| Contents |
| Overview |
| My Hobbies |
| Website and Personal |
The above was a wedding day picture of The Thunderbolt webmaster, and his wife, Janice...who was a Co-Sysop in his BBS (computer bulletin board system), detailed below. Sadly, she died on April 27, 2007...both this website and the BBS (which is TEMPORARILY OFFLINE AT THIS TIME) are being continued in her memory.
I had worked at Oxford Graphics in Little Rock, Arkansas for over 18 years, but had to resign in 2004, due to health reasons (I have been FULLY DISABLED since that time, and am no longer able to work a regular job). They specialize in silkscreen printing and monogramming.
* Amateur Radio - After taking and passing both the Novice and Technician theory license exams for the No Code Technician license in late June, 1991...I was granted amateur radio callsign N5VLZ on August 7, 1991 by the Federal Communications Commission. I used HamTestOnline, in the summer of 2007, to upgrade from Technician to General...then to Amateur Extra in only 27 days. I applied for a vanity callsign on May 18, 2009...and AE5WX was granted on June 5, 2009.
I have, and continue to check into, and run various amateur radio traffic nets, plus I have been the Talk-In And VHF Packet Station Chairman for the Little Rock Hamfest. I am:
1) A Life Member, and a Diamond Club Member of the American Radio Relay League.
2) A member of the Arkansas Radio Emergency Services Amateur Radio Club, as well as their Net Control and Webmaster.
3) A member of, and secretary for the Small Town Amateur Radio Services Club.
4) A Life Member of Courage Handi-Hams (they help people with disabilities become amateur radio operators).
5) A member of, and webmaster for the Cabot Nightflyers Net.
6) A member of the Portage County Amateur Radio Service (mainly via Echolink).
7) An ARRL Volunteer Examiner (VE), and a VE Team Liaison, conducting amateur radio license exam sessions in central Arkansas.
8) A member of the Cabot Area Simplex Group, as their Net Control.
More details on my involvement in the amateur radio hobby are available here.
* Square Dancing - I graduated from class in December, 1985... have danced through Advanced (A2), and attended various festivals when my schedule permitted. After a 5 year hiatus from square dancing after the 2002 National Square Dance Convention in Minneapolis...due to job and health concerns...I restarted square dancing in 2007, a few months after my wife's untimely death. I am:
1) Webmaster and Circulation Manger for the Arkansas State Square Dance Federation.
2) Backup Webmaster for Single Square Dancers USA (SSDUSA).
3) Webmaster for the 2010 SSDUSA Labor Day Dance-A-Rama...in Alexandria, Virginia.
4) Webmaster for the Jamboree USA Square and Round Dance Weekend in Pine Bluff, Arkansas
5) If Arkansas receives the bid for the 2014 National Square Dance Convention, I will also be their webmaster.
As you can see, most of my work is OFF the square dance floor, behind the scenes, as it were. I even did some amateur square dance calling several years ago...but can no longer do it, due to health reasons. It's not as easy as it looks, and you now MUST have a license to be a caller...which is obtainable from either the American Callers Association, or Callerlab. These licenses, which require yearly payment for renewal, are due to license and royalty agreements with the American Society Of Composers, Authors, and Publishers (ASCAP), and Broadcast Music Incorporated (BMI)...for the use of the music for dances. The fee paid is dependent on the amount of dances the square dance caller, round dance cuer, or line dance instructor, does over the course of a year.
* Gospel Songwriting - I accepted Jesus Christ as my Lord and Saviour on March 28, 1978, during a ''revival'' meeting with Evangelist Rick Ingle...who was at one time, a ghetto gang leader in the streets of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The next day, I had all four wisdom teeth removed...talk about a baptism by fire!! However, the decision to accept Christ was the SMARTEST one that I had ever made in my life...and it can be for you as well.
I've been writing Gospel Poetry...some put to music...for over 32 years; and did free mini concerts at area churches from time to time, when health and schedule permitted. My Gospel Poetry collection, with over 300 poems, is online; be sure to click on the Get A Free Gift link...you'll be Eternally Grateful for what it has, if you accept it.
* BBS Sysop - I started running a BBS on a Radio Shack 32K Model 100 laptop computer in December, 1990. The BBS is continued in loving memory of my late wife and Co-Sysop, Janice E.H. Stout, who died on April 27, 2007. The BBS is TEMPORARILY OFFLINE at this time, due to software issues, but I hope to have it back up sometime in Spring, 2010. For more details on what a BBS is, click here.
