116352211

Name: Stephen Hass
Location: Long Island, New York, USA
Work History: Insurance Broker, Purchasing Agent, Office Furniture Sales & Manufacturing, Real Estate Property Management
Volunteer Work: Former Operations Officer, Nassau County Radio Amateur Civil Emergency Service
Mission Statement: Simple. This page is a little bit about me, and a lot about the things in life that I love to do. If one person discovers something here that interests them and brings them joy then my mission has been accomplished.
Page Music: I am most grateful to John McLaughlin for the use of his tune "Extrapolation" here. Please show John some support and check out his page. Many people have told me how much they have enjoyed listening to it. In order to play the videos on this page the music can be stopped by clicking the pause button on the player on the left side of the page
================================================
WHAT'S HAPPENING SECTION
02/18/09 - The FCC granted my application to change my callsign from WB2ZHB to N2AJ
I am very pleased to announce my new callsign is N2AJ. Yes, I did have many fond memories that go along with WB2ZHB, and giving it up was hard for me to do, but switching to a shorter callsign has many advantages and also signifies a new beginning. I still take with me all the memories of WB2ZHB stretching from 1978 to early this morning when I worked my last station with that callsign, K5D Desecheo Island on 160 meter SSB.
------------------------------------------------------------ -------------------------
07/10/08 - I visit the Radio Amateurs of Yogyakarta & Kebumen, Indonesia
On 12 July 2008 it was an honor and my great pleasure to meet with the Kebuman Amateur Radio Club in Indonesia. My host for many days of touring in Yogyakarta and Central Java has been OM Dani YB2TJV. Many thanks to Dani. To promote friendship between amateur radio operators worldwide I was very happy to donate an Alpha-Delta DX-A twin sloper antenna to the Kebuman Radio Club. This will give them capabilities on 40, 80, and 160 meters. I was presented with some excellent custom made shirts featuring photos of the ancient temples and my callsign. Dani also had a mobile APRS tracking unit made up for my Yaesu VX7R. I was given permission to operate reciprocally as WB2ZHB/YB2 by the Organisasi Amatir Radio Indonesia (ORARI). I made a few calls from Dani's station. I worked Brunei, Japan, China, East Malaysia, Singapore, and Sri Lanka with no problem in only a few minutes. It would be nice to do that from home! This was a great experience for me. It was my first time operating outside the USA. Thank you to the kind people of Indonesia.
------------------------------------------------------------ -------------------------
05/15/08 - Dayton Hamvention 2008.
Every year Amateur Radio enthusiasts from around the world gather in Dayton, Ohio for a huge Amateur Radio convention that lasts for four days. There are many dinners and banquets. The DXers, Contesters, and 160 Meter folks all have their own dinners. There are radio club hospitality suites and pizza parties that go on until the wee hours of the morning. There is an unbelievable amount of new and used equipment for sale inside and outside of the Hara Arena. Every parking space there is available for a spot to buy or sell new and used equipment, or as a place for your radio club to show it's colors and pick up some new members. There are many hamfests around the world, but Dayton is the grand-daddy of them all. I had a really great time there this year. My brother Jeff drove over from Indiana and spent a day walking the hamfest with me and attending one of our dinners. I hope he joins us again next year. I am working on an album of all my pics from the trip and will link it to the top photo below when I am done.
------------------------------------------------------------ -------------------------
03/16/08 - My good friend Lew Reinberg W2BIE becomes a "Silent Key".
How can you put a value on a friendship? What is it worth to have a friend who calls you every day just to see how you are feeling? Where can you find a friend who encourages you to achieve more then you ever thought you could? What can you say about someone who was always there to help you when you needed them? "Lew, my rotor control box is broken and there's a big DX contest on tomorrow!" Lew would say, "Come over. I have a brand new one here. Take it. Bring it back whenever you get another one." That was Lew. Lew Reinberg W2BIE was the definition of someone who knew how to give more than take. To say his name without including his Amateur Radio callsign would just be wrong. Amateur Radio was an integral part of him. First licensed in 1953 Lew devoted most of his life to Amateur Radio chasing DX and performing a public service as a net control station in the Radio Amateur Civil Emergency Service (RACES). Lew was an officer in the Long Island Mobile Amateur Radio Club (LIMARC). He was a member of the American Radio Relay League (ARRL) and the Long Island DX Association (LIDXA). He loved Amateur Radio second only to his family. Family still came first, but radio became part of their lives too. Lew was a deeply religious person. He observed the Sabbath and chose not to go on the radio during times of religious observance. Many remember Lew working for Barry Electronics and Azden Radio. He also worked in the camera business for many years. There is no way to replace a friend like Lew. We can only remember his best qualities and attempt to make them part of our own lives. I will miss his always-smiling face and constant jokes. May his spirit live on like a radio wave that passes through the atmosphere and travels through space forever. 73 Lewie. You will always be 5 and 9 in our log.
