you to interview him and create a page on the website for first hand accounts

Alastor agreed and as long as it was not a filmed interview

You had prepared a list of questions

Q. Why did you decide to join the hotel?

A. I decided to help the pathetic princess in her silly little dream to watch others fail miserably in attempt to change their already determined fates as entertainment for myself

Q. What has been your favorite moment here at the hotel?

A. Possibly when Niffty released an entire colony of roaches into Angel's bed. That was quite hilarious!

Q. What progress do you think you or someone else has made thus far that's worth mentioning?

A. I finally managed to get my new radio tower to look exactly like the old one. It was nice gesture really. But I do have preferred place for everything

After that you didn't know if Charlie was still going to be for this idea

You really didn't think you and Alastor would ever see eye to eye until one night you woke up to a knock on your door

You jumped out of bed still in your pajamas and opened the door to see Alastor standing there

You were... quite surprised. He told you he needed your help and it couldn't wait till morning

You followed him to his radio tower to see his system short circuiting. He warned you not to get to close or you'd get a nasty shock

"You're the one who deals with this technology stuff, fix it!" You thought to point out the two issues here

1. You don't fix technology, you utilize it to make things

2. This radio recording system is really old and you only knew what you were doing with MODERN technology

But you could tell he was very agitated. You wondered how it even got broke in the first place

You decided to do the only thing you could think and you Voxtubed it

You found some weird guy with obsession for fixing ham radios and old vintage tvs and watched a few of his videos. After assessing the broken system there were a lot of similarities. And after one boring audio book and online purchase of some parts you fixed it

Alastor was impressed. He tried very hard not show it but he couldn’t help it.

Before he could get back to it. You decided to listen to last chapter of the audio book one last time to make sure it was up to code. Unfortunately you forgot to connect your Bluetooth

Alastor standing in the tower with impatiently tapping his foot waiting for you to give the ok so he can give his listeners a much delayed broadcast stiffened at the sound coming from your phone and static buzzed loudly in the air

"Lovely I imagine the imagery to this is just flashy and distracting as it always is" he says rather annoyed

"Actually" you replied "it's an audio book. There is no visuals. It's just sound. Someone reads aloud a book and records it for people to listen to" you pointed out

It was not that much different from radio

You apologized and told him you would connect back to your headphones so he didn't have to hear it

"You may leave it on" he said surprisingly. So you did

Finally when you were done you went about your business. Everything went back to normal. Except... Alastor kept calling upon you before every broadcast demanding you play your audio book again to look over his system to make sure it won't crash on him mid broadcast

And each time he told you there was no need for your headphones

You finally decided to grow a pair and challenge him

"Once again I'd like you to check it over and make sure it's up to code. Play your dumb sound book again and get to it" he spoke as if the audio book did not matter at all but you knew better

"Oh I have it memerized by now. No need to play it again" you responded mischievously

His eyes narrowed and you could hear the sound of a record scratch. "Now, now. I won't allow for any mistakes that would not end well for you. Now play it again" he demanded

"You know if you liked the audio book you could just say so. Also you don't have to listen to the same end chapter over and over again. I have other probably more exciting books" you proposed

He acted offended. "How dare you insinuate that I would enjoy something as pointless and boring as that." Of course he didn't want to admit that anything that came from technology could possibly be good in any way and he could never ACTUALLY like it. No way

"You know its not a lot different from radio. Telling stories with just your voice. Like any kind of art this is just another medium. Another way of expressing oneself. You don't have to suddenly be Mr. Technology guy to like audio books" you said

Alastor seemed to pause in thought. "Hmmm... fine. I guess... it wasn't too horrible to listen to literature being read aloud in a soothing voice. Maybe I'll give some other pieces a try"

And after that you were at the radio tower all the time. Playing audio books for him. You eventually showed him your art skills and showed off the new website. He taught you a lot about his Era and about radio. You guys even redid the interview live on his radio show. Though the results were still quite similar

Though Alastor still hated technology he respected that it was something you enjoyed. And he did listen to the occasional audio book, although it was more like he made you play it for him

An unlikely friendship had formed. And nobody saw it coming. But you wouldn't trade it for the world

[bitterkarella]

Midnight Pals: Sssspace Ssstory 2

JK Rowling: i don't need you lot! Rowling: i don't need any of you! Rowling: i'm gonna go over to sspace coven to tell my new sstory! Barker: yeah have fun with that Rowling: I will!! Barker: they're all a bunch of nerds over there! Poe: now clive that's not very fair Barker: she's gonna find it out soon enough

[meanwhile, at space coven] JK Rowling: hello children Jules Verne: welcome, JK Rowling! I've been informed that you're the first woman ever to write science fiction Verne: so we're proud to make you a member of our very select group Verne: welcome to super friends!!!

Verne: i am called Ham because I enjoy ham radio Verne: [pointing to HG Wells] this is email Verne: [pointing to Isaac Asimov] cosine Verne: [pointing to Robert Heinlein] report card Verne: [pointing to Frank Herbert] mescaline Verne: [pointing to Mary Shelley] and Mary

HG Wells: [arriving in a steam-powered dirigible] excelsior, fellow space-ka-teers! HG Wells: it is I, HG Wells, chrononaut extradinaire! Wells: i am simply a-quiver to hear some new story and- Wells: oh crap, the gears fell off my top hat Jules Verne: don't worry, my good man, you can borrow some of mine!

