Archive for December, 2010
Looking back over the past year…
This year has been a challenge to many of us. For some, it was near impossible to get a job – or even get an interview!! When we are forced to go through difficult times, it seems to strengthen us to make us more ready to accept what tomorrow brings. Some things we just have no power to control so we learn to accept those things. Sometimes we find that we may be smarter than we thought we were and literally change the direction of our field of work. Resilience is born into each of us – all we have to do is grab hold and hang on for dear life! I’m reminded of the book for children entitled “The Little Engine That Could”. He found a big hill and kept saying “I think I can, I think I can” and eventually he could say “I knew I could, I knew I could” as he chugged his way down the other side of the hill. That’s the way I look at this past year – “I knew I could”!! VHF Marine Radios have been a large part of my blogs this past year. That’s because I believe in them. I live on a large lake and have seen the fury of the storms that pound the shorelines occasionally. I only wish I could encourage everyone that spends a lot of time on the water to invest in one of these reasonably priced marine radios and consider it an investment into the health and safety of both you and those you will have on board with you this next boating season. Make your next boating season a safe one! Don’t be coming up on the shoret end of the stick when it comes to communication equipment. Happy Boater.
One day left of 2010!
What are the ramifications of having only one day left in the year? The way I see it, there are both pluses and minuses. On the minus side we have things like the realization the year has nearly ended and all those missed opportunities of last year are gone forever or having only 1 day left to lose those pounds we had wanted to shed. On the plus side we may find things like the realization that each and every day is now getting longer and soon it will be spring again, or maybe the satisfaction of things we DID accomplish this past year – in spite of the economy. My grandmother used to tell us all the time that if we had our health, we were rich. I always thought that statement to be a bit trite, but the older I get, I realize the wisdom she shared with that statement. Let’s all focus on those things which are positive and proceed into the new year with renewed excitement – looking at each new day as a new slate. When setting our plans for this next year, let’s not forget to include those items which can be a real positive to those around us – things like maybe a marine radio installed on our patio, back yard, or maybe on our pontoon or boat! These amazing little radios can play your MP3 formatted music by just simply plugging it in!! Enjoy may hours maybe dancing to your own music in the privacy of your own back yard or on your pontoon boat!! Happy Boater.
You dont’ have to be professional announcer to use a CB!
Everyone (or should I say almost everyone) seems to get a bit of “stage fright” when they get a microphone in their hand. You can have your speech planned right down to the last syllable and when you push that transmit button on the side of the microphone something happens – the whole world goes blank. Why is that?? Nobody can explain it, but it just happens and there’s a whole lot of us out there that have experienced it. When that fleeting moment passes and you finally utter your first words over the airwaves, the fear passes. Then when you get a response to your transmission the fear is over and the fun begins. Besides being a safety item, a CB radio can be just plain fun! Some folks sit in the malls and just watch people walk by and say it’s fun. …and it is!! People are fun to watch. I know a person can have a lot of fun also just listening to others chat as you’re cruising down the freeways of our country. CB’s cost nothing to operate so the price is right!! Who knows – maybe you’ll catch a radio transmission from someone in need and you may be their link to a timely rescue! Wouldn’t that start your year off right. Happy Boater.
Did you get the gift of your dreams?
Now that Christmas if over and we are headed toward the New Year’s celebrations, it’s time to take inventory of what you hoped you had received for Christmas and maybe didn’t. Now, I’m not saying that you didn’t receive GREAT gifts this Christmas season, but sometimes – somewhere in the back of our minds – there is that elusive idea we had that’s kinda stuck there about what we would have liked to have received and didn’t. I know that one of those gifts for me would have been a set of marine speakers that I could install on my pontoon boat to get ready for the next boating season! They really aren’t an expensive item anymore and the clarity of the sound output is incredible! For well under a hundred dollars you can take a giant leap into the world of speaker technology. Spend next summer enjoying your favorite music played through speakers that are not subject to the weather – they can sit out in the rain and won’t be affected at all!! What a deal! Happy Boater.
Did you accomplish what you wanted to?
It’s just about the end of another year and I’ll bet that there are a lot of folks out there that can’t honestly say that they accomplished what they had intended to accomplish (at least completely) in 2010. Self admittedly, I’m one of them – although, in the same breath I’d have to say that I did indeed hit the mark on several of the things I had my eye set on. For some of us, the economy has played a major roll in deciding what we could or could not accomplish due to available funds to accomplish them. One thing good about this type of situation is that it forces us to decide just what is important and what isn’t. I know my family has made adjustments – some of them painful and some not so painful – in fact, when it comes right down to it, some of the things we cut out we don’t even miss!! Hopefully things that could protect your family are among those items that survived the “cut list”. I’m talking about communication items that can save your life like a VHF marine radio on your boat or possibly a new pair of marine speakers – speakers that you can actually understand when you hear a radio transmission over them and can relay current weather information over the NOAA weather channel on your marine radio. Take care of your family this year. Happy Boater.
