Contesting, or hand out candy.....

[W8LBO]

CQ world wide contest is going on, but so his Halloween, what are you going to do? I remember talking to somebody last year on 2 meters who kept having to dash to the door to hand out candy, hehehehe.
73,
Tim W8LBO

[K7JBQ]

Same as every year. Candy for the kiddies, martinis for the moms.

73,
Bill

[K9STH]

Both!

Since I have a "contraption" that consists of a 5 foot long "coffin" that has basically "something" with a skull mask and flashing red eyes that sits up when the kids get their candy out of a bowl that sits on the coffin. I do have to take time out to "run" it.

This will be the 33rd year that this has been on my porch and I think that if I failed to put it out there would be a major riot! There are now people who were teenagers when "Mr. Bones" (this is what the kids in the neighborhood have named this contraption) was first set out on Halloween that are now bringing their grandchildren! There are definitely a lot of people who bring their children.

Cars will "pull up" out in front and I will hear someone saying "I think this is the place" and several children and usually a couple of adults get out. The adults want to see the reaction of their kids when "Mr. Bones" sits up.

Very few of the smaller children are even slightly afraid of him. However, usually groups with several around 14 or 15 year old girls will come up bringing at least one person who has never experienced "Mr. Bones". The group always makes the person who doesn't "know" him go first. Almost always that person "jumps a mile" when he sits up and the others always break out in laughter.

"Mr. Bones" has been "borrowed" for things like school Halloween carnivals, etc. However, he must be "at home" on 31 October each year. I know of several people who used to live in my neighborhood that come as much as 30 or 40 miles just to experience this bit of wood and cloth.

In the daylight this doesn't look like much. But, in the dark there is just enough "mystique" that the children (of all ages) get a definite "kick" out of it.

The rest of the time, when 40 and 80 meters are open, I'll probably be operating. Maybe even go down to 160 meters if the band opens to this area. Probably won't operate on the higher bands much, if at all.

Glen, K9STH

[WB2WIK]

CQ WW is over at 0000 UTC, which is 4:00PM local time PST for me, just about an hour before the very first kids might show up for Halloween, so there's no conflict.

WB2WIK/6

[n0nwo]

do both. Send each contest contact a piece of candy with your QSL card http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

Minton n0nwo

[KB1GYQ]

Fluorescent tubes around the antenna make a great combo for Halloween contesting.....

[K9STH]

A pair of live great horned owls sitting on your yagis also make for "interesting" comments.

Glen, K9STH

[ai4ep]

and for those of you who have not done it yet...next week you can put up your CHRISTMAS decorations

[KC9ECI]

Quote[/b] (K9STH @ Oct. 30 2004,13:32)]A pair of live great horned owls sitting on your yagis also make for "interesting" comments.

Glen, K9STH
You're not running enough power yet Glen.

[KC9ECI]

I don't like to give out candy, it's bad for the kids. I have a 1 gallon galvanized steel pail, full of nickles. When the kids come to my door, I just let them reach in and take a big handfull of them. Between trick or treaters, I keep it in the oven at 350.

[N0KLT]

Since we have 3 sets of twins under 2 1/2 yrs old in the neighborhood that will be coming out for their first experience of trick or treating, I wouldn't miss seeing them for the world. Its much more fun to see little kids having fun then it is to contest. Esp since I don't care for contesting anyway. It's a no brainer for me anyway. I just hope the weather holds, it has been really warm for this time of year until today and its still above normal but the weatherman was talking rain for beggers night tomorrow night. Hope he hits his normal level of accuracy.

Gary NØKLT

[K9STH]

ECI:

They sit on the vertically polarized stacked 11 element yagis for 2 meters. There isn't enough r.f. from any of the other antennas to "cook their goose" even when I run just about full legal power (1400 watts, my linear won't quite do 1500 watts)!

You can see what I am talking about from the antenna photos on

http://home.comcast.net/~k9sth

Glen, K9STH

[K5CEY]

Quote[/b] (KC9ECI @ Oct. 30 2004,15:09)]I have a 1 gallon galvanized steel pail, full of nickles. When the kids come to my door, I just let them reach in and take a big handfull of them. Between trick or treaters, I keep it in the oven at 350.
I think I'll fill a coffee can full of fish hooks and let the little kiddies reach in and grab a hand full.

[KC9ECI]

Quote[/b] (k5cey @ Oct. 30 2004,23:21)]Quote[/b] (KC9ECI @ Oct. 30 2004,15:09)]I have a 1 gallon galvanized steel pail, full of nickles. When the kids come to my door, I just let them reach in and take a big handfull of them. Between trick or treaters, I keep it in the oven at 350.
I think I'll fill a coffee can full of fish hooks and let the little kiddies reach in and grab a hand full.
Be sure to keep that in the oven at 350 degrees between times, don't want the little fingers to get cold.