Rowling: ok sso here'ss my futurisstic sstory Verne: whoa you can't start a story like that! Rowling: oh? oh right, ssorry Rowling: i meant 'ssubmitted for the approval of sspace coven, i call-' Verne: no i mean you're not wearing any goggles Wells: every super friend must wear at least 3 pairs of goggles at all times Verne: it's the law!

Verne: won't you enjoy some of our "mind control cookies" ho ho ho Rowling: what Verne: oh i'm sorry are you not familiar with the music of dr steel??? Verne: he's ONLY our favorite musician Rowling: Verne: OMG you've GOT to listen to People of Earth Verne: it's SO funny Verne: we're all members of the army of toy soldiers Rowling:

Verne: [playing Dr Steel album] haha ok so this is my favorite part coming up HG Wells: are you playing dr steel? turn that hack off! Rowling: oh thank god Wells: you should be playing Aurelio Voltaire!

Verne: Dr steel! Wells: Voltaire! Verne: Dr steel! Wells: Voltaire! Rowling: I've been insspired Rowling: my next book is going to be a manifessto against the FuMP

Rowling: today i have an exciting new story for you! Rowling: those plebss over at midnight society couldn't appreciate this Rowling: FUTURISTIC story! Rowling: i think you sci fi people will really get this Wells: huzzah! Verne: huzzah!

Rowling: okay so Rowling: just imagine Rowling: a future world where a totalitarian government made up of blue-haired spoonies and their antifa goon squad Rowling: have made it illegal to be cis Rowling: one lone heroic terf is fighting for her right to be a gold star lesbian

Rowling: sssee, in the future, an evil coalition of trans autistic fat people Rowling: force innocent lesbians to put pronouns in their bios Rowling: or get sent to the woke gulag! Rowling: where they're forced to apologize for their privilege! HG Wells: i didn't understand any of that

Wells: i don't understand any of that Verne: me neither Robert Heinlein: me neither Heinlein: except that one bit about a lesbian being involved Heinlein: i did understand that word Heinlein: and frankly i think i would like to hear more about lesbians

[wyrddogs]

While I was out hunting yesterday morning, a member of the tracking community called me and said that their alt competitor had pulled so they had a TD alt sitting there with no one to use it. So the club's consensus was that Kermit and I should give certifying a go again. I thanked them profusely for thinking of me and was like, I have not trained since our last cert attempt... To which I was told that I had better lay a short fun track in preparation then.

So one short fun track later, we showed up this morning, bright-eyed and bushy tailed, to watch the TD tests before our cert track. I thought it would be rude to just show up for my test and then leave. Two out of the five TDs passed, which is a bit disappointing but still huge congrats to those who passed.

My tracklayer is a guy who I want to be when I grow up-- 85 years old, cowboy hat and cowboy boots, HAM radio enthusiast, long white beard, three wirehair dachshunds. A very cool person. My certifying judge is an apprentice judge who jumped at the chance to put this experience under his belt.

The problem with volunteering for the tracking community for years is a bunch of people heard I was attempting to certify so they stayed after the awards were done specifically to watch me run my dog. Nerve-wracking! Multiple people told me a) trust my dog, and b) no pressure, this is a great training opportunity even if you don't pass.

So we did not pass.

Kermit was absolutely fantastic. Incredibly strong start, he was basically glued to the track for the first and second turns. On our way to the third turn we walked over some broken cement blocks and he had to pause to critter for a second. I gave him a moment to rest his brain then refocused him on his task. We overshot the fourth and final turn slightly but he found it pretty quickly and dragged me along the track.

Final obstacle was a puddle pretending to be a creek-- a few inches deep with no way to go around it. Kermit marched right through and then started casting like he'd lost the scent. You can't move forward while your dog is casting (in case you REALLY get lost) so I stood there in the puddle, watching as my dog got mentally fatigued and checked out. I looked to my right. Ten feet away was the glove.

I looked at Kermit, who was climbing in a pile of branches to my left and looking for critters. I called him to me. Knelt in the puddle. Petted him, kissed his nose, told him he's amazing. Gave him some water from my bottle. Gave him a little butt rub. Asked him if he was ready to track. Told him to go track. He ran back to the branches.

I spent about three lifetimes calling Kermit back to me, petting him, trying to get him to refocus. But he was tired and done.

The glove was literally about seven steps from me.

Once Kermit walked over top of the glove without acknowledging it, I turned to the judge and called it. He walked over and told me that if I had picked up the glove after Kermit walked on it he would have passed me. I told him that Kermit had quit working and did not indicate on the glove, and I was not going to accept that. He thanked me for being honest.

Feedback I got from everyone was that my handling was excellent and I was nice and patient with my dog. Kermit was "a joy to watch" and an excellent worker, and everyone was surprised that he pooped out at the end. I got multiple volunteers to lay tracks for me next season. The apprentice judge told me to please call him when I want to try again because he wants to certify Kermit. Everyone says that he's going to be a beast next season.

So we'll work on really increasing value on the glove, getting an indication, and working blind tracks. We are just on the cusp of being there, so I'm sure it won't be difficult.

I'm so, so proud of Kermie. He worked really hard and really well. I couldn't be happier with him. He got an entire packet of delicious shrimp wet cat food once we got back to the car.

