Wednesday, October 21, 2009

A Rare October Night

Calm, mild (+3C) and clear skies when I got up just before 03Z/05 local. Exceptionally clear air, the only light outside were the stars and the Milky Way - and not even the faintest sign of an Aurora. Amazing how light even a moonless night can be. Urban dwellers, whose night sky is polluted by their own artificial light, should experience this.

In the living room I find voices from hundreds of towns, small cities, large cities and political and economical centers only a microsecond away. At one moment, I share CFRW's music from the 70's with a 51 year old man driving home to his Winnipeg suburb - at the next, I listen to WSM as Merle Haggard accompanies a Nashville mother making dinner for her kids. And then I switch to KFOX and imagine that in California, a newly arrived, nervous but excited Korean finds comfort in hearing his own language on the radio.

From a tiny, remote spot on top of the world I can hear everywhere. What a unique hobby we have.

Oh, and by the way I got a most welcome verie from 1320 KHRT Minot ND. Heard on the great opening we had on October 3. The station's been on my wish list for years.

3 comments:

Mika said...

You have expressed the essence and the excitement of the hobby, and especially the captivating experience of AM DXing! Thanks for sharing, and keep up the good work!

73
Mika

Chuck Hutton said...

That's exactly the magic and mystery of radio - it's a bridge into the lives of people far away. It's a way to connecto to their music and culture.

Very nicely put, Bjarne. It's also impressive to see how well you express yourself in English. I know that I can not come close to your eloquence when not speaking my mother tongue.

Sylvain Naud said...

I've just red your comment and I can just agree with everybody.

Being basically a broadcast radio enthusiast as you descibed so nicely, I like to enjoy as you do some great radio moments.

Recently I was telling my wife how this hobby was grateful to me.

It brings together my main passions: Languages, geography and radio. I'm sure that many of you guys feel the same.

Thanks Bjarne for pointing out using the right words...