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04-17-2026 - 6:00 AM - Good Morning! It's Friday, and I think I'll do a whole lot of nothing today. I'll try to stretch that idea across the entire weekend. According to an online news report, Martin F. Jue, President and founder of MFJ Enterprises, Inc., has sold the Hy-gain and Cushcraft antenna lines to ITU Corporation. ITU Corporation has purchased the former Linton, Indiana, National Guard Armory and will use it as a “manufacturing hub” for these antennas. This is good news! In other good news, my Folgers Black Silk coffee is ready.
--- 6:05 AM - NWS Forecast - Today: A slight chance of showers before 1pm, then a slight chance of showers and thunderstorms between 1pm and 4pm. Some of the storms could be severe. Increasing clouds, with a high near 85. South wind 13 to 21 mph, with gusts as high as 31 mph. Chance of precipitation is 20%. Tonight: A chance of showers and thunderstorms before 1am, then showers likely and possibly a thunderstorm between 1am and 4am, then showers likely after 4am. Some of the storms could be severe. Increasing clouds, with a low around 50. Windy, with a south wind 22 to 25 mph becoming north after midnight. Winds could gust as high as 38 mph. Chance of precipitation is 70%. New rainfall amounts of less than a tenth of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms.
--- 6:10 AM - According to Water Data for Texas, Wichita Falls reservoirs are: Arrowhead: 83.8% Kemp: 96.4% Kickapoo: 88.1%. Monitored Water Supply Reservoirs are 89.9% full. The City of Wichita Falls uses combined levels of Arrowhead and Kickapoo (85.95%) to determine drought stage.
--- 6:15 AM - NWS Short Range Weather Discussion
--- 6:20 AM - NWS Extended Range Weather Discussion
--- 6:25 AM - ERCOT (Texas) snapshot of grid conditions - ERCOT reports that conditions are normal and there is enough power for current demand with an operating reserve of 10,677 Megawatts.
--- 6:30 AM - AVIATION SNAPSHOT - METAR for: KSPS (Wichita Falls Rgnl, TX, US)
Text: METAR KSPS 171052Z 18012KT 10SM CLR 21/18 A2977 RMK AO2 SLP069 T02060178
Conditions at: 1052 UTC 17 Fri Apr 2026
Temperature: 20.6°C (69°F)
Dewpoint: 17.8°C (64°F) (RH = 84%)
Pressure (altimeter): 29.77 inHg (1008.2 hPa) (sea level pressure 1006.9 hPa)
Winds: from the S (180°) at 12 kt (6.2 m/s, 13.8 mph)
Visibility: 10+ mi (16+ km)
Clouds: sky clear below 12,000 feet AGL
Ceiling: at least 12,000 feet AGL
1:00 PM - At Kirby Junior High, later Kirby Middle School, now closed, a teacher was giving a student a stern "talking to" in the hallway. He told the young man that if his performance did not improve, he would end up being a janitor. Just as the word "janitor" left his lips, he noticed the school janitor standing about 20 feet away. In the same breath, he added "Not that there's anything wrong with being a janitor!" Do you remember those old "Want to get away?" TV commercials featuring people in embarrassing situations? Monitor school handheld radios at 151.940 MHz on your scanner radio.
--- 6:00 PM - I decided to mow the yard again, just in case we got rain. So far, no rain, but the yard looks good. I took a shower and then drove across town for some Little Caesars Pizza because, well, I like Little Caesars Pizza. After the yard mowing, the shower, and a belly full of pizza, I was forced to take a nap. That means there has been very little radioing so far. Maybe later.
--- 5:40 PM - Do you remember when you could monitor the Sheppard Air Force Base Security Police on the cheapest Radio Shack scanner radio? I don't remember the frequency, but I remember, back in the early 1980s, hearing the main gate report that someone was shooting bottle rockets at them from the apartments that once stood just outside the gate. Those were the days. I know who fired the bottle rockets, but I'll never tell!
--- 6:00 PM - Wichita Falls has an active group (I call them the Local Group) that gets on CB Radio Channel 23 on most evenings around 5:30 PM. We need a few more groups. After all, there are plenty of channels left.
--- 7:10 PM - I still haven't found a frequency for Atwoods on Loop 11—the loop that doesn't loop. I've seen their small handheld radios, and the short antennas indicate possibly UHF rather than VHF. I might have to sit in the parking lot and use the "close call" feature on one of my scanner radios to solve the mystery.
--- 8:00 PM - I don't know what made me think about it, but I had a flashback of two truckers having a knock-down, drag-out fight on CB Radio Channel 19. I don't remember what started the fight, but it was epic. It's CB Radio. I accept the good, the bad, and the ugly of this fantastic, unregulated, crazy radio service! Your CB Radio love and appreciation might vary.