[bisexual-engineer-guy]

for that gay key thing, couldn't you rig it to a space invaders emulator and then have a competition on if the rigged up person cums first or if you win the game first

I suppose so, although I wonder if it'd be more fun to just hook it up to a ham radio and make contacts with a penis key haha. This does sound like a fun idea though......

[radioexe]

In my funky lil prompt-a-thon event, a whole bunch of people sent in very fun editing prompts! here is the full, complete list for anyone that would like to do any!

As a bonus, if you do at least 5 of these, you're free to claim an edit in my inbox! As of now, this is an open event, so there's no time limit! You can do them whenever you'd like! It's also not required to claim your prizes if you don't want to! Have fun!

RADIO'S PROMPT-A-THON: ALL PROMPTS!

sillysillynoodles's prompt: "an editing style you arent familiar with... mwahahah 😈😈"

anon's prompt: "a green and red duo"

wingedlovrs's prompt: "make an edit using one (1) color. black and white do not count, but also don’t make your edit grayscale. that’s boring. godspeed"

anon's prompt: "do the opposite of your usual like editing style if that makes sense?? if thats not possible then ur least favourite character from one of your favourite medias"

zombmelukitty's prompt: "make an animal themed edit ! :3 [like cat themed icons and such !!]"

anon's prompt: "make an edit for your LEAST Favorite Vocaloid"

endlessrailroad's prompt: "Assign a character a pokemon type and edit them w/ it :]"

rookmeo's prompt: "edit something cybercore thats about touching grass (interpret that however you want to)"

anon's prompt: "edits in the style of a music video / album cover !!!"

wifeism's prompt: "opposite aesthetic with your favorite (twst) character"

dollcemoe's prompt: "an edit incorporating your least favorite dessert :))))"

anon's prompt: "an edit featuring your favourite flower"

anon's prompt: "water and oil!"

vampuppyy's prompt: "edit something as colorful as possible with one of your favorite characters <33"

sakimafu's prompt: "do the most fucked up and desaturated empty edit with a character that's full of whimsy in canon. glitchy aesthetic maybe. idk go ham"

hy4c1nthh's prompt: "edit a character from your favorite twst dorm!!!"

lavendergalactic's prompt: "a character that has a hairstyle you love"

anon's prompt: "An edit of ur most favorite character from ur least favorite media"

anon's prompt: "a purple and white duo"

anon's prompt: "edit a character that reminds you of your favorite season and incorporate said season in your edit :3"

anon's prompt: " do an underrated duo with complementary colors. (green & red, blue & orange, yellow & purple). bonus prompt: make the character the opposite of their color. (if a character is green, make them red.)"

anon's prompt: "dark character with a neon theme and light character with a dark theme duo"

wingedlovrs's prompt: "edit your favorite characters from different media and attempt to make them match/look cohesive together"

evilyaoioverlord69's prompt: "make a bright/pastel colored edit featuring a character that usually has dark “aesthetics”"

If you see your username in the list and don't want it on the list, let me know and I'll gladly remove it!

If you do any of the prompt's, please @ me so I see them! you can also use the #radiopromptathon tag!

[the-audio-archive]

⠀ »(EPISODE 2)«

╭──────────╮

𝚂𝚎𝚝 𝚝𝚊𝚙𝚎 𝚒𝚗𝚜𝚒𝚍𝚎?

╰──────────╯

└——————— - [ 📼 ]. +〘𝚈𝚎𝚜〙 or 𝚗𝚘

⠀⠀✧ 1:20 ─〇───── 15:00

⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⇄   ◃◃   ⅠⅠ   ▹▹   ↻

Okay, listeners! The radio is fixed! My friend received the parts, and we both have the next couple hours free, so let’s see if I can connect with Blu again! It’s about the same time we talked to them last time, anyways! Okay… zeki, would you introduce yourself while I set the radio station?

You hear some fidgeting with the radio while a new voice pipes up, deeper than the previous two that have previously been heard. It sounds a little bit husky underneath the drowsiness.

Hi, I’m Ezekiel. Novah calls me zeki. I work in IT for a big company, and have a passion for technology. Especially radios, as I’m sure you’ve heard. Um… I guess that’s intro enough, they look done.

Wonderful intro, zeki, couldn’t have introduced you better myself! There’s a slight pause before Novah continues speaking. Is Blu there?

Yes she is! I recognize that voice! What happened last time?

Novah immediately responded, sounding thrilled.

Blu! I’m guessing your pronouns are she/her then? Good to know! My radio is super old, and parts are… apparently uncommon. It gave out on me unexpectedly, so I had my friend fix it! Zeki is here now, actually! He’s making sure this time runs smoothly.

Hi, Blu!

Hihi! Good to hear from you again, Novah! And nice to meet you, Zeki! My pronouns are she/he/they actually! Gosh, your radio really gave out on you? That must’ve been so stressful!! How hard was it to fix, since the parts are uncommon?

Oh! Okay! Thank you for sharing your pronouns! Zeki should answer the mechanical stuff. I don’t really know much when it comes to that.

Well, I won’t bore you with the semantics. You just have to know where to look, and be okay with using parts that will work, just aren’t necessarily built for that specific radio or whatever you’re repairing. It’s… kind of like building a new computer in a way- you don’t have to buy all the parts from one manufacturer. You can mix and match as long as the computer can run okay and do what you want it to do in the end because the parts are compatible. The most tedious part was the shopping, the rest was fun since i like working with my hands.