Note that the BBS is OFFLINE DURING THUNDERSTORMS to protect from lightning damage. For central Arkansas weather information...including the latest forecasts, watches, warnings, and advisories, click here.
* Weather - I'm a certified National Weather Service Skywarn Severe Weather Storm Spotter, providing severe weather reports to the Little Rock, Arkansas, National Weather Service Office. I also am co-moderator of the FIDONet Weather Message Area. Unfortunately, I can no longer watch weather videos, as they give me nightmares.
I am NOT a Storm Chaser, because it is EXTREMELY DANGEROUS, and NOT FOR AMATEURS. For a comparison of Storm Spotting and Storm Chasing, as well as safety rules, click here. I also am one of the Net Control Stations for the Skywarn Hurricane Prep Net, which meets on the Echolink *WX_TALK* conference server. You MUST be a licensed amateur radio operator to participate in the net.
* Trains - I'm a member of the Arkansas Railroad Club in Little Rock, Arkansas, plus a member of the National Association Of Railroad Passengers. I've been a railfan all my life, and prefer Amtrak as my mode of travel. When traveling by train, I board The Texas Eagle at Little Rock, Arkansas. Being FULLY DISABLED, it's easier for me to travel by train...and by going Sleeping Car, my meals in the Dining Car are INCLUDED in the price of my ticket (passengers traveling in Coach may dine for a modest additional fare).
Note that Sleeping Car space SELLS OUT QUICKLY, but Amtrak allows you to book as much as ELEVEN MONTHS IN ADVANCE of a trip. If you have to CANCEL your trip at the last minute (as I've had to do several times), REFUND CONDITIONS APPLY...see the Amtrak Website for details. I also am an Amtrak Guest Rewards member...but declining health may soon mean the end of my favorite form of vacation travel. And, I'm the ''Conductor'' for the weekly amateur radio Railroads Net on Echolink, on the W9DHI-R node on Mondays at 8pm Central Time. You MUST be a licensed amateur radio operator to participate in the net.
* Puns - An example of a pun is ''when I change the light bulbs in my apartment ceiliing fan, it is the high light of my day''. Basically, a pun is a ''play on words''. I've taken part in the World Championship Pun-Off at The O. Henry Museum in Austin, Texas. As one punster eloquently put it...''the beauty in the pun is in the ARGH! of the person you tell it to!!''.
* Quartet Singing - I've always been a fan of unaccompanied quartet harmony...but, it's not as easy as it looks...and it's HARDER than singing in a church or school choir!! More details are located at the Society For The Preservation and Encouragement of Barbershop Quartet Singing in America (SPEBQSA) website. Unfortunately, declining health no longer permits me to take part in these groups...but, I still enjoy listening to them perform.
I am webmaster or backup webmaster for the following sites, besides this one:
1) Arkansas Radio Emergency Services Club
2) Arkansas State Square Dance Federation
3) Jamboree USA Square And Round Dance Weekend
4) 2010 SSDUSA Labor Day Dance-A-Rama
5) Single Square Dancers USA (SSDUSA)
1) I had worn glasses since 1969...but in early 2010, I had successful cataract removal and intraocular lens implant surgery at McFarland Eye Center in Little Rock. I went from 20/2000 in both eyes to 20/15. I don't need glasses anymore to drive, but still need reading glasses while at the computer...shades when I'm outside during the day, and yellow glasses when I drive at night.
2) I've had arches built into my feet in 1971, as I was born without them. Without them, I would likely have been in a wheelchair many years ago...and I may eventually have to be in one anyway, due to severe arthritis, along with other disabilities...I'm been FULLY DISABLED since July, 2004. While I don't have that many medications to take, I have a LONG LIST of medical conditions. These include...among others...daily migraine headaches, daily abdominal cramps, kidney stones, ''sympathy sickness'', inability to regulate my body temperature, hypersensitivity to anesthetics, increased arthritis (especially in my arms and legs), allergic to stinging insects, and sleep apnea. So I'm a ''basket case'', health wise.
3) I've worn dentures since 2000, after my teeth deteroriated over the years. While I don't have to worry about cavities anymore, I have to be careful NOT to drop the plates, as they're EXPENSIVE to replace!! However, I was able to get a new set of dentures at Affordable Dentures...for just under $350.
4) I was married to the former Janice Elaine Harvey on May 18, 2003...sadly, a heart attack claimed her life on April 27, 2007. For details on Janice's life, click here.