It’s Christmas Eve…and all is well…
The Christmas rush is nearly over, Christmas programs are done, Christmas parties (with the exception of a select few) are over, and just like magic we will brace ourselves for a fast approaching new year. I don’t know how those years come and go so quickly! Normally I use this blog to talk about and promote water safety through the use of VHF marine radios, marine speakers, and CB Radios, but today I think I’ll just take time to wish all of you a very Merry Christmas!! I sincerely hope that this season finds joy in your heart with enough left over to help someone in need. May this season prove to be a very special time for you and your family. Slow down over this Christmas weekend – forgetting all the normal “busy-ness” of the days and take time to spend with family members. Those problems of last week will somehow still be around next week so next week will be soon enough to deal with those issues. For this weekend – take a deep breath and just enjoy. Happy Boater.
It’s the eve of Christmas eve…
Probably not a great way to describe this day, but it is the day before Christmas eve and I can’t hardly believe that another year has come and gone. How did this happen and we didn’t get any older??? ha-ha!! If you’re a shopper, you have only 2 days left including today to shop before Christmas! (no pressure, of course…) If you’re done shopping, congratulations – you can sit back and enjoy the ride. I saw a couple of shoppers attacking their shopping task with fury just a couple of weeks ago. They had hand held CB Radios and were running from store to store comparing prices and teaming up to complete their shopping list. I really was pretty impressed!! They had their list (which they had prepared before hand) and they were checking off items and comparing notes so they wouldn’t duplicate any items and they pulled it off just like finely lubricated machinery. I thought – what a way to go – purchase a couple of hand held CB radios and with the price savings they ended up getting, they paid for their initial investment as well and shortened up their shopping time by a large degree. We should all be so clever!! My hat is off to them! Happy Boater.
Days are getting longer now!!
Yesterday was the 21st day of December – the shortest day of the year and the first day of winter!! What does that mean and why should I be excited about that??? Because that means that we now have the shortest day of the year behind us and from now until the end of June, every day will get longer – more hours of sunlight to enjoy our outside activities!! I don’t know about you, but it gets real hard around this time of the year to keep my waist line to a comfortable size!! That’s because our activity level diminishes with the shorter days – we get content to just sit and enjoy a movie on television or something. Now we can start planning for the spring – the launching of our boats and putting out all the “summertime things” we stashed away this past fall. Make use of the time between now and spring to obtain and install a set of marine speakers on your favorite boat or pontoon if you don’t already have them. Begin the new boating season with a sense of pride when you plug your MP3 music into a new marine radio on board and hear the digital clarity of the sound heard through your new marine speakers. Bring enjoyment to that next level this year!! Happy Boater.
Give a gift that can be enjoyed all year!!
So often we find ourselves being so “short sighted” when giving a gift to someone. Maybe it’s the “latest fad” or maybe a new shirt that someone wanted. Now, there’s certainly not a thing wrong with these gifts either, but the reality of it is that they are used immediately and so often they just get shoved in the corner after the first month and ultimately they end up in a rummage/garage sale or in a bag destined for Goodwill or another donation center. Why not give something that can be used year after year like a VHF marine radio for your boat or pontoon?? I can think of nobody that wouldn’t appreciate a gift of this nature. It allows music to be played through an MP3 plug-in as well as allowing the user to obtain much needed weather updates 24/7 when on the water. …and that is a great point for ALL on board. Give a thoughtful gift this year. Happy Boater.
Convenience of Hand Held VHF Radios
It isn’t always practical to have a built in VHF radio at your beck and call – depending on what piece of equipment you find yourself running at the time. For instance, it really would be a far fetched idea to have a VHF radio installed on your snowmobile, but with a conveniently sized hand held VHF marine radio, you can easily have one of these with you when on the trails. More often than not, you will not need the radio for your own safety, but you may find yourself being that needed link to rescue folks in the event you stumble upon an accident or someone ill on the trail. About 2 years ago, I found myself needing assistance – thankfully it wasn’t a medical situation, but my snowmobile had blown a piston and some good person had a tow strap with him that he gave me to use to tow my sled back about 20 miles with another sled in my group to a spot where it could be picked up. Always be prepared for the unexpected. Happy Boater.