Oh! Okay! It’s so cool that you know how to work with electronics like that! If we ever speak again, I’d love to hear more about electronic repair! How do you even know so much about this kind of stuff?

Blu sounded like he genuinely intended to ask about the topic at a later date, and must think electronics were interesting, much like Zeki.

Picked it up as a hobby, and I have a career in IT. Wasn’t too bad college wise, only took four years to get my computer science degree!

Novah piped up next, sounding ready to move topics.

Blu, last time we spoke, you said you had a lot of extra curricular activities for school? What ones do you have?

You could hear the extra excitement in Blu’s already unusually animated voice as she spoke about her activities. She sounds like she truly cares and is into what she is gushing about!

Yes! Gosh, I have so many things! I’m in a science club; I’m one of the club leaders, so I help find conventions and events for us to attend, plan what happens each meeting, lead the club meetings and discussions, things like that! I’ve also joined a ham radio club, I’m there right now! I’m just one of the attendees though! I definitely don’t know enough about ham radio to run the club! That’s just school activities though, I also volunteer at the library near where I live, and I work on drag looks and post them online, I want to be a content creator for drag specifically some day!

You hear some delighted chuckles from both Novah and Zeki before Zeki pipes up again.

Wow, sounds like you’re incredibly busy! Do you have any time for relaxation, kiddo?

No, well, sort of! I get some here and there, mostly on weekends, but I like my schedule pretty full! I like to always be doing something, I feel happier and more like myself when I’m out doing things and interacting with others! So, I guess I don’t really need downtime!

You hear what you assume is Zeki cluck his tongue, but was just ambiguous enough to be Zeki or Novah, realistically.

Be careful to not burn yourself out or keep a too busy schedule, kiddo! I know we just met, but I truly do want to make sure you’re taking care of yourself.

There was a short pause, and it sounded like Novah started to say something before Blu nervously piped up.

Thanks zeki! Don’t worry, I’m definitely taking care of myself! I’ll keep my schedule in mind, though. Speaking of which, I gotta head home and work on homework. Maybe I’ll catch you both another time!

The radio started to play static, and you hear it get turned off. you hear Novah start to give Zeki an earful.

Did you have to lecture Blu about his schedule, Zeki? I know they’re just a kid, but I’m sure they have themselves figured out!

The recording clicked off.

╭──────────╮

𝙴𝚗𝚍 𝚘𝚏 𝚃𝚛𝚊𝚗𝚜𝚖𝚒𝚜𝚜𝚒𝚘𝚗

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𝙵𝚕𝚒𝚙 𝚝𝚊𝚙𝚎 𝚝𝚘 𝚜𝚒𝚍𝚎 𝙱?

╰──────────╯

└——————— - [ 📼 ]. + 𝚈𝚎𝚜 or 〘𝚗𝚘〙

[elsa-fogen]

I like your Au, Alastor being a test tube baby Would that technically make him a cherub? Or maybe just massacre would be more fitting?

No, it should have a fun name like your breakfast AU Maybe Take out? Or maybe I'm just hungry…

Wonder what Al eats if he's a creation like that? Does he eat? What was he sustained on while being created? Does he have to kill to keep himself alive?

If so, does he consume the bodies, or is it more that after a completed mission he receives whatever substance him?

(Guess that could explain him having a realistic dead deer for breakfast)

Another name, Crystal Radio Friend/Demon? Or something like that Cause, you know, one can make their own crystal radio and crystals sound kinda heavenly without being obvious

Could probably have something with ham radio as well, but it’s not really amateur work and just makes me think of food again

Such interesting thoughts ehehreeh hooheheooeheo

Again, not gonna tell anything for now, it was just one art, i'm gonna do more

I got a name, it's kinda obvious and simple - Artificial Demon, but if i'm gonna make a real comic (like good intentions) i'll make another name for the comic, something more cool

[dafpork]

Is the sister of Porky that Petunia's a friend of also the sister that smokes hams?

LOL I MEAN... i've only ever interpreted him as having one sister per The Case of the Stuttering Pig, so i guess that would track...!

which reminds me, as a refresher for new followers here iiiiis Porky's hypothetical family! i scribbled these in 2023 before i had this blog, so there might be some tweaking, who knows... first one was the first ever drawing i did of them so i'm including for posterity:

heavily based off of, again, his family in Case of the Stuttering Pig--Petunia is his sister in that one and obviously we can't really have that LOL SO. BOOM. i gave Priscilla red hair since Porky has red hair in that one TLTS flashback... and i think i accidentally stole her name from Porky's daughter in Bah Humduck. oops!

i'm pretty sure that this was the first domino to fall in constructing this extremely intricate family lore i have in my head but have been holding off on saying, just so the surprise can be greater--coming up with it inspired me to return back to my actor au during a time i thought i never would, so! it's fun to think about. especially considering how often Porky brings up having a family

the smokes ham comment is nothing though--in one radio broadcast, Porky says that his brother is fighting for the military overseas "in a can of spam"(!!!)