------------------------------------------------------------ -------------------------
03/13/2008 - Master drummer John Favicchia doing a drum clinic at Sam Ash, Huntington Station, New York.
------------------------------------------------------------ -------------------------
03/09/08 - The Blur Division at Wantagh Public Library, Wantagh, New York.
------------------------------------------------------------ -------------------------
02/24/08 - I passed the Amateur Radio Extra Class License Exam.
I've been a licensed Amateur Radio operator since 1978. For thirty years I always thought that attaining the distinction of Amateur Radio Extra Class, the highest class of license, was something that I could never attain. I have proved myself wrong again. For three days last week I did nothing but answer practice exam questions on QRZ.com. There were 741 questions in the pool of questions. The test is multiple choice and fifty questions long. Using the excellent practice test program I answered well over one thousand questions each day until the answers became familiar to me. My test scores went from FAIL to PASS as I studied. I was very nervous when it came time to take the test. I remember that I could not even get my papers back into the envelope after I showed them to the examiner. I broke the lead in both my pencils during the test. But when all was said and done I received a "Good work!" comment from the last V.E. (volunteer examiner) to grade my paper. I want to thank QRZ.com for their excellent site, and also the V.E.'s for their encouragement and service to Amateur Radio.
------------------------------------------------------------ -------------------------
12/20/07 - "A City Singing at Christmas" at St. Patrick's Cathedral
It was a standing room only crowd at this fantastic 28th annual holiday concert at St. Patrick's. The choirs sang individually and together. The audience sang too. At the end, candles were passed out to everyone and the house lights dimmed as we all sang "Oh Holy Night". All I can say is "You should have been there!"
The Cathedral of Saint Patrick Choir, Dr. Jennifer Pascual, Director
The Young People's Chorus of New York, Francisco Nunez, Director
The Queens College Choir, James John, Conductor
The Queens College Chorus, Cindy Bell, Conductor
The Cathedral Organs and the New York Symphonic Brass
------------------------------------------------------------ -------------------------
11/26/07 - We Rotisserie a 12 Lb Turkey on the BBQ
One of the great pleasures of Thanksgiving is usually the leftover turkey you get to eat for days after the holiday. The problem this year was that our big turkey was so good that everyone wanted some to take home. By the time we were done making up packages the only thing left was two drumsticks. So we decided to make another turkey, although half the size, just so we could have a few days of turkey leftovers. This was my first time using the rotisserie on my gas grill. I had two problems. The first was that after a while the breast side of the turkey got too heavy for the rotisserie to spin it. So I quickly added some more weight to the counter-balance mounted on the spit. I used a small plastic water bottle, some tower bolts, and duct tape. The second problem was that the roast thermometer inserted in the leg read 180F too soon. After removing the bird from the spit I noticed the juices still had some red. The digital thermometer showed 161F. So out it went onto the grill in a roasting pan for a few minutes to finish up. That worked out fine. Now we have a big container of leftover turkey to enjoy for days.
------------------------------------------------------------ -------------------------
11/22/07 - Our Thanksgiving Holiday
It's my opinion that every day is a day to give thanks. However, once a year giving thanks comes along with the logistical nightmare of orchestrating a belly-busting meal for a house full of family and friends. You know you've bitten off more then you can chew when you have to tell the guests to bring their own chairs, and when the line of folding aluminum tables extends from the back of the house to the front of the house. This is Thanksgiving at it's best and worst. This year my job was made a little easier thanks to the wonders of modern technology. The guest of honor, our 24 Lb turkey, expressed his last wishes to me privately. I will share them with you now. He was having some jeolousy issues. All the other turkeys had a bluetooth device and he had none. So, as a last wish, I outfitted Mr. Turkey with a special probe that transmits temperature data to a remote receiver. Once the USDA recommended temperature of 180F degrees was achieved the receiver's alarm sounded and Mr. Turkey was done to perfection. A perfect bird every time!