[KC9ECI]

I took this photo of the owl in the spring of 2000, near Tallington England. I used a Minolta X-700, Kiron 7-210mm zoom and as almost always, some 400 ASA Kodak film. The scanning job really doesn't do this photo justice.
http://img73.exs.cx/img73/3427/P4212863.jpg

[ae4fa]

Neither. I'll be alternating between 30 and 6 meters.

[N8CPA]

Quote[/b] (K9STH @ Oct. 30 2004,15:32)]A pair of live great horned owls sitting on your yagis also make for "interesting" comments.

Glen, K9STH
I just knew you had a Bird wattmeter! Wise choice!
http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

[KC9ECI]

Quote[/b] (N8CPA @ Oct. 31 2004,09:12)]Quote[/b] (K9STH @ Oct. 30 2004,15:32)]A pair of live great horned owls sitting on your yagis also make for "interesting" comments.

Glen, K9STH
I just knew you had a Bird wattmeter! Wise choice!
http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif
Boo! Hisssss! Off the the punitentary with you!

[K9STH]

CPA:

I actually have two Bird wattmeters, a 4304 and a 6154. Also have a Telewave 44AP.

Glen, K9STH

[k6ncx]

Neither. I'll be out working for the Sheriff.

[KC9ECI]

Does he pay better than the taxpayers?

[KC2ESD]

I have to work also Halloween so no candy or CW for me. http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/sad.gif

[wb6bcn]

I have 0ne sack of candy to hand out. If it goes like past years I will still have a full sack of candy that didn't get handed out.

Seems I live a bit off the beatten path.

[KC9ECI]

I'm out of candy! I had to beat a hasty retreat into my house and get all the lights off. The end of the basket happened to land when a little boy in a nice firefighter costuem arrived. It was his lucky day...I poured the remainder of the loot into his bag. Best costume prize goes to the hot mom with the cleavage being led about on a leash by her kid.

[N0KLT]

Quote[/b] (KC9ECI @ Oct. 31 2004,18:01)]I'm out of candy! I had to beat a hasty retreat into my house and get all the lights off. The end of the basket happened to land when a little boy in a nice firefighter costuem arrived. It was his lucky day...I poured the remainder of the loot into his bag. Best costume prize goes to the hot mom with the cleavage being led about on a leash by her kid.
We only had 21 come to the door and that was counting the parents of some of the kids who were too young to be coming to the door by themselves. Not sure why so few this year but the only we have had less kids then that the weather stunk. It was a beautiful night out, in the low 70's to start the evening and still almost 60 at 10:15 CST.

Hope you all had a good Halloween at your places.

No such luck as your hot costume prize winner. Nothing even close in fact.

Gary NØKLT

[K9STH]

We had about 135 to 140 kids plus at least 50 parents.

The "worst" coustumes were two teenage girls (about 14 or 15) who came dressed as "ladies of the evening" (at least that is what they looked like). Both were very attractive from head to toe (pretty faces, nice figures, etc.). But, no adult was with them.

Frankly, I would not have let any of my 3 daughters out the door dressed like that on Halloween even if I was going with them! The unfortunate thing is that their parents probably thought this was fine. Too many registered (and unregistered) sex offenders around the world today for this!

I am not a prude, etc. But that was too much for me!

Glen, K9STH

[N0KLT]

Quote[/b] (K9STH @ Nov. 01 2004,10:01)]We had about 135 to 140 kids plus at least 50 parents.

The "worst" coustumes were two teenage girls (about 14 or 15) who came dressed as "ladies of the evening" (at least that is what they looked like). Both were very attractive from head to toe (pretty faces, nice figures, etc.). But, no adult was with them.

Frankly, I would not have let any of my 3 daughters out the door dressed like that on Halloween even if I was going with them! The unfortunate thing is that their parents probably thought this was fine. Too many registered (and unregistered) sex offenders around the world today for this!

I am not a prude, etc. But that was too much for me!

Glen, K9STH
I agree with you on that, Glen. In among the few kids we had come to the door was one that kind of worried me for the reasons you just mentioned. This little gal's age was hard to tell about for me; my guess would be about 11 or so, she wasn't dressed so much as a hooker but more like a 20's flapper, complete with long necklace and some sort of flapper style hat. She was quite heavily made up with eye makeup and lipstick, the full treatment on the face. What worried me esp was the fact she was alone, no other kids, no parents just her. And when she got her candy she thanked me with a very 'seductive' smile and a deep throaty voice. That look on her face and that voice really shook me up. No little girl should be giving that look to an adult man for any reason. I really wonder how many hrs she spent in front of the mirror practicing that look and voice. I am not a prude or didn't think I was, but seeing a young girl look like that bothers me deeply. For some reason I was reminded very much of the tapes that were shown after the little girl in Colorado was killed, the tapes of her made up and wearing grown up style clothes and competing in beauty contests as a 5 yr old. I am sure this gal at my house was perfectly safe in our neighborhood but I have to wonder why she was out alone and what she was thinking about acting like that.

Gary NØKLT