[bonnieventure]

went to see elio on a whim & Loved it, what a special movie that hit at perfect timing in my life. if you're a fan of high strangeness, psychedelia, design, you *haaave* to see it, go rn, you will have SO much fun !!! it really felt a love letter to those w/ the interest

so many beautiful lil moments that had me tearing up, first time i've ever seen a movie alone but was surrounded by families with kids reacting which was so sweet. saw myself so much in little elio 8,) i remember being that kid...exciting to think what they will take from it

looooved the universal user's manual, loved the ship designs, loved melmac, voyager's golden record, don't wanna spoil but loved the ham radio inclusion i criiiieedd at the radio operators. ohhh our fantastic planet, all the people in it ( T T )♥ i'm so happy to be part of it

oh ! also thought it was so cool i happened to catch some names in the credits i recognized, artists that have inspired me since i was in school. just left me feeling so excited and motivated, to continue creating & exploring what it means to be human

[potterandpromises]

Possible season 4 victims but it's only characters I personally think might be foreshadowed to die

In Only Murders in the Building character deaths tend to be foreshadowed in some way (although not necessarily to the victim's identity, often it's to the manner of death.) Examples include Sazz talking about the chatter on her ham radio in season 3, the broken elevator in season 2, dialogue relating to cold cases in both season 3 and season 4, and so on. Of course these things may be foreshadowing something other then the character's untimely demise, or may not be foreshadowing anything. That's the fun of it!

Propaganda:

Loretta:

Zach and Oliver talked about his wedding venue as setting the tone for their marriage; they're getting married in the courtyard of the Murder Building.

Both Mabel and Charles have had someone close to them (their oldest friend, albeit estranged on Mabel's part) get murdered. Oliver has not yet had that.

Jan:

She's still loose in New York, not Florida, doing god knows what or killing god knows who. Chekhov's gun applies.

Teddy:

Several times, Zach, who's playing Oliver, has been described as Greek. Meanwhile Oliver has twice this season broken into an Irish accent while talking to an Irish person, emphasizing that he is Irish and not Greek. This references the season 2 plotline re: Teddy being Will's bio father and Oliver lying about being Greek, etc.

In 4x09 Mabel says: ""We're the most listened to murder podcast on the Upper West Side that's sponsored by a deli chain." They were sponsored by Dimas Delis (Angel Inc) in season 1, and apparently still are, somehow.

In 4x09 there's a TV broadcast shown about "Nicky "the neck" Caccimello, the Dry Cleaning King of Brooklyn" who has ties to a crime family, and has gone missing. Teddy has been described as "the deli king" and is part of a two person crime family. There could be a plotline related to organized crime, and their murders could be related in one way or another.

See second point about Loretta—it also applies to Teddy.

Lester:

See third point about Teddy. Lester is seen with dry cleaning in season 1 (possibly multiple times, although I don't recall.)

Nicky "the neck" Caccimello, the Dry Cleaning King of Brooklyn:

He has gone missing and the show went way out of it's way to tell us that. He could turn up dead in the Arconia and the next season could simply be about his murder.

Counterpoints:

Loretta:

It might be like, way too sad to kill her off at this point, given that she's marrying Oliver and has only just reunited with her son.

There's likely not as much to learn about her as there has been with previous victims—she already had a secret explored re: Dickie, and it isn't clear that she has more.

Jan:

Season 4 had a Charles-centric victim, and I'm not sure they'd want to have two in a row.

Teddy:

He hasn't actually been in the show since season 2, just indirectly referenced.

Lester:

After a season about the theater and a season about Hollywood movies... would they really have a season about dry cleaning?

Nicky "the neck" Caccimello, the Dry Cleaning King of Brooklyn:

See point about Lester.

Might be seen as a kind of emotional downgrade to bring in an unknown victim right after Sazz.

[bisexual-engineer-guy]

Looking to get into HAM radio and I like to consult human beings about things because experience is more valuable than anything a google search could bring so I'm sending this ask to ask: What is the best way for a total noob with zero experience or knowledge to get into HAM radio? How did you start out?

So, the way that I got into ham radio was that I learned a bit of morse code and really really really really liked it. I basically just wanted to talk to people in morse code because I thought it was so cool. That's what got me into the hobby!

I started out using the AF7KB "Fast Track to your Ham Radio License" book series. I liked to listen to the audiobook version while I was on the bus to and from college, since the bus rides were usually 4-5 hours. This is the slow way, and he adds a lot of extra information you probably don't need; but this is perfect if you want to be able to start out with more than the knowledge of what questions are answer "A" or "B."

There's also the fast way, which is to go to hamstudy.org or download the app and just study the question bank. If you have a good local club--and you might have to check around to a few of them to find one that you like--then this could be the way for you. I didn't have one when I started out, so I couldn't ask people questions. I wanted to be able to get a radio and start using it on my own, and for that, the long way was perfect because I was actually prepared to do that.

I still prefer the long route, but everyone's different and has different goals. I would also recommend finding a good local club no matter what. Like I said, you might need to look around a bit for one, because some of them are kind of dead or old or inactive.

Also, you might have some fun looking at the ham frequencies on a WebSDR (a website with the feed of some radio, I like this one websdr.ewi.utwente.nl:8901) or screwing around with an RTL-SDR (a $30-$40 USB stick with a little antenna kit that lets you decode and listen to radio signals).

Also also, you can go to events and stuff run by clubs. The next big big one will be the ARRL Field Day. A lot of clubs will have a "Get on the Air" station specifically for people who aren't licensed or people who are newly licensed, where they'll have someone there to supervise you and help you make a contact under the club callsign!

