Back in December of last year, I bought myself an Icom IC-7100. This radio is nice because it offers a dedicated speech key. I’m not particularly a fan of the touchscreen, but I know that this can be bypassed with an external keypad or speaker mic. There is also a third-party accessory called the HamPod, though this may be out of production as of May 2022, per the hampod.com website. I’m sure units will be circulating on the used market, and I’ll try to update this blog post if I get my hands on one. I can see well enough to tap the small boxes to change bands, but I often operate from memory which used to (and still occasionally does) trip me up sometimes. I can see well enough to read conventional print but get headaches if I do it for too long. This is why I’d like a HamPod.

I’ve also been learning a bit of CW, and the noise blanker has definitely helped cut back on some of the power line noise. It isn’t perfect, but every bit helps when your head copy is still on the slow side.

Exam Day

I spent the morning taking one simulated test after another, trying to cram those last few regulations and formulas into my brain. I kept hovering around 80–85%, but I wanted to make sure it wasn’t just luck of the draw. Meanwhile, my mom was running around our apartment helping me prepare the test environment. Since we have two kitchens (an unusual but convenient feature of our place), there was a bit of confusion when she accidentally covered the wrong TV with a sheet! The VEs are strict about having no reference materials visible during the exam. The actual exam process was mostly painless apart from a delayed Zoom invite link. The test was very accessible with voiceover which is a step up for me considering my mom had to read the tech test aloud. If you attempt to get a choice to focus by typing A, B, C, or D VoiceOver will loose focus. You’ll have to scroll to the choice to double check that your selection took effect. 

Conclusion

I’m grateful to be part of such an interesting and exciting hobby! Things aren’t always easy, but I believe that learning, growing, and adapting are all part of the experience. In my opinion, there’s no better—or more enjoyable—way to connect with others. Thanks for reading and 73!