------------------------------------------------------------ -------------------------
11/21/07 - John Favicchia & The Dharma All-Stars at DJ Riders in Oceanside, NY
In what has become an annual pre-Thanksgiving tradition, the Dharma All-Stars put on a fantastic high energy show in front of a standing room only crowd at DJ Riders. Thanks to John Fav & The Dharma All-Stars for keeping Jazz Fusion alive and well out on Long Island!
Chieli Minucci - guitar
Carl Fischer - horns
Fredrick Las Fargeas - keyboards
Mike Nunno - bass
John Fav - drums
Carl Fischer, Chieli Minucci, John Fav, Mike Nunno, Fredrick Las Fargeas
http://www.myspace.com/dharmaallstars
------------------------------------------------------------ -------------------------
11/03/07 - We went for a drive to Delaware and Washington DC
Here is the Capitol Building at night
------------------------------------------------------------ -------------------------
11/01/07 - Jamhunters & vocalist Christina Boelskifte at Googies Lounge, NYC
Lars, Peter, and Christina came in from Copenhagen for this wonderful debut performance in New York. Their excellent smooth jazz was just what I needed to relax. I hope they come back soon.
Lars Fabiansen-guitars
Peter Michael- keyboards
Christina Boelskifte, vocals
Venue: Googies Lounge (above the Living Room) 154 Ludlow St. NYC
To see the photo album click the photo
http://www.myspace.com/jamhunters
------------------------------------------------------------ -------------------------
10/21/07 - Autumn Choral Concert - Music from Switzerland
The Queens College Choir & The Queens College Vocal Ensemble
James John, Dir. of Choral Activities
Raphael Immoos, Guest Conductor
Guest Artists:
Karyn Stewart, Soprano
H. William Glazier, Piano
Emily John, Harp
Venue: St. John's Lutheran Church, 81 Christopher St., NYC
To see the photo album click the photo
------------------------------------------------------------ -------------------------
10/09/07 - John Favicchia held a drum clinic at DJ Riders in Oceanside, New York
John covered some of the elements of drumming and then raffled off some goodies from his sponsors.
================================================
AMATEUR RADIO SECTION
07/17/07 - John W2GD, Bill W2RQ and I did some antenna work on the tower
John & Bill arrived from Pennsylvania and New Jersey at 10:00am. We all worked straight through until 8:00pm non-stop until the tower was down, antenna work done, and then put back up. Thanks to John & Bill for coming over and working so hard. Everything looks great and my TH-11DX is looking as good as new.
------------------------------------------------------------ -------------------------
06/23/07 - Amateur Radio Field Day with the SPARC/HBO ARC
I was invited to participate in Amateur Radio Field Day with the Suffolk Police Amateur Radio Club/Home Box Office Amateur Radio Club Team. The purpose of Field Day is to test our ability to set up equipment in a remote location and provide emergency communications for a 24 hour period while operating on auxilliary power. Teams all over the United States and Canada participated in this event. The weather was fantastic and everyone had a great time.
To see the photo album click on the photo
------------------------------------------------------------ -------------------------
06/11/07 - Worked 3B7SP St. Brandon Island: I am pleased to report that I was able to work the 3B7SP DXpedition to St. Brandon Island today on 20m SSB for an all time new one. I subsequently worked them on 17m SSB on 06/14/07 as well. This DXpedition was orignally headed to 3B6 Agalega Island when their boat lost a motor and sail. They had to be towed into port for repairs on 3B7 St. Brandon Island. Fortunately they are all OK. These guys are unstoppable! They obtained permission to operate from 3B7 St. Brandon Island and put on a fantastic operation from there. Many thanks to this team!!! #328 incl 3 deleted.
------------------------------------------------------------ -------------------------
06/07/07 - The OH2BH - W2BIE Amateur Radio Friendship Dinner
This wonderful dinner celebrated the longstanding friendship between two fine Amateur Radio Operators. Lew Reinberg W2BIE of Long Island, New York & Martti Laine OH2BH of Helsinki, Finland.