[bunnakit]

(please bear with me this is the most convoluted question known to man, but whenever you post for asks I can't help but want to scratch my weird lore theory itch, sorry not sorry)

So, like, the chomer's got fancy magic powers, right? And there were those photoshoots back during Treasure where each member had some kind of prop, right? And we've seen a couple kind of appear in other mv's like the telescope showing up in Answer, or Mingi's lines all coming through the radio in Fireworks when he was the one who had the ham radio as a prop. And, arguably, the candelabra Seonghwa has in the photoset and then the lantern he has in Wonderland. (I personally like to think that there are a couple other magic pirate artifacts already in play and its just that whatever they do hasn't been relevant to mention in the diary lore or the point of the timeline we're currently at yet).

I was just kind of idly thinking about how Hongjoong had a wand in that photoset, which hasn't specifically shown up anywhere again in that exact same form, (and quite frankly how in the heck they would ever work a wand into an mv)

and then I was like 'a wand is basically just a long stick, how would you adapt-... wait a minute'

a cane is also basically just a long stick. That he has in Guerrilla and Don't Stop, (and I know Don't Stop is not part of main canon and its own thing, but I love how they just spin slightly different AU flavours of their own lore as it suits them, and the cane in Don't Stop is.... kind of significant in the mv soooooo)

This was my crazily-roundabout way of asking if you had any thoughts/theories etc about Hongjoong and wands/sticks/canes, normal, magical, or otherwise and the lore

AAH LORE ANON YESS thank you for gracing my inbox its always a treat

so i kind of have weird theories on this? my friend [@pop-off-nabokov] and i were doing some Cromer Silvia conspiracy board theories one night and we realized something really interesting about trends in ATEEZ MVs and their themes in general.

so the captains symbol looks A LOT like like The Wheel tarot, a card that essentially breaks down the alchemical symbols of life (with EIGHT in the outer ring)

and then you have their entire last album theme The World

the wands could either be a reference to a 'of wands' tarot or the wand-like objects shown here in The World

and one of the big themes i noticed throughout Halazia is Hongjoong and Seonghwa play off each other in a theme of 'as above, so below' - Seonghwa is bathed in light and on the surface and we meet Hongjoong as Wooyoung gestures down and the camera pans downwards where Hongjoong, dressed in dark colors, seems to be a figurehead of a different gathering.

as for the lantern in Wonderland, well, i've got something for that too

The Hermit also depicts a lantern!

we also have...

Judgement

and...

The Fool - okay this one is a bit of a stretch but the pose is pretty spot on and the meaning of The Fool feels very lore!San (and really, all of the boys entering their journey in the Z World)

so i don't think it's out of the realm of possibility that ATEEZ features a lot of nods to tarot and perhaps some of the artifacts may be related to them in some way. now if they're magic like the Cromer or not? who is to say. i certainly would love to find out the looking glass allows you to see through the dimensions or something similar, or that the staff/wand has the same abilities as the breakers or who knows.

and if we want to be extra ridiculous about it, well, i hope this is at least good for a laugh

please always come to my inbox with any thoughts or questions. i hope my answers are always at least a little fun to think about.

[the-audio-archive]

⠀ »(EPISODE 4)«

╭──────────╮

𝚂𝚎𝚝 𝚝𝚊𝚙𝚎 𝚒𝚗𝚜𝚒𝚍𝚎?

╰──────────╯

└——————— - [ 📼 ]. +〘𝚈𝚎𝚜〙 or 𝚗𝚘

⠀⠀✧ 1:20 ─〇───── 15:00

⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⇄   ◃◃   ⅠⅠ   ▹▹   ↻

“Hello listeners! I’m back! I’m hoping to get Fern and Sundrop back on this week! However, if we can’t, I’ll try for Blu! It’s a little late to get her, but it still can’t hurt to try! Here- give me a minute to turn on my radio” you heard Novah mess with the dials and things for a minute and the radio go searching as they found the channel they were searching for.

After a minute, Novah spoke again, “Hello? Fern, and Sundrop, are you at the bakery today?”

It was quiet, besides the hushed static from the radio. Novah continued, “I wonder if we missed them… Hi! My name is Novah, is anyone out there?”

Another minute or two passed, and a voice picked up, “Hi! I’m Mack. Im not who you’re looking for, but I’m here!”

“Well hi Mack! I’d love to talk with you anyways! I run a blog and it’s whole schpeel is talking with people over radio and sharing the conversation, kind of like a radio show, just a different format!” Novah replied with enough enthusiasm to power a lightbulb alone.

“Sounds fun! I have a blog too, I mostly post art, though! If yours happens to be a tumblr blog too, I could give you a follow, and maybe I’ll see what you make of our conversation!” Mack offered. He sounded delighted about the idea of seeing how the post on his and Novah’s conversation turned out.

“Yes! My handle is ‘the audio archive’ with dashes as the space! I’ll check out your art, once I see your follow pop up! What kind of art do you do?” Novah proposed.

“Great, i’ll give you a follow. You'll know it’s me,” Mack paused and then started articulating as he answered the next inquiry, “aaand done. To answer your question, I love drawing people, and it’s what I do most! Just… everyone looks so different and so unique, I love trying to capture everyone’s differences! No matter what someone looks like, everyone’s just so stunning… so you’ll see a lot of humans and face and body part studies on my blog! I do create a lot of vent art at times too, but that’s more personal so I don’t post that! How did you get into radio and blogging?”

