| Lists (updated monthly) of RSARS QSL BUREAU USERS such as those mentioned below are available from our E-LIBRARY |
MONTHLY NEWSLETTER
|
||||||||||||||||
Issue No. 19 - 1st October 2008
|
||||||||||||||||
Well one can certainly say this month has had its ups and downs with Royal Mail being responsible for a bit of the excitement. Our postman decided to slip and break his leg at the bottom of our drive way whilst joining the footpath. Heavy rain, a steep walk down to the pavement he slipped on a metal water chamber top, property of Severn Trent Water. First I new of this was, what I thought to be, the sound of a large dog in pain which on checking I found it to be our postman lying in heavy rain, on the footpath with mail still gripped in his hand. His left foot was 90 degrees to the left of where it should normally have been and all that he could say between moans was "bloody rubbish shoes!"
The emergency services responded in an excellent manner and he was quickly checked, supported and moved toA&E. One slight bit of humour was as Linda 2E1SIS/3900 having called 999 and now talking to the emergency service was, on being advised of the situation, told to tell me not to move him. It was thrashing down with rain and this information was received by me as I was carefully moving/carrying him back up the drive to the cover of our car port. I had already checked him over and having chatted to him I considered it safe to move him which we did - I even got complemented on how we had looked after him by the paramedic doctor and two ambulance staff. How strange that after all of the annual first aid tests and training over my many army years of service it would only be now that they would be put to test in anger 
Continuing on the Royal Mail theme on the morning of Saturday 27th whilst happily shaving I heard a quiet knock on the door. Quickly adorning my dressing gown, moving downstairs, finding door key and opening door I found nothing 9 Must be hearing things I thought and returned to my morning ablutions. Half way through the other side of my face and another quick knock was heard! Quickly downstairs I went, after adorning dressing gown en-route and spied on the floor one thin envelope and a red Royal Mail "unable to deliver" card. Ignoring these I quickly opened the door (key still in lock of course from last time) and saw the back of a postman travelling south, downhill on his bike! Hopefully he will break his leg when next it rains and our old postman will in the meantime be fit enough to return
I am not awaiting anything so I am assuming that maybe it was a small pack of QSL cards from Les C3/EA4AVL who may have sent them "to be signed for" which of course I am unable to do until 29/30 September 
Statistics
The bureau continues to look rather depleted and as you see from the usual statistics below bureau activity is quite low. In fact it is so slow that I will not this year take the bureau to the LARS Rally at Donington on 24/25 October.
There have been comments, both for and against, the activities of saying hello to our overseas travellers. I for one think that they do an excellent job and are worthy of every bit of support we can give them. Dennis EA5/G3PNF, Les C3/EA5AVL and Roger HB9/G3YBO have done us proud this month and reading emails from Les explaining his difficulties, similar or worse problems often give added tasks and expense to Nick 5X1NH in darkest Africa alone in the bush working members from his hire car owing to electrical problem, and what can we say about Sam while operating from the local rubbish tip in Cape Verde? Certainly please don't ever mention climbing up thorn bushes to XYL Grace, our Lady of The Flies Roger does not even want cards or go for awards and yet he made an effort to work 36 members from HB9 and quite a few recently from DL so let me just say that I am proud to know our overseas travellers and publicly thank them for what they do for without them the bureau would be a rather boring place of late?
And so to the worrying bit:
* Removing cards received for exchanges made during members travels and specials going to and from members worked, the cards received total for September would be barely over 100 and of these many include additional exchanges since first SSB contact, like RTTY, PSK, FM and CW. Glancing at outgoing of course a similar story - makes you think, don't it? I mentioned overseas activity of members earlier and if you remove cards received during September from EA5/G3PNF (29) - HB9/G3YBO (36) and C3/EA5AVL (23) one can see how few cards were actually received from members this month. Ken CT/G4RWD has not been heard as yet and he is in Portugal until 5th October and the only other station travelling during October, as far as I am aware is Sam 5Z4/G4OHX and we wish him well. Just keep out of thorn bushes Grace for there are worse things than flies up them trees in Kenya hi! Thankfully we are still receiving cards for TF/G3YSK, 5X1NH, 5B/G3RWF, even 9Y4/G4OHX and others so with additional thanks to Dennis GW4XKE and Mike M1CCF for their efforts where would we be without these "specials"?
Shows, Trams and Monuments?
Next month it is the LARS Show at Donington Park, where we are promised a quieter weekend on the ears. The usual suspects will be manning the RSARS stand where we look forward to saying hello as you sign in. If coming up for short break as some do I thought, in the absence of any very interesting QSL cards, to make mention of the Crich Tramway Village over the border into Derbyshire. Yes it is that Crich, where the series Peak Practice was located, and also where the Sherwood Foresters Monument is located. We were discussing trams and steam trains on one of our nets last week (see what you are missing) and I thought, with the agreement of our webmaster Dick G3NVK to add a few tram images instead of cards this month.
Linda and I were there on 13th September and the sun was shining and as supporters/members of the Tramway Museum we will of course visit regularly and whilst you can read more at http://www.tramway.co.uk/ I have attached a page "ON THE RIGHT LINES" with a few images of the village as seen by MØOIC - captions appear with 'mouseover'
We hope to meet and say hello at LARS SHOW Donington Park on 24th October.
73,
 MØOIC RSARS 3867 |
||||||||||||||||