My friend Lew W2BIE: For forty years, as an amateur radio operator, Lew devoted himself to contacting all the American Radio Relay League DXCC entities on the planet. These entities can consist of countries, possessions, states like Alaska & Hawaii removed from the main country by many miles, and islands. There are currently 337 such entities located around the world. A contact occurs when radio operators on both sides are able to successfully exchange at least two pieces of contact information such as their callsigns and a signal report. As of the end of April Lew had worked them all except one called Scarborough Reef. Scarborough Reef consists of a few small group of rocks far off the coast of Manila in the South China Sea. The only way to operate there is to construct small platforms on the rocks and sit on top of them along with your radio equipment, generator, antennas, food, and gasoline. No Amateur Radio team had gone there in many years. Tens of thousands of radio operators have been waiting years for a team to go back to Scarborough Reef and put it on the air. If Lew were to make a contact with Scarborough Reef his forty year quest to achieve the coveted #1 Honor Roll Award from the ARRL would be complete. Two years ago Lew went into a diabetic coma and had a stroke while in the hospital. For a while it was looking like Lew might never get to achieve his goal. The doctors weren't making any promises. I went to the hospital where Lew lay motionless in a coma. I held his hand and told him that his radio friend Martti Laine OH2BH was calling him from Scarborough Reef, and he had to wake up, get on the radio, and make that last needed contact. There was no response from Lew. I left to go home. The next day I returned to the hospital. Lew was sitting up in his bed, reading the newspaper, and watching a ball game on TV. I couldn't believe his overnight recovery! This "gentleman of amateur radio" was not to be counted out so fast. While Lew was in rehabilitation I wrote emails to Martti OH2BH, Jim Smith VK9NS, and others to ask them to call Lew to cheer him up. Sure enough, the phone starts ringing and Lew feels fantastic after those calls to him come in. It definately helped in his recovery.
My friend Martti OH2BH: Some of the ARRL DXCC entities are located in the most inhospitable and dangerous places on Earth. The brave operators who go to these places sometimes put themselves at great personal risk for the benefit of giving the rest of us Radio Amateurs a contact with a rare entity. Many finance all, or part, of these expensive operations themselves. In some cases it can take many years for a "DXpedition" to be planned, funded, and executed. It can involve negotiating with governments, purchasing equipment and supplies, lining up sponsors, hiring vessels and helicopters, and selecting members with the required skills to perform under adverse conditions. Martti Laine OH2BH is one of the finest DXpeditioners who has ever lived. When we hear that Martti Laine is part of a DXpedition we know it's going to be done correctly. He is a great operator. He never loses his composure even with thousands of operators calling him at the same time. He always makes it look easy.
The Friendship Develops: Over the years, when Martti traveled to every corner of the Earth to do a DXpedition, Lew was always out there calling him to make a contact from his station here on Long Island. Lew also worked at Barry Electronics and Azden Radio where he would hear from Martti when he needed some equipment. Although they never met in person, a strong friendship developed between them over time.
Martti Makes It Come True: Two years after Lew came out of his coma, after I told him that "fabrication" about Martti Laine calling him from Scarborough Reef, it is announced that there will actually be a DXpedition to Scarborough Reef from 04/29/07 to 05/06/07, and Martti Laine will be one of the operators. I managed to contact the team, who used the callsign BS7H, with considerable difficulty. My voice was sore from calling them for three hours. Conditions were not good into the Northeast USA from Scarborough Reef. Lew had all but given up. He was running out of strength to call them. With only one full day left to the operation, I called Lew on the phone and pleaded with him. I asked him to go down the stairs to his radio room the next morning, which isn't easy after having his stroke, and try to contact them one more time. There would only be a short window of opportunity in the morning. Maybe three hours at most. I had no idea who the operator would be. Sure enough, the next morning, I went down to my radio shack and turned on the radio just in time to hear Martti Laine telling everyone to stand by so he can talk to his friend Lew W2BIE. Lew had made it through. In the midst of one of the biggest pileups of all time Martti took the time to ask Lew how he was feeling. Two years later Martti made my words come true. I couldn't believe it. This is an incredible story that could only happen in real life.
To see the photo album click on the photo below
Steve KU9C presents the certificates to Lew W2BIE & Martti OH2BH
http://scarboroughreef.com/
Photo: The OH2BH - W2BIE Ultimate Friendship Award
The yellow circle shows the rock and platform where Martti was operating from.
------------------------------------------------------------ -------------------------
05/02/07 - Worked BS7H Scarborough Reef: I am pleased to report that I was able to work the BS7H DXpedition to Scarborough Reef today on 20m SSB for an all time new one. I called from 7:00am to 10:14am local time when I finally made it through the pileup. #327 incl 3 deleted.
------------------------------------------------------------ -------------------------
Which is faster? Text Messaging or Morse Code
Morse Code Vs. SMS
..================================================