“Talking on the radio was something my grandpa and I did together when I was a kid! Never on a show, just to truckers and whoever else we could find on his ham radio- the one I’m using now, actually! And, I’m picking up blogging because I want to share the joy I had with my grandpa growing up with others! It’s really cool that you’re into drawing people by the way! Do you have a favorite piece?”

“That’s hard! There’s a few I like, but only because the people I drew have significant meaning to me, not because I feel I did particularly well. Probably the drawing I did for my best friend for her birthday some time ago! She loved it, by the way!” Mack remarked, “it’s cool that you got into radio that way! Do you have any stories from people you’ve met with your grandpa?”

“God- that’s so long ago! Um- i remember my grandpa talking someone’s ear off about books, especially the classics and banned books! My grandpa was an avid reader and loved to read. His whole house was practically a library and filled to the brim with books! And, he encouraged me to read too, anything I wanted. Because of that, I could have some pretty deep and profound talks with him about a lot of the books we’ve both read, and we’d read a lot together!

“Anyways- the person we were talking to also loved books, and grandpa being who he is, Well, he started talking to them about the books, recommending them some, and offering to loan some out should they ever come by since they traveled a lot for work and were often headed in our direction! I remember having such a deep conversation with them, and that person actually came over a few times! They left me a few trinkets from their travels, nothing too expensive though, and we’d talk over the radio a lot! I’d have to think about a more specific story though, there was a lot!” Novah revealed.

“For sure, I’d love to hear more stories! How long have you been running your blog?” Mack inquired.

“A couple weeks now! I’m still very new, and I’m enjoying It greatly! How long have you been running yours?” Novah asked

“You must have met some interesting people already then! I’ve been running my blog for many years. I definitely should’ve waited a few years before I started my blog so I was old enough to get into it but I’m very happy with where im at in my journey now. Hey though, I’m off to meet a study group, if I fail chemistry I’m cooked! Maybe we’ll meet again, or maybe I’ll see you through my screen!” Mack disclosed.

“Okay! I’m excited to see your art! Good luck with your study group!” Novah said their goodbyes, turned off the radio, thanked their listeners, and ended the recording.

╭──────────╮

𝙴𝚗𝚍 𝚘𝚏 𝚃𝚛𝚊𝚗𝚜𝚖𝚒𝚜𝚜𝚒𝚘𝚗

╰──────────╯

╭──────────╮

𝙵𝚕𝚒𝚙 𝚝𝚊𝚙𝚎 𝚝𝚘 𝚜𝚒𝚍𝚎 𝙱?

╰──────────╯

└——————— - [ 📼 ]. + 𝚈𝚎𝚜 or 〘𝚗𝚘〙

[kaitiekat]

Hi!

I saw your comment about broadcasting the Trans pride flag via SSTV and it has made me very curious to learn more about radio.

Are there any learning resources that you would suggest to somebody looking to better understand the utility/fun in radio?

Have a happy New Year!

Hi! Glad for the curiosity, I'm always down to dump info when invited, like some autistic vampire.

So, one of the disappointing things is that a lot of the community is, politically, a mess, and pursuing resources usually means hearing things from folks who aren't accepting of things like pride flags, and often let that slip in their content, best you can usually hope for is them not saying it out loud.

I don't want that to be a discouraging thing, because the only way that changes is if enough folks look past that in order to get involved.

Of course I would recommend the Pride Radio Group, we're mostly a discord server to chat about radio stuff and ask questions among eachother, but this way you know you're with an accepting crowd.

Youtube-wise, I can at least say that Josh of Ham Radio Crash Course is as good as it gets for big youtubers. At least on not feeling uncomfortable listening.

Of course there's books and such, there's the ARRL license manuals, KB6NU's "No Nonesense" license manual (pdf copy for entry-level license is free).

And there's hamstudy.org's flashcards for license studying.

I hope this is a good starting point, there's a long rabbit-hole to go down. I'm trying to keep it short for now.

[leatherface-kisser]

Heeeyy !! Can I request some headcanons of the Sawyers throwing a little party ? Like with music, ~~meat~~ food, and dancing with the reader ??? Something funny !

You certainly may! This was so fun to write, I hope you like the headcanons I came up with! Thank you for sending this blog's first request anon!

Warnings : Mentions of cannibalism and murder (nothing unusual in the Sawyer household)

Without further ado, let's get this party going!

Partying with the Sawyers :

Oh boy. One thing’s for sure, a party at the Sawyers’ will NEVER be boring. Maybe it’s someone’s birthday, maybe it’s a special holiday/occasion, or perhaps Drayton just won an award for a cooking contest and wants to celebrate. Either way, the Sawyers’ celebrations are loud, chaotic and wild. 

But first, we need to prepare for the party! And that’s a whole experience in itself. There’s a lot of yelling and fussing.

You bet the house has some celebratory decorations thrown around. Sure, they’re mostly bone and leather ornaments, but they’re still mighty pretty! Drayton kinda supervises from afar, he’s very busy in the kitchen (and when he’s in the kitchen, no one disturbs him, unless you want to experience the Cook’s wrath). Meanwhile, Bubba, the twins and you put the decorations up. 

The twins are disorganized and get distracted easily. Bubba can get pretty fussy about putting the decorations “just right”, he wants everything to look pretty and perfect. He gets fixated on certain things that won’t really matter in the end. You’ll probably have to take matters into your own hands and give them directions if you want things to get done efficiently and make sure the brothers don’t break into a fight!

Bubba’s job is to hang things that are too high for the others to reach. Nubbins is requested to decorate the tables and furniture, mostly with bone sculptures, but also with feathers and flowers. And Chop Top? Well, he’s the DJ of course! He is busy picking the best vinyls and choosing the best radio stations. Spoiler alert, it’s KOKLA Radio, with Stretch as the DJ of course.

You bet Bubba has put on his best mask, his best clothes, his best tie and his best makeup for the occasion. He looks absolutely dashing. He will feel incredibly happy if you compliments his looks. He will happily show off and give you a twirl.

Chop Top also put on something special for the celebration. And it’s… interesting, to say the least. I’ll let your imagination run wild, the possibilities are endless.

And with everything ready, it’s finally time to party!

In terms of food, there’s nothing too extravagant or pricey. Don’t be mistaken, there’s still plenty of meat on the table! And I do mean plenty. You already know what type of meat it is.

A dinner guest might be present for the festivities. If somehow the party wasn’t lively before that, surely their presence will ensure this. The poor thing will probably be terrorized beyond comprehension as this family of cannibals throws a wild party around them. Killing the guest will be a party activity at some point. Everyone but the guest will cheer on! "Come on, get ‘em! Get ‘em!!! WOOOO!!!"

I hope you like meat and have no problem with cannibalism, cause that’s all there is to sink your teeth into. At least, you’ve got a choice in how you’re consuming the meat. Ribs, sausages, ham, pâté, steak, bone marrow, chili… etc etc. The kitchen looks like a battlefield. Nonetheless, Drayton is very proud to put what he cooked on the table! Despite its origin, the food is genuinely delicious.

You might find a couple of vegetables here and there if the Sawyers can afford it. It will most likely be corn, cabbages, potatoes, leeks or beans to accompany the meat. However, that’s only if they can afford it. You’ll most likely find vegetables on the table if Drayton wins an award for his famous chili.

After eating, lots of dancing ! Everyone is swaying to the radio or vinyl. You swear you even see grandpa gently moving his head from side to side with a slight, content smile from time to time. He’s mostly just asleep almost the entire time though. But what about the rest of the Sawyers? Do they dance?

Drayton might need some convincing to get onto the dancefloor. He’s a little tense at first, but eventually relaxes and dances a little bit. He wears his infamous charming smile, and he actually looks genuinely happy while it lasts. Overall pretty sweet! He acts like he’s doing you a favor by accepting to dance, but he’s genuinely having fun. Doesn’t dance for very long, he says he’s too old for that.

The twins are thrashing around like wild beasts, loudly singing along the melody. Chop Top often rants about the different songs or bands he likes all while dancing like there’s no tomorrow. He will end up completely out of breath. Nubbins will, before your astonished eyes, improvise some of the most experimental, incongruous dance moves known to man. What even are you looking at?? Phenomenal performance overall, 10/10.

What about Bubba? Does he dance? Oh he sure does, and he’s killing it! He’s not exactly the most gracious dancer, but he just looks so happy! Look at him go! Will absolutely ask you to dance with him at some point and twirl you around (you will get dizzy). He’s got some moves that he picked up from watching television. Bubba is beaming with joy as he sees everyone having a good time, it’s just like a dream. Lots of happy wiggling, squealing and howling.

Also, alcohol! That’s mostly Drayton’s initiative, I can totally see him enjoy a good bottle of whiskey, gin or tequila. He sips on his drink throughout the party and usually ends up dozed off on a chair somewhere after a few drinks. 

The twins don’t enjoy alcohol the same way Drayton does. While the oldest savors the taste and enjoys the drink for what it is, they, like the chaotic party rats they are, just like to get as shit faced as possible. They love the euphoria of drunkenness and will probably end up very drunk at some point. Lord have mercy on anyone in their near proximity, shit can get crazy real fast. Their words are slurred, even louder than usual, very frantic and energetic. Please watch over them to make sure they don’t actually kill themselves in their drunken stupidity. Bubba screeches in distress everytime a twin does something unreasonably dangerous. Word of advice : hide all the blades, especially the chainsaw. 

Bubba just follows along with whatever his brothers are doing. He’s not actively seeking to get shit faced, but he still drinks a fair bit. Drayton is too sleepy to scold him. You don’t need to worry about Bubba as much as with the twins, the guy can drink a fair amount before actually feeling drunk. I mean, have you seen the size of the guy?? Bubba is most likely not a lightweight. He’s not really a fan of the taste of alcohol, but he does enjoy the way it makes him feel all warm, dizzy and funny. Bubba giggles a lot when he’s drunk, he also sways quite a lot on his feet, struggling to balance himself properly. Very clumsy boy. Oh and, he’s also quite the cuddle bug when he’s drunk. Will ask for a few hugs to recharge. 

The party eventually comes to an end, everyone’s belly is full, everyone is exhausted, and you all end up passing out. The next morning, it’s straight up back to business! Drayton is up, and in a not so great mood due to a headache. No more fooling around! We have a business to tend to and a house to clean up! Go go go!

This causes a nonstop stream of whining and complaining from the twins. They get the worst hangovers. Bubba doesn’t complain and does what he needs to do, but he just feels TIRED. Bubba is usually an early bird, but after a party? Waking up is more difficult, he’s groggy. Drayton’s right though, the house is a complete mess. That won’t do. Welp, that was fun while it lasted, time to tidy up!

Thank you for reading!